"Who are you people?"
The guard eyed Kira and his three companions as they approached, his voice sharp with suspicion.
Kira stepped forward, calm and confident. "We're wizards from Fairy Tail, here to take care of the mission."
The first guard glanced at his partner. "Was there something about a magic guild coming?"
"Yeah, I think they mentioned a guild would show up."
"Show us your guild marks," the guard demanded.
This was standard procedure for missions, so the group wasn't fazed. They each revealed their Fairy Tail guild marks. Kira slipped off his jacket, displaying the black Fairy Tail emblem on his left arm.
Truth be told, Kira wasn't a huge fan of tattoos, but in this world, a guild mark was a badge of identity. You just had to roll with it. Over time, he'd gotten used to it. Plus, he vaguely recalled the Fairy Tail mark came with a magical buff, something tied to the guild's first master, Mavis. He couldn't remember the exact effect, but it was basically a cheat code. Who'd complain about an extra edge?
Once the guards confirmed their identities, they opened the gate and led the group to the village chief.
The villagers, including the chief, wore clothes that looked like they belonged to some ancient tribe. The chief stood out, draped in a slightly fancier cloak made of some beast's fur. He was a short, long-eared old man holding a staff topped with a crescent moon. When he saw Kira and the others, his face lit up with a warm, hopeful smile.
"You're finally here, wizards!"
The elderly chief explained the situation, his voice heavy. "As you can see, every living thing on this island—dogs, birds, all of us—has been struck by this curse."
Gray spoke up, skeptical. "Why call it a curse? Couldn't it be some kind of disease?"
The chief shook his head. "We've had dozens of doctors examine us, and they've never seen anything like it. The changes in our bodies are tied to the magic of the moon."
"This island has always absorbed the moon's light, making it radiant and beautiful," he continued. "But a few years ago, the moon turned purple, casting a strange purple glow."
Loke raised an eyebrow. "Purple light? Could it be some kind of light magic?"
The chief's voice grew grim. "When the purple moon rises, our appearances change. We turn into hideous demons."
Gray's eyes widened. "Demons?"
"Yes. During the day, we return to our normal forms, but…"
Cana pressed, "But?"
The chief's expression darkened. "Some of us don't revert back. They lose their minds, their hearts turning demonic. In the end, we've had no choice but to… kill them."
"Kill them? That's harsh!" Cana exclaimed.
"Yeah, if there's a way to fix this, they could be saved, right?" Loke added.
"We had no choice," the chief said, his voice breaking. "If we let them run loose, they'd slaughter everyone. Even locking them up didn't work—they'd break out. My own son was one of them."
He grew more desperate, tears welling up. "Please, great wizards, save this island. Break this curse, or it'll consume everyone's souls!"
The chief's sobs echoed, and the villagers rushed to comfort him. "There's only one way to end the curse," he pleaded. "Destroy the moon!"
Gray blinked. "Huh?!"
Loke echoed, "Destroy the moon?"
Cana laughed incredulously. "How are we supposed to do that?"
The villagers' grim mood and the chief's plea created a heavy atmosphere, perfectly mirrored by Gray, Loke, and Cana's reactions. But Kira? He was unfazed—almost amused. He knew what was really going on but couldn't just blurt it out. As an S-Class wizard, he had to maintain his cool, deductive vibe. So, he opted for a step-by-step approach.
Claiming they needed to investigate, Kira led the group out of the village and into the depths of the forest.
On the way, Gray, Loke, and Cana started tossing around theories.
"No matter how you look at it, destroying the moon's impossible, right?" Gray said, still hung up on the idea.
Loke, more level-headed, chimed in. "I'm guessing it's some kind of magic affecting only the people and animals on this island."
"Magic?" Cana mused. "Like Mirajane's Take Over magic?"
Loke shook his head. "No way the entire island, animals included, has Take Over magic talent. And there aren't enough demons for that many transformations. It's gotta be something else."
Kira smirked inwardly at Loke's assumption. Not enough demons? Think again.
Cana tilted her head. "The moon turning purple and giving off purple light… could it be light magic? Loke, ever heard of anything like that?"
"Nope, nothing like it," Loke admitted.
They turned to Kira. "What's your take, Kira? What's the plan?"
Seeing their cluelessness, Kira suppressed a grin but sighed dramatically. "This is why there's a gap between you guys and an S-Class wizard. Don't you ever gather intel before a mission?"
"Huh?" Gray asked.
"Before we set out, I did some digging," Kira said, launching into a half-improvised explanation. "Galuna Island has a long history, recorded in some libraries. It's known for gathering moonlight, channeling it into a powerful lunar force, which is why it was once called the Moon Island. But it's also known as Demon Island—because its residents aren't human. They're demons."
"Nani?!" the three exclaimed in unison, stopping dead in their tracks.
Gray gaped. "You're saying they're not turning into demons because of the moon—they're already demons?"
"Exactly," Kira said.
Cana frowned. "Hold on. They looked human to us, didn't they?"
"According to the records, transforming into humans is their innate ability. So, during the day, they're the ones changing. At night, they revert to their true demonic forms."
Loke, deep in thought, asked, "If they're really demons, why lie and say the moon's curse is turning them into demons? And the villagers' reactions…"
"Something's affecting their bodies—specifically, their memories," Kira explained. "They genuinely believe they're human."
"The purple moon?" Cana asked.
"The purple moon they see is likely tied to their physical changes. There are two possibilities. One: it's a biological virus messing with their bodies, causing memory distortion and affecting their vision. Or two: if we see a purple moon tonight, it's a magical effect covering the whole island, altering the moonlight to purple and tampering with their memories. Given the situation, I'm leaning toward the second."
Ha, nailed the explanation. I'm a genius! Kira thought, pleased with how he'd tied it all together.