Natsu sniffed once, frowned, sniffed again. "The grave is that way," he said, pointing east.
Kazu eyed the direction, then at the opposite slope. "Funny. My instincts say she's that way."
Both stared at each other, their fingers aimed in opposite directions like two broken compasses.
Natsu scratched his head. "Maybe your instincts caught a cold."
"Or maybe your nose found lunch."
Natsu grinned. "Heh. Don't be jealous just 'cause I've got a better sense of smell."
"Smelling burnt trees doesn't count as talent." Kazu started walking west, calm and decisive.
"You're ignoring me?"
"Leadership privilege."
For once, Natsu didn't argue. Maybe because deep down he knew Kazu's weird gut feelings tended to work. So he shrugged, adjusted his scarf, and followed.
"Fine, it's your trial anyway. But if we get lost, I'm blaming your instincts."
"That's fair," Kazu said without looking back. "And if we find Mavis's grave, I'll take full credit."
"Oi!"
***
The "path" Kazu chose wasn't exactly a path — more like a collection of stubborn roots and bushes conspiring against human ankles.
Ten minutes in, Natsu had already punched three trees.
"Stop fighting the scenery," Kazu said flatly.
"They started it!"
A soft growl rolled from ahead. Both froze. Out of the ferns rolled a Rollidillo — a wagon-sized, armadillo-like beast with steel-grey plates and thorned spines that shimmered with green ethernano.
Natsu's grin widened. "Finally, something fun!"
Kazu sighed. "Remember, conserve your energy."
"Yeah, yeah— FIRE DRAGON'S IRON FIST!"
The Rollidillo never even got a second growl. It bounced once, twice, and sailed into the horizon like a poorly thrown ball.
"Conserved enough," Natsu said, dusting his hands.
"Mm. Efficient."
They moved on.
Next came a Clipper — a hawk-sized predator with translucent wings and a beak that crackled with lightning. It tried to swoop from above but met a spinning uppercut of fire and disintegrated mid-air.
Then a Bakshi, a smoky wolf with eyes like hot coals, lunged from a hollow trunk. Natsu's roar burned it back into mist.
Kazu walked behind, hands in pockets, expression unreadable. Every now and then, his gaze flicked left or right, feeling for invisible threads in the air — the pull of his instincts.
"You're not fighting at all," Natsu called over his shoulder. "You sure you're not slacking?"
"I am looking out for ambushes," Kazu replied.
Natsu turned, walking backwards. "But… you're just watching me work?"
"Exactly. That's because you look pretty ambushable."
"Grr— you—!"
A massive shadow cut him off. A second Rollidillo, larger than the first, dropped from a cliff right in front of them.
Natsu cracked his knuckles. "Round two!"
But the creature's eyes suddenly glazed over — its body stiffening before collapsing, unconscious.
Natsu blinked. "Uh… what?"
Kazu lowered his hand, faint blue light fading from his fingertips. "Sleep variant Barrier."
They resumed walking, smoke curling behind them like lazy punctuation marks in the forest's humid air.
Eventually, their paths merged — Natsu's "smell" and Kazu's "instinct" pointing in the same direction.
"Guess we're both right," Natsu said, half-smug.
Kazu rolled his eyes. 'So, my instincts pointed this way was probably to avoid running into other teams. Neat.'
By late afternoon, the forest opened into a quiet clearing where the air felt oddly… aware. Even the insects paused mid-buzz.
Kazu's instincts prickled like static under his skin. He stopped, scanning the space ahead.
Natsu tilted his head. "What's up?"
"There's… someone here."
Natsu looked around — saw nothing but trees. "You see someone?"
"No."
"Smell?"
"No."
"Then— wait. Is it a ghost?!"
Kazu didn't answer. His eyes narrowed, tracing the subtle distortion in space, like heat haze. "Feels… weird."
Natsu immediately backed away, waving his hands. "Nope! Nope! I don't do ghosts! Fire beats a lot of things, but not death!"
Something giggled. The sound came from everywhere and nowhere.
Kazu turned toward it slowly. "You heard that?"
Natsu clung to his shoulder. "Heard it? It's right in my soul! We're haunted!"
Leaves rustled. A branch tapped Kazu's shoulder, even though no wind blew.
Kazu exhaled, unimpressed. "It's probably some weird bird causing noises... or maybe the soul of an old granny, who didn't get peace."
The air shimmered — and a petite blonde in a white dress appeared, hands on her hips. "Granny?! I am barely 24!"
Natsu screamed so hard that a flock of birds evacuated the trees. Then promptly fainted. Kazu had instinctively put barriers on his ears. Otherwise, he might have become deaf today.
Kazu crouched beside him, checked his pulse, and looked back up with a faint smirk. "You revealed yourself faster than expected."
The woman blinked, caught between offence and disbelief. "You knew I was here?"
"Just a feeling in my guts. I thought it was some small insect or something."
Her brow twitched. "You make me sound like a mosquito."
"An ancient one."
Her jaw dropped. "You're awfully cheeky for a child."
Kazu just shrugged. "You're awfully talkative for a projection."
That shut her up for a moment.
"You're very sure of yourself for a thirteen-year-old," she said after a few moments.
"Comes with near-death experiences," Kazu replied dryly.
"Still, this is really shocking. First Second master, now the first too. Aren't both of you over a hundred years old? How are you alive?"
Mavis rolled her eyes. "Ahem. My situation is a bit complicated, but I am technically dead."
"Then, how are you talking with me?"
"It's complicated!" Mavis exclaimed in frustration.
Kazu blinked. He blankly stared at her.
"Ahem! It's been a while since I talked with somebody. Sorry about that." Her expression looked apologetic. She didn't think she would erupt at a kid.
"It's fine. Happens to the best of us." It has happened multiple times with Kazu, so he could relate to that.
"Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something—about Fairy Glitter."
Her tone sharpened. "You know of it?"
"Master Makarov gave me access to that and the Fairy sphere. Fairy Sphere is too complicated, and Glitter is written down partially only. I'd prefer a complete one."
Mavis blinked. "He entrusted you with that?"
Kazu didn't flinch. "Apparently, yes."
She frowned, still mildly offended that he'd outsmarted her earlier. "And why should I give you the rest?" She decided to act a bit petty with this kid for a bit.
Kazu hummed. "Figured. It would have been too easy. How about we make an exchange?"
"Exchange?"
Kazu nodded. "Exchange of spells. Something worthy enough for the other part of Fairy Glitter."
Mavis lifted a brow. Her face morphed into an amused smile. "Oh? Which spell?" 'He doesn't look stupid. Does he not know the full worth of Fairy Glitter? Unlike Law, this one doesn't take lifespan. However, the complexity is way too high. Not even Precht was able to learn that in a limited time.'
Kazu lifted his hand, releasing faint strands of blue ethernano that twined together, forming a barrier before disintegrating in a burst of cancelling sparks.
Her eyes widened. "That was—"
"Destructive Interference. It's my own creation."
Mavis's voice trailed off mid-sentence. "Expert-level… wait—no…" Her pupils dilated as she analysed what she had just seen. "Wanderer-tier…? You created this?"
"Needed something like this to become S-rank with a low amount of Ethernano," Kazu said plainly. However, it didn't hide the smugness in his voice.
Mavis's mouth opened, closed, then opened again. "You're impossible. You really are a kid."
"Statistically rare," he corrected.
She gave him the most un-ghostly scowl imaginable. "Do all your conversations end with you winning?"
Kazu thought for a moment. "Not really. There are even difficult individuals than me in the guild."
Mavis blinked — then laughed, short and bright, surprising even herself. "I can imagine."
As the sound faded, golden runes began tracing themselves across the clearing — Fairy Glitter's full spell matrix. The symbols shimmered like sunlight through water.
Kazu's eyes reflected the patterns, calm, analytical, quietly satisfied.
"Thank you. Here." Kazu waved his hand, showing the magic circle for Destructive Interference.
Mavis studied the circle for a few seconds before nodding. "Well, I don't think I would learn it, because my affinity is not that high. Then again, I have all the time, so maybe I might surprise myself. It won't be boring anymore."
Kazu shrugged. "I can say the same thing for this one. I don't have an affinity with light magic, though I could think of some ways to bypass that limitation. Time would tell if I succeed."
He quickly copied the pattern on the page and then put it away.
"Do you want me to give you a page too? Or better, the same spell drawn?"
Mavis shook her head. "I just memorised it with minor application of one of my spells." She smirked.
"How convenient."
At that moment, Natsu stirred awake. "Ugh... I feel like I had a bad dream. Was there really a ghost?" He turned to Kazu.
Kazu turned to Mavis, but to his surprise, there was nobody. 'I didn't even sense her leaving. How can she hide that projection that easily?'
"Hmm?" Natsu got up.
Kazu shook his head. "There wasn't any ghost. Anyway, let's retrieve the item and head back. I am hungry."
"Same."
Mavis watched the two leave.
"A 13-year-old creating a Wanderer-level spell?... He certainly qualifies for S-rank."
***
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