Cana, after getting treatment from Wendy and Sherria, quickly bounced back to full energy and immediately ran off toward the pub again.
Sherria had originally made plans to go out with Wendy for dessert.
Even though she had been injured today, she had long since healed herself.
Her magic power and stamina had been nearly emptied, but Rhodes restored her magic, Wendy restored her stamina, so not only could she go out, she could even help treat other injured guildmates.
Rhodes went to find Mira, and the couple took their two little girls out for a walk.
Wendy and Sherria held hands as they ran ahead, stopping here and there to look at things, while Rhodes and Mira walked arm-in-arm behind them, taking their time, occasionally pausing to pay for snacks.
Four people with four different hair colors, yet together they looked unmistakably like a family of four.
Before they left, Elfman had wanted to object out of big-brotherly instinct, but after seeing Sherria and Wendy, one a fighter, one a healer, and Rhodes, who could handle both roles, he swallowed his words.
Besides… his sister was only barely a month pregnant, and she could still pin him with one arm if she wanted.
"Do you want this one, or this one?"
Mira blinked at Rhodes, who held a bag of sour plums in one hand and spicy dried fish in the other.
"What do you mean?"
Rhodes grinned.
"There's a saying, sour for boys, spicy for girls. Complete nonsense, but cute."
Mira thought for a moment.
"What if I want both?"
"That's great. Then we're having twins."
Rhodes paid with a pleased smile.
Wendy and Sherria had already run far away, one hated sour, the other hated spicy, so neither dared get too close.
Carla fluttered over, scolding Wendy for sneaking away after the match without telling her.
Wendy quickly introduced Carla to Sherria, and thus another cat-eared girl joined their little group.
The five of them shopped happily until they were satisfied, then finally headed back.
As expected of Fairy Tail, the guild was already holding a celebration.Cana, who had shined brilliantly today, was surrounded on all sides, with everyone lining up to toast her.
She accepted every drink, barrel after barrel, challenging over a dozen people at once and still not losing.
Meanwhile, Gajeel was being mercilessly mocked.
The reason?
"Because your terrible luck ruined Team B's perfect score!"
Gajeel was extremely bitter.
If they had mocked his strength, he could have argued back with names like Jura and Erza…but mocking his luck?
He could only bite down on his fork and knife, producing screeching metallic grinding noises.
Only Lily and Levy stayed with him, patting him gently and telling him not to mind it and to perform well in the next rounds.
Macao and Wakaba, those two perennial uncles, were doing their duty as "responsible elders," chatting politely with Lucy's father, Jude.At first it was a serious conversation, but after a few drinks, and after celebrating for days, they treated the place like it was their own guild hall.
Soon, Macao revealed his true nature, whispering slyly, "Do you know? They released the new Grand Magic Games guide today."
Jude blinked. "Guide?"
Wakaba explained,
"It's a special Weekly Sorcerer issue published during the Games. It has evaluations of every team and every participant."
Jude recalled the reporter from the previous day.
"Sorcerer… that was the newspaper that girl worked for, right?"
He was quietly looking forward to what they would say about Lucy.
But Macao had no interest in that.
He dramatically opened the magazine like it was a treasure chest."Look here! The cover is Miss Jenny of Blue Pegasus, her latest swimsuit photoshoot!"
"Oooh~! Beautiful!"
Wakaba's eyes turned to cartoon hearts, and even his smoke rings puffed out as pink hearts.
Jude: "…"
So this was what Lucy meant by "reliable seniors"…?
Rhodes, hearing the noise, cast a glance over.
It was just Jenny in a swimsuit, nothing he hadn't seen before.
Mira had once promised to take him to the magazine office to watch Jenny's photoshoot in person… But she never did.
Liar.
When night fell, everyone dispersed back to their inns to rest.
But Crime Sorcière remained active beneath the moonlight.
"No mistake. She should have been right here."
Erik, and Ultear had tracked their target to a small village near the Royal Capital.
But the woman had slipped away again.
They searched the entire area.
Suddenly, Ultear's eyes snapped upward.
"She appeared again! Same direction, toward the capital!"
She sprinted forward, alerting the others via her crystal ball. The remaining members converged from different directions.
"Damn it! She runs so fast!"
Erik growled as he chased after her with Ultear.
The streets of the kingdon were never fully dark; during the festival, many shops stayed open until dawn.
Bright lanterns illuminated the night.
Ultear and Erik sealed off both ends of a narrow alley, carefully approaching the center.
The figure in the alley seemed to notice she was being followed.
She pulled her cloak tighter around herself and hurried forward, her steps uneven and panicked.
"Don't even think about escaping again!"
Erik suddenly leapt from the shadows, seized her left wrist, twisted it behind her back, and slammed her against the wall.
"Ah—!"
The cry that escaped her was unmistakably feminine.
Ultear arrived from the opposite end of the alley just in time to see Erik reach up and yank back the hood.
"Let's see who you really..."
A cascade of golden hair spilled out like liquid sunlight.
Ultear and Erik froze at the exact same moment.
"You!? How could it be you?"
Erik instinctively loosened his grip.
This face…
This magic signature…
It was clearly Lucy. Fairy Tail's Lucy Heartfilia!
Lucy blinked up at them, stunned as well.
"Ultear? And… Cobra? Why are you two..?"
Then, after a beat, realization flashed in her eyes.
"Oh! Right! Ultear, you helped us unlock our Second Origin, and then asked us to investigate strange magic signatures. But why are you with Cobra? Did he escape from prison?"
Ultear's expression immediately hardened.
She pressed her crystal ball against Lucy's throat and forcibly pinned her back against the wall.
Her voice dropped to a low, dangerous whisper.
"I may know the method, but I never helped Lucy Heartfilia unlock her Second Origin.
You are not Lucy. Who are you really?"
"C-cough!"
Lucy coughed, startled by the sudden violence.
"What are you talking about!? Before the Games began, you, Meredy, and Jellal FOUND us, and helped us awaken our Second Origin."
Ultear's brows furrowed sharply. "So you still refuse to tell the truth?"
She was already debating whether to use interrogation magic.
But Erik suddenly grabbed her wrist.
"Wait."
"I can hear it. she's telling the absolute truth."
Ultear's eyes widened.
"That's impossible."
Erik turned to Lucy.
"Hey. What's your impression of me?"
"My impression?"
Lucy sensed something was wrong but answered anyway, hoping to prove her identity.
"You're Cobra, the Poison Dragon Slayer. One of the Oración Seis. After the allied forces of four guilds defeated you, you were imprisoned by the Magic Council."
"Four guilds?"
"Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter."
Erik's expression twisted.
He turned to Ultear and whispered,
"It was three guilds. Cait Shelter wasn't real. But, she's still telling the truth."
Ultear inhaled sharply.
"Is something wrong with her memories?"