Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall, the celebration party for the Magic Parade was in full swing.
Members gathered around long tavern tables, feasting, drinking, and laughing. Some were still dressed in their parade costumes, others were on stage playing guitar, banging drums, or singing their hearts out. The rhythm of the music blended with the crowd's laughter, reaching a joyous climax.
Everyone here had found a sense of belonging, this was a place of warmth, shared memories, and stories waiting to be written.
The next day, Master Makarov rallied everyone to help repair the city.
As was tradition after every Harvest Festival, Fairy Tail would assist the townspeople in cleaning up the inevitable chaos caused by... well, them. After all, when the whole town partied too hard, someone had to pick up the pieces.
Because of this, Lyla and August waited an extra day before heading to the guild.
Now, standing before the iconic guild doors, Lyla gazed up in silence. The building, so vivid in his memories yet once out of reach, now stood tangible and real before him.
August stepped forward and knocked. It was still early morning; the guild hall inside was quiet.
Lyla peeked inside. Most of the people he saw he didn't recognize, this was still an earlier era, after all. Then his gaze landed on the small figure perched on the reception counter.
Makarov Dreyar.
At that moment, Makarov's sharp gaze landed on August.
"You are?" Makarov hopped down from the counter, his expression suddenly serious. He hadn't sensed the man's presence at all, only when he laid eyes on him did he realize the immense magical pressure this stranger carried. And that was likely on purpose.
"My name is August. You're Master Makarov, yes?"
"…That's right," Makarov replied, eyes narrowing. The name didn't ring a bell. No record of such a powerful mage existed in Fiore.
Yet the depth of this man's magic far surpassed even God Serena, the top of the Four Gods of Ishgar.
Meanwhile, Lyla thought to himself, How did Makarov get even shorter when he got old? He was already small, but come on… Manga logic makes no sense sometimes.
"I'm from the Western Continent," August explained calmly. "I met this child during my travels. Circumstances require that I return soon, but I don't want to take him with me, and I don't want him wandering without a home either. Things in the Western Continent… aren't exactly peaceful right now. So I'd like to ask if you'd accept him into your guild."
Makarov frowned slightly, glancing toward Lyla. He didn't know much about the West, but he'd heard the rumors, conflict, instability, war. Not a place for a child.
"Hello, Master. I'd like to join Fairy Tail!" Lyla chimed in suddenly, having spent the whole time studying the guild's interior with starry-eyed awe.
He'd wanted to run around and inspect every corner already, but had held back until he was officially a member.
Makarov thought for a moment, then nodded.
"…Alright. You're in."
August smiled at the response.
"Lyla, I'll be heading back now. Make sure you listen to the Master. Don't go causing trouble."
"Don't worry, Grandpa! I won't stir up anything," Lyla said, grinning brightly.
That smile is exactly why I'm worried, August thought silently, sighing. He gave Makarov a polite farewell before turning to leave.
"You're Lyla, huh? What's your full name?" Makarov asked as soon as August stepped out the door.
"Lyla Sloan, age seven."
"What kind of magic do you use?" the Master asked, curious.
"My magic is Arc of Embodiment, and I also know Ancient Text Magic."
"Arc of Embodiment? And Ancient Text Magic too?" Makarov raised an eyebrow, visibly impressed.
Both were ancient magics, one of which was categorized as Lost Magic.
No wonder, he thought. If that man August was his teacher… it makes sense this kid would have rare talents too.
"It's not that big of a deal," Lyla said casually, waving his hand. "They're just normal spells, really."
Makarov chuckled, he could already tell this kid liked playing it cool.
"Alright, Lyla. Where do you want your guild mark?"
"Hmm… make it black, on my right arm."
Makarov stamped the Fairy Tail emblem onto Lyla's skin, officially marking his entry.
"Done. Over there is the request board, you can check out any jobs you're eligible for. Or you can partner up with other members. Your Ancient Text Magic might come in handy, maybe even as our new intel division," he added with a wink.
At that moment, Macao and Wakaba walked in.
"Macao! Wakaba! Over here, we've got a new member: Lyla."
"Yo, I'm Macao Conbolt, I use Purple Flare Magic."
"I'm Wakaba Mine, and I use Smoke Magic."
"I'm Lyla Sloan, and I use Arc of Embodiment and Ancient Text Magic. Pleased to meet you, seniors!"
"'Seniors'? Hah! You've got manners, kid," Wakaba laughed.
"Yeah, not bad at all," Macao added, giving Lyla a friendly grin. "If you ever need backup, we've got your back."
"So, these magic types of yours, what do they actually do?"
"They're ancient magic," Lyla replied. "Arc of Embodiment lets me turn my imagination into reality. Ancient Text Magic allows me to search, compress, and analyze knowledge and information. In fact, the current Magic Council Chairman uses that exact spell."
As he spoke, Lyla demonstrated, materializing Macao and Wakaba using Arc of Embodiment, then showing off a visual data interface using Ancient Text.
"Whoa… those are us?" Macao stared at his replica.
"How strong are they?" Wakaba asked, inspecting his double.
"There are limitations," Lyla explained. "First, the stronger the person, the more mana it takes to summon them. My reserves aren't high enough yet to recreate someone like Master Makarov.
Second, the more I know about someone, the more accurate the summon. So right now, their strength is… uncertain."
"Wait, so if you get strong enough and know us better, you could recreate us at full power?!"
"Exactly. But even then, they're still just copies, and maintaining them puts a huge strain on me mentally."
"Alright, alright," Makarov cut in, seeing that the two older mages were about to get way too excited. "Lyla just joined. Why don't you two give him a proper tour of the guild and introduce him to the others?"
"Yes, sir!"
"Come on, Lyla, this way," Macao said, clapping a hand on his shoulder.
Wakaba grinned. "Let's show you around."
As the three of them walked off, Makarov chuckled to himself and thought, Time to start writing letters. I can't wait to brag to the others, our guild just picked up another absolute monster of a kid.
<150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter>