The next morning, Lyla slung his backpack over one shoulder and teleported straight to the front of the guild.
His sudden appearance gave Makarov such a fright that the old man immediately whacked him with a cane.
"You scared the crap outta me! Kid, quit popping out of nowhere like that!"
"Sorry, old man! Can you return this book for me?" Lyla rubbed his head. It didn't hurt, but he used the moment to pass the First Master's book back to Makarov. "I'm heading out today."
"Yeah, yeah, off you go. And next time, don't scare people like that." Makarov waved him off, still grumbling.
"Later, old man!" Lyla grinned, then teleported away again.
Makarov stared at the spot where he vanished.
"Should we set up a designated teleportation zone? No wait, when did that kid learn teleportation magic?!"
"Grandpa, let's go!"
Lyla and August arrived at Tenrou Island, a small, sacred land far out in the seas beyond Fiore.
The island's unique shape made it look like two smaller islands fused at the base of a giant tree, the Tenrou Tree, which towered above the forest canopy. Strange creatures roamed the island. It was said that once, a guild had existed here.
Standing beneath the massive tree, Lyla could feel magic energy streaming endlessly into his body.
It's the Tenrou Tree, he thought. No wonder this place is a training paradise.
He followed August as they ventured deeper into the forest.
Along the way, they saw rare creatures, squirrels unique to Tenrou Island with tufts of feathers on their heads, blue turtles with crests like roosters, and one peculiar beast with a rainbow-colored prism growing out of its back.
Then, they came upon the ruins of a city. In the distance stood a large, dilapidated building with a red lizard symbol carved above the door. A sign on the ground read: Red Lizard.
They kept walking. Past a dark cave, the trees opened to reveal a grave, modest, serene, but unmistakably sacred.
It was the resting place of the First Master, Mavis Vermillion. Someone had left a few chrysanthemums at the grave.
And standing beside it, was a girl.
She floated barefoot in the air, her long golden hair swaying gently in the breeze. She had soft emerald eyes, tiny wings above her head, and wore a delicate white-and-pink dress that gave her the look of a fairy spirit.
"Are you… here to see me?" her voice chimed gently.
Lyla froze.
"F-First Master? You're alive?!"
His reaction wasn't feigned. This was the real, living Mavis in spirit form, adorable and vivid.
It's really her. She's so cute! It's really Mavis, alive! Alive!!
"You're Lyla, aren't you?" Mavis asked, smiling sweetly.
"Huh?! How do you know my name?" Lyla was stunned.
"It was I who told her," said August, his voice calm behind him.
Lyla's brain short-circuited.
Wait, what? Grandpa told her? That means... he already met Mavis?! Talked to her?! Told her about me?!
Mavis gently patted his head, trying to soothe his dazed expression.
"Yes, little Lyla. Your grandpa came to see me last night."
"You came yesterday? What for?" Lyla asked.
"To bring flowers… and pay respects to my mother."
"…Your mother?" Lyla's gaze darted toward Mavis's grave… then back to Mavis herself.
August nodded.
That did it. Lyla couldn't keep up anymore. His gaze swung between Mavis and August, back and forth, eyes wide with disbelief.
Wasn't this emotional reunion supposed to happen today?! What happened to the script?!
August began to explain.
Last night, after returning to his room, August couldn't calm his thoughts. The stories in the First Master's book had shaken something deep inside him. So he left, buying flowers along the way, and made his way to Tenrou Island.
When he arrived, he immediately sensed a presence, Mavis's spirit at the grave, surrounded by a soft, radiant glow.
Activating his Divine Eye Magic, August saw her clearly. The same face from his childhood… standing right in front of him.
Tears fell down his cheeks.
Mavis, sensing something strange in this man she didn't recognize but somehow did, saw the flowers in his hands, and asked who he was.
That night, August told her everything.
"Wait wait wait!" Lyla snapped. "You're skipping the most important part! What happened after?! Where's the hug?! The crying?! The reunion scene?!"
August coughed into his hand awkwardly. "Ahem. That's… all there is."
Lyla looked like he was about to riot. "That's it?! That's the whole emotional payoff?!"
One look from August shut him up. That stare had real consequences.
"That's just how it happened, Lyla," Mavis said with a cheeky smile, hands on her hips.
"…I'm glad," Lyla whispered. He looked at the two of them standing together, smiling.
A happy ending. Not the tragic, lonely farewell he remembered.
"Oh right! First Master! I brought a camera. Let's take a picture together!" Lyla eagerly pulled it out of his backpack.
"I'm just a ghost," Mavis said, wistfully. "The camera won't capture me."
"Hmm… maybe there's a way," August said, turning to Lyla.
Lyla blinked in confusion, then realized what his grandfather meant.
Wait, you're going to… manifest her? That's cheating!
Without another word, August raised a hand and manifested a physical body for Mavis. It had no consciousness, just a vessel.
Lyla pouted. This man just casually duplicates people like it's nothing. Instant Manifestation Magic is broken!
"This is… Arc of Embodiment?" Mavis studied the body before her. She recognized the magic at once. There was no magic circle, just pure thought turned into form.
"I saw my mother's appearance when I was young. Recreating her isn't difficult. And my magic reserves can maintain the form for a long time," August explained.
"But how will her spirit enter it?" Lyla asked.
August formed a magic circle in the air, and it enveloped Mavis's ghostly form. Light shone brightly as her soul merged into the body.
"This spell?" Lyla asked.
"An advanced Soul Attachment Spell. It was taught to me by a friend."
At that, Lyla's mind instantly conjured the image of a crimson-haired woman.
The light faded. Mavis now lay unconscious in her new body.
The soul-body fusion process needed time. After so long in ghost form, Mavis would have to adjust to physical life again.
"Thank you, Grandpa," Lyla said softly.
"…For what?"
"For taking me in."
"No need. I should be thanking you too."
"…Mhm."
But even as he smiled, Lyla still felt unsettled. Things had moved too fast. There were too many pieces he hadn't put together yet.
What exactly happened last night?
He wanted to ask, but the words caught in his throat.
For a long time, neither of them said anything. They simply sat in silence, watching Mavis.
Her ghostly form faded gradually, fully merging into her new body.
The wind rustled the leaves overhead. The Tenrou Tree stood tall and silent, bearing witness.
A new chapter had begun.
<150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter>