Gray stepped forward, intending to pull Erza off Ultear's back.
"Erza, you should—"
Before he could finish, Shane lifted a hand to block him.
"Let me finish questioning her first. You'll have plenty of time to talk after."
Ultear turned her head slightly; loose hair dropped over half her face. "I have nothing to say to him."
"So that means," Shane picked up smoothly, "you do have something to say to us?"
Her eyes slid over the three of them and settled on his. She let out a quiet breath, voice oddly calm, like someone resigning herself. "I still have things I must do. I can't die here. You went to all this trouble to find me. If I don't cooperate, would you really just let me go?"
"You are smart," Shane said, his gaze drifting—pointedly—over to Gray.
Gray bristled. "What's that look supposed to mean? Just say she's smart and leave me out of it!"
Shane ignored him and locked back onto Ultear. "Tell me where Brain is."
"I don't know." Her answer was sharp and immediate—she didn't even blink.
Shane's hand rose, flame beginning to gather in his palm.
"I really don't know," she added quickly, feeling the tips of her hair grow hot.
Useless, Shane thought, annoyed. Don't tell me we did all this for nothing.
Seeing his expression shift—and remembering that this guy absolutely would hit her—Ultear bit her lip and spoke up. "Why are you looking for Brain in the first place?"
"Brain is the one behind the Tower of Heaven," Erza said before Shane could, her voice unnervingly calm, undercut by steely resolve. "We're going to find him—and kill him."
"For revenge, huh?" Ultear gave a crooked, bitter smile.
"Not just that," Shane cut in. "We don't plan to let him keep kidnapping children and running experiments on them."
At "human experiments," Ultear's smirk faltered. Her fingers curled reflexively. "What do experiments have to do with you? Don't dress it up with noble excuses."
"Can't we just say we don't like the guy?" Shane really hated arguing morality. He manifested the black blade again.
The mirrored steel reflected the pale curve of her neck.
This time she didn't flinch. Instead, she lifted her chin, voice steady. "If that's why, you don't need to look for him."
"Why?"
"Brain's experiment is done." Her tone was certain. "Proof is—he took a few children from the Tower."
"Children? What kind of children?" Shane narrowed his eyes.
"I don't know the details. But Brain really was selecting kids with specific traits.
"Now that he's got what he wants, he won't keep experimenting—and he won't show his face for a long time. He definitely won't go back to grabbing slaves for another Tower of Heaven."
Shane recalled Brain handing full control of the Tower to Jellal. That backed some of it up. He kept pressing. "And you? What are you after? I hear you and Brain aren't on good terms. So why did you help manipulate Jellal in the first place?"
At this point, Ultear fully understood that Jellal had been staging things for Shane's benefit.
She ground her teeth silently, cursing the two of them for being disgustingly cunning. Out loud, she only said, "All I'll say is—my actions have nothing to do with Brain."
That answer didn't satisfy him. "You said you had something you must do, didn't you?" He stepped closer.
"Wait—" Gray took a step, wanting to ease the tension.
"Not your turn to talk," Ultear and Shane snapped in unison.
Gray's mouth worked, then fell shut.
He could at least understand Shane acting that way—he was used to it. But he'd been trying to help Ultear, so why was she snapping at him?
She shot him a look full of disgust. Every time she saw his face, she remembered that scene when she'd fled the Bureau of Magical Development.
She shoved the feeling down and turned back to Shane. "I need time to think," she said finally.
"That's easy," Shane said, and casually snapped his fingers. "Erza, pack her up."
He manifested three long whips and tossed them to Erza like ropes.
Erza had zero fondness for the woman who'd controlled the Tower's overseers. She efficiently trussed Ultear up five times over.
Gray watched her get bound tight and thought about the chance to ask her about Ur on the way back. He kept his mouth shut.
Shane planned to drag her back to the guild and work on her there. She clearly knew a lot—worth digging.
He wrote a letter and went to the forge to ask Noel to carry it back to Jellal at the Tower.
Noel, who had no idea the Tower's status had changed, broke into a cold sweat. It took him a long moment before he stiffened his spine and took the envelope like a man going to his execution.
His reaction made even thick-skinned Shane feel a twinge of guilt. He hurried to explain that Jellal had full control of the Tower now, and it was safe—for the moment.
Noel was skeptical at first, but since it was Shane saying it, he believed it.
The whole thing made Gray stare at Shane for a long time.
After Noel left, he sidled closer and whispered, "What did you feed him? He's completely under your spell. I feel like if you told him to jump into a volcano, he'd hesitate once and still jump."
Shane had to admit the jab was fair—but he defended himself anyway. "Ever consider that maybe he actually respects me? Do I really not look like someone worth respecting?"
Gray gave him a once-over. His gaze flicked to the still-glowing Eyes of Karma—and he wisely chose not to answer.
Erza, on the other hand, asked, "What did you write?"
"I told Jellal what we learned about Brain," Shane said. "As far as the Tower goes, things are on hold until Brain shows himself again."
There was something complicated in his voice. His fingers idly rubbed the hilt at his hip.
He'd been all fired up, ready for a big showdown—and then the main villain was just… gone, and the issue was half-resolved on its own.
It felt like throwing a full-powered punch into cotton.
They chatted quietly as they followed the flow of people into the station.
Gray walked silently to the ticket window. At this point, he was the only one in the party carrying actual cash.
Given Ultear's unique status and the fact that they'd found her, he didn't mind paying this time—unlike earlier, when he'd been dragged in reluctantly.
There was a small hiccup boarding the train.
The conductor was visibly uncomfortable with a prisoner tied up like a roast. Only when the three flashed their guild marks and explained they were on a mission did he grudgingly wave them through.
For a long time afterward, the station would trade rumors of "Fairy Tail grabbing people at the station for interrogation."
The train rattled along.
After a long hesitation, Gray edged closer to the bound Ultear and asked quietly, "You… really are Ur's daughter, aren't you?"
She threw him a cold glance, mouth curling in a mocking smile. "With this face, identical to that woman's… if I said no, would you believe me?"
"Then why did you—" Gray began, carefully choosing his words, fingers tightening on the armrest.
But Ultear had already turned away, refusing to say another word. All he got was the cold line of her profile.
Shane watched from the side and noticed her attitude toward Gray was particularly nasty. Well, toward him too.
Maybe she just hates men? he wondered.
~~~
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