"Where have you been these past few days?"
Shane's eyelid twitched. He glanced at the pale arm draped brazenly over his shoulder and spoke in a helpless tone.
"Getting stronger."
Mira's answer was short and simple.
Tilting her head, she studied Shane's face with those bright, lively eyes, as if only now noticing the change in him.
Then she reached out with her other hand and lightly hooked a strand of silver hair hanging by his ear.
Her fingers were slim and delicate, her nails unexpectedly neat and rounded, glowing a healthy pink in the sunlight.
She wound that strand of silver hair around her fingertip and gently rubbed it, a teasing glint in her eyes.
"Silver hair, just like mine… it looks really good on you."
"Master, you've got a lot of potential. I can't believe you can even turn into something like this."
"..."
The corner of Shane's mouth twitched.
He had a strong feeling the "potential" she meant was absolutely not anything respectable.
Meanwhile, Jason looked like he'd just discovered a whole new continent, scribbling furiously into his notebook.
"So this is the special kink of the strong! Chasing the ultimate power, even yearning to be conquered by someone stronger! COOOOOL!"
"No, I do not have that kind of weird kink."
Shane had just opened his mouth to refute that ridiculous conclusion when he suddenly felt the arm on his shoulder tighten.
Mira seemed boneless as she leaned half her body against him.
Even through their clothes, Shane could clearly feel the warmth of her body, and the soft curves unique to a girl in her youth.
She tilted her head until her chin was almost resting against the hollow of his shoulder, then smiled sweetly at Erza, who had been standing there in silence the whole time.
"What's wrong, Erza?"
"You don't look so good. Didn't sleep well last night?"
She deliberately dragged out the last part, the provocation practically spilling over.
But the embarrassed anger, the drawn sword, the sharp shout she had been expecting—none of it happened.
Erza acted as though she hadn't even seen Mira's aggressive display.
She simply stood there quietly, arms resting naturally at her sides, wearing a calm, confident smile.
"No, I'm fine."
"I was just a little nervous about how Shane would answer Jason-san's question."
"As for anything else… no, not really."
"..."
That composure was completely different from the awkward girl she used to be, the one who got flustered easily and drew her sword the moment she was teased.
Mira felt like she'd just punched a lump of cotton, and a wave of frustration rose in her chest.
"Tch."
Clicking her tongue, she turned suspiciously to stare at Shane's expressionless profile.
Something was off.
Very off.
Something major had definitely happened between these two while she wasn't around.
Mira refused to believe otherwise.
Not only did she not let go, she pushed even further, bringing her face so close to Shane's that it almost brushed his cheek.
Their silver hair intertwined, and at a glance they looked so intimate they were almost like twin blossoms growing from the same stem, shining beautifully in the sunlight in a way that could make anyone's heart race.
Mira watched Erza expectantly.
But Erza's reaction remained as calm as ever.
She simply kept that same faint smile and walked forward.
Then—
"Right now is interview time."
With those calm words, her hand slid in between Shane and Mira with the precision of iron tongs.
Erza smiled, but her hand showed no mercy as she physically peeled Mira off Shane little by little, like pulling soft rice cake off a surface.
"Don't interrupt Shane while he's working."
"Whew…"
Seeing Erza put on this almost housewife-like attitude, Mira didn't get angry—instead, she visibly relaxed.
She'd honestly been worried her usual "against Erza" tricks might have stopped working.
"So you do react after all!"
She shook off Erza's hand, planted both hands on her hips, and the wild, oppressive aura unique to the "Demon" in her started to show itself.
"What? So eager to push me away?"
"Do you think that 'strong and beautiful' standard just excluded you?"
"So now you're lashing out in embarrassment?"
"No."
Erza shook her head and answered seriously,
"Whether it's beauty or strength, I'm still far from enough. I know that much."
As she said it, she glanced at Shane beside her and silently added in her heart:
But… Shane wouldn't care about that. The fact that he can like someone like me is proof enough.
Whatever everyone else might think aside—
Mira's reaction to that almost self-deprecating honesty was surprisingly intense.
"Huh? You're not strong enough?"
Veins popped on the silver-haired girl's forehead, and the easy smile she'd been wearing completely fell apart.
"If even you aren't strong enough, then what does that make me, when I've always been the one losing to you?"
She was genuinely furious now.
The rival she'd been desperately chasing and trying to surpass was standing here casually calling herself "weak"?
Then what were all of Mira's recent desperate training sessions supposed to mean? A joke?
She couldn't tolerate Erza belittling herself like that.
—That kind of thing could only be done by Mirajane Strauss herself!
While the two girls stood facing off, the atmosphere growing more and more explosive—
Shane quietly, very sensibly, backed away to the side, trying to reduce his presence to the absolute minimum.
"No, you misunderstood."
"You may be a little weaker than I am right now, but that doesn't mean I'm strong."
Erza had no idea why Mira was angry. She just kept correcting her with that same serious expression.
"Compared to truly strong people, both you and I still have a lot lacking. We both need to work harder."
"..."
She answered honestly. Sincerely.
And that exact matter-of-fact attitude was precisely what annoyed Mira the most right now.
"Boom—!!!"
At last, Mira completely lost her patience.
"Like I thought… the only way to make that annoying mouth of yours say something pleasant is to beat you first!"
A storm of dark violet magic burst out like the roar of a demon. Mira's body twisted in the light, and the vicious claws of Satan Soul began to emerge.
"I should have told you already…!"
Faced with the terrifying magic crashing toward her, Erza refused to back down.
Her crimson hair rose without wind, space rippled around her, and two cold, gleaming swords instantly dropped into her hands.
"Right now is interview time!"
"Don't start causing trouble in front of the reporter!!"
Bzz—
Two massive waves of magic exploded upward almost at the same time and collided violently in the middle of the guild hall.
Crack! Crash!
The floor instantly split apart. Tables and chairs were blasted into the air as if a typhoon had ripped through the room.
"Wait! You two!!"
Still haunted by thoughts of repair bills, Makarov instantly burst into tears at the sight.
"This is the guild hall, damn it!!"
"Stop!! You little financial disasters!!"
But the two women at the center of the battlefield could no longer hear anything.
In their eyes, there was only each other.
"Drop dead, Erza!!"
"If you won't listen, then I'll just have to make you shut up!"
The two figures slammed into each other like meteors, and the terrifying shockwave overturned everything in sight.
"COOL!!! This is amazing!!!"
The only person in the entire hall who seemed excited was that suicidal reporter, Jason.
He was practically plastered to the floor, but even with the aftershock of the magic blowing his hair into chaos, he still stubbornly held up his camera, firing off shots nonstop.
"So this is what a duel between Fairy Tail's women looks like!"
"Wild beauty! Raw power! And a war over a man!"
"This is incredible! Shane-san, quick—which side are you supporting more?"
"..."
Shane was still in Lancer form, and his black dragon wings had become the perfect shield, blocking the flying wood splinters and glass shards scattering everywhere.
Watching the hellish chaos unfolding in front of him—and those two women fighting while shouting lines that had absolutely nothing to do with each other—his mouth twitched even faster than before.
A battle over a man?
He absolutely refused to acknowledge that.
This was obviously just Mira's hidden masochistic side flaring up, finding every excuse she could to provoke Erza into beating her up!
"They're fighting! They're finally fighting!"
"Place your bets, place your bets! Is Erza winning this one or Mira?"
"I'm betting 500 J! The guild doors collapse first!"
Even more ridiculous, the idiots around him who loved watching drama had already started taking bets like seasoned professionals.
"These people…"
Shane let out a long sigh.
Seeing the guild hall truly about to be torn apart by those two human tyrannosaurs, he was just about to step in—
"Move! Move! Everybody out of the waaay!!!"
A lively shout suddenly crashed into the middle of the battlefield.
Bang!!
The next second, a pink-haired figure shot through the half-destroyed guild doors like a cannonball, tightly hugging a giant egg.
Behind him, Lisanna shouted anxiously and excitedly,
"Natsu! Be careful! Don't drop it!"
"It's coming out! It's coming out!!"
Natsu completely ignored the two girls whose magic was still raging, and he ignored the stunned crowd too. He charged straight into the middle of the guild hall.
Unfortunately, he stopped right in the exact path where Mira and Erza's attacks were about to land.
"The egg?"
"Lisanna?"
Mira and Erza's expressions changed at the same time, and both of them forcibly pulled back their attacks almost simultaneously.
"Ugh!"
The backlash from interrupting their magic made both of them stumble, but their attention was immediately drawn to what Natsu was holding.
The egg, once covered in strange patterns, was now glowing with a soft, warm white light.
It wasn't blinding, but it carried a strange soothing power.
The air that had just been full of murderous tension and explosive hostility cooled down almost miraculously under that glow.
"This is…"
Shane froze for a moment, and the magic he had been gathering to stop the fight slowly dissipated.
Looking at the egg, he could feel the rhythm unique to a newborn life.
Crack… crack.
A clear cracking sound rang out.
It wasn't loud, but every single person in the hall heard it.
The noisy guild instantly fell silent.
Everyone held their breath.
Whether it was Mira and Erza, who had been trying to kill each other just seconds ago, or Jason, who had been wildly taking pictures, or Makarov clutching his heart, or even the men who had still been waving betting money around—
All eyes were locked on that egg.
Crack… crack…
The fractures spread bit by bit.
And finally—
Pop!
The shell split apart completely.
A small blue cat with wings, flapping tiny white feathered wings, wobbled its way up into the air under everyone's gaze.
It blinked its big eyes, looking around in confusion, then finally followed its instincts and landed atop Natsu's messy pink hair.
"Eh?"
The little blue cat tilted its head and let out a cute little cry.
"That's… a cat?"
The twin swords in Erza's hands had lowered without her even realizing it.
Those eyes that were usually so sharp now overflowed with affection she couldn't hide.
"So cute…"
"A winged cat?"
Mira's demonic transformation vanished instantly, returning her to the bright, lively silver-haired girl she normally was.
She leaned closer, and all the fierceness and madness from before had completely vanished, leaving behind nothing but pure curiosity.
"It really did hatch out of an egg… that's amazing."
"Is it a dragon? It's a dragon, right?! Look, it has wings!"
Natsu threw both hands up in excitement, grinning from ear to ear like a child who had just found the greatest treasure in the world.
"No, no matter how you look at it, it's a cat."
Shane couldn't help muttering from the side.
Still, looking at the familiar little creature, he finally understood how that blue cat who would one day join the team had ended up entering the guild.
And…
He had to admit, the feeling was strange.
That tense, murderous atmosphere from moments ago now felt as though it had never existed.
All that aggression had melted away the instant this tiny life was born.
Lisanna, who had arrived just after Natsu, bent over with her hands on her knees, breathing lightly.
She looked up and, with a bit of lingering fear, glanced around at the mess surrounding them—
The cracked floor. The overturned tables and chairs. The terrifying magical aftershocks still hanging in the air from her sister and Erza.
Just a few seconds ago, this place had been like a battlefield. Everyone had been arguing, shouting, even on the verge of completely tearing the guild apart.
But now…
Everyone was smiling.
Even though the guild hall had been wrecked beyond recognition, everyone's bad mood had disappeared like it had been erased by magic, just because this little life had appeared.
How strange… just because it was born, the fighting stopped.
Looking at the warm scene in front of her, Lisanna clasped her hands together and smiled as she suggested,
"Since it was born while everyone was fighting, and the moment we saw it everyone started feeling happy…"
"Then… why don't we call it 'Happy'?"
"Happy? As in happiness?"
Natsu repeated the name once, then broke into his signature bright grin.
"Alright! Happy it is!"
"Eh!"
The little blue cat seemed to understand. It happily raised one paw in response.
"Waaah—a bird? A cat? Or some new species?"
After a brief moment of shock, Jason exploded into another scream.
"Fairy Tail can even hatch unknown creatures like this?! COOOOOOL!!!"
He immediately started taking a ridiculous number of pictures of the newborn Happy, convinced that today's material was overflowing.
Meanwhile, Shane—who had been standing at the center of the storm—looked over at Mira and Erza, who were now both wearing fond, doting smiles as they crowded around Happy.
He shook his head helplessly.
These two women had just been fighting like mortal enemies moments ago, and now they were already competing again over who got to pet the cat first.
Turning around, he shrugged at Makarov, who had finally relaxed a little back at the bar.
"Looks like the guild won't need to be rebuilt this time, Master."
"That still doesn't mean anyone's allowed to casually fight with magic inside the guild!"
Clutching his chest, Makarov gave an irritated snort.
But when he turned and looked at the guild hall—trashed, yes, but full of laughter and joy—and at the little blue figure fluttering in the sunlight…
The old man still couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from lifting into a small smile.
"The guild almost got torn apart… but somehow…"
"It's not so bad."
~~~
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