Both of them were completely confused. A moment ago they had thought Geno could not hold out any longer, yet in the blink of an eye that terrifying dark magic shockwave had vanished without a sound.
"No doubt about it, that really was the magic power of the black mage Zeref."
After devouring the dark magic, Geno, who had been just a little tired from driving the carriage, now looked noticeably refreshed.
He closed the Iriestigma and stepped back onto the carriage.
"Rufus, Yukino, get back inside the carriage. I am going to speed up."
"Ah... o, okay."
The two of them quickly shrank back inside, though they could not help asking,
"Geno big brother, you are incredible. Um, you moved so fast just now, we did not even see clearly. What kind of magic did you use to make that terrifying dark shockwave disappear so easily?"
Rufus blurted out excitedly.
Right after, Yukino could not hold back either.
"Yes, Geno big brother, what magic was that?"
"What magic, huh?"
Faced with their questions, Geno turned his face slightly away.
"Magic? Since when is the Iriestigma a magic. The Iriestigma is the Iriestigma. It was never a spell in the first place."
He muttered privately for a moment, then looked back at the two, whose eyes were full of curiosity.
"It is a kind of absorption based defensive magic. You can think of it as a lost arcane spell."
In Fairy Tail, there were two especially mysterious categories of magic. One was ancient magic, the other lost magic.
From what Geno remembered, quite a lot of ancient magic appeared in the anime. The Memory Make Magic Rufus used, for example, was a form of ancient magic.
Lost magic, on the other hand, showed up far less often.
Calling it a lost ancient spell would not sound suspicious at all.
"A lost arcane spell... as expected of you, Geno big brother."
Rufus had already believed that Geno was someone whose power was not inferior to the Ten Wizard Saints. Now he was even more convinced.
"Lost ancient magic really is amazing."
Yukino blinked and looked up at Geno.
"If you had not used that lost magic to block the dark shockwave just now, we would probably have turned into ash without even knowing how. Thank you so much, Geno big brother."
In her small, admiring gaze there was a hint of something else, an emotion she hurriedly hid the moment she realized it was there.
"Um... right, Geno big brother, do you really not know what that dark magic was about?"
"That, I really do not know. I only know that whoever can wield such powerful darkness definitely is not an ordinary person."
In his own mind, Geno had already decided it was likely Zeref, but he did not say it aloud. He did not want to frighten the two of them.
"Since we do not know, and the other side seems to have quieted down, maybe we were just hit by accident as we passed through."
He really did think that was possible. Maybe Zeref was in the middle of some dark experiment or fit of madness, and they had simply stumbled into the area by coincidence.
"All right, let us not worry about it. We should leave this place as fast as we can. Sit tight."
"If it was not a stray shot, it may be that whoever it was felt we were in the way and was warning us. Otherwise that attack would not have stopped after a single blow."
"As long as we get out of here quickly, nothing else should happen."
Geno did want to see the true extent of Zeref's power, just not now. He wanted more time to grow.
Hearing him, Rufus and Yukino still felt curious, but they both nodded.
"Geno big brother is right."
"Hyah..."
Geno flicked the reins and urged the horse on, driving the carriage away at speed. His gaze lingered on the direction the dark magic had come from.
"Wait for me."
"When my magic becomes strong enough that I am confident I can crush you easily, I will come looking for you. Whether you are the black mage Zeref... or the Black Dragon Acnologia."
...
"Heh heh heh..."
In the part of the forest where Acnologia sat, he felt the carriage carrying Geno's group leaving the area, yet he did not move.
His eyes, previously full of only ferocity, now carried a faint trace of amusement.
"Interesting. In these last few hundred years, aside from those dragons, no human insect has ever escaped unscathed from that attack of mine."
"And yet these brats walked away without a scratch."
"That kid driving the carriage, his magic inside is as small as dust. There is no way he should be able to cast a flame barrier like that. Could it be that he can rapidly draw natural magic into himself and use it..."
"Still, the barrier was secondary. The magic that devoured my darkness... that is the truly impressive thing."
"Even so, he is just a human brat. He is no threat to me. Compared to Zeref and the dragons, they are the ones I must erase."
"As for that kid... I will let him live a little longer."
He laughed, low and dangerous.
...
...
Magnolia, on the village road leading through Moon Creek Village.
The warm daylight poured down. A soft breeze brushed past as Geno drove the carriage at an easy, steady pace.
It had been most of a day since they left the magic forest where Acnologia had appeared.
"Magnolia, Moon Creek Village... if we pass through here, we should reach the town soon."
Geno opened his magic map, checking their position as he guided the horse.
All around him were fields of golden wheat, patch after patch of ripened grain. In the fields, many villagers were busy harvesting.
Swish, swish...
Their sickles were huge. Each swing cut down a wide swath of wheat.
Boom... boom...
In other fields, some villagers were driving machinery across the land to harvest the wheat. From time to time, villagers would load lacrima filled with magic into the machines to keep them running.
"Plenty of food and peaceful people... what a harmonious sight. This is rare."
Driving along the village road, Geno watched the simple countryside scenes unfold on both sides. He found he really liked this sort of atmosphere.
"I have been driving for quite a while. I might be fine, but those two kids must be hungry by now."
Thanks to devouring Acnologia's magic, Geno still felt energetic. Even if he did not eat for a few days, he would not feel much.
"Rufus, Yukino, are you..."
He slowed the carriage and turned slightly, calling toward the back where the two were riding.
He was just about to ask if they wanted to stop and eat something.
But when he lifted the curtain and peeked into the wagon, both of them already had their eyes closed, breathing slow and even. They had fallen into a deep sleep.
The words he had been about to say died on his lips.
"These two brats really are bold. After going through something that dangerous, they can still fall asleep this easily, haha."
"But then again, no matter how you look at it, they are only eleven or twelve years old."
Looking at their sleeping faces, Geno smiled faintly, lowered the curtain, and turned back to the reins.
"Let them sleep. Yukino is no problem, but if I wake that kid Rufus up, he will just pester me with a hundred questions again. They can rest. I will enjoy the peace and quiet."
In a place like this countryside, even the faint breeze carried a sweet smell, enough to make anyone drowsy.
If Geno had not devoured Acnologia's magic and gained this heightened stamina, he might have dozed off himself, lulled by the road.
The village road was wide and long.
As Geno drove slowly onward, the scenery around him continued to change. For the most part it was similar, fields of grain and scattered farmhouses.
Little by little, though, the houses became more numerous and closer together, perhaps because they were getting nearer to the town.
More and more people appeared on the road as well.
"Looks like we are getting close to Magnolia. I will wake those two when we reach town. For now, they can sleep."
"Honestly, why do I feel like I am acting like a dad right now..."
Thinking that, Geno could not resist glancing toward the back of the carriage again.
Yukino's small hands lay open in her lap, her head tilted slightly to the side, her body swaying gently with the jolts of the moving carriage.
Beside her, Rufus sat with his eyes closed but his posture still upright and proper. It did not look like he was sleeping at all, though he very clearly was.
"Yukino really is adorable when she sleeps."
"And this kid Rufus... even when he is asleep, he still insists on proper posture, heh."
"Still, they both look pretty healing like this. Being a dad might not be so bad... except that I am not that much older than they are."