"The shape looks a bit different, but it's definitely Fairy Tail!!"
"Exactly!!"
Natsu and Happy excitedly ran over; they hadn't expected to find Fairy Tail the moment they arrived in Edolas, their luck was incredible.
"Wait!!"
Carla wanted to call the two back; after all, this was Edolas.
Creak!
The guild doors were pushed open.
"Everyone's okay!"
"We found them without any effort at all!!"
Just as Natsu and Happy were about to go reunite with them, Carla quickly held them back.
"Wait just a second!! Something is off about them!!"
Natsu and Happy froze, then looked forward, and sure enough, everyone's appearance and demeanor seemed different.
"Juvia is going to work now."
"Wait, Juvia, I want to go too, okay?"
Gray, wearing thick clothes, had a look of pure adoration on his face.
"It's so hot. How many layers are you wearing? Come find me when you're wearing less."
"I... I have a cold-sensitive constitution!!"
Natsu was dumbfounded at the sight: "What the hell is this—!!"
Gray being afraid of the cold; that guy who would complain about the heat even if he were only wearing a pair of underwear was actually afraid of the cold? Give me a break.
"How pathetic, Elfman."
"Did you fail the job again?"
Jet and Droy were currently lecturing Elfman.
"Cana, have a drink with us for once!"
"I've said it several times now, I don't drink."
"Whaaat—?!"
Cana actually saying she doesn't drink? This had to be a joke.
"What... what's going on..."
"Everyone's become so weird?"
"Hey! I'm talking to you, you've been standing at the door for ages. Who are you?!"
Just then, a far more familiar voice rang out. The group turned toward the sound to see Lucy, dressed in leather, standing in front of Kael and questioning him.
"Lucy?!!"
Was Lucy actually this bold? She actually dared to speak to Kael in that tone, and Kael, your presence stands out way too much.
"Wait, Lucy doesn't recognize Kael?!"
The group suddenly realized something even more wrong. How could Lucy not know who Kael was?
"Hello. My name is Kael. I was just passing by and thought I'd take a look inside."
Kael introduced himself naturally, because he already understood the situation.
"I see! That's fine then, welcome to Fairy Tail. Are these people your companions?"
Lucy's gaze swept over Natsu and the others: "Wait! Isn't this Natsu!"
"You... you know me?"
Natsu was dazed. What was with this Lucy? She didn't know Kael, yet she knew him.
"What kind of nonsense are you talking? I'd recognize you even if you were turned to ash! Where have you been all this time? You really had me worried!" Lucy said as she pulled Natsu into a hug.
"Lucy..."
Natsu had never been hugged so intimately by Lucy before; it felt incredibly awkward.
"Execution time!"
Lucy suddenly clamped her legs around Natsu's neck and began grinding her knuckles into his temples.
"There it is!! One of Lucy's 48 Torture Techniques, the Strangle Drill!!"
The surrounding guild members couldn't help but cheer at the sight.
"Don't bully him too much, the poor thing."
"Anyway, as long as he's okay, right, Juvia?"
"Shut up."
Just then, a voice cut through: "Lucy! You're bullying Natsu again! That's not allowed! And Jet and Droy, stop picking on Elfman as well!"
Natsu was stunned upon seeing her: "Lisanna..."
Happy's tears couldn't help but flow as his body trembled: "No way..."
Natsu and Lisanna were the ones who had found Happy together and raised him since he was small.
"Lisanna—!!"
Natsu and Happy lunged toward Lisanna with joy.
"What do you think you're doing—!!"
Lucy intercepted the two with a flying kick: "Natsu, since when did you start acting like a wild animal, huh?"
Natsu's tears flowed uncontrollably: "Because... Lisanna is alive... she's right there..."
"Alright, alright, sit down and let's talk. We're all friends, right?"
Gray said, putting an arm around Natsu's shoulder.
Happy asked, confused: "Why... why is Lisanna here?"
"Kael, what on earth is going on?"
Wendy looked up at Kael. In situations where she couldn't figure things out, she felt Kael was the person she could rely on most.
Kael gave them the answer: "It's simple. This is Edolas's Fairy Tail."
"Edolas's Fairy Tail?"
"Could it be..." Carla was the first to realize.
"Yeah. These people aren't the companions we're looking for. They are people who have always lived in Edolas. Although I don't understand the exact principle behind it, this is a parallel world to ours."
"A parallel world!!"
The group was stunned; they never expected this kind of answer. Wasn't this a setting only found in novels?
"Then where is everyone we know?!"
Natsu shouted urgently. They were here to rescue the guild members.
Carla spoke up: "They should be in the Royal City. There should be clues regarding the absorbed guild there."
Natsu declared: "Good! Then we're heading to the Royal City!"
Lucy looked at them with a puzzled expression: "What are you guys whispering about?"
Right then, a man burst in looking completely panicked and screamed: "This is bad!! The Fairy Hunter is here—!!"
At those words, every face in the guild twisted in terror.
"Uwaaaaah!!"
"Has this place been exposed already?!"
"Those Kingdom bastards are chasing us again!"...
Wails of despair filled the air.
Lucy shouted at Levy: "Is the teleportation magic circle ready yet?! Levy!!"
Levy snapped back without hesitation: "I'm working on it now, stinky Lucy!!"
Just then, a massive figure appeared in the sky.
"What... what is that?!!"
"And what exactly is the 'Fairy Hunter'?!"
"The Kingdom is targeting Fairy Tail? What's going on?!"
Natsu, Wendy, and Happy were completely lost; the situation in this world was far more unexpected than they had imagined.
An adult Wendy, who looked ninety percent like their Wendy, explained: "Isn't it obvious? By the King's decree, all mage guilds have been abolished. This is the only guild left in the world. Did Natsu bring you here without telling you anything? That means we're a Dark Guild."
"A Dark Guild?!"
The group was speechless.
At that moment, Levy shouted: "Alright!! Everyone hold on tight! Deploying teleportation magic circle!! Begin transport!!"
The giant tree root began to retract rapidly, and in the next instant, it dove into the ground and vanished.
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