"Amazing… what is this? The whole village turned into living monsters?! Were we standing on top of a creature the whole time?" Lucy exclaimed, both astonished and nervous.
"Master, is this what Arlen meant earlier about the magic circle?" Erza asked calmly, watching the writhing mass below.
"That's right. Those cracks we found were all part of a magic circle. And this circle was meant to activate a sealed spell from long ago—a sealing magic created to contain Erap," Makarov explained.
"Erap? What's that?" Natsu scratched his head, puzzled.
"As you can see, Erap is a form of living magic. It can turn inanimate objects into living beings. Those dark guild members must have activated it, trying to control it—but instead, they became food for these creatures," Makarov said steadily.
"Honestly… one after another—first Eisenwald found Lullaby, and now this unknown dark guild dug up Erap. Are sealed magics really this easy to find these days? Seems like the Magic Council might have traitors," Arlen remarked dryly, a faint smirk tugging at his lips.
His comment echoed what Makarov and the others were thinking, but no one pursued the topic further. The state of the Council didn't concern them—as long as it didn't affect Fairy Tail.
"These people brought it on themselves… though I suppose this is a blessing in disguise," Makarov said, nodding, his expression suddenly turning… excited.
"…Why do I have a bad feeling about that look?" Lucy shrank back.
"Old man, what do you mean?" Natsu asked.
"Didn't I say it already? Those things down there are living creatures. And anything that's alive… can be eaten!!" Makarov declared, raising a finger, eyes gleaming.
At those words, Natsu, Gray, Erza, Ultear—even Arlen—all looked down at the monsters differently.
That was the look of predators staring at food.
"Wait—you're not seriously going to eat those, are you?! Why are you all smiling like that?! Gray, why are you taking off your clothes?! And Arlen—aren't you supposed to be a noble? What happened to your elegance?!" Lucy snapped, completely losing it.
The group silently turned to look at her.
Then—
Grrrrrr…
All their stomachs growled in unison, thunderously.
Lucy had no rebuttal.
Because she was starving too.
"Alright! Time to eat!" Natsu roared.
"Yes! Finally, food!" Happy cried, moved to tears.
"Doesn't matter what it is anymore—as long as it's edible," Gray cracked his knuckles.
"Erza, bring a portion back for me and Lord Arlen," Ultear said.
"Me too! Don't forget mine!" Makarov added, clutching his rumbling stomach.
"Got it."
Erza replied simply, then kicked off the ground and leapt down the cliff. Natsu, Gray, and Happy followed right after.
They split into three directions.
Erza changed into a chef's outfit, becoming Fairy Tail's head chef. With two massive cleavers in hand, she carved up the monster into neat chunks in moments.
Natsu became the guild's fire chef, using Fire Dragon's Iron Fist to rapidly strike and roast the meat with blazing flames.
Gray took the role of dessert chef, freezing portions of the monster solid.
Magic exploded everywhere below, accompanied by constant blasts and flashes.
"Lord Arlen? Where are you going?" Ultear asked, noticing Arlen walking away.
"I spotted other animals. I'll go hunt. Wait here—I'll bring something back," Arlen said.
In truth, he had already judged that Erap probably tasted terrible.
Better to find something normal.
"Just leave him be… more importantly, is the food ready yet? I'm starving," Makarov muttered, sitting cross-legged.
As it turned out, Arlen's instincts were spot on.
The moment Natsu and Gray bit into the cooked monster meat—
They froze.
Erza, however, remained composed. She even kindly brought three portions up to Ultear, Lucy, and Makarov.
The three took the gray, hardened chunks, glanced at Erza chewing calmly, suppressed their doubts…
…and took a bite.
The next second—
Their faces twisted. Their skin turned green. Tears welled up as if they'd put on masks of pure agony.
"THIS IS DISGUSTING!!!" ×N
"How can something taste this bad?! I'd rather starve than eat this!" Natsu shouted.
"Seriously—there's a limit to how awful food can be! Even those featherfish were way better!" Gray added.
"Exactly. This isn't food fit for humans," Erza nodded in agreement.
"THEN WHY DID YOU GIVE IT TO US?!" Lucy, Ultear, and Makarov yelled in unison.
That was just cruel.
Even Ultear and Lucy felt the urge to punch Erza.
"Even if I'm starving, I can't eat something like this," Ultear said.
"Now I feel even hungrier…" Makarov groaned.
"Wait… where's Arlen?" Erza suddenly realized.
"Oh right! He went hunting. Let's hope he finds something," Makarov clasped his hands in prayer.
Meanwhile, Arlen had already found his prey.
A massive rabbit—more than enough to feed all of them.
The good news: it was caught in a giant spider web.
The bad news: a huge spider was approaching it.
Arlen had two choices:
Leave and search elsewhere—
Or steal food from the spider.
Naturally, he chose the latter.
After all, he was starving.
"A giant spider? Please."
He drew Alaya Consciousness in an instant—
Wind Scar.
Three golden blades of compressed wind tore through the air, obliterating the giant spider before it could react.
Arlen smiled faintly, walked over, and pulled the giant rabbit free. The rabbit kicked wildly as he held it up.
"Got it. Finally, no more starving."
By the time Arlen returned, Erap had already been destroyed. The village lay in ruins, and the dark guild members who had been absorbed sat on the ground, pale and shaken.
Makarov gave them a stern lecture and let them go.
Meanwhile—
Lucy, Erza, and the others had already surrounded Arlen, eyes shining as they stared at the giant rabbit in his hands.
"Finally… finally, we can eat!!!" ×N
Their ecstatic cheers echoed throughout the Clover Canyon, lingering in the air for a long time