Inside the guild.
Weston ultimately dismissed the idea of polishing the small dragon skeleton and "inlaying" it into the back of his seat.
While such a chair might look impressive at first glance, it felt too much like "Chuunibyo" style if stared at for long. Moreover, sitting on it gave a cramped feeling where one couldn't freely stretch their limbs—it wasn't comfortable at all.
Beyond that, some companions remarked that it gave off the vibe of the old Blue Skull.
For the sake of his own backside and his companions' moods, Weston dismantled the dragon bones from the chair and placed them in a corner of the guild's second floor to be displayed as a collector's item.
Why not take it home to the vault?
Because he was rejected by Zera and Mavis; the two of them stated that such a terrifying and disgusting thing could not appear in their home.
Thus, Weston had no choice but to leave it at the guild.
And why not place it on the first floor of the guild?
Naturally, it was for fear that the rowdy bunch in the guild might break it one day!
One must realize that in an era where dragons have long since vanished, obtaining a complete skeleton is no easy feat!
Second floor of the guild.
On this day, the core members were rarely all gathered together.
Weston was wiping his newly acquired Celestial Spirit Keys, Zera was drawing, Warrod was trimming flowers by the window, and Mavis and Precht were reading books.
Except for Yuri, who was away on his honeymoon, the founding members of Fairy Tail were all here.
After a while, Precht put down his book and looked at the leisurely Weston opposite him, unable to hide his envy: "I didn't expect that from a single trip to the Capital, you'd manage to collect so many Celestial Spirit Keys along the way. You really are lucky!"
"Why is it that every time you go out, you encounter such bizarre things?!"
Weston chuckled: "If you took half the time you spend shut inside researching magic and used it to go on adventures outside, you might encounter them too!"
"Don't worry, once the Magic Trains are operational, traveling will be much more convenient!"
Precht fell into deep thought upon hearing this.
"I have indeed thought about going on a world journey once I reach a certain age. However, Magic Trains and the like sound completely unfree!"
"And if one takes long-distance trains, the cost will surely be high, and it's easy to miss the scenery along the way—it's not practical at all!"
"If possible, I'd still rather use a more convenient and free method of transportation!"
"Preferably something fast that can come and go freely in the wild!"
Isn't that just a Magic Four-Wheel Drive?
Speaking of which, since Magic Trains are already being built, Magic Four-Wheel Drives shouldn't be far off, right?
Beside them, Warrod suggested: "How about finding a cat from town as a partner?"
Precht nodded: "If traveling alone, finding an Exceed as a partner is indeed a good idea. But if I want to travel with everyone from the guild, that won't work. After all, there aren't that many cats..."
So that's why you built a Magic Airship in the future, huh?
It seems the grand ambition was set early on!
"Compared to Magic Trains, I'm actually more interested in that Dragon Graveyard you found near the Capital!"
As Precht spoke, he shifted his gaze to the small dragon skeleton in the corner: "When this fossil was delivered to the guild, we thought we'd seen a ghost!"
"If I'm not mistaken, the dragons who died in that graveyard were most likely killed by the legendary 'Wings of Despair,' Acnologia."
Mavis, holding a copy of "The Revelations," joined the conversation: "According to historical records, a fierce war broke out between humans and dragons 300 years ago called the 'Dragon King Festival.' I just didn't expect that one of the battlefields was near Crocus..."
"Acnologia?"
Warrod finished trimming the flower branches and sat down with the group, taking a sip of milk tea: "I remember the records in the legends; didn't he turn into a dragon himself because he killed too many dragons and was cursed by them?"
"Ah, thinking about it now, that should be the 'side effect of practicing Dragon Slayer Magic' mentioned by the people at the magic research institute back then, right??"
"To think that the legendary Dragon of Destruction was once a Dragon Slayer Wizard... I truly feel a sense of melancholy for him..."
Mentioning this, Precht's interest was piqued.
"I'm quite curious to know what the ends of other Dragon Slayer Wizards in the past were like?"
"Although the people at the institute said Dragonification only occurs when Dragon Slayer Magic is practiced to its limit, since Acnologia is an example, there's no guarantee there wasn't a second, a third, or even more!"
"The most likely to show the same symptoms would be the creator of Dragon Slayer Magic!"
"What happened to those people?"
"Did they die in mutual slaughter with Acnologia, or are they hiding in some corner of the world?"
"Weston, do you know the details??"
Weston didn't answer. His thoughts had been influenced by Precht's words, drifting off to who-knows-where.
Speaking of which, Irene is still hiding in some corner of the world right now!
Should he go find her and save her ahead of time?
With Archive in hand, Weston believed finding her wouldn't be difficult.
Even if he couldn't find her, Elefseria certainly could!
But, what happens after finding her?
With Elefseria's help, he could certainly help Irene end her 300 years of torment and restore her human form. But what happens after that?
Would Irene go from hope to despair, discover that her body is no longer considered human, then give birth to a child, only to abandon her out of maternal instinct?
Wouldn't that mean Erza would be born a hundred years early, becoming siblings with Makarov?
That seems a bit too chaotic, doesn't it?
Or should he set aside his "savior complex," respect the fates of others, and turn a blind eye to the poor, innocent Irene who is suffering both psychological and physiological torment?!
"Weston... Weston..."
Mavis's call brought Weston back to his senses like a dream.
"Ah, what is it?"
Mavis opened her large, clean eyes and brought her face close to Weston's, quietly gazing into his eyes: "What were you thinking about just now that made you so absorbed? I called you so many times and you didn't react."
Weston subconsciously looked away: "Well..."
Seeing this, Zera gave a dainty huff: "Looking at that guilty expression, maybe he's thinking about some woman..."
Hiss...
Is this the legendary woman's intuition?
Truly sharp!
However, Weston didn't panic at all. He just looked at her affectionately and gave a gentle "yasashii" smile: "With both of you here, how could I be thinking of other women?"
Mavis, Zera: ⁄(⁄⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄⁄)⁄
Precht, Warrod: "..."