"Welcome home~"
At the Fairy Tail Guild.
As Aux walked into the guild, Mirajane—busy working as a waitress—greeted him with a smile.
"Aux, hurry and make me bigger! I'm going to stomp that exhibitionist to death!"
"Don't listen to him! Boost my magic first. I'm going to freeze that scoundrel into an ice sculpture today."
The guild was exceptionally lively. Macao and the other adults were still gathered in small groups of two or three, drinking or bragging.
Natsu and Gray, as always, were fighting. When they saw Aux return, they immediately wanted his help to deal with each other. The two argued non-stop, one after the other.
Ignoring them both, Aux sat at the counter, ordered coffee, and slowly savored it.
"Was the job difficult this time?" Mirajane wiped the table, casually asking about his work.
"It was alright, just catching a strange fish in the sea. That fish was bigger than a house," Aux replied.
Mirajane expressed appropriate concern. "You must be very careful. Some requests are especially difficult, and people can die if you're not careful."
The two quickly fell into conversation, and before long, Natsu and Gray—tired from fighting—also came to the counter during their break to listen to stories.
"Speaking of which, I met a girl in Hargeon this time," Aux said. "That little girl seemed to know Natsu and specifically asked about him."
Natsu was puzzled. "Who is it?! It couldn't be some scoundrel from an enemy guild, could it?"
Gray retorted, "Why would an enemy guild ask for your information? If anything, they'd ask about S-Class Mages like Laxus and Erza."
Mirajane added playfully, "Oh my, oh my, maybe she's Natsu's admirer. Seems Natsu is quite charming after all~"
Eww… Gray immediately showed a disgusted expression, glancing disdainfully at Natsu.
"What are you looking at, you jerk…"
Natsu caught Gray's gaze instantly and glared back.
Heh heh heh… Gray sneered inwardly but didn't respond.
"That little girl's name is Wendy," Aux reminded him.
Natsu repeated, "Wendy?" He scratched his head in confusion, muttering, "Why does that sound familiar…?"
Gray frowned in surprise. "You really do know her."
Natsu continued, "Help me think! The name Wendy really sounds familiar."
Happy flew over, also trying to remember if they had met her during past jobs.
Aux turned to Happy. "Speaking of which, there's an even bigger coincidence: that Wendy also has a partner— a white, flying, talking cat~"
Meow~
Happy's eyes lit up instantly.
A white, flying, talking cat.
Could this be love?
Just imagining it already felt like love to him.
"Aux~" Happy wagged his tail and landed on the counter, asking shyly, "What's her name, and why didn't you bring her to the guild…?"
Natsu was still thinking about the name Wendy.
Gray was enjoying the show, while Mirajane leaned forward, eager for more gossip.
"Carla. It's a very lovely name~" Aux said.
Happy showed a doting smile. "That name is so nice, she must be a great beauty…"
Aux explained, "Wendy and Carla are members of the Cait Shelter Guild. The specific location is…"
He gave the address.
Immediately, Happy tightened his small satchel and patted Natsu determinedly.
"Natsu! We've rested long enough. It's time to go out and work. Let's go to Wendy and Carla's place!"
Natsu exposed him, "Go to work? I'm embarrassed you're even saying that."
Happy wasn't discouraged and continued, "Don't you want to see Wendy? Maybe you'll recognize her when you see her~"
Natsu was tempted, but he still shook his head. Only the name felt familiar—he didn't need to go to Cait Shelter just for that.
Mirajane warned, "If you intrude without prior notice, it's easy to be seen as an invasion. To visit other unfamiliar guilds, you need a letter of invitation from the Master."
Light Guilds often had exchanges, but intruding without notice could be seen as abrupt. If the guild had a bad temper, they might even take it as a challenge. When dealing with unfamiliar guilds, you must notify them in advance.
"Did you hear that? We can't just go to unfamiliar guilds!" Natsu scolded Happy.
At this moment, Aux added fuel to the fire. "That Wendy is also a Dragon Slayer Mage~"
What!!!
Natsu sprang up instantly. Even Happy and Gray widened their eyes.
She's also a Dragon Slayer Mage!
"And Wendy's mother, Grandeeney, and Natsu's father have both disappeared…" Aux continued.
Natsu's breathing quickened. "Her mother is…"
Aux smiled. "That's right. She's also a Dragon~"
Hiss—
Natsu took a sharp breath. He could no longer sit still.
The name Wendy felt familiar. She was a Dragon Slayer, her mother was a Dragon, and she too had disappeared. Everything pointed to the same question: why did the Dragons disappear? Where did they go?
Gray suddenly recalled, "If I remember correctly… Gajeel, the Iron Dragon from Phantom Lord, is also a Dragon Slayer, right?"
That's right.
Natsu remembered that guy he fought. Maybe Gajeel's parents had also disappeared.
"Is the old man around? Ask him to write me a letter of invitation to visit Cait Shelter," Natsu said urgently. He wanted to confirm it himself.
But Mirajane replied helplessly, "The Master and Erza went to a routine meeting. They won't be back for another three days."
Ah!
Natsu grimaced. He couldn't wait that long.
Would it be okay to just barge into Cait Shelter?
"The Cait Shelter Guild doesn't seem very famous. I don't recall this guild at all…" Mirajane tapped her chin. It must be a small guild, perhaps too small to even be recognized at official meetings.
"What's the rush? If you suddenly go to see a young girl like that, you might scare her," Aux said, comforting him. "There's no need to hurry. As long as it's a legitimate guild, you'll eventually meet."
His main goal was simply to let the Dragon Slayers get to know each other. Natsu's impatience was unnecessary. If they met too early, without his spoilers, no one would even understand where the Dragons had gone before Tartaros.
"Ah, ah, ah…"
Natsu sighed at the ceiling in frustration.
But he still accepted Aux's reasoning and temporarily set the matter aside.
Slurp~
Aux enjoyed his coffee with satisfaction. He liked obedient children.
_____________________________
Go to my Patreon:
patreon.com/dreamlexi
For just $3 you can read various chapters of novels that have been translated and changed several chapters in advance.
_____
Support me with your Power Stone and Reviews guys °•°
Have a nice day ><