A long-chain trial triggered now?
After a brief moment of surprise, delight rose in Shane's chest.
Sure, the requirements for a long-chain trial were usually far more complicated than those of an ordinary one.
But there was no denying that the extra rewards they granted were often ridiculously generous.
Whether it was unlocking deeper permissions within the Book of Heroic Spirits, or, like last time, directly granting him the "Golden Cup" that had solved a massive problem like Ankhseram's divine curse—
all of it proved just how valuable this kind of trial really was.
This was absolutely the number-one priority right now.
He steadied himself and carefully examined the faint red text slowly solidifying in his vision.
"Must obtain the recognition of the five dragon souls that crossed the 'Eclipse' gate…"
Judging from Igneel and Grandeeney's cases, the other three dragons were most likely also residing in the bodies of the other three children who had crossed into this era.
But Shane couldn't help feeling uneasy.
After all, six whole years had already passed since the Eclipse Gate opened.
That was more than enough time for too many things to go wrong.
If something had happened to the other three children—or to the dragon souls sleeping inside them—then wouldn't this stage of the trial be completely stuck forever?
"Mm… from here on out, I need to pay close attention to any information on other Dragon Slayers across the continent."
Shane silently reminded himself, pushing this matter much higher up his list of priorities.
Then his eyes shifted to the progress bar at the end.
One out of five…
Shane rubbed his chin and thought to himself,
"I wonder which one this first recognition actually came from."
"Igneel, or Grandeeney?"
Logically, even though Igneel had a terrible temper, since he had personally acknowledged Shane as a "friend" inside their shared consciousness, there was a very high chance that the first recognition had come from the powerful Fire Dragon King.
Then again, given how arrogant that guy was, nothing was ever certain. On the other hand, the gentle-natured Sky Dragon Grandeeney seemed just as likely to be the source.
But the moment that thought passed through his mind, Shane's brows suddenly drew together.
He remembered something extremely important.
Before falling asleep, he had also triggered a trial called [Trial: Innocence], which required him to wash away corruption and remove the malice of a god.
Now that he had awakened from the underworld, Ankhseram's curse should by all rights have been completely erased from his body.
So why had there still been no sign of that trial settling?
Shane couldn't help lowering his head and eyeing his own hands and body suspiciously.
Could it be… that damned curse had left some unknown hidden danger behind?
While he was completely immersed in thought, Mira's irritation was steadily boiling over.
She was right here, a whole living, breathing person!
And yet this idiot had just frozen in place like a post, completely ignoring her as if she were air.
What was that supposed to mean? He didn't even see her?
Was that a challenge?
"Hey. Are you leaving or not?" Mirajane crossed her arms, her voice rising a notch.
"Hm?"
Dragged back to reality by the sharp tone, Shane finally snapped out of it.
He looked around blankly and realized he was still standing stupidly in Wendy's doorway, not having moved even half a step.
"If this were Erza, the moment she saw me spacing out, she'd already be dragging me along…"
He muttered it under his breath without thinking.
And it was the truth.
Erza had long since gotten used to him randomly drifting off into his own thoughts.
Whenever the two of them walked somewhere together, if he started zoning out, the red-haired girl would just naturally take his hand and lead him forward.
Now that she wasn't here, Shane felt strangely out of sorts in more ways than one.
But to Mira—who proudly considered herself Erza's rival for life—those words landed like gasoline on a fire.
"Oh? So she really does dote on you that much."
A brilliant smile bloomed on the delicate face of the white-haired girl.
Only it wasn't the least bit warm.
Even Shane, whose emotional awareness often went missing entirely, could clearly feel the dangerous chill in her voice.
He had absolutely no idea which exact sentence he'd just used to step on a landmine.
But right now his head was packed with trial-related thoughts, and he genuinely didn't have the energy to argue with this woman.
"Ahem. Let's go, let's go. We should head back."
Shane coughed awkwardly and immediately tried to make a break for it, clearly intending to slip away toward the lobby.
"Don't be in such a hurry."
Mirajane, however, chased after him without hesitation and grabbed his shoulder in a death grip.
As her voice took on a dangerously silky tone, dark violet-black magic began to seep faintly from her body.
"Since Erza isn't here, today I'll make sure to take good care of you~"
"Wait! Calm down! Too much magical stimulation will make me dragonize again!" Shane blurted out the first excuse he could think of, his scalp tingling.
"Wouldn't that be perfect?" Mira sneered without letting go. "Then you can practice how to control it!"
Just as the two of them were still struggling in the lobby—
"Jeez, what is all that noise down there? Why are you yelling like that?"
A voice full of alcohol-laced irritation came drifting from the top of the stairs. With dragging footsteps, a woman appeared there holding a bottle.
She rubbed her messy hair and, when her eyes landed on the white-haired girl below, gave an indifferent hiccup.
"Hic… oh, it's just Mira. Feels like you've been coming to the girls' dorm an awful lot lately…"
Then her sleepy gaze shifted and landed on the man Mira was holding onto.
She froze for a second, then rubbed her eyes hard in disbelief.
"Shane?"
She blurted it out, most of her drunkenness evaporating instantly.
"Isn't that Shane?!"
"...Long time no see, Cana."
Still stuck in Mira's chokehold, Shane managed to lift a hand with some effort.
Healthy bronze skin, that unmistakable long black-brown curly hair—even after four years, he recognized her at a glance.
Whoosh!
Cana jumped straight down from the stairs and landed in front of Shane, firing off questions like a barrage.
"When did you get back? Why didn't you go to the guild? What are you doing sneaking into the girls' dorm?"
Despite the four long years apart, there was almost no awkwardness between them at all.
Before Shane could answer, Cana casually elbowed him hard in the arm, her eyes already gleaming with gossip.
"Oho~ don't tell me Erza and Ultear aren't enough for you anymore and now you're setting your sights on the other girls in the guild too?"
"What a pain in the ass…"
Shane rubbed his aching temples.
"I obviously came here because I had actual business. As for you, I remember you used to live over by the church, didn't you?"
"Don't remind me." Cana shrugged carelessly. "They said my constant drinking was disturbing the other kids, and since there was a spare room here, I just moved in."
After explaining herself, her eyes lit up again, her entire face screaming I need this gossip.
"Forget about me for a second. So? Have you seen those two yet?"
Of course Shane knew exactly who she meant, and he rolled his eyes.
"I only woke up yesterday. When exactly was I supposed to find time to see them?"
"What? Seriously…"
Cana's expression instantly crumpled, looking even more anxious than Shane himself.
"I thought you'd been back for a while already."
"But then again…" She rubbed her chin and thought it over. "Erza's one of the Ten Wizard Saints now. She's insanely busy—Council meetings, high-level missions, one after another. I don't think she's even been at the guild these last few days, so you probably couldn't have seen her anyway."
"Alright, enough. Stop worrying about me. I've got urgent things to do, so I'm heading out first."
Shane waved a hand, trying to use the moment to escape.
But Cana was quick. She grabbed onto his black robe immediately.
"Don't even think about running! Answer me first—which one do you actually like more? And let me say this first: as someone from the guild, I am absolutely Team Erza!"
"..."
Faced with that kind of death trap of a question, Shane was completely speechless.
Without hesitation, he chose silence and turned a pleading look toward Mira, who was standing off to the side with her arms crossed, clearly enjoying the show.
Mira let out a cold snort, her eyes plainly saying: Oh, now you remember I'm here?
That said, she didn't just stand there and watch.
When it came to dealing with a disaster like Cana, Mira obviously had more experience than Shane did, and she didn't need any elaborate strategy.
She simply let a trace of her usual "She-Devil" force spill out, dark violet-black magic spreading faintly around her, then grabbed Shane by the arm and marched him straight toward the exit.
"Hey! Wait! I'm not done asking questions yet!"
Caught off guard, Cana was shoved aside cleanly, her face full of the agony of missing out on good gossip.
Too reliable!
Shane couldn't help giving his good student a huge mental thumbs-up.
And just before he got dragged out through the front doors, he still had the presence of mind to twist around and call back to Cana:
"Keep my return a secret from everyone in the guild for now! I want to surprise the old man and the others tomorrow!"
"Yeah, yeah, got it! What a pain you are!"
Cana waved him off impatiently with an exaggerated look of disgust, then turned and slowly made her way back upstairs.
But the instant she got back to her room, the irritation vanished from her face.
A second ago she'd looked annoyed. The next, she was already frantically digging through a drawer for a communication Lacrima.
"I promised I'd keep it secret from the people in the guild…"
In the dim room, the crystal lit up with an eerie blue glow, illuminating Cana's sly smile.
"But people who aren't currently at the guild don't count, right?"
She cleared her throat and spoke into the crystal.
"Hey? Erza? Huge news! Do you know who I just saw at the dorm…"