Thanks to Simon's intervention, the farce finally came to an end.
Shane pawned Sho off on Wally and sat in the corner alone. His paramecium-level stamina meant all he wanted to do right now was rest.
Jellal dragged his feet over and sat down next to him, a look of relief on his face. "You really are something."
"Just now... you did that on purpose, didn't you? Acting like that to help them relax and fit in with everyone?" He leaned in slightly, his eyes shining with an 'I understand you' kind of knowing look.
"Is that so? Is that what I was thinking?"
Shane blinked. To be honest, he had just judged based on experience that giving food would increase his favorability rating with them.
For example, right now, his favorability with Grandpa Rob was pretty high. If there were a progress bar, it would probably be over eighty.
"Still pretending." Jellal chuckled, lightly punched Shane on the chest, and then got up to go to the other side, leaving Shane to rest alone while he explained the situation here to Simon and Erza.
This guy definitely misunderstood something.
Shane couldn't help but shake his head. Although Jellal was thoughtful and observant, he still lacked experience when it came to social nuances.
He closed his eyes, intending to take a nap. However, even though his body was too tired to move, his mind was unusually alert. The excited chatter of the others filled his ears.
After all, it was a rare holiday. Shane didn't want to spoil everyone's fun, so he just sat there with his eyes closed, resting his mind.
Because of the wound on his back, he couldn't lean against the wall, so he had to sit straight up. At first glance, he looked like he was meditating.
Suddenly, a rustling sound came from beside him. Shane's mouth twitched. "Sho, can you let me rest for a bit?"
But when he opened his eyes, he met Erza's curious gaze.
This girl's combat power was scary high. Based on Shane's observation, probably only Simon had the strength to overpower her in this entire cell.
"Is something wrong?" Shane sat up a little straighter.
"I heard them say you don't have a last name either?" Erza sat properly beside him, her tone full of curiosity.
"Where did this misunderstanding even come from..." Shane sighed inwardly, having no choice but to explain, "My name is Shane.
"Oh..." Erza's expression dimmed visibly, her shoulders slumping slightly.
Seeing her like this, Shane couldn't help but ask, "So, you don't have a surname?"
"Me? I've only had one name since I was born. I'm Erza. Just Erza." The girl lowered her head, her voice getting quieter.
"Since you care so much, why not choose one for yourself?"
"Eh?! Can I just choose one myself?" Erza suddenly looked up, her eyes widening slightly.
"Idiot, of course not," Shane said flatly. "A surname is a mark of bloodline and family. It ties people together on an invisible but long thread.
"From the day humans learned to write their names, surnames became part of 'who you are.' How can you just casually pick something so important?"
"But... didn't you bring it up?" Erza pursed her lips, feeling a bit wronged.
"I was just testing you." Shane glanced at her, then suddenly changed the subject. "If you can get out of here, what do you want to do?"
"I don't know." Erza shook her head, a trace of confusion crossing her face.
"Then make your goal 'finding your own surname'." Shane looked out beyond the iron bars, his voice not loud but clearly reaching Erza's ears.
"Find my own surname..." Erza murmured, repeating the phrase. No one had ever said that to her before.
In the past, when people found out she didn't have a surname, they either mocked her directly or looked at her with pity, offering empty comfort.
Shane was the first person to give her a concrete direction.
"What are you chatting about?" Sho was the type who loved to join in on the fun. It was fine when Shane wasn't awake, but as soon as he saw Shane's eyes open, he immediately scooted over.
"We were talking about what we plan to do if we can leave here," Shane answered.
"For the great me, Wally, I definitely want to be the boss when I get out!" Such an interesting topic immediately attracted Wally from not far away.
Someone laughed out loud on the spot. "Haha, a puppy like you can only be someone else's lackey."
Shane ignored the bickering over there and turned to look at Sho with a bit of curiosity. "What about you, Sho?"
"Me? That goes without saying, I'm definitely following Big Brother Jellal!" Sho answered without thinking.
Shane recalled how Sho had pranked him earlier and feigned sadness. "And here I thought we had a pretty good relationship..."
"Huh? No... that's two completely different things..." Sho hadn't expected this and panicked immediately. "Big Brother Jellal has always looked after me, so, so..."
"Stop teasing him," Jellal couldn't watch anymore and interrupted softly.
With the reminder, Sho finally realized what was happening. He caught a glimpse of Shane snickering, and his whole face instantly turned red. Even the chestnut hair on top of his head seemed ready to explode. "You played me on purpose!"
Shane quit while he was ahead, quickly waving his hand to beg for mercy, and smoothly changed the subject again. "What about Simon and Millianna?"
"Millianna wants to raise a whole house full of kitties!" The girl's crisp voice came from the corner.
"...I just want to find my sister," Simon's voice was deep.
Truly different wishes, Shane nodded lightly. Then, he turned his gaze to the other two. "Grandpa Rob? Jellal?"
"This old man just wants to find a place to bask in the sun and retire."
"You're not going back to Fairy Tail?" Shane remembered Grandpa Rob mentioning the guild with a face full of nostalgia and light in his eyes.
"I retired from there, you know," Rob chuckled. "I'm tired of seeing the same scenery. If I can get out, I can go back and visit whenever I want."
"Jellal?"
The boy was silent for a moment, then shook his head. "I don't know. There's nothing specific I want to do... If I had to say, I'd probably want to learn Magic."
The impression the Dark Magic Cult left on him was too deep. He didn't want to be powerless like this in the future.
Then, he looked up at the boy beside him. "What about you? You asked everyone else, what do you think?"
Upon hearing this, Shane's eyes suddenly lit up. "Me? I'm a very greedy person. There are too many things I want to do to count."
He ticked them off on his fingers. "Learn Magic, dig up the legend of that Dark Wizard, spend a whole year just reading books in a library..."
The vigorous warmth in his words seemed to have a physical temperature. Even the prisoners who had been silent turned to look at him. Someone muttered in a low voice, "Saying all this... we can't get out anyway."
"What does it matter? It's just chat," Shane grinned nonchalantly, leaning back comfortably—before his face contorted in pain from the wound on his back.
"Exactly. Can't we just imagine?" As his voice fell, someone actually laughed softly along with him.
The dim torchlight flickered, illuminating the smiling faces of the group. In that moment, the cold, damp cell no longer felt like a cage. It felt more like a tavern where a few free people, tired after a day's work, were chatting about where they would go to have fun tomorrow.