Fairy Tail: All Magic Converges in One Body

Chapter 404 Next Stop, Florasia

The crowds at the port were thinner than when we arrived, and the setting sun began to paint large patches of orange-red on the horizon, giving this bustling trading city a gentle golden edge.

Hope and his two companions had been walking along the cobblestone path for a short while when they saw a group of familiar people sitting in an open-air café on the street corner ahead.

Mavis was holding a glass of juice bigger than her face, her little legs dangling from the chair and swinging back and forth. Wendy sat next to her, and the two of them, along with the cat, were huddled together looking at a picture book they'd bought somewhere.

Happy and Lily squeezed onto another chair, each holding a small dried fish and a kiwi, eating with relish.

Erza, Mirajane, and Kana occupied another table, which was piled high with shopping bags of all sizes.

Erza had an excessive number of shopping bags in front of her, and Mirajane was helping her sort them with a smile, while Cana sat with her legs crossed, holding a bubbly drink in her hand.

Lucy and Levy sat in the corner, each holding a notebook and writing furiously, seemingly recording some novel material.

As for Makarov and Hades, the two old men sat in the innermost seats, one reading a magazine and the other resting with his eyes closed, with a chessboard between them, on which a game of chess was half-finished.

"Hey, you guys are back." Kana was the first to spot Hope and the others, raising her glass and waving it at them. "Finished dealing with Serena's matter?"

“It’s all done.” Hopla pulled up a chair and sat down, casually taking a candy from Erza’s shopping bag, unwrapping it, and popping it into his mouth. “From now on, there will be no more ‘God’ Serena.”

Upon hearing this, everyone looked up.

Makarov put down the magazine, his brow furrowing slightly. "You didn't kill him, did you?"

"What are you thinking? I'm a law-abiding mage." Hope shrugged, looking hurt. "Do you really think I'm someone who treats human life like dirt?"

"No."

"But you can be."

Everyone spoke in unison.

Hope: ......

It seems that his crazy antics and pranks have left a bad impression on everyone.

Hope coughed awkwardly and said, "I just didn't kill Serena. I just removed all eight Dragon Slayer Crystals from his body and locked half of his magic power."

"Eight pieces?" Lucy looked up from her notebook in shock. "You're saying he has eight Dragon Slayer Crystals inside him?"

“That’s right. Serena is an absolute monster to you. His village spent four hundred years collecting Dragon Slayer Crystals and then stuffed them all into his body.”

Upon hearing Hope mention the "God Project" that created Serena, Hades seemed thoughtful. "To contain multiple types of Dragon Slayer Crystals is quite a crazy attempt. That junior's willpower and physique are indeed extraordinary."

"No matter how extraordinary it may be, it will forever stop here."

Hope shrugged. "And he should thank us too."

Natsu, who was standing to the side, was laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out of his eyes. "Hahahaha! That idiot Serena got a beating from Hope, and he actually said thank you in the end."

Gajeel chimed in, "That's right, it's a bit unethical."

“This is not called immoral, this is called great compassion.”

Hope corrected him seriously, "I saved his life. With his strength, he dared to dream of destroying the Black Dragon. What else could it be but suicide? Now that I've shattered his dream, at least he can live a peaceful life until he's old."

"What do you call this? This is called a life-saving grace."

"Logically, he should kowtow to me, but I'm a kind-hearted person. As long as he says thank you, I'm such a good person."

Everyone was speechless; when it came to twisted logic, they were no match for Hope even if they all joined forces.

Mirajane chuckled and shook her head, steer the conversation back on track, "Let's leave Serena's matter as it is. What should we do next?"

"Floracia".

Hope flipped through a map he had casually bought from the port of Vistalia and read out a name, “The city we’re going to next is called this. It’s said to be the most famous culinary capital in the entire Alvarez Empire.”

"From street food to Michelin-starred restaurants, from traditional dishes to innovative cuisine, you can find it all. Every year, a large number of gourmets make a special trip just to have a meal there."

"Then what are we waiting for! I'm fired up!" Natsu's fists were already sparking.

“However,” Hope changed the subject, “Floracia wasn’t originally this famous. It’s said that a certain important figure was particularly fond of the food there and used a lot of resources to transform the city into a culinary capital, which is why it has its current scale.”

"Some big shot?" Kana raised an eyebrow.

"Eileen Bercelion".

Hope uttered the name casually.

Erza paused slightly in her hand holding the snack.

......

......

The hustle and bustle of the port of Vistalia faded into the distance, replaced by the rhythmic clanging of the magical train wheels rolling over the tracks.

In the VIP box, Hope leaned back in the window seat, propping his chin up with one hand, idly watching the pastoral scenery rushing past outside the window.

The landscape of the Western Continent is indeed different from that of Ishgar. Outside the towns, vast plains are dotted with golden wheat fields, and the occasional small town buildings are rounded and low, gleaming with a warm luster in the afternoon sun.

The magic trains of the Alvarez Empire are nearly twice as fast as ordinary magic trains, with spacious and comfortable carriages, and are also equipped with special magic devices to alleviate motion sickness.

This is a boon for the Dragon Slayers; at least Natsu and Gajeel are still alive and kicking, playing cards, instead of groaning half-dead by the window.

About two hours later, the train began to slow down.

"Dear passengers, the next stop is Florasia City. Passengers who wish to disembark, please prepare in advance," the train attendant's sweet voice came over the loudspeaker.

The train slowly came to a stop.

As the group stepped out of the station, a city completely different from the port of Vistalia came into view, and a rich aroma wafted towards them. It was a complex scent of roasted meat, spices, desserts, and sauces, enough to whet the appetite just by smelling it.

The air was filled with the aroma of cooking, and every few steps there was a restaurant or snack stall, with shopkeepers warmly greeting passersby.

Hope pulled out a travel guide map, which was densely marked with the locations of various famous restaurants. "Here, one for each of you. Go eat whatever you want. I'll give you plenty of money."

The crowd understood each other without saying a word and dispersed in twos and threes.

Only Hope and Erza remained in the same spot.

Hope reached out her hand to the red-haired girl beside her. "Let's go, it's time to meet my mother-in-law."

"What mother-in-law? We're not even married yet..."

Erza pouted, but her hand was already on his arm, her eyes filled with anticipation for meeting her mother.

Chapter 405 A Gift from the Door

You can't go to see your mother-in-law empty-handed.

This is basic etiquette, and Hope understands it.

only.......

Hope and Erza strolled around Florasia City, and finally, on the busiest commercial street, they gazed at the fragrant shop signs and fell into deep thought.

This city in the Alvarez Empire, famous for its cuisine, has food-related specialties, whether they are unique or not.

The problem is coming.

Irene Bercelion, the "Scarlet Despair" of the Alvarez Empire, is one of the empire's two pillars and the emperor's most trusted confidante, yet she suffers from a hidden illness unknown to others.

She lost her sense of taste and could never fall asleep.

These symptoms are not innate, but rather symptoms that Irene developed after she was completely "dragonized" as a Dragon Slayer Mage.

When Hope was in the Northern Continent, she talked about this with Faron Elevseria, who had become a Dragon Slayer Mage through self-study.

Eresheria can also fully "transform into a dragon," but with Irene, he can not only transform back into a human at any time, but also eat well, drink well, sleep well, and even have time to admire beautiful women.

There were absolutely no negative symptoms.

Despite their starkly contrasting views, Elevseria believes that the cause of Irene's physical abnormalities is not "dragonization," but rather psychological factors affecting her body.

To be precise, it was her deep-seated and extreme aversion to the idea of ​​"transforming herself from a human into a dragon."

The aversion, from the heart to the spirit, ultimately manifests physically as loss of taste and insomnia.

This is a psychological issue, not something that magic can solve.

So, giving food as a gift? Isn't that just reopening old wounds?

Hope didn't want to offend his future mother-in-law on their first meeting. Although he was powerful enough not to be afraid of Eileen and could even turn the tables on her, he still needed to be polite.

How about giving jewelry?

This is a foolproof way to win over women.

Hope shook his head again after thinking about this. With Eileen's strength and status, she couldn't possibly be short of money. Moreover, as a high-ranking mages, she could basically be self-sufficient in terms of material things and didn't have much need.

Giving away weapons? Besides being a mage, Eileen is also a swordsman.

But they themselves are already humanoid weapons...

Hope wandered around the shopping street again and again, with Erza quietly following beside him, glancing occasionally at the merchandise in the shop windows, her gaze wandering elsewhere.

Finally, Hope stopped in front of a grocery store and called out to the dozing owner, "Boss, two cases of milk, one case of cow's milk and one case of yogurt."

The grocery store owner, looking like he hadn't woken up yet, asked, "Huh?"

Hope repeated it again, feeling helpless.

Erza nudged him, puzzled, and asked, "Why are you buying milk? Aren't we going to see Mother... her?"

"Of course it's a gift. Do you expect me to drink it myself?" Hope said without batting an eye, pulling out her money. "You can't go to your mother-in-law empty-handed."

Erza, upon receiving the answer, had a look that clearly said, "Are you kidding me?" That was her mother, after all; a gift didn't have to be expensive, it should at least be presentable...

Hope smiled but didn't explain further.

Back in his hometown, visiting someone's home and bringing two boxes of milk was already considered a very high honor.

Of course, these two boxes of milk weren't really given as gifts; they were just for show. Hope's real gift was to help Eileen resolve her abnormal physical condition.

Eileen's taste and sleep problems are psychological issues that can only be resolved by addressing her inner conflicts.

The key to untying this knot...

Hope glanced at the red-haired girl beside her.

After learning about Eileen's ordeal through the Wise Dragon's Thought Entity, Hope suspected that her reluctance to become a dragon was related to the betrayal, humiliation, and rejection she suffered at the hands of the people she was protecting.