A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

"Let me see if there's anything suitable first."

Kurnuki remained calm, showing no sign of disappointment. But he truly had nothing to be disappointed about; to him, the old blacksmith was merely a stranger.

As he examined each sword he drew from the rack, he remarked casually, "Humans are truly strange creatures, willing to risk their lives to protect their offspring..."

Upon hearing this, Dispel couldn't help but retort: ​​"Hey, hey... shouldn't it be the dragons who are strange? I remember that protecting offspring is a biological instinct for reproduction."

"That's only true for their own cubs. Animals like lions don't show mercy to the cubs of other lions; it's to ensure their own status and power."

"You're probably talking about a time when tribes fight over territory, right? I've read about it in books, where a new king would kill the child of the previous king to secure his position within the tribe. But dragons shouldn't have that kind of trouble, right?"

Kira interjected quietly, "Perhaps dragons give all their 'parental love' to humans... Look, like Igneel for Natsu, Grandine for Wendy, and others."

Dispel laughed heartily: "Are you talking about that Iron Man? I remember him, that poor guy who didn't even make it to the round of 16."

The two men and one dragon searched for a long time, but still couldn't find a suitable knife.

"Let's go, there's nothing I want here!"

"Huh? They're leaving already? This is the best blacksmith shop in all the towns around here!"

"let's go……"

After the three of them left the blacksmith shop, they immediately planned to meet up with Erza and the others, but there was no trace of them near the blacksmith shop, obviously because the others had not come looking for them since they left.

"That's strange, why did they take so long? Did they encounter a formidable enemy?"

"Probably not? Don't underestimate the mages of Fairy Tail!"

Dispel suddenly exclaimed, "Oh dear! But they're so slow! Maybe we should find a tea restaurant nearby and wait for them?" (Hmph... I'm definitely going to rip you off this time!)

Kira decisively rejected his suggestion: "No! We've lingered here long enough, let's just go find them!" (Heh...everyone knows you don't have a single penny on you, you'll just make me pay anyway! Trying to take advantage of someone you know? No way!)

"Huh? But only Dragon Slayer Mages should be able to find us, right?" (I'm not going!)

“I have a magic tracker; I can find them too. Why don’t you wait here for a bit?” (I can use this opportunity to abandon them, then go directly to MNP to complete the quest, collect my reward, and return to Magnolia.)

Kira had his reasons for doing this: who knew how much these two were planning to eat? Especially since there was a dragon involved! A dragon!! Everyone knows a dragon's stomach can hold a mountain of food!!

"Let's go together. Haven't you heard there are dark guilds around here that kidnap people? You're so handsome and dashing; it's too unsafe for you to act alone." (Trying to abandon us? No way!)

"Don't worry, I'm very strong. You should know that, since we're essentially the same person." (Get lost, or I'll just fight!)

"Yeah, yeah, about the same strength, and about the same appearance too. This world is truly amazing; there are all kinds of people here." (My strength is about the same as yours, so you won't find it so easy to beat me up! Also, if you don't include me, I'll use your face to do this and that to frame you! I'm capable of doing that kind of thing!)

"Yeah, yeah, there are all kinds of people! Murder and kidnapping in broad daylight! As the role model for the new generation of Ishgar mages, I must use strong measures to stop such bad behavior!!" (Fine, I give up. Let's go fight the bad guys.)

"Well said! As the 'Number One Swordsman,' I should set a good example for the kids in this other world. Let's go!" (Okay, okay, let's vent our anger on them.)

Perhaps it should be said that he truly lives up to his reputation as an otherworldly counterpart. After spending just a few months together last year and a year of reflection, Dispel has developed a personality that is almost identical to Kira's.

But what's most surprising is the unparalleled tacit understanding between them.

The two men's words silenced Kurnuki. After a moment of quiet observation, he suddenly asked, "What were you talking about? It sounded like there was something hidden in your words. Also, when did you become the 'Number One Swordsman'?"

“It’s nothing! Just some unimportant things,” Kira and Dispel said in unison.

Then, Dispel continued, "As for when I became the 'Number One Swordsman,' it was of course acknowledged by those defeated opponents I've fought before!"

"So, this means there's 'not even official proof,' right?" Kurnuki said mercilessly. "Also, if you don't want to say, you can just tell me directly; there's no need to lie."

"Oh, we don't want to..."

Before Dispel could finish speaking, Kira nodded vigorously in agreement, saying, "Exactly! They don't even have a title that sounds even remotely respectable, like 'The Ten Wizard Saints'!"

"Tch~ What's so special about the 'Ten Wizard Saints'? One day I'll find my chance and take down the number one one, then we'll see if he's still so cocky!"

……

"Achoo!! What's going on? Is it getting cold so fast this year? It's only September..."

Far away, Serena suddenly felt a chill, completely unaware that he was being watched. But even if he did know, given his personality, he wouldn't have taken it seriously.

……

Kira shrugged nonchalantly: "I have no problem with it, but they didn't offend you, did they?"

"Who told you to show off in front of me every day! Come to think of it, I remember you used to look down on this kind of empty fame, didn't you?"

"But ever since I was named one of the 'Ten Saints,' I've received many more commissions, and the rewards are quite high, so..."

Dispel immediately understood: "They've tasted the sweetness!"

"Yes!"

Chapter 421 The Strongest Squad Falls into a Trap

Kira admitted it very readily. There was nothing to be embarrassed about in this kind of thing, especially since the person in front of him wasn't a stranger, but a fellow being. The other person knew his personality very well, so there was no need to hide anything.

"Eh~ How strange!"

"What's wrong?" the two asked curiously upon hearing Kira's sudden voice.

"According to the magic tracker, Erza and the others seem to have run quite far... What's going on?"

Kira pointed to the magic tracker in his hand, which displayed Erza's name and two red dots. One red dot was constant, representing himself; the other was flashing, representing Erza.

"My God! You even have something like this? With something this powerful, you can practically track the whereabouts of all the girls in the guild at any time! So, you really are the legendary stalker, aren't you?"

Dispel snatched the tracker from Kira's hand and tapped the buttons repeatedly. The names on it kept changing, from "Erza" to "Natsu" and "Lucy" and their group, to familiar names like "Mira" and "Makarov," and then to people he had heard of but never seen, such as "Jeral" and "Ultear." He immediately exclaimed in surprise.

Compared to Dispel's shouting, Kurnuki was much calmer. He merely glanced at the magic tracker, which Dispel considered a "pervert's artifact," and then ignored it. For dragons, their noses are more useful than any magical artifact.

"Given their strength, they shouldn't be unable to catch up or defeat them."

"Hmm... Based on my years of experience, the most likely scenario is that they defeated those guys and then learned from them that the dark guild had kidnapped other people, so they went to rescue them."

After hearing Kira's speculation, Dispee and Kurnuki agreed: "That certainly sounds like their style..."

“Let’s go and see if we need any help. Hmm… I wonder if there are any dark guilds like the ‘Baram Alliance’ in the magical world of Giltina.”

In the Fairy Tail world, all mages have an aura of power, so even though Kira has complete confidence in Erza and the others' strength and luck, if they really encounter a powerful enemy, they will likely get beaten up first.

Thirty minutes later, Kira and his two companions leisurely arrived at their destination, a forest outside the town.

Deep in the forest, there was a dark-looking tavern with a string of monster skulls hanging at the entrance, covered with a bunch of terrifying red and black patterns.

The most distinctive feature is a huge green snake sculpture, with two lantern-sized eyes on its body.

Dispel pondered for a moment and then said, "Hmm... if I remember correctly, the dark guild that blacksmith's nephew mentioned was called 'One-Eyed Serpent,' right? It seems the person they kidnapped is hidden here."

Kira looked at the magic tracker in his hand, nodded, and said, "Erza and the others are inside too, but... why are they not moving?"

"Could we have been tricked? I heard that the people in the Dark Guild here are quite resourceful, and they can also buy a lot of things that are not normally available on the black market."

"Things you can't buy? Your conscience and integrity?"

Dispel blurted out, "I think you can buy that kind of thing!"

"Holy crap!! You actually managed to keep that?!" Kira exclaimed in disbelief. "And I can't even refute the 'can be bought' argument... Damn it! I never thought you were this kind of person!!"

Kurnuki listened quietly to Kira and Dispel's conversation, and only after they finished did he speak in his usual indifferent tone: "I said, you two..."

"We're really not brothers!" ×2

"...I wanted to ask, aren't you going in?"

"No rush, no rush... let's find out the situation first."

"It's still early... I'll take a nap first."

As Kira, Dispel, and Culnuki sized up the dark guild outside the tavern, Erza slowly opened her eyes in the tavern's basement.

A haughty voice rang out: "Hey, you damned woman, finally awake?"

Upon hearing the voice, Erza instantly regained her senses and recalled what had happened.

Half a day ago, driven by intense suspicion, she led Natsu and the others to catch up with the suspicious burly men on the street. Natsu originally intended to intervene directly to rescue them, but Erza stopped him, reasoning that "they can't possibly only have this many people; we should follow them to their hideout before making a move." The others agreed to this suggestion.

The group eventually arrived at this place, the tavern of the dark guild 'One-Eyed Serpent'.

To their surprise, the other party had already spotted Erza and her group following them on the way, so they immediately activated the mechanism after entering the tavern.

Erza and the others, unaware that they had been exposed, followed the group to a tavern and broke down the door. Unexpectedly, the place was riddled with traps, and even more unexpectedly, there were sleeping potions inside. As Inaz wandered around recklessly, and all of them fell victim to the potion.

"This...this is...?!"

Erza's eyes widened in surprise, for not only were her hands cuffed behind her back, but her neck, wrists, and ankles were also bound in shackles, and her waist was wrapped with three or four layers of iron chains. No matter how hard she tried, she could not break free, and she could not even use magic.

"They are Demon-Sealing Handcuffs!"

Having already learned about this kind of thing, Erza immediately realized what was binding her, and her face filled with annoyance: "Damn it! I was so careless!!"

The arrogant voice rang out again: "Careless? It wasn't you who was careless! My trap was too perfect!! Hahaha!!!"

However, Erza didn't even glance at them, but instead looked around and surveyed the surrounding environment.

This is an iron cage. Inside the cage are not only himself and Natsu and the others, but also a bunch of unfamiliar children and women. Apart from that, there is nothing else. Even the sacks used to carry people are thrown outside the iron cage.

Natsu and the others were still unconscious, bound by the same Demon-Sealing Shackles and chains as Natsu. Even Happy and Charlene were locked in an iron cage. Happy was sleeping soundly, with a faint drool dripping from his mouth, making it clear to anyone what he was dreaming about.

As for the children and women, they were clearly ordinary people, so it seemed that they were being held in ordinary chains and handcuffs. They were awake, but at this moment they were all huddled together in fear and apprehension, not daring to speak or look up at anyone.

"So this really is the kidnappers' hideout... Don't be afraid, we'll get you all out soon!" Erza loudly reassured the defenseless people.

Upon hearing Erza's voice, these people had only three reactions: the first looked up at her, their eyes shining with hope; the second remained dejected and shook their heads at her; and the third ignored her and continued to remain silent with their heads down.

Those who reacted less were the most emaciated and pale. Erza immediately understood: these people must have been brought here and held captive for some time, thus losing their will to resist. However, judging from their condition, it seemed the people here hadn't subjected them to any form of torture, such as whipping.

The arrogant male voice rang out for the third time: "Hey!! Woman!! I'm talking to you, do you hear me!! Quickly kneel down and beg for mercy, and I might consider treating you a little better~"

"This really... reminds me of some bad experiences..." Erza sighed, muttered to herself, and then shouted, "Natsu!! Gray!! Lucy!! Wendy!! Get up!!!"

After being called several times, Natsu and the others gradually woke up, shaking their heads as they finally regained their senses. Once they realized their surroundings, they started shouting again.

"Lucy, is it morning yet?"

"Wait! Natsu, wake up!! We're tied up!"

"What?! Where am I?"

"It must be their hideout!"

"I think I smelled something, and then I passed out..."