Fairy Tail: Magic is not such an inconvenient thing.

But... it has nothing to do with me, so who cares.

No matter how big the trouble the council is in, it has nothing to do with Fairy Tail.

Fairy Tail is now the premier mage guild in Ishgar. Their friends are all over the country, their products sell well across the continent, and their reputation is at its zenith.

Even the Fairy Tail Council doesn't dare to interfere too much with Fairy Tail anymore, and the Chairman has received far fewer letters of censure recently.

There's no way around it; Fairy Tail now is completely different from what it used to be, and its influence is on a completely different level.

The council is now a little worried that Maklov might have some ulterior motives. Does this guy want to become a magic emperor like Spriggan of the Alvarez Empire in the western continent?

The council quietly raised Fairy Tail's danger level several levels again, from "a violent group disguised as a legitimate guild" to "an ambitious guild that needs to be treated with caution."

So, whatever Zeklayin might want to do, as long as he doesn't provoke him, Abbot won't bother with him.

However, that guy is also Mystogan's counterpart in this world. Old Mystogan is a decent guy, so his counterpart shouldn't be a bad person either... probably.

Just as Ebo put down his newspaper, Erza led a short-haired girl into the guild.

"Abbot, register this new recruit. He's a new reserve."

The green-haired girl was dressed as a Western cowboy, holding a small mouse in her arms. She looked quite wild, but for some reason, she seemed very reserved.

"Hello, I am Bisca Mulan, from the Western Continent, and I specialize in firearms magic..."

Another Western gunslinger? He should have a lot in common with Alzac.

It seems that life isn't easy for the people of the Western Continent either, with so many coming here to make a living.

Then Abbot heard Erza say:

"This guy impersonated our guild as a thief, causing harm to civilians everywhere. I caught him, taught him a lesson, and then brought him back."

"...Is it really okay to let someone like this join the guild?"

"But she has nowhere to go, no identity and can't find a job. No one but our guild would dare to take her in."

"Is that so? Well, there's nothing I can do about it then. Here you go. You're now a reserve member of our guild. Try your best to become a full member as soon as possible."

Abbot handed Bisca a "document" with her portrait and the guild crest on it; this was her identity certificate as a guild reserve member.

"Th-thank you!"

Bisca was deeply moved. Although she had joined the guild to follow Erza, she now felt that she had made a good decision.

"Abbot, want to train together today—wait, who is this guy—"

Erza was just about to invite Ebo for a passionate battle when she caught a glimpse of that unforgettable face in the newspaper on the table.

Erza's pupils dilated violently, and she abruptly picked up the newspaper. Dead memories began to assault her brain, and her hands gripping the newspaper trembled violently.

"There's absolutely no mistake, this guy, this guy is—"

Erza turned and ran without saying a word, but was stopped by Ebo:

"Erza? What do you want to do?"

"Sorry, Abbot, I need to take care of some personal matters... This has nothing to do with the guild, so please don't stop me."

Although Ebo had long guessed that Erza must have some old acquaintance with this guy who resembled "Jeral," he didn't expect Erza's reaction to be so strong.

It seems I had misunderstood something before; this "Jeral" and Erza are not just ordinary acquaintances.

Albert knew that Erza had also escaped from the Dark Arts Order and had experienced something very bad.

From Erza's fragmented thoughts, he guessed that Jellal was probably her former companion, but they must have parted ways later. Erza joined Fairy Tail, and Jellal changed his name and went to the magic academy.

He never wanted to reopen Erza's wounds, so he never mentioned it to her. But now it seems there's more to this "past" than meets the eye.

"You want to go to the council to find this Zekrein?"

Erza took a deep breath:

"Abbot, this is my personal matter. I don't want to involve the guild. Can you please leave this alone?"

"...certainly,"

Abbo rolled his eyes:

"But my teleportation magic can take you directly to the council meeting place, ERA. Do you need my help?"

Chapter 116 Facing Gerald

Quite coincidentally, the topic of today's council meeting is a certain "ambitious" guild.

"We can't let Fairy Tail expand like this any longer! Today they've united with the Southern Mage Guilds, tomorrow they might unify all the guilds in Fiore, and the day after? And then? Are we going to let Makarov take over the Magic Council seat too!?"

"Calm down, Michael. Fairy Tail has never done anything truly evil, has it? They are very powerful. Targeting their guild will only backfire."

"You're the one who should shut up! Yajima, everyone knows you and Makarov are inseparable. If it weren't for you covering for them every day, we would have disbanded this lawless guild long ago!"

The youngest member of the Ten Wizard Saints, Zeklay, has spoken:

"Don't say that~ I still really like that guild. Look, we can use this convenient communication magic device now, thanks to that guild, right!"

"Shut up, you too! I really don't know how a greenhorn like you can become a councilor!"

"Hehe, because I have high magic power."

"Ultear! You too! Don't play with your magic ball during meetings!"

"Shouldn't we all get back to our topic?"

The so-called council meeting is basically just a place where a group of guys get together every day to argue.

Usually, after a whole day of arguing, nothing is resolved.

Therefore, Abbot looks down on the council members and doesn't know what serious illness Zekrein and Ultear had that made them become council members.

The meeting had just ended, and Ultear, who was idly playing with her crystal ball, suddenly noticed a new message in her mind—

Bring Zeklay to this position, right now.

That voice!? That nonchalant tone! That familiar, nostalgic, and utterly awful attitude!

It's her! My best roommate Hannah!?

Ultear was immediately excited. Since graduating from the magic academy, she had lost contact with Hannah. Even with the help of the Husband Council and the Magic Council, she couldn't find where Hannah had gone. It was as if she had vanished into thin air.

How could she not be excited to hear that unforgettable voice again!

"Zekrein, come with me quickly, we're going to see someone!"

"Huh? Wait, Ultear? What's wrong with you?!"

Before Zekrein could even react to what was happening, Ultear dragged him out of the council chamber.

At first, Zeklay was confused, but when he saw the crimson color that appeared in front of him, he was also greatly shocked.

"Geralt!!! It really was you!"

Without a word, Erza drew her sword and slashed forward. The sharp blade carried a deep killing intent; Erza was serious.

"All my efforts until now have been for this day. Prepare to die, Gerald!"

But Zekrein's strength was not merely for show; he easily dodged the attack and, feigning confusion, asked:

"What's going on? If I'm not mistaken, you're Fairy Queen Erza from Fairy Tail, right? Do I know you? I'm not the Jellal you're talking about..."

"What!?"

Erza paused abruptly, then shook her head:

"Impossible! You look exactly like him when you were little, I would never mistake you! Don't try to fool me!"

"No, no, no, I know who you're talking about. I do have a twin brother named Jellal, but that's a stain on my life. I don't want to acknowledge that person's existence, nor do I want anyone else to know about it. So, Miss Erza, can you retract these slanderous remarks?"

"..."

Erza stopped swinging her sword, a struggle forming on her face. After a long while, she finally spoke, asking:

"Abbot, is he telling the truth, Abbot?"

no respond.

But Urudia's eyes flickered. She had come here for Hannah, but instead of seeing her, she was being chased and hacked at by a woman.

"Where is that Aibo you mentioned?"

"Wait a minute. Although I understand that you have mistaken me for someone else, Miss Erza, you cannot pretend that your attack on a Wizard of Ten and a council member did not happen. I am going to arrest you now."

Zeklay felt he couldn't let Erza leave like this, as she might ruin his plans. He decided to arrest her before anyone noticed.

"Celestial Magic: Star Prisoner!"

A large magic circle appeared above Erza's head, about to crash down.

Ebo, who had been observing from the shadows, finally couldn't sit still any longer. Although Zekrein's magic power had just crossed the threshold of 100,000, it had indeed reached the level of the Ten Wizard Saints. Erza was probably no match for him, and now was the time for him to make his appearance.

Abbot transformed into a beam of light and crashed into the ground at Mach 10 from high above. Zekrein's magic circle was destroyed by him before it could fully take shape.

Abbots landed with a Superman-like impact, shattering the point of impact and creating a shockwave.

Ziklay frowned. This person looked familiar... Could it be... Hannah's brother?

Ultear was so shocked she couldn't close her mouth. She was absolutely certain that the person in front of her was her roommate Hannah, but... how could he look like a boy?

This physique and muscles are definitely the kind of build a boy would have... Could it be that...?

During the two years Hannah was missing, she... secretly underwent gender reassignment surgery!? Typical Hannah!

"..."

Aibo was initially quite pleased with his entrance, but he almost lost his composure when he heard Ultear's inner thoughts. This woman must be out of her mind!

Don't reveal my identity! Or you're dead!

After giving Urudia a small warning, Abbo coldly addressed Qikrein:

"How about we leave it at that? It's better for both of us if we stop here."

"Are you kidding me? You were just about to attack a Wizard of Ten!? If I call the Council of Wizards over, do you think you can escape?"

"..."

Abbott didn't say anything, but his eyes reddened, physically speaking—

"Zzz—Boom!"

A beam of bright red light shot out of Abbot's eyes unexpectedly, grazed Zekrein's cheek, and struck the rock not far behind him, shattering the boulder.

"I'm not discussing this with you. I want to leave, and you can't stop me."

The red light in Aibo's eyes, like molten lava from hell, faded, but the powerful oppressive force increased rather than decreased; it was... genuine killing intent.

Ziker's pupils constricted; he hadn't reacted at all. If the other party had aimed at his head, this thought entity would have been destroyed in one blow.

So fast! So powerful!? What kind of magic is this?!

"Erza, let's go."

Abbott put his hand on Erza's shoulder and looked at Zekrein:

"I think neither of us has met the other today, right?"

Then, the two disappeared from the spot.

Chapter 117 Erza's Heartache

Instead of taking Erza back to the guild, Aibo teleported back to his own home.

Erza remained silent the entire time, her mind in turmoil, as Abbot pushed her onto the sofa.

After a long while, Erza finally spoke and asked:

“Abbott, you… seem to know them? You were just standing there, weren’t you? Can you tell if that person was lying? You—”

"Sister Erza."

Ebo used ice magic to create small ice cubes and pressed them onto Erza's forehead: