— — — — — — — —
Lucy, Natsu, and Gray shared their guesses with Uchiha Kitaro.
"As expected, three heads really are better than one. You're right—it's not the moon that's the problem. The island itself is."
"Yes!"
The trio cheered, thrilled to have their theories validated by Kitaro.
"S-class missions really get your blood pumping!"
"I'm gonna freeze that curse solid!'' Gray declared confidently.
Fueled by their newfound excitement, Natsu and Gray felt like they were one step closer to becoming true S-class wizards. But suddenly—Boom!
From the forest came a loud noise.
''Huh?''
''What was that?''
Before they could react, SWOOSH! A massive, maid-uniform-wearing giant mouse appeared, standing over ten meters tall.
"A mouse?!''
''It's huge!''
The enormous rodent puffed up its cheeks like it was about to unleash something.
''Damn it! I'll block it with my Ice Shield—''
Before Gray could finish, the mouse spewed a putrid gas.
''Oh my God, that reeks!''
''Why does it smell so bad?!''
''Run!!''
Clutching their noses, they bolted, but the mouse didn't let up and kept chasing them.
'Tch! Ice-Make: Floor!' Gray shouted, slamming his palms onto the ground. A slick sheet of ice spread across the surface.
The giant mouse slipped on the ice and crashed onto the ground with a thunderous THUD.
''Look over there! There's a building!' Lucy pointed out. 'Let's get inside while we can!''
''No way! Let's take it down while it's down!'' Natsu argued, lunging at the fallen mouse alongside Gray.
After beating it into submission, the group hurried into the structure Lucy had spotted.
''Whoa, this place is huge.''
''And falling apart,'' Gray muttered.
They found themselves in a grand hall, clearly once a majestic palace. But now, it was in ruins—broken columns everywhere, with massive trees breaking through the floor and reaching toward the sky.
''How old is this place?''
Kitaro examined their surroundings. ''Judging by the level of decay, it's at least 200 years old.''
''Hey, look! There are moon symbols all over the walls!'' Natsu said, pointing upward.
''Isn't this island called the Island of the Moon?'' Lucy noted. ''The Moon Island, the Moon's Curse, the Moonlit Chapter... This whole place feels off. Maybe it's all connected."
"What if this used to be a seal for some giant demon? And because the ruins decayed, the seal broke, releasing it. Now it's turning everyone on the island into demons!''
Her imagination ran wild, crafting an elaborate theory.
Kitaro rolled his eyes. ''What is this, a fantasy novel?''
Realizing she might have been wrong, Lucy scratched her head awkwardly.
''This place looks pretty unstable... Is the floor even safe?'' Natsu wondered aloud, stomping experimentally on the ground.
''Wait, don't do that!'' Lucy yelled. 'It already looks like it's barely holding up!'
CRACK!
The floor gave way, opening up a gaping hole beneath them. The group plummeted into the darkness below.
''You idiot! Kitaro, save me!'' Lucy screamed.
Without hesitation, Kitaro swooped down and caught her midair.
To Lucy, it felt like something out of a fairytale. His heroic rescue, combined with his handsome face, made her heart race. She couldn't help but think, If I had a boyfriend like him, I'd feel so safe.
Unbeknownst to her, Kitaro hadn't thought twice about it—it was pure reflex.
Crash!
Natsu burst out of the rubble below.
''Hey, is everyone okay?''
Gray crawled out, glaring at Natsu. ''Damn it, this is why you always think before you act! You never learn!''
''What the hell is that?!'' Natsu suddenly screamed, drawing everyone's attention.
They followed his gaze and froze in shock.
''What... is that?'' Lucy stammered.
Before them stood a massive, frozen monster encased in ice.
''Deliora!'' Gray shouted, his face pale as he recognized the creature.
'Deliora?! How is that thing here?! That's impossible! Absolutely impossible!'
Gray's voice trembled as he stared at the beast with a mix of disbelief and fury.
'You know what that is?' Natsu asked, confused.
''Deliora. The Demon of Destruction.'' Gray's teeth clenched as he glared at the frozen monstrosity, his expression full of hatred.
'The Demon of Destruction?' Lucy echoed, puzzled.
Kitaro examined the frozen creature, piecing things together. The name stirred faint memories—it was one of the demons from the Book of Zeref.
Zeref, the legendary dark wizard, was both a genius and a calamity. His creations had caused untold destruction, earning him the title of the most infamous dark wizard in history.
The worst kind of evil, Kitaro thought, was the kind that didn't even realize it was evil.
'It looks exactly the same as it did back then. How did it end up here?'
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoed nearby.
''Shh, someone's coming,'' Kitaro whispered. ''Hide.''
The group quickly concealed themselves as two figures entered—a tall, shirtless man with a dog-like face and a smaller figure with exaggerated features.
''Didn't we hear voices here earlier?'' the tall one asked.
''Yeah, but who cares? It's daytime—I'm tired.''
Just then, a heavily made-up girl joined them, her dramatic appearance almost comical. ''Yuka, Toby, I have tragic news. Angelica has been attacked!''
''That's just a rat!'' Toby growled in frustration.
The girl, Sherry, clutched her heart and replied earnestly, ''Angelica is not just a rat. She's a hunter prowling the shadows."
"This is love.''
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