Kapitel 493: The Kingdom of Fiore Ripped off Fairy Tail
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.
July, x786.
A few weeks have passed since Alfonzo and Hibiki made their agreement. In the meantime, Fairy Tail was operating as usual. Today, however, they received a couple of visitors in the form of Izumi and Sig Curtis, led by Winry to see Izumi's apprentices.
"It's still hard to believe that those boys got their original bodies back." Izumi Curtis, a tall, fair-skinned woman with mid-back-length black hair worn in box braids and tied into a ponytail and sharp, black eyes wearing a sleeveless, long, white blouse with the top few buttons undone, revealing some cleavage and a Flamel tattoo on her left breast, a pair of ankle-length black pants, and a pair of black sandals, said while she followed Winry towards the Fairy Tail guild hall while holding her husband's hand.
"I know what you mean." Winry, with a smile on her face, replied happily. "I was there when it happened, and sometimes I still think I was dreaming.
"Even so, this is something worth celebrating." Izumi's husband, Sig Curtis, a tall, massively muscular middle-aged man wearing a green t-shirt, blue pants, and simple black boots, said in a deep voice. "On top of that, there could even be a chance for you to regain what you have lost as well, my dear."
Smiling hopefully, Izumi hugged her husband's arm while drawing nearer. Meanwhile, Winry was also smiling. However, her smile was closer to a wry smile than a happy or hopeful one.
"I don't know if that will be as easy as you expect." Winry said, though she did not want to destroy the hopeful atmosphere. "And there are a couple of reasons for that."
"What do you mean?" Izumi asked with her eyebrows furrowed.
"Well, for one, the Philosopher's Stone does not belong to Ed and Al." Winry replied. "It belongs to Alfonzo Marcus, an S-Class wizard of the Fairy Tail."
"You mentioned that before." Izumi replied with a nod. "Still, why would that make everything more difficult?"
"Well, since you are an Alchemist, you do things on the basis of equivalent exchange, right?" Winry asked, though it was more of a statement than a question.
"That's right." Izumi replied. A moment later, Izumi realized what Winry was getting at. "And what could I give that would be of equal value to a Philosopher's Stone...?"
"Exactly." Winry replied solemnly.
"What did the boys have to pay?" Sig asked.
"They had to join Fairy Tail until they retired." Winry replied. "And although there are many loop holes that could be used in that agreement, Ed and Al were determined to carry out the agreement."
"I see." Izumi said while lowering her head in thought. "But I'm only a housewife. I'm not cut out for the job of a guild wizard."
Hearing Izumi call herself "only a housewife," Winry could not help but roll her eyes. She had seen this woman throw Alphonse, while he was still an armor, over her shoulder with little effort, after all.
"Still, I'm sure I could work out something with this Alfonzo Marcus." Izumi replied. "Although I'm not suitable as a wizard, I--- *Cough*"
*Splatter!*
Before Izumi could finish, she stopped walking and coughed up a mouthful of blood that splattered on the path leading from Magnolia to the Fairy Tail guild hall.
"Kya~~~~~!" Winry screamed in panic.
"Honey!" Sig exclaimed as he held Izumi close. Then, with his free hand, he pulled out a bottle of medicine from the bag he was carrying, poured out a couple tablets, and fed them to Izumi. "Take these, they'll help."
Swallowing the pills, Izumi reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a handkerchief. Then, she wiped the blood from her face. Meanwhile, Sig reached into the bag he was carrying for a second time and pulled out a canteen, uncapped it, and handed it to Izumi.
Canteen in hand, Izumi took a few gulps of water before handing it back to Sig.
"Thank you, Dear." Izumi said with love in her eyes.
"Of course." Sig replied as he turned towards his wife. "Anything for you, my love."
With that, a pink aura engulfed the married couple as they slipped into their own world, leaving Winry to look on in envy.
'Ed and I will be like that one day.' Winry muttered to herself. 'Then, we'll make all the onlookers jealous and uncomfortable, too.'
A few moments later, Winry dragged Izumi and Sig out of their self-created world. Then, she continued leading them towards the guild hall. And when they eventually arrived, the Curtis couple could not help but look up in awe.
"It looks even bigger up close." Izumi muttered.
At the same time, Winry could have sworn she heard Alfonzo say, "that's what she said." Something she knew was impossible because she knew he was all the way in Onibus working on Blue Pegasus' guild hall.
"Anyway, let's go inside." Winry said with a smile. "Ed and Al should be inside. They should have just finished going through a rehabilitation session with Miss Porlyusica."
Nodding in response, Izumi and Sig stepped forward. Then, just as Sig reached out to open and hold the door for Izumi, the Curtis couple's eyes widened when the doors slid to either side on their own.
Winry, on the other hand, smiled at Izumi and sig's reactions, as she had a similar reaction the first time she saw such heavy metal doors move on their own, as well.
At the same time, thanks to the guild hall's doors opening, many of Fairy Tail's wizards looked in their direction. Having grown familiar with Winry, most of them went back to what they were doing. Naturally, there were a few exceptions, though.
"Teacher!" A pair of male voices shouted loud enough to be heard over the hustle and bustle of the guild hall.
Looking in the direction of the voices, Winry, Izumi, and Sig saw a pair of golden blond young men standing up from their seats at a table. While the shorter of the two stood up with little difficulty, the taller of the two was using a pair of crutches to do so.
On top of that, the shorter of the two, Edward Elric, was wearing a short-sleeved, white t-shirt, and a black pair of shorts, showing off his arms and legs, which were completely made of flesh and blood.
However, Izumi and Sig's attention was drawn more to the taller of the two, Alphonse Elric, whose face they had not seen since he was a child, due to the [Human Transmutation] accident.
"Edward... Alphonse..." Izumi said emotionally as she slowly started taking steps towards her former apprentices. At the same time, Edward supported his younger brother to approach as well.
Meanwhile, seeing what was going on, the rest of the guild quieted down as they watched the reunion.
Eventually, the two sides met. And when they did, Izumi immediately pulled Edward and Alphonse into a hug before all three were engulfed in a hug by Sig.
"Teacher..." Edward and Alphonse muttered as they both cried quietly.
"Edward, Alphonse, I'm glad you're both safe." Izumi said while tears streamed down her face, as well. Then, she pulled away from the Elric brothers and took a good look at them. "Al, you're so much bigger than the last time I saw you properly. And Ed... even you've grown a little."
Hearing that, Alphonse, who stood at 5'7" smiled. Meanwhile, Edward, who had grown by nearly an inch and stood at 5', smiled wryly.
"Anyway, why don't we have a seat." Sig Suggested. "I'm sure this is not the most comfortable way for Alphonse to carry on a conversation.
Izumi immediately opened her eyes wide before remembering that Alphonse was using crutches when he approached. Then, she nodded her head as she and Edward helped Alphonse back to his seat.
"So, tell us, what happened when you got your bodies back?" Izumi asked once she, Winry, Edward, Alphonse, and Sig were seated.
As asked, Edward and Alphonse worked together to tell the story about their meeting with Ankhseram. After that, they explained the process of their rehab. They also talked about how scary Porlyusica was, as well. And they both shivered when they mentioned Porlyusica's broom.
Then, while they were in the midst of their discussion, the doors once again slid open, revealing Ultear and Meredy, who had just returned from a quest. And to everyone's surprise, Ultear was wearing a serious expression.
"Big news, everyone." Ultear said while holding a newspaper in her hand.
"Really, what's up, Tear?" Cana asked curiously. "Did Fonzie do something again?"
"No, this time it's not about him." Ultear replied as she stepped into the guild hall and headed for the usual table.
Unsurprising to Ultear, however, was the fact that Meredy was frozen in place just inside the doors.
"*Sigh* If you wanna go over there, then go." Ultear said while shaking her head. "Then again, I guess you don't know who you should talk to anymore, huh?"
Immediately, Meredy began to blush. Then, she glared at Ultear with a pout.
"Stop making fun of me, Tear." Meredy whined.
In response, Ultear could not help but laugh. Then, she started patting Meredy on the head.
"And stop treating me like a kid." Meredy said as she slapped Ultear's hand away.
"Okay, okay, I'll stop." Ultear said with a chuckle. "But seriously, you should make a decision. Unless you're trying to start a reverse harem, that is. But something tells me those two won't be okay with sharing a girl."
"Tear~~~~!" Meredy whined loudly as her blush intensified.
As it turned out, as soon as Meredy saw Alphonse's real body, despite the fact that he was basically skin and bones, she, like she had done with Edward, fell in love immediately. Naturally, because of this, she did not know who she should focus on. And Ultear has loved teasing her about it ever since.
"Anyway, you should go introduce yourself." Ultear whispered into Meredy's ear. "If I remember correctly, that woman is Izumi Curtis, Ed and Al's mentor. Basically, the closest thing they have to a parent."
With that, Meredy's expression turned resolute. Then, without another word, she started walking towards the table where the Elrics sat. Meanwhile, Ultear could only shake her head at Meredy's actions. Then, with the newspaper in hand, she continued to the table where her friends sat.
"So, what's the deal, Tear?" Elicia asked curiously. "What kind of news could get you so excited."
"Take a look at this, and you'll understand." Ultear replied as she put the newspaper down on the table.
Picking up the newspaper, Elicia read the headline aloud.
"A New Magical Competition to Crown Fiore's Strongest Guild." Elicia said with her eyes widening.
'I guess that means the Grand Magic Games are right around the corner, huh?' Elicia thought to herself as she read the rest of the article. 'Oh, their gonna start the Miss Fiore Pageant, too, huh?'
["Yeah, and this is all suspiciously similar to the Harvest Festival festivities are guild puts on, isn't it?"] Scylla asked as she read the article through Elicia's eyes.
'I know, right.' Elicia replied. 'I guess our guild was the inspiration behind the king's decision in this time line.'
["Yeah, but it would have happened anyway, now that I think about it."] Scylla said in a contemplative tone. ["I mean, in the canon, Jenny Realight was the reigning Miss Fiore in x791. On top of that, the Grand Magic Games had been going on since at least x789, since Sabretooth dethroned the previous year's champion."]
'That's right. Elicia replied. 'So, at the most, we only sped up the Grand Magic Games, rather than being the reason for them.'
["Right."] Scylla replied with a nod.
"Well, this could be fun." Elicia said as she put the newspaper back down. "And it looks like it will start on July 1 of next year."
"What are you talking about, Lici?" Marin asked curiously as she took the newspaper to read it for herself.
"Yeah, just tell us." Lisanna said with a smile. "Don't keep us in suspense."
"Well, it looks like---" Elicia began to say.
"No way!" Marin exclaimed. "Did the kingdom rip off our Battle of Fairy Tail tournament and make it a kingdom wide event?"
Naturally, Marin's loud exclamation drew the attention of everyone in the main hall. The more curious members of the guild even made their way over to the table to ask what she was talking about.
"Basically." Elicia replied with a shrug.
"And that's why I was so serious when I came in." Ultear said with a nod. "They plan on crowning the strongest guild in Fiore. And I think that crown belongs with us. So, we need to talk to Mom about this."
Hearing that, the guild hall was filled with battle intent. Then, Natsu, the most excitable member of the guild threw his head back and breathed a stream of fire towards the ceiling.
"Oh yeah! I'm all fired up!" Natsu shouted excitedly. "There will be so many people to fight. I can't wait.!"
A moment later, however, Natsu choked on his flames after feeling an intense glare land on him. And when he looked towards the glare's source, he almost wet himself in fear.
"Natsu, what have I told you about doing things that could damage the guild hall?" Elicia asked in an ominous tone. "Did you forget how hard Fonzie worked to build this for us?"
"Wait, Lici, I'm sorry." Natsu replied in a fear-filled tone as he took a few steps back. "I promise, I won't let it happen again."
"That's what you said last time." Elicia said as she ejected threads from the hand she stretched towards Natsu.
In response, Natsu engulfed his body in flames. Unfortunately, that had no effect on the threads Elicia was using to immobilize him.
"Why aren't they burning?" Natsu asked in a horrified tone.
Before he could receive an answer to his question, however, Natsu was wrapped up from neck to toe. At the same time, Elicia used another bundle of her threads to open the elevator and thew Natsu in before sending him up to the tenth floor.
"Now, when the elevator gets back, we should go and talk to Ur about this." Elicia said as if nothing happened.
"That ability to add threads of different attributes to your magic almost feels like cheating." Lucy said as she stared blankly at the elevator doors.
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