Chapter 2: Rebuilding his Fortunes...and his House, Part 1
(Fairy Tail Guild Hall, Magnolia Town, Kingdom of Fiore, Ishgar, Fairy Tail Universe)
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(Guiliano Augiliar POV)
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It'd been about a week since he'd been in Fairy Tail and rescued Macao and in that time he had made approximately fourteen million jewels in the week he'd been a part of Fairy Tail. How had he made that much in a week? He didn't owe his entire fortune to Jude Heartfilia, he actually had resources and incomes from various assets he owned, investments, and the businesses that he had founded. There were also his book sales, and his two highest-producing businesses made him around seven hundred and eighty-five thousand Jewels and four hundred and fifty-seven thousand Jewels respectively. That was per day, not weekly His book sales averaged about three million four hundred and seventy-six thousand jewels a week.
It always spiked monthly because he tended to release something big once a month randomly. He was a Third Generation Dragonslayer who had been born with Fire Dragon Slayer Magic and had received training from the other Dragon Gods before fleeing to Ishgar, and just because he'd learned from them didn't actually mean he'd mastered their Dragon Slayer Magic, but even so not a lot of people were on his level, and that meant that he could beat a lot of bad guys quickly which was how he'd been able to make the rest of his fourteen Million jewels up on jobs, so he had money to burn. His first Order of business? Buying a stake in the Magnolia Town Cake Shop and its factory. It was just good business since Erza and that gluttonous and bottomless pit that she called a stomach and digestive system could apparently hold and swiftly process fifty-two cakes.
It was simply good business so he'd just done that, so his second bit of business involved building his new home. He could afford to go crazy now, both in location and design. So he figured he'd extend Fairy Tail a bit of work.
Which brought him to Mirajane Strauss.
''Hey, Mirajane? I got a favor to ask.'' Says Guiliano.
''Of course, Guiliano, what do you need?'' Mirajane asks that dazzling and radiant smile adorning her face.
''A friend of mine reached out, he's got a construction job he needs help with. Wants To contract the Guild, but he can't leave a paper trail.'' Says Guiliano.
''Why? Why would he need to do this under the table?'' Asks Mirajane, deeply suspicious.
Leaning close to Mira he whispers in her ear.
''Tell you what, there are about two hundred thousand and fifty thousand Jewels on the table for anyone who takes part, it's a big job so it takes a lot of people. Don't ask too many questions and I'll be able to get you a signed, original, first edition from the first run copy of the first book in The Agony of Love series.'' Says Guiliano and Mira gets a shocked look on her face.
''But Guillermo E. Hisui only ever had five hundred and twelve such books printed. He gave the third and fourth books printed to the Royal Family of Ishgar, the Second one is on display in the Royal Museum of Crocus in its arts and literary masterwork section, and the first, fifth, sixth, seventh, and twelfth were kept by him, while four hundred and fifteen of that run burned to ash with the factory after the remaining 89 were released to the public. To have a signed first edition copy would mean it would have to be either one of the two kept by the Royal Family, the one in the Royal Museum of Crocus, or from Hisui himself.'' Mira said.
''Correct.'' Guiliano said.
''This friend…is it Hisui?''Asks Mirajane.
''If you're asking me if I'm friends with Hisui, then yes. If you're asking me if Hisui is the friend with the job offer then no.'' Says Guiliano.
''I want to meet him, it would be a dream come true.'' Mirajane said dreamily.
''I'll make a call, but I wouldn't have my hopes up if I were you. Lermo loves his privacy almost as much as I do.'' Says Guiliano.
''Then I'll talk to the Master, how many people does he need?''Asks Mirajane.
''Fourteen, including Elfman, Levy, Fried, Bisca, and Alzack. The raw materials need to be delivered and as such protected. The Building site needs to be guarded too, and my buddy also needs his construction enchanted after it's built. So I recommended Elfman, Levy, Fried, and Bisca and Alzack.'' Says Guiliano.
''Did I hear my name?'' Asks Elfman, walking over.
''I was just asking Mira if she'd allow a buddy of mine to post a contract anonymously for about two hundred and fifty thousand Jewels.'' Guiliano says.
''Woah! You're kidding me! Two hundred and fifty thousand jewels? That's a manly reward!'' Elfman says and Guiliano tries and fails not to cringe at Elfman's unique form of speech.
''I already recommended you if it's any help, there's also Jewels in it for Levy, Fried, Bisca, and Alzack, along with nine others. My buddy needs it done fast as well, so I was looking at maybe Gray and Loke joining the job. Your job would primarily be heavy lifting and the like. Bisca and Alzack would be tasked with guarding the supplies throughout their journey. Levy and Fried would be required to assist me in performing enchantments.'' Says Guiliano.
''Wait now, how are you getting paid? If you're the one offering the contract - even on behalf of another- guild law states you cannot benefit from the quest in terms of reward.'' Says Mira.
''Quite simple to be honest. I'm fronting a portion of the reward with the promise of a future repayment at an interest rate of twenty-six percent.'' Says Guiliano before quickly adding onto that. ''I wasn't planning on getting a piece of the jewels reward at any rate Mira.'' He tells Mirajane, before snapping hie fingers as a wall of earth shoots up from the ground blocking a thrown Gray from hitting any of them.
''I challenge you, Guiliano! Fire Dragon Slayer against Fire Dragon Slayer.'' Shouted Natsu.
''Care to make it a little more interesting? Loser has to do whatever Gray says for a week without fail or they get tarred and feathered.'' He offers.
''Sure, whatever. I just want to fight you.'' Says Natsu.
''Then let's take this outside and settle it quickly, I have a coordination of resources to complete.'' Says Guiliano.
''What you scared I'm going to kick your ass in front of everyone?'' Natsu asks cockily.
''No, but I'm not paying for a new Guild Hall. You have that kind of sum of jewels just lying around?'' Asks Guiliano sarcastically.
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(POV Shift: Mirajane Strauss)
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Their newest member intrigued her. She knew he was a Fire Dragon Slayer like Natsu, but their personalities were different. Then he snaps his fingers and a wall of earth prevents Grey from being thrown into them. Did he also know Earth Magic?
Thus she and everyone else decided to watch the battle.
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(POV Shift: Guiliano Augiliar)
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''Fire Dragon's Roar!'' Natsu yelled, to which Guiliano simply appeared in front of Natsu in a split second and swept his feet out from under him as he fired the Roar attack, sending it into the sky before launching himself into the sky and preparing his own attack, smiling with a shit-eating grin from ear-to-ear.
''Gold Dragon's Roar!'' He shouted, sending a stream of gold at Natsu who was promptly encased in gold.
''I guess that's my victory.'' Says Guiliano who walks over to Natsu and nudges the golden ingot of Natsu which promptly breaks apart setting him free.
''Did I win?'' Natsu asks in a daze.
''You lost.'' Happy responds.
''That explains why everything looks shaky.'' Says Natsu.
''That's an effect of my Gold Dragons Roar. Anyone encased in Gold will be dazed for a couple of days.'' Guiliano adds before walking away.
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(POV Shift: Natsu Dragneel)
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Guiliano Augiliar.
He was a Fire Dragon Slayer like him, but he also knew Golden Dragon Slayer Magic.
Just who was this guy?
His scent was similar to Igneel - distinctly different - but similar nonetheless. No way he was just the son of Igneel's best friend. He might not be the smartest tool in Fairy Tail, but he knew when something fishy was going on.
And he wasn't talking about Happy's favorite diet.
No something else was at play here. This guy had a rare skill that he'd only ever seen in the likes of Gildarts or Erza….
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(POV Shift: Mirajane Strauss)
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Natsu hadn't even had the chance to launch an attack.
Clearly his opponent had earned his S-Class ranking.
But now there was a greater mystery about their newest member. He advertised himself as a Fire Dragon Slayer, yet he knew Earth Magic and Gold Dragon Slayer Magic too? When Erza returned, she'd ask her about him. They'd crossed paths before on a couple of jobs, so she was her best bet while the master remained tight-lipped. She could ask Laxus she supposed, but the man was a pain in her butt.
So no, she wasn't going to ask that blonde buffoon, Erza at least would be honest with her. Laxus would likely demand something in return. A perverted something in return at that, and she would never entertain such things. She'd sooner accept romantic advances from that perfume-obsessed Wizard always fawning over Erza, Ichiya.
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(POV Shift: Guiliano Augiliar)
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Guiliano had decided to do something special for Mirajane as thanks for letting him put up that contract. So he dropped off a special present for her
He'd probably regret the questions she'd ask him. But he wanted to do something nice for her. The job offer had been to protect the site of his new house and protect and help with the transportation of the raw materials. But the truth was he needed Levy and Fried the most. He was fairly decent at Enchantments and letter magic himself, but his strength in that art lay in the wide array of knowledge he had in it rather than any particular specialization in the magic.
Levy and Fried had years of specific training on him in their Magic, Levy specifically had been trained in Solid Script Magic but her natural analytic nature and curiosity allowed her a capacity of skill to rewrite both her own and others Letter Magic. It wasn't simple like a certain Dog's Oriental Solid Script, but nor was it advanced like Fired's. Her true strength lay in the fact her magic was simply in the middle.
Fried likewise specialized in advanced and complex Letter Magic, but his weakness lay when he was confronted by Wizard whose skill in Letter Magic was even a middling level of skill. Granted its complexity tended to work in his favor, but if someone - as Evergreen would go on to prove - was familiar with both how he wrote his magic and his way of doing things, then it was relatively simple to overcome him.
In his case, he planned to make his library available to Levy, giving her a new stockpile of books from which she could use to both improve her Letter Magic, but it'd also allow her expand her arsenal and thus allow also her to plug the gaps she would come to see in Fried's Magical Formula.
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(POV Shift: Mirajane Strauss)
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Mirajane was shocked.
Laid out on her table was a collection many would kill to obtain.
Signed first edition works of Guillermo R. Hisui's best works. More importantly, was the document that came with it.
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Dear Mirajane Strauss,
I owe you and your Guild more than anybody realizes.
But thanks to you I'm able to share with the Guild a portion of my success as gratitude for helping me with my new home.
Congratulations Mirajane, you're the only one who knows who I really am now.
Guillermo R. Hisui
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Guiliano Augiliar is Guillermo R. Hisui!
As much as that answered a few questions she had, it subsequently left so many more unanswered. It only raised even more questions about who Guiliano really was.
She'd have to grill him about it tomorrow. Because if he really was Guillermo R. Hisui, then she had so many questions and she could definitely profit from this somehow. She normally wasn't one to use extortion, but this was too good to pass up. She was a longtime fan of the books Hisui wrote, of all the books he'd written, the three most popular were the Agony of Love, The Gates of Costlemark, and The Dragon's Daughter. She had every one of the hooks in those series. But now, before her, was a collection of his full work, signed one and all, and every single one of them a first edition copy from the first run.
This would be a collection with millions of Jewels. More than half the Guild were fans, even Master Markarov. And now, she had such a collection to boast about.
But first she would seek out answers from Guiliano. Huh, she Just realized that she didn't actually know where he lived. He'd been on so many missions in the past week their only real conversation had been him asking about putting up a job. But her best bet would be the Guild Hall, the Guild did have rooms available for its members and since she didn't know where he was currently living it would be necessary to check Guild records for that, which in turn meant a trip to the Guild Hall. If she was right that he was possibly sleeping at the Guild she'd save time….
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(POV Shift: Guiliano Augiliar)
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''I gotta be honest old friend, I was not expecting you to show up one day and join Fairy Tail.'' Loke said as they enjoyed a quiet private drink together.
''We're even then. For what it's worth Leo, I argued with the old king for close to a month to get your punishment waived. She was a piece of work and we both knew it.'' Says Guiliano to his oldest friend.
''Rules are rules.'' Says Loke soberly.
''True.'' Guiliano agrees. ''But I tried to argue that she deserved her fate by going to what amounted to her death knowingly. Still, something you should know, Leo, Aries and Capricorn are suffering in far worse fates now. Their Keyholders are Dark Wizards of the highest order.'' Says Guiliano.
''Unfortunately there's nothing I can do about it. My magic and my life has an expiration date. And it's fast approaching.'' Leo said.
''I could give you some of my power I suppose. It was yours originally. You taught me Celestial Spirit Magic as I recall.'' Guiliano says with a sad smile.
''Not an option unfortunately. Since I'm cut off from the Celestial Spirit world, you'd just be wasting your magical power. There's nothing and nowhere to store the excess energy.'' Says Leo.
''I know, I just don't want to lose you Leo. You're my oldest friend after all.'' Says Guiliano as Leo simply drinks his mug silently in response.
Guiliano decides not to press him on a conversation and simply enjoy his company.
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(POV Shift: Carlo)
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He was almost there, almost to Magnolia Town. His master had callen upon him, no, not just his master, his friend. Guiliano had been the closest thing to a father he'd had and taught him much, including the magic necessary to become an asset on missions and in battle. He'd learned a variety of Magic, including Transformation, Elemental, and Healing Magic. He was the support of their team. Lady Wendy was also a support fighter, Carlo supposed, but she rarely went on missions due to her age and the majority of the Guild's missions being geared for Master Guiliano.
Just one more stop, and then his train would reach Magnolia Town.
Master Guiliano would take him on many new adventures, maybe then his twin sister would shut up for once!
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(POV Shift: Mirajane Strauss)
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Guiliano was seated alone in the Guild on a call with someone on a Lacrima Phone. She decided to listen in, but not disturb him.
''I'll take care of it sis, don't worry. I'm more worried about you, leaving you alone with all that wealth left me more than a little anxious. I'm glad that you took my advice and invested it.'' He said.
''No, it's fine. I think you should stick around with Cait Shelter for a little while longer. You might not be S-Class, but you're still my kid sister. This will be good for you. And remember, you have that beacon for me if you're ever in need.'' He replies to whoever was on the other end of his call.
''Alright, goodnight Wendy. Talk soon alright.'' Guiliano said, breathing out a deep sigh before lighting a cigarette.
''Come on out Mirajane. I can sense your presence.'' Says Guiliano, surprising her.
''How'd you know I was here?'' Asks Mirajane, surprised.
''Never underestimate a Dragon's seven senses.'' He replies simply, before growing serious. ''So, I trust that was an acceptable bribe for your help?'' He asks.
''So it's true? Your him?'' Mirajane asks.
''I am. Guillermo R. Hisui was a name I used in Crocus when I wanted some privacy. Writing had always been a passion of mine, and over the years I'd already written many books and treatises on Magic and the like. So the King suggested maybe my hobby could become my secomdary career.'' Says Guiliano.
''How old are you?'' Mirajane asks.
''Officially, my records say I'm seventeen. In reality I make Markarov look young.'' He said causing her to laugh. ''I'm not kidding.'' He says flatly.
''What?'' Mirajane asks suddenly unsure.
''I'm over four hundred years old. In point of fact, I knew Zeref before he became a Dark Wizard.'' Says Guiliano, and the fact he says it with a straight force and no teasing glint in his eyes forces her to consider it as the truth.
''But how?'' She asks.
''My father is the Fire Dragon God. My mother was a human. A half-breed has a significantly longer lifespan that's directly proportionate to how much magical power they possess at birth and just prior to their first awakening. I trained at the feet of the other Dragon Gods before my True strength awoke, I was taught Celestial Spirit Magic from the Strongest Celestial Spirit, Regulas Leo. I then learned Magic from the Hell Flame Dragon Atlas Flame. My true power awoke when his heart lacrima was implanted into me. In short, it left me stuck at the physical human age of seventeen.'' Says Guiliano.
''So, you're immortal?'' Mira asks.
''In the truest and most literal sense no I'm not. I can be killed, but I'm ageless up until a point. I should have another one hundred and seventeen years in me before my body starts to physically age again.'' Says Guiliano and Mira sees great sadness in his eyes.
''What's wrong with that?'' She asks.
''There's no crueler fate than not being able to grow older. It's thrilling at first, but eventually, when you fall in love, you have to live with the fact your family doesn't always inherit your long life span. And when they do it's not long enough. I've only ever found extended happiness with Take-Over Grand Mages. But none exist anymore. It's worse for the parent who gave birth to you though, especially if your non-draconic parent was human. Birthing a Fire Dragon-Human Hybrid all but killed my mother, and because she did not receive appropriate care, the only thing left to her was he strength of will, which much like her life, was not as blessed as mine was.'' He says and Mirajane can see how such a thing would be a hard thing to endure, her own memories of the loss of Lisanna resurfacing again.
''I understand. I lost my sister years ago. I never got to see her grow up, got to tease her about her first boyfriends or help her prank Elfman on his birthday. Elfman had to grow up a little too fast because of it.'' Says Mirajane.
''There is no greater shame or pain in the burying of a child you all but raised yourself. Zeref told me that once, before his fall.'' Says Guiliano wistfully.
''I had so many questions, but…do you want to just talk some more?'' Mirajane admits somewhat sheepish that she'd let the conversation reach such a sad, somber note.
''Sure Mira. Let's talk.'' Guiliano says simply, getting her a mug of beer, while also refilling his own.
Together, they chat for most of the night.
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(Author's Note:)
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Decided to cap it there because I felt it was a worthy end to the second chapter. I don't usually write this sort of conversation. I wanted it to end on a relatively quiet note too, so it worked out as things go.
Now as for why he revealed as much as he did to Mirajane. I'll explain more in the next Chapter, but so as to spare most of you the guesswork I'll summarize and say that while he didn't tell Mirajane the whole truth, he wasn't really lying. The lifespan is something that I really want to use to explore the hybrid path of this story. We just don't see dragon-human offspring and Fourth-Generation Dragon Slayer's don't exactly count for me. Another thing I wanted to be different was how his relationship and opening conversation with Mirajane went, if it was DxD it'd already largely be established or would be lust-related.
Here I wanted a relationship to start with a simple and honest conversation, but something with emotion, pain, and loss. His past with Zeref is another part of the story I wish to explore, with Tenrou Island arc amounting to a midway finale but not the grand finale for this part of the story.
That's basically it for now I suppose, not much else for me to say really, except for that I hope to see you guys next chapter.
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Very Special Thanks to Lewis Wilson, Mitchell Howard, David Martinez, ROGUE505 Saver, Morgan Sinn, Mathew T Linderman, Luck George, Kyle Diano, D3EATH707, Julien, Cutler1812, Ionelynib _, and Aleksander_402 for their support on P-atreon.
And also a big thank you to Cody, Luci Alarra, TJ Cruz, Beastmode2003, Kunta, Availon90, Gavin Barclay, Dragonslayer29, Jacarya Robinson, Nathan Just, Francisco J Guzman, Axlii, Reece Hutton, Ken Harris, Zeldris Wrath, and Dut for their past support on Patreon.
The next Chapter is currently available on my relaunched and rebuilt P-atreon, to access simply search the following link, but without the dash between the P and A, Two tiers with the same benefits but different contexts. The chapters on P-atreon will be published when the chapters following them are done and dusted and ready to publish over here on this site.
p-atreon.com/TheRagFromTheCragCorner22
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