Earth Land, Ishgar, kingdom of Fiore, Akane Beach.
November, x786.
"How dare a lowly human covet the fairest of the merfolk!" Kai shouted angrily. "Then, he reached into the pocket of his naval uniform and pulled out a white glove before tossing it onto the center of the dining room table. "I challenge you to a duel for Miss Sun's hand! And while I'm at it, I'll teach you your place for coveting something beyond a lowly human's reach!"
Hearing what Kai had to say, combined with the white glove laying in the middle of the dining room table, everyone fell into a momentary daze. A moment later, however, they all felt the atmosphere changing.
'Oh shit, this is bad.' Cana thought to herself. 'Alfonzo doesn't take too kindly to people treating us as prizes to be won. This guy's really gonna be in trouble.'
["Yeah, Wanna bet how many bones Fonzie's gonna break by the time he's done with him?"] Hoyle asked while grinning manically from Cana's inner world.
Hearing her [Armament Spirit]'s words and tone, Cana could only sigh internally. She already knew that Hoyle would never miss the chance to start a wager. However, Cana wished that she would take situations like this more seriously.
And just like Cana and Hoyle were thinking, Alfonzo was well and truly about to lose his shit. However, just as he opened his mouth to let Kai know what he thought about his challenge, he was forced to stop with a surprised expression.
"Just who do you think you are!" Sun shouted angrily.
In the next instant, Sun appeared in front of Kai with her right hand cocked back, ready to throw a punch.
"Huh?" Kai exclaimed in confusion.
*Bang!*
Before Kai could understand the situation, Sun threw her fist forward, landing a powerful right hook on his left jaw. Then, thanks to the force behind Sun's punch, Kai flew backwards. At the same time, Alfonzo created strategically placed chunks of metal in Kai's flight path. IN the end, Kai ended up on the same couch where he woke up with is eyes rolled back, a bruise forming on his left cheek, and unconscious once again.
"Well, damn…" Alfonzo said while blinking in dumbfounded amazement.
"Damn girl, you got one hell of a right hook!" Cana shouted happily as she sprung up from her seat and rushed over to Sun.
In response, Sun only huffed and puffed while trying to get her emotions under control. Then, when Cana eventually arrived at her side, she could only smile wryly when she was pulled into a hug.
*Sniff!* *Sniff!*
Before Cana could continue gushing over Son's punch, everyone turned their head towards the sniffling sound they could hear from the dining room table. And when they did, they saw Gozaburo quietly wiping the tears from his eyes.
"Gozaburo, are you okay?" Ren asked in a concerned tone.
"Oh, I'm great." Gozaburo said through his tears. "I'm just... so… proud of my little girl."
"I guess I should have expected that." Ren replied while shaking her head. Then, she turned her attention towards Alfonzo. "Anyway, when he comes to challenge you to another duel, at the very least, please don't kill him."
"*Sigh* He's one of those types, isn't he?" Alfonzo asked in an exasperated tone. "Next time, he'll come at me asking if I'm okay hiding behind a woman, right?"
"If what the reports have to say are true, then yes." Ren said with a nod.
"But there's something I don't understand, Ren." Cana said in a curious tone. Then, when Ren turned towards her, Cana continued. "It wasn't a secret that Sun was engaged to a human among merfolk, was it?"
"Of course it was." Ren replied in an exasperated tone. "My husband, didn't want anyone to know that Sun was no longer his little girl, after all."
"Hey, after the brat saved my precious sun from Acnologia, I retracted the gag order." Gozaburo replied, trying to defend himself.
"And do you really think two years was enough to get the news to every part of the seas?" Ren asked with her eyes narrowed. "Do you have any idea how much water there is to cover on Earth Land?"
Hearing that, instead of commenting on the bickering between the husband and wife, Alfonzo lowered his head in contemplation.
'I guess I'll have to find a way to put signal receivers in the sea, too.' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'I'll have to find a way to make the phones pressure resistant, too.'
"I think we've gotten off topic." Masa said in a poised tone. "What do you all plan to do with young Kai Mikawa."
"*Sigh* I'll just have to kick his ass." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "Hopefully he'll give up after that."
"Do you really think that's possible.?" Cana asked while deadpanning.
"Not in the slightest." Alfonzo replied. "But a man can dream, right?"
Like that, for the next hour, the group of six chatted and continued to eat. Then, just as they finished desert, Kai, with bloodshot eyes, stumbled into the dining room once again while covering the giant bruise on his face.
"What kind of man are you?" Kai shouted angrily while pointing at Alfonzo. "You would hide behind a woman instead of facing me yourself?"
*Sigh!* x 6
In the next instant, Alfonzo appeared in front of Kai in a flash of violet light. And when he did, Kai's feet were no longer on the floor. Instead, they were dangling nearly a foot above it. And the reason for that was simple, Alfonzo's right hand was clasped around his neck while holding him off the floor.
"You've got some nerve, Kid." Alfonzo said while looking into Kai's eyes. "First, you act like an asshole after we brought your sorry ass inside after your little panic attack. Then, you have the nerve to leer at one of my woman's breasts like some common pervert. And when it's pointed out, you don't even have the decency to apologize."
"One of your… women?" Kai struggled to say. "Scoundrel!"
*Smack!*
"Oh, don't give me that shit." Alfonzo said angrily after slapping Kai across the face. "Especially after you treated your so-called 'soul mate' like a commodity than can be placed as a wager. You're nothing more than an entitled little prick."
At first, Kai was taken aback by the slap he received. A moment later, however, he was over taken by rage. Then, with all his might, he wrapped his hands around Alfonzo's wrist while staring at him with bloodshot eyes.
"How dare you, a lowly human, talk to me like that!" Kai roared angrily. "On top of that, for seeing me in my true form, you and that other human woman should be put to death!"
*Smack!*
Once again, Alfonzo's open palm found its way across Kai's face. And once again, Kai was completely taken aback. However, when he snapped back to his senses, he was ready to threaten Alfonzo once again.
However, when Kai looked into Alfonzo's eyes, his words got caught in his throat. After seeing the anger and annoyance in his eyes, Kai did not know what to say.
"Are you fucking stupid?" Alfonzo asked as he tightened his grip around Kai's neck. "I'm engaged to Sun you fucking dumb ass. And according to your people's laws, that means I'm eligible to know the merfolk's' secrets. On top of that, do you really think it's a good idea to threaten one of my fiancées like that when you're in this situation?"
Hearing that, Kai froze. On top of that, he realized that despite how strongly he was squeezing Alfonzo's wrist, Alfonzo seemed to be completely unbothered. Kai did not stay stunned for long, though.
"Even if what you say is true." Kai said through gritted teeth while staring into Alfonzo's eyes. "That doesn't change the fact that you're not worthy of Miss Sun. So, you should cancel your engagement. Then, let yourself be executed while I, one of the two people who are worthy of her, marries her."
Hearing what Kai had to say, Sun's angry aura washed over the room. And while everyone else was thinking that things would not end well for Kai, Cana tilted her head and asked a question about Kai's last declaration.
"You said you were one of the two people who were worthy of Sun, right?" Cana asked curiously. "Then, who is the second."
Glancing at Cana for a moment, more specifically her breasts and cleavage, Kai quickly turned his attention back to Alfonzo. Still, he felt it would not hurt if he answered her question.
"Naturally, the first is me." Kai said proudly. "As the owner of Ishgar's second most powerful business empire, I am eligible to take Miss Sun's hand in marriage."
"Yeah, you said that already." Cana said in an annoyed tone. "And unlike you, we're not interested in hearing the sound of your voice. So, just get to the damn point."
Looking around the room, Kai was able to see that everyone else, other than Masa, was starting to get annoyed with him. So, he decided to directly answer Cana's question.
"The second person, though he's only a human, is Alfonzo Marcus of Fairy Tail." Kai replied in a tone filled with respect. "Not only did he build his own business empire from scratch, he's also one of the strongest people on the continent. And I have no doubt that he would be able to keep Miss Sun safe from any harm that might come her way."
Hearing that, Cana, Gozaburo, Ren, Sun, and Masa looked at Kai as if he were the world's biggest idiot. Then, they all lost interest and began chatting amongst themselves.
"Hey, what's with that reaction?" kai asked in an irritated tone. Before he could question the group any further, however, the grip around his neck loosened and he fell to the floor. "Ow… What's going on?"
"*Sigh* You really are just a spoiled, little, rich prick." Alfonzo said in an exasperated tone. "I'm guessing you just heard about my feats without doing any research. And now you look dumb as a mother fucker. *Sigh* This was a complete waste of time."
"Huh?" Kai exclaimed in confusion while rubbing his neck. "What are you talking about? Your feats?"
While Alfonzo walked away from Kai, who was sitting on the floor, Kai could not understand what was going on. A few moments later, as Alfonzo retook his seat at the dining room table, Kai finally understood what Alfonzo was talking about.
"Wait, are you saying you're Alfonzo Marcus?" Kai asked in an incredulous tone. "But how is that possible? He's supposed to live in Magnolia. Why are you on Akane Beach?"
"Oh, yeah, because it's not common for someone as wealthy as Fonzie to have more than one house." Cana replied sarcastically. "I mean, I'm sure your grandfather had more than one home, too, right?"
"Hmm… Now that you mention it…" Kai said, stopping to stroke his chin while the thought about it. "Even so, just because you're Alfonzo Marcus, that doesn't make you more worthy of Miss Sun's hand than me. You're only human, after all. Whereas I, a proud member of the merfolk race, have the strength to protect her."
"Did this idiot forget how Fonzie just manhandled him a moment ago" Cana asked as she whispered her question into Sun's ear. Though, she was loud enough that Kai would be able to hear her as well.
"He probably did." Sun replied disdainfully without lowering her voice. "But who does he think he is to decide who is worthy of my love and affection."
"Don't worry about it, Sun." Cana said as she pulled Sun into a hug. "It looks like he's Natsu-level dumb, and even more self-centered. So, he'd never understand the concept, anyway."
Nodding in response, Sun turned her attention back to Alfonzo, who looked like he had something to say.
"Thinking like that is the reason you'll never be worthy of Sun." Alfonzo said while shaking his head. "I mean, she's stronger than you, by quite a bit. So, why the hell would she need you to protect her?"
After hearing Alfonzo's question, it was obvious that Kai did not know what to say. But Alfonzo was not finished.
"On top of that, it's clear you're not good at looking after your own people." Alfonzo continued. "I mean, what about the crew of your submarine? Instead of worrying about their well-being after you clearly just left them to follow Sun, you continue this shit even after Sun made it clear she wasn't interested in you. Hell, she doesn't even remember you after your one meeting over ten years ago."
Immediately after Alfonzo finished speaking, Kai froze.
"*Sigh* It's too bad old man Mikawa only had one heir to pass his legacy onto." Gozaburo said after taking a swig from his sake glass. "With this brat in charge, the Mikawa group will probably cease to exist in a year or two."
Gozaburo's statement was enough to snap Kai back to his senses. Then, he frantically started running around the villa before he finally found an exit. After finding the exit, Kai ran out of the door. However, before he could get too far, he fainted after another agoraphobic panic attack.
"*Sigh* Cana was right." Ren said. "He really is Natsu-level dumb."
"No, I think he might be worse." Alfonzo replied as he stood from his seat. "Natsu never forgets his motion-sickness, ever. But it's happened to this guy twice in a little more than an hour. Anyway, I'll go bring him back inside. Masa, if it's not too much trouble, could you go and inform his crew of where he is? Then, they could hopefully get him the hell outta here."
"Sure thing." Masa said as he, too, stood from his seat.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy the story.
Comments, Reviews, and Power Stones are always appreciated.
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Valley of the End.
January, x787.
After the incident with the merfolk, Kai Mikawa, the rest of x786 went on without a hitch, with Irene and Brandish integrating into Fairy Tail without issue. On top of that, Irene took it upon herself to join Team Natsu. Brandish, on the other hand, only took quests as a solo wizard.
On top of that, the x786 S-Class Promotion Exam took place as well. And like the previous year, there was more than one wizard who passed the exam and was promoted to S-Class. Unsurprisingly, Irene and Brandish were not among those who were promoted. And the reason was self-evident. In fact, they were not even among the eight participants.
From the eight participants, Bickslow, Evergreen, Laki, Levy, Gray, Natsu, Elfman, and Marin, the only ones who did not pass were Bickslow and Evergreen. And the reason was that they had just received their [Soul Armament Embryos] a week before the exam. The others, on the other hand, already had [soul Armaments] with their first seals released. So, Bickslow and Evergreen found themselves at a severe disadvantage, despite their strengths.
After the S-Class Promotion Exam, Alfonzo finally had the time to present his Lacrima Phone idea in front of the Magic Council. And with part of the signal receivers having been placed between Fiore and Era, they were able to demonstrate all the lPhone's features during a video call between Alfonzo and Hibiki.
Then, after explaining and demonstrating the system that would pick up key words and phrases to alert the Council to activity between dark wizards and the like, Alfonzo and Hibiki gained permission to launch their new business.
Unfortunately, before either Alfonzo or Hibiki could start making the kind of money they were anticipating, they would have to install the rest of the signal receivers around Ishgar. Luckily, that would be taken care of soon enough, if the current Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves accepted Alfonzo's mission when he went to upgrade their training facilities.
After presenting the lPhones to the Magic Council, the next thing of note that took place was Alfonzo and Cana's wedding. Unlike Alfonzo's wedding with Elicia, Cana's wedding took place in the evening. That way, the reception, which would be another long affair, would still be going on when the calendar changed from x786 to x787.
And just like during his wedding with Elicia, Gildarts walked Cana down the aisle. Also, like when he married Elicia, Alfonzo sang to Cana during their first dance. And the song he chose was "All My Life" by K-Ci & Jo-Jo, which Cana, and the rest of the guests loved. They also wondered where he gained the inspiration to write songs like the ones he wrote for the two weddings.
Naturally, Alfonzo only smiled in a mysterious manner when anyone asked him about it. Still, having their wedding on the last day of the year was a great way to close out x786.
The last thing to take note of since then was Elicia announcing her pregnancy only a day later. And according to the news she received from Porlyusica, she would be due to give birth in August. Naturally, this brought a wave of excitement to the wizards of Fairy Tail. On top of that, it made Bisca put Alzack through his paces, so as to not be left behind.
Other than that, nothing else of notice happened. As for the current time, Alfonzo, Elicia, Ikaruga, and Irene were waiting in the Valley of the End for the representatives from the Village Hidden in the Leaves, to arrive.
"*Sigh* We talked about hiring more maids months ago." Alfonzo said while leaning against the side of the Escalade. "I'm surprised no one has applied for the position yet."
"Well, the fact that they need to have a certain amount of magic power has been cutting the numbers quite severely, too." Elicia, who was leaning against Alfonzo, replied.
"*Sigh* I know." Alfonzo replied while rubbing his right hand over Elicia's still flat belly. "I was even thinking about lowering the criteria. Until you told me you were pregnant, that is. Unfortunately, the vetting process is gonna have to be even more strict with the little one coming into our lives."
"*Sigh* If only my husband in the past had been so loving." Irene said while she glanced at Alfonzo and Elicia. "Unfortunately, he was just an opportunistic waste of life."
In the months since Irene decided to change sides, she has spent a lot of her time either taking quests with Team Natsu or talking magic theory with Alfonzo or Levy, the two most interested in the subject in the guild.
And during that time, she has come to understand something about the current generation of Fairy Tail. And that was the fact that they were extremely hard workers. In fact, the only reason they were weaker than the Spriggan 12 of the Alvarez Empire is because of the environment on Ishgar.
For example, those meant to be wizards on Alakitasia started off with a higher amount of magic power at birth. On top of that, the ambient ethernano in the air was much denser in Alakitasia. Those two facts naturally led to the wizards of Ishgar being weaker on average.
"If you'll excuse me, Miss Irene." Ikaruga said politely. "I'm actually surprise you insisted on coming with Master Alfonzo and Madam Elicia on this trip. I would have thought you would want to spend more time with your daughter, Erza."
"I actually came because I was curious." Irene said, answering Ikaruga's query before she finished speaking. "I've heard of the shinobi of old. They usually only stuck to members of their own---"
Irene's explanation came to a complete and sudden halt, however, when she registered the rest of what Ikaruga had to say. Then, she turned her eyes, which were open to a comical degree, towards Ikaruga with shock and panic swirling in their depths.
"Wh-Wha-What are you talking about?" Irene asked in a stuttering mess. "I-I-I-I have no d-dau-daughter. I haven't laid with a man in over four hundred years. There's no way I could have an offspring."
Hearing that, Ikaruga looked at Irene awkwardly while tilting her head in confusion. Then, she turned her head towards Alfonzo and Elicia.
"*Sigh* We told you that was supposed to be a secret, Ikaruga." Elicia said in an exasperated tone. "Everyone knew that Irene didn't wanna talk about it. That's why it was never brought up in the past."
"Ah… Now that you mention it." Ikaruga said in a tone of realization. "I forgot you said that some time ago."
On a side note, now that Elicia was confirmed to be pregnant, Ikaruga came along on this trip to make sure that Elicia did not push herself too far.
After hearing that short interaction, Irene also turned her incredulous gaze towards Alfonzo and Elicia once again.
"Don't look at us like that, Irene." Alfonzo said while smiling wryly. "You've made it way too easy to tell that you and Erza were related since you came to Magnolia."
Irene opened her eyes wide in response.
"If it wasn't because of the 'discreet glances' you shot at her every time you were in the same room." Alfonzo said while raising air-quotes as he spoke the word "discreet". "The similarities between your features were a dead giveaway, too."
"Then, there was that time you almost crushed magnolia with your magical pressure when we talked about our childhoods." Elicia added. "Or rather, when Erza talked about her childhood as a slave in the Tower of Heaven."
Hearing that, Irene slumped her shoulders.
"Does that mean Erza knows, as well." Irene asked in a dejected tone.
"Yup." Elicia replied with a smile. "But I think she knew way before that. She said something about feeling a connection to you not long after she first met you."
"*Sigh* I see." Irene replied while shaking her head. "I guess I've been trying to keep it a secret for nothing then, huh?"
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I don't think Brandish knows." Alfonzo said with a smile. "But I think she was suspicious until she found out you were a dragon."
"*Sigh* I'm sure she'd be able to figure it out, too." Irene said while shaking her head with a wry smile on her face. "If she didn't feel like it was too troublesome to think about, anyway."
With that, the area around the Escalade fell into an awkward silence. Not long later, the awkward silence was eventually broken when a trio of young men appeared near the quartet from Magnolia.
"Oh, it's Genma." Elicia said after recognizing one of the three young men. "Long time, no see. How have you been?"
"Yeah, it's been almost a year since the last time we saw each other, Elicia, Alfonzo, and Ikaruga." Genma replied while adjusting the Senbon in his mouth. "And I see an unfamiliar face with you, as well. Mind introducing us?"
"Yo, what's up, Genma." Alfonzo said while nodding his head in greeting. As for the new face, she's a new member of Fairy Tail…"
"Irene Belserion." Irene said as she changed her expression back to her confident, yet sadistic, smile. "It's nice to meet you. But I'd appreciate it if you stopped staring at my breasts."
"Maybe if you didn't put them on full display, they wouldn't." Alfonzo muttered.
In response, Irene shot a glare in Alfonzo's direction. However, because she was still trying to figure out if the [Soul Armament Embryo] she had been given could reverse her [Dragonization], she chose not to say anything.
"Anyway, why don't you introduce us to your friends, Genma." Elicia said, deciding to move the conversation forward.
"Right." Genma replied with cold sweat sliding down his back after feeling Irene's glare. "These are the members of my squad, Raidō Namiashi and Iwashi Tatami."
Like Genma, Raidō and Iwashi also wore the standard Hidden Leaf uniform consisting of a dark blue body suit, a green flak jacket, and black ninja sandals. On top of that, Iwashi wore his forehead protector as a bandana that covered most of his brown hair. He also wore a small goatee on his chin. Raidō, on the other hand, had spiky brown hair and scars on his face that covered the majority of the left side of his face and the bridge of his nose.
Another thing everyone noticed was the fact that Raidō and Iwashi were both glaring at Ikaruga with hostility.
"Oh, that's right." Elicia said while bringing her right fist down into her left palm. "Maybe bringing Ikaruga wasn't such a good idea. She's the one that left those scars on that guys face."
"Yeah, but you're pregnant." Alfonzo said while shaking his head. "And she's only here to take care of you. She won't do anything to bring harm to the village, right?"
As he asked his question, Alfonzo turned his attention to Ikaruga. In response, Ikaruga lowered her head as she replied.
"I swear that I will not cause any trouble for you on your trip to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, Master Alfonzo." Ikaruga said in a solemn tone.
"Well, there you have it." Alfonzo replied, shifting his attention back to the trio of Hidden Leaf Shinobi. "And if she causes any trouble, Lici and I will take responsibility. Especially since she's been our responsibility since she was released from prison."
"*Sigh* All three of us know that." Genma said in an exasperated tone. "But letting go of a grudge isn't so easy."
"Yeah, I get it." Alfonzo replied with a nod. "As long as she isn't attacked unprovoked, we won't have any problems."
"Got it." Genma replied with a nod. Then, he looked in his teammates' direction. "That won't be a problem, will it?"
"No." Raidō replied in a begrudging tone.
"I'll have my eye on her, though." Iwashi said while continuing to glare at Ikaruga."
"Alright, I guess that's good enough." Alfonzo replied. "Anyway, should we get going?"
"Yes, but we'll need to blindfold your companions." Genma replied.
"Yeah, Master Tsunade already explained that to us." Alfonzo replied. "So, go ahead. Just don't let your hands wander anywhere they shouldn't. You're only B-Class wizards… Or rather, Special Jonin if we go by your village's ranking system."
"You don't need to worry about that." Genma replied while smiling wryly. "None of us are suicidal."
With that, Genma, Raidō, and Iwashi each blindfolded Ikaruga, Elicia, and Irene respectively. Once they were done, they quickly stepped away to show they had no bad intentions.
"Alright, this will probably take a while since we have to lead them to the village." Genma said. "I hope you understand."
"Nah, you don't need to worry about that." Alfonzo replied while waving dismissively. "Ladies, why don't you climb into the Escalade. Then, you can enjoy the ride. Oh, but don't take off the blindfolds while you're inside. That would just cause unnecessary problems."
After Elicia, Ikaruga, and Irene nodded in response, Alfonzo helped each of them into the Escalade. Then, once they were all settled, Alfonzo levitated the vehicle as he turned towards his guides.
"Alright now, let's get going." Alfonzo said with a smile.
In response, Genma, Raidō, and Iwashi only stared at the floating magic vehicle in a daze. A few moments later, they broke out of their dazes. Then, they started running towards the Village Hidden in the Leaves at high speed. Meanwhile, Alfonzo, while dragging the Escalade through the air with his [Metal Magic], sprinted after the shinobi, keeping up with little effort.
Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy the story.
Comments, Reviews, and Power Stones are always appreciated.
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