Hey guys, I'm trying a new format for the dialogues. Hope you like it
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After Ben wakes up, his priority is to make sure everything is fine now. Mira tells him that no one on their side died in the war and Alvarez has lost, just like Acnologia. He sighs in relief before checking on himself.
"How long have I slept?"
"8 days. It must've been an intense battle."
"Yeah, surely the most difficult battle I've ever done. What happened in these 8 days?"
Mira explains to Ben what happened in the last 8 days as a result of the war. Ishgar imprisoned the remaining 6 Spriggans in a very secure prison guarded by Wizard Saints. They plan to guard it until Ben wakes up because they want to leave the decision to him.
Alvarez has sent a messenger to talk about the future. The messenger is one of the Spriggans' grandfather, Ajeel's grandfather, Yajeel. Even after the war finished, Alvarez and Ishgar still need to talk about their future.
The Magic Council decided to leave this matter to Ben who won the war single-handedly. Many people, especially the National Leaders were opposing this idea, but the Wizard Saints and Big Guilds shut them up. For these Mages, only Ben has the right to decide because he was the only one who fought in the real war.
"Tell Draculos I will go to the prison tomorrow. I want to fill my energy for today."
Ben then goes to meet his children, family members, and guildmates. He eats together with them to fill his stomach which hasn't been filled for 8 days. Ben spends time with his family members who have been worried for days.
The next day, Ben goes to the prison as he said, and meets the 6 Spriggans. They look very scared when they see Ben even though he hasn't done anything. His battle against Acnologia is still vivid in their mind as if they've just seen it.
"Your Emperor has died, Acnologia has died, and your Empire is in a mess right now. I will ask you, what are you planning to do from now on?"
No one answers because they think that there's no chance for the losers, only destruction and death are waiting for them. But August then thinks otherwise when he remembers what kind of man Ben is from his research, so he takes his chance.
"If possible, can you let Alvarez continue to be an Empire, a free nation? His Highness has built that Empire for a very long time. I don't want it to be erased from this world. I know I'm asking too much, but that's what I'm hoping for. You can make some terms and conditions for Alvarez, but please don't destroy it."
Ben and the others are surprised by what August said. Though Ben knows August doesn't love the Empire as a nation, he loves it because it was made by Zeref.
"Why do you love Zeref this much?"
August doesn't answer Ben's question for a while.
"... Is it strange for a child to love their father?"
Except for Irene, the others including the 4 Spriggans are surprised by his answer. Ben is grinning when he hears that.
"So that's why you have a similar smell and that's also the reason you have a massive reserve of magic power. But there is also another familiar smell coming from you. Are you by chance, the child of Zeref and our First Master?"
"You are correct."
August's answer doesn't just surprise the Spriggans, but also the other spectators. The other Gods of Ishgar, Jura, and Makarov are present to see how Ben interrogated the 6 Spriggans. But this isn't the only surprise they'll hear today.
"You, Irene Belserion, you also have a similar smell to someone I know. Why don't you tell me about it?"
Ben smirks while looking at the irritated Irene. She doesn't want to answer it, but she knows it's useless because Ben knows it already.
"Sigh, it's your guildmates, the girl named Erza. I am her biological mother."
The spectators aren't ready for that, so they get even more shocked.
"You hear that, Master. Now call First Master and Erza here. They need to know this because I know they don't know anything. At the very least, they deserve to know the truth about themselves. Jura, separate these 2 from the other 4 so that First Master & Erza can have private meetings with their blood. I will talk with these 4 in the meanwhile."
Makarov and Jura do as Ben says. Jura moves August and Irene to other places using his Earth Magic while Makarov calls Mavis and Erza to come to the prison. No one except the Wizard Saints was allowed to enter this prison before, so both Erza & Mavis never came here.
Meanwhile, Ben is interrogating the other 4 Spriggans. He asks them many things to judge whether he can let them continue to lead Alvarez or not. He needs to know their characters because he already has a plan for Alvarez.
Ben plans to make Alvarez an ally of Ishgar. Of course, Ishgar will get more benefits as the winner of this war. In a sense, Alvarez will be Ishgar's subordinate nation, and there will be a contract to prevent violations.
But Ben won't make the contract too beneficial for Ishgar. He knows the nasty people in Ishgar will use that contract for themselves be it in the present or future. So he plans to make a contract that will also benefit Alvarez.
Well, there will be a separate secret contract between Alvarez and his family. He obviously wants to make sure his bloodline has a good future. It's also to make sure that when the contract between Ishgar and Alvarez gets broken, there will be a backup for his children's safety.
That's why he needs to find people he can trust to be put in charge of Alvarez. The best options are the Spriggans who already have control over the Empire. So he interrogates and plays some mind games to know their characters.
After a while, he finally finds the one he can trust to lead Alvarez. Ajeel will be the next Emperor under Ben's watch. He won't be a puppet, Ben just will make sure he doesn't do anything stupid just like the late Emperor.
Ben also decides to send Brandish and Dimaria back to Alvarez to help Ajeel. As for Invel, Ben won't release him because this guy is Zeref's loyal follower that will not accept Zeref's death and will stay hostile toward Ben & Ishgar. He is a dangerous guy to be let alive, so Ben plans to execute him later after squeezing some information from him.
When he's done with the interrogation, Erza & Mavis are also done with their talk. Mavis seems very guilty and sad after knowing the truth about August. Erza doesn't show any reaction though. Ben knows that with Irene's character, she won't talk nicely to Erza, so there won't be any change in their relationship, only Erza now knows who her biological mother is.
"Are you done?"
"Yeah, thanks for letting me know about my mother even though it doesn't change anything. My family is still Fairy Tail."
"Thank you, Ben, I didn't know anything."
"You didn't know you were pregnant?"
Mavis then explains to Ben that August isn't the child she gave birth to. She never had an act of reproduction with Zeref, but somehow August was born. The most intimate thing Mavis ever did with Zeref was kissing, and that was the cause of her 'death' as a result of their Ankhseram curse clashing.
"Then maybe that clash was also the one that created August. The curses to be immortal that ignored life were clashing. It 'killed' you, but it also created a life. August was born by your and Zeref's magic, that's why his magic power was so immense since he was born. But he doesn't seem to obtain your curse."
Mavis thinks about that and it makes sense to her. Ankhseram is the God of Life, so he can do anything with it including creating a new life.
"So, what will you do now, First Master,?"
Ben looks at Mavis seriously because he wants to leave the decision about August Mavis.
"I have lived for far too long, so I really want to leave this world actually. August also shares the same thought because he didn't feel wanted by this world. Maybe by death, we can find a new way. We are tired by this world, but we want to have time for ourselves first."
"Sure, go anywhere you want and live as long as you want, First Master. There's no need to worry about Fairy Tail, I will take care of it. Your job now is living the life you missed with your only child. I am a father, so I know how it feels to miss the moment with your children."
Mavis smiles before going back to August and they disappear after the magic seal on August gets released. They will bid farewell to the people they know before going to an unknown place. Ben then looks at Erza who seems calm after bidding farewell to Mavis.
"What about you?"
"No need to ask me, just ask her. She makes her own decision."
Ben nods before going to Irene's cell.
"I will ask straightly. Life or death?"
Irene smirks hearing Ben's blunt question.
"You're really not romantic. Do whatever you want, I don't care anymore."
Ben nods and tells Irene she can talk more with Erza because this will be her last chance. There is no benefit by keeping Irene alive and Ben knows she is tired of living as her current self. Besides, there is something Ben can get by Irene's death, something more important for the future.
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Hi guys, just a little announcement. Fairy Tail: Sun Eater has reached the last chapter in Patreon. You can read it faster there, but don't worry, I'll still upload here until the last chapter, so there are still 35 chapters to go.
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You can read up to 35+35 chapters ahead of my fanfics and more pictures on my Pa_treon page if you are interested.
Voting for this book is highly appreciate. Cover image is the MC, artist's ig: @fatmaqn_
I've uploaded:
1. Chapter 443. The End (Fairy Tail: Sun Eater)
2. Chapter 457. Father Arrives (Transcended as Lord Buggy)
3. Pictures of both stories (ex: bounty poster & magazine cover) by fatmaqn_
https://www.pa_treon.com/CaptMermain
(the web didn't use _underscore_, it's to avoid censorship)