Nate, carrying the unconscious Laxus, along with Juvia and Erza, boarded Bobo's small boat to return to Hargeon.
A slight rewind to the night before, after midnight:
At the council headquarters, inside a library.
"You're back?"
As Jellal Fernandez (Siegrain) was about to open a book he had just taken from the shelf, Ultear walked in.
"Yes, Siegrain-sama, but I bring bad news," Ultear sighed.
"What happened?"
"The seal on Deliora was successfully broken, but it immediately died."
"Died?"
Jellal was momentarily taken aback.
Deliora was one of the demons from the 'Book of Zeref', once a walking calamity, devastating everything in its path. And now, it was dead.
A few days ago, another demon, Lullaby, had been shattered by a single punch from Fairy Tail's Nate. However, Lullaby hadn't died—it merely returned to its flute form.
"As expected from the great mage Ur," Jellal mused after a brief thought. Then, shaking his head, he continued, "It doesn't matter. Losing one demon won't affect my plans."
After a pause, he added, "What's really troublesome... is Voldemort."
This person knew his true identity and even his plans, but Jellal knew nothing about them.
Ever since their brief private message exchange, Jellal had been trying to gather information on this "Voldemort" but had come up empty-handed. There seemed to be no record of anyone named Voldemort in the magic world.
To Jellal, even if "Voldemort" was a fake name, there should at least be a subtle link to the real one. He had hoped to find a clue through that, but to no avail.
"On that note, I encountered Nate on Galuna Island," Ultear suddenly said.
"And? He's the creator of the internet magic. Did he know anything?"
"A very powerful mage, especially his eyes."
Ultear admired Nate. Not only had he created internet magic, but he also possessed magic in his eyes that could see through her transformation magic. When she met him in the cave on Galuna Island, she had even considered exposing her identity and capturing him to take back to the dark guild Grimoire Heart. But since she was just using a Thought Projection, she wasn't sure she could defeat him, so she decided against it.
"I'm asking if he knows about Voldemort," Jellal pressed.
"No, I didn't have a chance to ask."
Ultear answered truthfully. She had been using the internet for some time and hadn't noticed any hidden surveillance capabilities, so she didn't think Nate would know the identities of everyone using it.
Jellal's hopes for answers from Nate were likely in vain. Of course, she was also personally curious about this talented young mage, hoping she might corrupt and recruit him.
"Next time, ask him directly. You're a council member—there's no problem investigating someone with an unclear background," Jellal instructed.
"Understood, Siegrain-sama," Ultear smiled and added, "By the way, the internet now has a new function: 'online commissions'..."
...
Back to the present:
With Bobo's help, Nate and the others returned to Hargeon. From there, they took the magic train back to Magnolia.
Juvia's destination was Oak Town, where she would need to transfer trains. Outside the station, she looked reluctant to part ways.
Nate took the magic book she had given him and handed it back to her.
"Here, return this to your guild's library."
"Have you finished reading it, Nate-sama?"
"I've scanned and uploaded it to my library. Thanks for this."
He slipped a magic card containing 4 million J into the book. Once Juvia boarded the train, he sent her a message to remind her to take it out. As a capable and cooperative "partner," Nate wouldn't treat her unfairly.
"I understand, Nate-sama. Well… goodbye for now," Juvia waved.
As the train departed, it started raining.
Nate's eyebrow twitched. Her mood was reflected in the weather—just like that, it started raining? Was it because he didn't stay to have dinner with her?
Thinking quickly, Nate called out, "Next time, I'll come to visit and treat you to dinner."
The rain stopped!
Juvia's face brightened with a radiant smile as she nodded enthusiastically. "Juvia will wait for your message, Nate-sama!"
Satisfied, she boarded the train, and Nate turned to leave the station.
Outside, Erza was waiting for him, with Laxus still unconscious and lying on a cart.
"Is that your girlfriend?" Erza asked, curious.
"No," Nate quickly denied. If he were to have a girlfriend, it would be Mira, the guild's waitress. But as a man with many admirers, he didn't want to reject Juvia's affection outright.
He suspected that if he had said, "Stay," she would have happily gone with him to a hotel. But Juvia was a jealous woman, and Nate wasn't ready for such complications.
"She's more like a good little sister."
In any case, she would always remain a "good little sister," never a girlfriend.
Erza didn't understand the deeper meaning behind "good little sister" and simply assumed they were close.
Considering the complicated relationship between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord, it was quite remarkable that they were on such good terms. The whole kingdom of Fiore knew about the tension between the two guilds, so it was surprising for them to be such close friends.
"Let's go back to the guild," Nate said, lifting Laxus onto his shoulder and leading the way.
Unlike Erza's injuries, Laxus's were mainly concentrated around his head. The rest of his body wasn't too badly hurt. Nate carried him to the medical room and personally bandaged him up.
"Sorry, Master. I might have gone a bit too hard on him," Nate apologized to Makarov when he came to check on Laxus.
Makarov shook his head. "It's not your fault. Laxus probably pushed for the duel. Getting a lesson like this might actually be good for him."
You're quite the judge of character, Nate thought. He wondered if Laxus would still try to start a civil war within the guild, as in the original story. However, there was still another arc before that happened.
Nate wasn't too concerned about the details. More importantly, he needed to teach his "digital pet" how to manage the internet soon.
...
That evening, back at the apartment:
Ur immediately emerged from the Deep Web.
"I felt so stifled! I was terrified that Guild Master Makarov would discover me, so I didn't dare show myself."
"You were afraid of being discovered?"
Nate was confused. "What's the problem with that? Maybe the Master could help you find a way to restore your body."
"Back in my time, your Master was one of the 'Ten Wizard Saints', a renowned mage," Ur said, relaxing. She sat on Nate's bed with one leg crossed over the other, propping her chin on her hand, swinging her leg in a carefree manner.
Glancing around the room, she remarked, "Your place is surprisingly simple, Nate-sama."
"Stop with the '-sama' already. You don't need to be so formal," Nate replied, shaking his head as he sat down at the table and logged into the internet. "It's just a place to stay. Whether it's big or small doesn't make much difference to me."
"So, where am I supposed to sleep?" Ur patted the bed beneath her and smirked teasingly, "Am I going to sleep with you?"
"Why would a ghost need a bed?" Nate retorted.
"I don't want to stay in the Deep Web—it's too boring there."
"Just be quiet," Nate shot back, rolling his eyes. Every second Ur spent outside was draining his stored magic power.
"Come over here and start learning how to manage the internet."
Ur chuckled softly, finding his reactions amusing, and moved to sit beside him to begin learning.
Suddenly, a private message notification appeared.
Nate clicked it open.
Witch of Pain: "Are you still up, little brother? Big sis can't sleep either."
Witch of Pain: "I'm taking a bath right now~ Wanna see? sexy lady.jpg"
Witch of Pain: "Too bad your internet can't show live video. sneaky smile.jpg"
Ur's expression shifted slightly. "Who's that? She's so… suggestive."
Nate couldn't help but laugh. "That's your daughter."
~~~
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