Morning.
The first rays of the rising sun shattered the darkness.
As sunlight bathed the earth...
The townspeople, who had wandered in despair throughout the night, finally returned to the remnants of their once-thriving town. However, as they took in the sight before them, their eyes widened in disbelief.
"Are we sure this is the right place? Is this really the town where we lived?" they asked, stunned.
Before them lay a barren wasteland. Their beloved town now resembled a village after being obliterated by the mighty Shinra Tensei of Pain, leaving no trace of the buildings that once stood.
And as if that wasn't bad enough...
The distant snow-capped mountains, along with the entire mountain range, had vanished without a trace.
In its place was a massive artificial lake.
The massive crater, created by the force of Starfall, had been filled with the melted snow from the surrounding mountains, forming the lake. Fortunately, the water was freshwater. If they introduced fish this year, perhaps by the next year, their town could rely on this vast lake, akin to an inland sea, for its livelihood.
It seemed the hunters were now destined to become fishermen...
"I never thought I'd live my whole life inland and still have the chance to see an ocean. Truly, this is a blessing!" The town's elder stroked his long beard, his expression remarkably composed.
"The town elder truly has seen it all—he's not even fazed!" The townspeople, seeing their calm leader, felt reassured, and began praising him.
"Ha!"
"What an interesting dream today."
"Usually in my dreams, people's faces are blurry."
"But today, I could see everyone's faces clearly—they were all from our town!"
"Haha, that's amusing!"
The elder, overhearing the townspeople, turned his head slightly and chuckled.
Then, raising his staff, he smacked it against his own head, shouting, "If this is a nightmare, just wake me up! Give us back our town, damn it!!"
"Oh no..."
"The elder's lost his mind from fear!"
"The poor old man thinks he's still dreaming!"
Hearing the elder's words, the townspeople hurriedly rushed over, carefully restraining him and taking his staff. They tried to explain, "Elder, we're not dreaming! This really is our town. And that sea over there—that used to be the mountains! I remember when I was young, you even took me rabbit hunting in those mountains! Do you not remember?"
"Of course I remember..."
The elder began to sob as he spoke, tears streaming down his face. Watching the town they had worked so hard to build disappear overnight—it was unbearable not to lose his mind, even just for a moment.
But at least... everyone was alive!
As long as they were still alive, everything else could be rebuilt.
"We're truly grateful for your help in defeating Deliora."
"If it weren't for you, we wouldn't just have lost the town..."
"All of us would have perished in the fire."
The elder, who was a reasonable man, quickly recovered from his daze and led the townspeople in bowing to Ian, thanking him for destroying Deliora.
"It was nothing, really," Ian responded with a smile, shaking his head.
"I heard from Silver that you're a guild wizard, correct?"
"I understand the customs of wizards..."
"Usually, we would offer a reward..."
"But as you can see, we have nothing left to give. Everything we owned was destroyed in the battle with Deliora. Perhaps next year, when we can sell the game from the mountains..."
The elder paused, as though remembering something. He glanced toward the newly formed lake where the mountains once stood and cleared his throat before continuing, "Perhaps once we've stocked the lake with fish, we can repay you in full."
"That won't be necessary," Ian chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "This was simply something I had to do."
After all, it was Ian's mistake that had flattened the town. The last thing he wanted was to accept any reward from the simple townsfolk.
Had he arrived just a few minutes earlier, he might have been able to stop Deliora before it reached the town. It was something that weighed heavily on him.
"May I ask your name?" the elder inquired earnestly. "So that we may remember you and repay you in the future."
"My name is I—"
Ian was about to say his real name when, looking at the desolate wasteland around him, he cleared his throat and improvised, "I am Gildarts, a wizard of Fairy Tail."
"Gildarts?"
"Could you be the famed Gildarts, the strongest wizard on the western continent of Ishgar?!"
Gildarts' reputation was well-known, even in this unassuming town. The townspeople stared at Ian in disbelief.
"Indeed," Ian replied with a slight nod.
"But I heard Gildarts is a drunken fool, a lecherous, shameless old man... You don't look anything like him," one of the townspeople said, eyeing Ian skeptically.
"Well!" Ian's eye twitched slightly. "That's just baseless rumor! I'm actually a good person!"
"Ah, I see..."
The simple-minded townspeople quickly accepted Ian's "lie." Even though, in truth, Gildarts was exactly as the rumors described—a drunken, womanizing scoundrel.
After accepting the gratitude of the townsfolk under Gildarts' name, Ian sought out Silver's family. Silver had contacted Ian using the communication magic he had previously taught him, saying there was something important he wished to discuss.
When Ian arrived at the designated meeting spot, he saw Silver standing under a tree with his now-awake wife, Mika, and their son, Gray, who stood silently with his head bowed. It seemed they had been waiting for Ian for quite some time.
"Gray, go on," Silver encouraged, gently patting his son on the back.
Before Ian could ask what was happening, Gray stepped forward, dropped to his knees, and shouted, "Master Gildarts! Please teach me magic!"
"What the—?"
The sudden request left Ian speechless. He had been about to ask a question but now found himself caught off guard.
"Cough, cough. First of all, I'm not Gildarts. My name is Ian..." Ian corrected, then continued, "As for learning magic, I'm afraid I can't teach you."
"Why not?"
Gray looked up, confusion evident in his eyes.
"Because you wouldn't be able to learn it," Ian said helplessly. His heavenly body magic wasn't suitable for someone like Gray.
"I... see..."
Gray lowered his head in disappointment, his thoughts swirling with frustration.
"However, while you can't learn my magic..." Ian added, "If you're truly determined to study magic, I know someone who would be a great teacher for you. She is a skilled master and knows the perfect magic for you."
Ian gently lifted Gray to his feet, offering a reassuring smile.
"Really?"
"I truly want to learn magic!" Gray's eyes sparkled with hope. "I never want to be powerless again when those I care about are in danger!"
Ian smiled, ruffling Gray's hair until it was a mess. "Of course. Why would I lie to you?"
Then, turning around, Ian pointed behind him. "And the one who can teach you is... her."
"Her?"
Gray looked confused as he followed Ian's gaze.
In the distance, a woman with short black hair was walking toward them. Even in the chilly winter weather, she wore a light jacket, revealing a tantalizing glimpse of her undergarments beneath. Her fitted jeans accentuated her shapely figure, drawing attention to her every step.
As she drew closer, her sharp features and confident demeanor became clear. She was accompanied by a young boy with striking silver hair, almost white.
"Don't just pawn off disciples on me!" the woman teased as she approached, shooting Ian a playful glance. She looked at Gray, who was standing frozen in place, and said, "But you know what? This kid has real potential for molding magic. Alright, I suppose I'll take him under my wing."
"Gray, go on and pay your respects to your new master," Ian urged with a grin.
"Her? Is she really strong?"
To Ian's surprise, Gray seemed skeptical, glancing at him for reassurance.
"You idiot! Of course, she's strong," Ian retorted, pressing down on Gray's head. "In fact, she's one of the strongest ice wizards alive—on par with the Ten Wizard Saints of Ishgar. Some even call her the continent's top ice wizard, Ur!"
"If that's not enough for you, the only others you could turn to are ancient monsters known as the 'Four Heavenly Kings.' But good luck getting one of them to take you in!"
Gray, wincing in pain as Ian scolded him, finally relented. Rubbing his head, he stepped forward and bowed deeply to Ur. "Please, accept me as your disciple!"
"I guess I'll take in this ungrateful little brat!" Ur chuckled, affectionately knocking her fist on Gray's head.
Though Gray winced, tears finally welled up in his eyes, spilling down his cheeks.
"Now you're my disciple," Ur said warmly before turning to Ian with a more serious look. "But now, shouldn't we talk about something between us? You wouldn't happen to have anything you need to explain, would you?"
"Explain? Me?"
Ian was confused. He couldn't think of anything he needed to explain to Ur.
"Tell me, Gildarts... Why don't you look anything like the sleazy old man I remember? Did you learn some sort of time magic to make yourself younger?" Ur's smile was filled with suspicion.
"Oh, right. I forgot Gildarts and Ur knew each other from the side stories..."
After a brief pause, Ian realized what was happening. "Of course wizards on Ishgar would know each other. It's no big deal," he thought, feeling a bit cornered.
"Last night's magic was so intense," Ur continued. "Even from miles away, I could feel it... That's why I rushed over here."
"And when I got here, the townsfolk were all saying Gildarts had defeated Deliora and saved the town. I thought I'd say hi to him, but then I realized... you're an imposter. So, care to explain who you really are and why you're pretending to be Gildarts?"
Ur's eyes narrowed as she stared down Ian, clearly ready to fight if necessary.
"As you can see, I really am a wizard from Fairy Tail," Ian said, showing her the Fairy Tail crest on his arm.
There was no way to fake that.
"Huh?"
Ur blinked, momentarily thrown off. Doubt clouded her mind as she reassessed her assumptions.
She had originally thought Ian was trying to manipulate the town by pretending to defeat Deliora and posing as Gildarts. But now, it seemed she had been wrong.
"You see," Ian sighed, "Gildarts has a pretty awful reputation. I borrowed his name not only to redeem him but also for the sake of Fairy Tail's reputation."
At this, Ur chuckled softly, patting Ian's shoulder. "I understand now. You've really gone above and beyond."