The next second, Marco's figure had already appeared inside the temple.
He stood on the top observation deck of the temple.
The view here was excellent, letting him take in the entire city of Ermina as it floated beneath the sea.
This was the temple of the Water God.
Marco could clearly sense a vast, deep source of magic power filled with the endless rhythm of water quietly resting here, like the heart of the deep sea.
Naturally, it was Mercphobia, the Water Dragon God.
"Outsider, don't mind Karameel's words. She has been by my side since she was young, so naturally, she speaks for me in everything."
As Marco stood at the edge of the observation deck, a voice sounded behind him.
Marco turned to look, it was a human man.
His dark blue curly hair hung over his shoulders like seaweed, swaying slightly in the salty sea breeze.
He had a tall, slender figure.
A dark blue spiral tattoo was clearly visible around his right eye, while the long hair on the other side fell down just enough to cover his left eye.
This was Mercphobia, the Water Dragon God.
Marco was certain of it.
He just had not expected Mercphobia to also have a human form.
Wasn't this guy a pure-blooded dragon?
Mercphobia walked to Marco's side and looked down with him at the strange town glittering beneath the water.
His eyes were full of sadness and exhaustion.
This guy really did have the gloomy air of an artistic young man, quite different from what Marco had imagined.
"You were invited by Elefseria, weren't you?" Mercphobia spoke softly.
"I am Marco Dreyar, Guild Master of Fairy Tail. I accepted Elefseria's 100 Years Quest request to seal you Five Dragon Gods. Do you have anything to say in your defense?" Marco spoke calmly.
Since Mercphobia could communicate, he did not mind talking with this "Water God."
"The 100 Years Quest... That stubborn old man still refuses to give up."
Mercphobia's voice remained gentle, but there was a tiredness in it that would not go away. His whole presence felt deeply worn down.
"You Five Dragon Gods are still bringing disaster to Guiltina. Of course he won't give up." Marco said it as though it were only natural.
"Disaster..."
Mercphobia sighed.
"Look at Ermina. Look at those residents who have forgotten they were human. Do you really think you aren't bringing disaster?"
Marco looked at the Water Dragon God and narrowed his eyes.
Mercphobia's body seemed to tremble almost imperceptibly.
He shifted his gaze and once again looked down at the "fish people" swimming happily below. The sadness in his eyes almost overflowed.
"Disaster..."
He repeated quietly, his voice heavy with self-mockery.
"Yes... Of course it's a disaster. A disaster caused by my inability to control my own power."
Mercphobia took a deep breath and forced down his surging power and emotions.
He closed his eyes wearily. When he opened them again, only deep sorrow remained.
"I use magic to protect them. I provide them with food, shelter, and healing. I let them live. They see me as a god. They worship me and rely on me. And I... am the one who caused all of this."
Mercphobia painfully spoke the truth.
Naturally, no one understood the situation in Ermina better than him.
Marco silently looked at Mercphobia.
He could feel the huge conflict and pain inside this "Water God."
This was far from the "violent and cruel" image Elefseria had described.
Where had things gone wrong?
"Elefseria said you were a violent dragon who killed countless people."
Marco did not hesitate and directly told him Elefseria's evaluation of him.
He could confirm that Elefseria had not lied, but Mercphobia's current state was not an act either.
"He was right. In the past, I really was like that. I killed many people, including Elefseria's family and friends. It isn't strange that he has held on to revenge for over a hundred years..."
Mercphobia did not try to hide it. He admitted it directly.
He really had once been exactly as Elefseria described.
"...What changed you?"
Marco was silent for a moment before asking in confusion.
This difference was far too big.
Going from a cruel, violent evil dragon to his current state, where he even seemed a little self-destructive, was basically a complete one-eighty in personality.
...
"Karameel..."
Mercphobia seemed to have a strong urge to talk. Marco asked, and he answered.
Though honestly, that opening already made Marco struggle to keep a straight face.
"Karameel... that girl from earlier? What happened with her?"
Marco asked, but all kinds of dramatic stories had already started forming in his head. That opening had way too much flavor.
At this point, no matter how wild Mercphobia's story became, it probably would not be surprising.
"I found her. At first, I only saw her as bait, something to use while playing with humans. But... that child changed me..."
Mercphobia began telling the story of him and Karameel.
To put it simply, the once vicious and cruel Water Dragon God picked up a child, was moved by that adorable little girl, turned over a new leaf, and decided to become a good dragon.
He stopped killing people and instead began helping humans survive.
"..."
After listening, Marco fell silent for a moment, not knowing what to say.
How should he put it?
This story sounded like one of those short, heartwarming stories.
You could replace the dragon with some other animal or mythical creature, and it would still work.
Marco had seen plenty of healing little comics and short films about fierce animals being softened by human children.
There were even movies with similar plots.
In those kinds of stories, human children seemed to have some strange magic that made every creature fall for them.
Marco would not deny that children had their cute side, but this kind of plot was honestly a little too fantasy-like.
Still, it worked well enough in comedies and animated stories.
And since this was Fairy Tail, having something like this happen did not feel that strange either.
Marco convinced himself, mostly because he had no choice but to believe it.
The Mercphobia in front of him really was not lying. He had truly changed because of this reason and this event.
No, seriously? Had this guy never seen a human child before?
"That's... nice."
Marco opened his mouth and gave a comment.
Although Mercphobia's past sins could not just be wiped away, at least he had repented.
And judging from his current state, he had changed pretty thoroughly.
A dragon who once treated humans like weeds now felt so guilty over human matters that he almost wanted to die. That was honestly a little too much.
"Sorry. I must sound ridiculous."
As if noticing that Marco's expression was getting hard to control, Mercphobia smiled awkwardly.
He also knew that these things sounded hard to believe, even a little unreal.
"So what exactly are you planning now? You can't control your own power? Why is that happening?"
Marco frowned and asked about Mercphobia's plans.
How should he put it?
Marco still had a bottom line when doing things.
With Mercphobia's current attitude, it was honestly hard for him to just attack directly.
But leaving him alone here was not an option either, because even Mercphobia himself could not control his power, and Ermina had already become like this because of him.
"It's not that I can't control it properly. It's that my influence is too strong. As long as I remain here, the tides will be affected by my magic power. It wasn't like this at first. But as my strength kept growing, my influence over the tides became stronger too."
Mercphobia shook his head.
To solve this problem, he had already tried many methods. The final conclusion was terrible.
As long as he existed, the problem could not be solved.
Because he himself was the problem.
"..."
Marco almost choked on a retort.
If the Water Dragon God could truly affect the rise and fall of the tides, then that was honestly ridiculous.
"If it's because of you, then wouldn't the tides here return to normal as long as you moved far away? You know it too, right? Your leaking water magic changed the environment here." Marco spoke.
He found this whole thing absurd.
This Water Dragon God Mercphobia... surely he did not actually think he was affecting the tides of the entire planet, right?
The tide changes here were obviously just because he was staying here.
"But... if I go somewhere else, that place will be affected too."
Mercphobia let out a long sigh.
He had once thought of simply leaving and abandoning the home he had built here.
But after moving somewhere else, the residents of that new place would still be affected by his existence.
It was like being trapped no matter which direction he chose.
"I have a suggestion. Why don't you just go live in a desert?"
Marco raised a finger and offered an idea.
Now that he thought about it, water-attribute magic seemed very easy to be affected by its user.
For example, Juvia was basically a walking weather indicator. And now there was Mercphobia, who directly affected the tides and flooded an entire city.
Other elements did not seem to have the same issue.
No one had heard of someone constantly setting everything around them on fire.
But with water magic, this kind of thing appeared quite a lot.