"Okay," Roger said, his voice quiet but somehow grabbing everyone's attention in an instant.
"We've got the basics figured out. Now all that's left is tracking down the locations of the remaining five parts of the Infinity Clock, then freeing the Archbishop from whatever's controlling him. After that, this whole mess is over."
He turned to Lucy. "Lucy, tonight you compile everything we know about the five parts' locations and send it to the guild group chat. We'll head out first thing tomorrow morning to start collecting them."
He paused, scanning the eager faces around him.
"As for who's coming along—"
"Me!" Ultear raised her hand first with a smile.
"Stopping the world from ending and gathering dangerous parts? This is the perfect chance for me to atone for my past sins, right?"
"I'm in too," Ur said almost at the same time, stepping up beside Ultear. The mother and daughter shared a quick smile.
"And me, Lord Roger," Sora stepped forward, clasping her hands gently in front of her, her tone serious. "If this journey can help cleanse sins, then an angel must join."
"Um... I'd like to go too!" Levy raised her hand a little shyly.
"Ancient parts like these are probably hidden in ruins. Who knows, we might find some new clues about ancient scripts!"
"Me too!"
Voices piped up one after another, and countless arms shot up like a forest of little trees.
Seeing the scene, Roger couldn't help but chuckle.
(No surprise there. This is Fairy Tail, after all—everyone's always fired up.)
He pulled out his phone and waved it. "If that's how it is, anyone who wants in can sign up in the guild chat."
"I'll pick the right people based on the situation and form teams to go together."
As soon as he finished, Natsu—who'd been zoning out for ages—suddenly jolted awake, smacking his left fist into his right palm with a loud smack.
"I don't really get what's going on, but basically, there's gonna be a fight soon, right?!" He grinned wide, flashing his signature toothy smile.
Charle facepalmed beside him, looking utterly exasperated. "Hey—after everything that just happened, you seriously didn't understand a single word?"
"Of course I did!" Natsu crossed his arms, chin up like he was offended. "It's just that Lucy reunited with her long-lost little sister!"
"Michelle is Lucy's dad's illegitimate kid. Lucy accidentally lost her when they were little, and now they've found each other and recognized family! Right, Happy?"
"Aye! That's exactly it!" Happy chimed in with a mischievous grin, loving the chaos. "Actually, Natsu, Lucy ditched Michelle on purpose—to stop her from fighting over the family fortune."
"Wait, really?!" Natsu's eyes went wide like he'd just had an epiphany. "I get it now—this is one of those royal succession wars, huh!"
"(==|| You're... completely wrong! And you've mangled the whole story!" Lucy groaned, a huge sweat drop rolling down her forehead as her mouth twitched.
"Seriously, how do you two even sync up like that? You and Happy really are partners—your brains are wired the exact same weird way..."
She sighed helplessly, then turned to Michelle, who was standing quietly beside her. After thinking for a few seconds, a warm smile spread across her face.
She stepped forward and gently took Michelle's hand. "Michelle, what do you say... wanna join the guild with me?"
"Join the guild?" Michelle blinked, caught off guard. "You mean... Fairy Tail?"
"Yep, exactly!" Lucy nodded enthusiastically, her cheeks flushing with excitement.
"That way, we can always be together from now on!"
"We can eat together, go home together, even take jobs together!"
She puffed out her chest a little proudly. "I might not stack up to some of the others in the guild, but I'm pretty strong now! I can totally take you on jobs and earn money together!"
"Always... together?" Michelle murmured, repeating the words. Her lips slowly curved up into a radiant smile.
She squeezed Lucy's hand back firmly. "Yeah, I'd love to join my big sister's guild."
"This time, we'll be together forever. No more separating."
Lucy immediately turned to Makarov with hopeful eyes. "Master! Can Michelle join the guild?"
Makarov stroked his beard, pondering for a moment before breaking into a kind, booming grin. "Of course! Fairy Tail always welcomes anyone with a good heart!"
The next second, he raised his mug high and bellowed loud enough to drown out everything else: "To celebrate our new member—let's party!!!"
"OHHHHH!!!"
The guild exploded with deafening cheers.
"Eh?!" Lucy's eyes went wide in disbelief.
"A party? Right now?!"
"But aren't we supposed to go collect the Infinity Clock parts tomorrow?!"
"Tomorrow's tomorrow! What's that got to do with partying today?!" Kana slurred, her breath heavy with booze as she suddenly appeared beside Lucy.
Before Lucy could react, a heavy arm slung over her shoulders, and spicy liquor was forced down her throat.
"Drink up, drink up! Lucy! A party's all about chugging it down! Hic~"
"W-wait! (glug glug) Kana! Stop!" Lucy struggled under her iron grip, forced to down half the bottle before finally breaking free when Kana stumbled. She leaned against the wall, coughing. "Cough cough—seriously... how much did you drink out there to get this wasted—"
Michelle watched the instant chaos unfold—tables flipping, mugs flying, magic sparking amid the noise—and couldn't help but giggle softly. "The guild... is really lively, huh?"
"It feels just like when I was little, playing with big sis every day. So happy all the time."
"Yeah..." Lucy said, gazing at the all-too-familiar mayhem with her hands behind her back, a fond smile tugging at her lips as memories of noisy, warm days flooded back.
"It's just like back then—always loud and crazy. But with everyone together, it's never boring."
But after the brief warmth, a flicker of worry crept in. "Still... is it really okay to throw a huge party like this? The Archbishop of Zentopia is still—"
"Don't worry," Roger's voice cut in reassuringly. He walked over and handed Lucy and Michelle each a slice of delicious-looking cake.
"The Master's got it under control. Plus, we've got the most intel right now. Any other groups trying to butt in will be way behind us, so relax."
"I guess you're right..." Lucy took the cake, feeling a bit more at ease.
She'd just taken a bite when Roger continued, "Though, we might have to hold off on stamping Michelle's guild mark for a bit."
"Hold off?" Lucy looked puzzled, then remembered the mark's special properties and nodded in understanding.
"Oh, right! If we stamp it now, she'll no longer be the same 'Michelle' as before."
"But wouldn't Midnight have realized the Infinity Clock was exposed the moment I saw through Michelle?"
"I covered it with illusion magic," Roger said, raising his right hand. A faint purple glow flickered at his fingertips.
"As far as Midnight knows, everything's still the same. He has no idea Michelle or the Infinity Clock have been blown."
"Illusion magic can do that?" Lucy's mouth dropped open in surprise.
"Just a little trick. Illusion magic can fool way more than you think," Roger smiled, dispersing the magic before turning to melt into the noisy crowd.
"For now, just enjoy the party."
The rowdy celebration lasted a full three hours before finally winding down.
Lucy, remembering the mission, was the first to head out. She needed to get home and organize the known part locations to share with everyone for tomorrow's smoother search.
After saying goodbye to the others, Lucy and Michelle walked home together, one in front of the other.
Night had fallen, street lamps glowing softly.
Lucy carried the now-empty suitcase in front of her with both hands, gazing up at the hazy stars lit by the city lights.
All she could hear was her little sister's soft footsteps behind her, plus the damp breeze from the canal and the gentle flow of water.
Michelle cradled the Puppy celestial spirit in her arms, gently stroking its head now and then. The soft fur felt soothing.
"Big sis is still a celestial spirit wizard, huh?"
"Yep! I inherited Mom's will—and her keys."
"Speaking of, do you remember the spirits, Michelle?"
"Mm-hmm," Michelle said, counting on her fingers seriously. "There's the goat... the crab... and the fish, right?"
"That was just the beginning!" Lucy said with a hint of pride.
"Now I've got ten of the Zodiac keys!"
Just then, a small boat drifted by on the canal. The three guys on board spotted Lucy on the shore and yelled, "Hey, isn't that Lucy?!"
"We haven't seen her walking by the river in like four years!"
"Little Lucy! Watch out you don't fall in!"
"Don't worry, I'll be fine!!" Lucy laughed and waved back enthusiastically.
Michelle's mouth fell open a little in surprise. "Ten? That's way more than I thought—intel only said big sis had most of them. I figured six or seven at most."
"You're amazing, sis! Just two more and you'll have all twelve Zodiacs!"
Being praised so straightforwardly by her little sister made Lucy a bit embarrassed. She waved it off, cheeks pink. "Hehe, it's not that big a deal."
"The last two could be anywhere in the world."
Her excitement quickly returned. "Oh! When we get home, I can introduce you to them all!"
"They're all super fun!"
"Uh..." She suddenly shrank back with a nervous look. "(=—=|) Except Aquarius. Unless it's urgent, if I summon her casually, she'll totally drown me with her water jar..."
As she talked, Lucy's thoughts drifted to the future, picturing their life together.
"Now that you're joining Fairy Tail too, we can wake up together every day, go to the guild together, experiment with cooking—"
She suddenly lit up even more. "Oh! Once this is all over, let's go visit Dad together!"
"Uncle Jude?" Michelle asked, a little confused.
"Yeah!" Lucy nodded firmly, turning to face Michelle and walking backward with a big smile. "But not as 'Michelle Lobster'."
"As my little sister—Michelle Heartfilia!"
"Dad would be so happy knowing you've become human!"
A mischievous glint sparked in her eyes. "I'll sneak a photo when he's shocked speechless. I've never seen that expression on him before!"
Hearing her big sister fully accept her—already planning her future identity—Michelle froze.
She stopped dead in her tracks, eyes burning hot as tears welled up uncontrollably and slid silently down her cheeks.
Lucy was still lost in her daydreams, walking backward without noticing.
"Though 'Gonzales' does sound kinda boyish, huh?"
"I didn't think much when I picked it as a kid. Pretty random, haha."
"This time you can choose whatever name you really like—"
She glanced up to see Michelle's reaction and realized she'd left her sister a ways behind, standing motionless.
Lucy jogged back quickly, about to ask what was wrong when she saw the red eyes and tear tracks.
"W-what's wrong?" Lucy panicked, thinking she'd said something hurtful, fumbling for words. "Did I say something bad? You don't want to change your name? Then we won't! Gonzales is a great name too!"
Seeing her flustered big sister, Michelle laughed through her tears. She wiped her eyes and spoke in a teary but light voice, "It's okay, sis. These are happy tears."
She gazed at Lucy, eyes shining like stars.
"As for my name... Michelle is fine."
"It's the name I got when I met you again—and promised we'd be together forever. It's mine."
Lucy paused, then a knowing, relieved smile bloomed on her face.
She solemnly extended her hand, voice gentle. "Then nice to meet you from here on out, Michelle Heartfilia."
"Yeah!" Michelle nodded firmly, reaching out and gripping Lucy's hand tightly.
"Please take care of me, big sis Lucy."
The moment their hands clasped, Michelle felt like she was truly holding that bright future her sister had described—close enough to touch.
Warmth flooded Lucy's heart. She was about to pull her sister into a hug when her body suddenly stiffened, turning involuntarily like a puppet on strings.
"Huh? My body... it's moving on its own?!"
As she turned, her eyes locked on three figures standing not far away.
When she spotted the distinctive airplane hairstyle on the guy in the middle, she froze. "That's... Sugarboy? But why is he here—"
In a flash, it hit her.
"No! Wait—he has no magic, he can't come to this world. That must be Aslant's Sugarboy!"
The woman leading them—with short purple-and-white hair, Mary Hughes—smiled coldly like her plan had succeeded perfectly. She raised her withered-wood-like staff.
"Haha, just as Samuel calculated—the 'pointer' would definitely be with Lucy Heartfilia."
She watched Lucy walk toward them like a marionette and declared triumphantly, "Now—hand over what you've got, nice and easy!"
Seeing her big sister controlled and walking toward the enemy, frost filled Michelle's eyes as a dangerous aura swirled around her.
"How dare you hurt my sister!"
She instinctively started gathering magic to transform, but Lucy's calm shout rang out from ahead: "Don't worry about me, Michelle!"
"Trust me! I can handle this!!"
Hearing that confident voice, the aura around Michelle faltered, and she chose to trust, returning to normal.
"How laughably overconfident!" Mary Hughes sneered even harder.
"You can't even control your own body—how exactly are you going to get out of this?"
The brown-haired little girl, Coco, lifted her chin smugly. "We've been waiting here forever. Finally cornered you."
"Going straight to your guild would've been too much hassle. This is easier."
"No need for extra chatter, Coco~" Sugarboy pulled out a round microphone from who-knows-where, speaking into it in his signature drawl. "If you talk too much, the rest of Fairy Tail might notice~"
"Don't forget Lord Byro's warning before he left—be careful."
"Oh, right!" Coco quickly covered her mouth, eyeing the approaching Lucy while thinking: (Even Lord Byro thinks their guild is trouble... Is Fairy Tail really that scary?)
When Lucy stiffly reached them, Mary Hughes snatched the suitcase from her hands, lifted it—and her face darkened.
"It's too light! Empty?!"
(The magic's loosening—now!!)
Mary Hughes's face twisted in fury as she glared at Lucy. "If I can't get the pointer, I'll just take you hostage and force Fairy Tail to—"
Before she could finish, everything changed in an instant!
The air seemed to freeze, then a visible red glow exploded outward with Lucy at the center.
[Red Territory]
A cold female voice rang out. Mary Hughes's heart skipped as she cried, "She broke free of my manipulation?! Impossible!!"
She frantically looked around, trying to relock her magic, but Lucy was nowhere in sight.
[Hachikyoku Ken: Hou!]
The voice thundered right beside her ear!
Mary Hughes's pupils shrank. She didn't even see the figure before a terrifying, overwhelming force slammed into her stomach!
(What kind of monstrous strength—?!)
The thought barely formed before she was launched like a human cannonball—screaming through the air, taking the two behind her along as they crashed brutally into the wall of a building.
"BOOM—!"
Bricks flew, dust billowed.
When the smoke cleared, a huge green jelly-like mass writhed slowly in the cratered wall.
The goo parted like it was alive, revealing a shaken Sugarboy and Coco inside.
Coco stared down at the completely unconscious Mary Hughes, horror written all over her face. "Her... her power is insane?!"
"One hit and she took out Mary!"