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The sky was clear, white clouds drifted lazily, and a gentle breeze blew.
Such beautiful weather made it a perfect day for a journey to another world.
In the backyard of the Fairy Tail guild, the air was buzzing with excitement. Nearly sixty people had gathered early, awaiting someone's arrival.
"Why isn't Noah here yet? I'm getting sleepy waiting." Natsu yawned, his eyelids drooping just like the blue cat on his shoulder.
Lucy sighed. Ever since they learned that today they could travel to the parallel world called Edolas, the man and cat had been so excited that they hadn't slept a wink all night.
If you asked Lucy how she knew, it was, of course, because those two idiots had run to her house in the middle of the night and kept her from sleeping too.
Most of the people present were actually as excited as Natsu and Happy, but they all knew they needed to save their energy to have fun in the other world.
The Exceeds gathered together, very much looking forward to the "Exceed Kingdom" which might be their homeland.
Only Carla remained sullen.
Ever since she learned that everyone was going to Edolas, Carla hadn't been happy like the other Exceeds. Instead, she looked somewhat troubled.
"Carla, are you not feeling well? Should I take a look?" Wendy picked up the cute white Exceed in her little dress. The perceptive girl had noticed her best friend's unease yesterday, but Carla hadn't been willing to talk about it.
Carla pushed away Wendy's hand, which was releasing healing magic. Knowing Wendy was worried about her, she hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Wendy, can you ask everyone not to go to Edolas..."
"Why?" Wendy was very confused.
Carla glanced at Cheese, Lector, and the silly Frosch who were playing, then let out a soft sigh.
On the day Noah announced the existence of Edolas, Carla's uncontrollable precognition ability activated again. She saw many floating islands collide in the sky, and she and Wendy were on the largest of these sky islands.
Carla's intuition told her that those sky islands belonged to Edolas, which was why she tried to prevent everyone from going.
Just as Carla was about to explain to Wendy, Natsu sniffed, then looked excitedly toward the hall. "Noah! You're finally here! I thought you were gonna be late."
"What? Do I have a habit of being early?" Noah smiled as he walked through the corridor from the hall to the backyard, Erza and Mira walking beside him, one on each side.
Everyone looked at Noah speechlessly. This guy was truly a master of slacking off, arriving just in time and still acting proud...
But everyone's attention was quickly drawn to the outfits of Noah and the two women.
Noah had, for once, dressed formally, wearing a black suit with a long black trench coat over it, shedding some of his youthful casualness and gaining a touch of mature composure.
Mira had a faint, gentle smile on her face. Her pure white strapless dress accentuated her fair, delicate skin, and every gesture exuded a captivating, enchanting charm.
Erza, uncharacteristically, wasn't wearing her armor today. Instead, she had changed into a brightly colored red cocktail dress. Her crimson hair was tied into a high ponytail, with a few strands falling across her forehead, making her look capable and striking.
Everyone could understand Noah dressing formally to go home, but why were Mira and Erza also dressed so formally?
Especially Erza—with her Requip magic, she could change clothes anytime, anywhere, so there was no need for her to be dressed so formally from the start, unless it was for an important occasion.
Speaking of which, when did the three of them get so close...?
Everyone exchanged glances, quickly reaching a consensus. They all looked at the trio with playful expressions and, in unison, let out a drawn-out, teasing sound:
"Oh ~ ~ my ~ ~ they're ~ ~ together ~"
"You... be quiet." Erza, as always, tried to suppress the teasing, but the blush rising on her cheeks made her unable to sound firm, even softening her voice slightly.
"Oh, you're blushing, Erza." Noah grinned, wrapping an arm around the girl's waist. Erza was too cute when she was shy—it made him want to tease her.
Mira tugged on Noah's ear. "Already getting ahead of yourself? Being so disrespectful to Erza in public—be careful she doesn't get her revenge later."
Noah obediently released his hand and let out two awkward laughs. "How could that be? You're here, Mira. Erza wouldn't actually get mad..."
"Get mad? Let's see you fly first." Erza calmed down, seizing the opportunity to twist Noah's waist hard, making him grimace in pain.
The trio's intimate actions earned a long "Eww~" from the crowd. This display of affection was no different from directly shoving it in everyone's faces.
They weren't even trying to hide it anymore.
But Noah managing to win over both Erza and Mira was truly a legendary achievement. However, since both women had strong personalities, there would definitely be good drama to watch in the future...
Everyone suddenly felt a little excited for Noah's future days.
In the crowd, Makarov, who had been resting with his eyes closed, cleared his throat to make his presence known. After confirming that all members registered to go to the parallel world were present, he looked at Noah.
Noah, understanding immediately, nodded slightly and stepped out of the crowd.
"Everyone get ready. I'm about to activate it."
After saying that, Noah, without wasting any time, quickly drew an extremely complex Magic Circle on the ground.
During this time, Noah and Mystogan had further improved the Anima, so it no longer required a large Magic Circle to activate and consumed less Magic Power.
However, the improved Magic Circle became even more complex—even a small error would render the entire effort futile.
But for Noah, this was no big deal.
In the blink of an eye, the dizzyingly complex Magic Circle was complete, making everyone marvel. They hadn't expected Noah to have this skill.
Seeing that everyone was ready, Noah clapped his hands onto the Magic Circle. "Everyone, buckle up and hold on tight—I'm starting now!"
Magic Power was injected, and the Magic Circle erupted with a towering vortex of magical energy. The Super Dimensional Magic, Anima, activated, and a powerful suction immediately drew Natsu, who was standing closest, into it.
Immediately after, everyone present, including Noah, was pulled into the sky by the magical vortex, disappearing together as the light curtain dissipated.
After the Anima's spectacle concluded, a fragmented spatial distortion appeared in the sky.
A door-like magic appeared in mid-air, and a golden-haired mage peered out halfway, observing the lingering magical traces of the Anima.
"It's a spatial magic capable of transferring massive amounts of Magic Power. How rare. It could be useful against 'him'..."
"It seems to be related to the guild below. I wonder if I can exchange my magic research for their spatial transfer magic."
The golden-haired mage lightly swiped with a silver-white key in her hand, closing the door. As she slowly descended, she clearly saw the emblem on the flag flying from the building below, and her expression showed some surprise.
"It's the guild of the old man who took in Natsu back then."
"Speaking of which, it's been six years since I last saw Natsu. That kid must have caused a lot of trouble over the years. I wonder if the scarf I knitted for him still fits..."
The appearance of the golden-haired mage naturally attracted the attention of those left behind to guard the guild.
A sapling on the ground grew wildly, suddenly shooting up from the earth to become a large tree at least four stories high. The elderly Warrod, who had stayed behind, stepped steadily out from the fourth-floor balcony of the guild, walking on the sturdy branches.
"Which distinguished mage has come to visit? We at Fairy Tail always welcome friends."
The golden-haired mage landed on a treetop, looking at the old tree-man. "Excuse me, my name is Anna, and I mean no harm. I only wanted to ask about that spatial magic just now..."