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Natsu was having a good time beating people up, but without Enchantment magic, his punches and kicks were nothing more than a tickle to Gildarts' terrifyingly strong physique.
Seeing that Natsu was almost done, Gildarts, disregarding the dust covering his clothes, stood up and approached him with a fawning smile, saying, "Natsu, I heard you and Lucy mention Cana earlier, she..."
"That's right! It's your daughter!"
Natsu put his hands on his hips and then told Gildarts everything he had seen and heard in Edolas recently.
It's both a parallel world and an alternate version of their own.
There was also a guild newcomer named Noah who performed a life-saving act in that world, single-handedly reuniting the scattered floating islands and reviving the depleted magic power.
The sheer volume of information nearly overwhelmed Gildarts, who doesn't like to think things through, but he still managed to grasp one crucial piece of information for him.
In the other world, Gildarts is just an ordinary person who lives happily with his gentle and virtuous wife Cornelia and his well-behaved and lovely daughter Cana.
A life completely different from mage Gildarts.
Gildarts fell silent, recalling the only marriage he had ever had.
Although the marriage was short-lived, it was beautiful enough that Gildarts never reciprocated the affections of other women after the divorce, and his heart belonged only to his ex-wife Cornelia.
Gildarts never expected that Cornelia would have his child after the divorce, and even less did he expect that Cana, who had brown hair like Cornelia, was his daughter.
Gildarts finally understood why Cana always looked at him expectantly when she was a child. It wasn't the adoration of a "little fan," but a child's hope that her father would recognize her.
I just didn't realize it...
Gildarts slumped to the ground, feeling a pang of sadness at the thought of Cana losing her mother as a child and her father, whom she had worked so hard to meet, not knowing that she was his daughter.
"As a father, I can't even recognize my own child. I'm such a failure."
Seeing Gildarts' remorseful expression, Lucy sighed silently.
Actually, this matter couldn't be entirely blamed on Gildarts.
After all, not everyone can encounter such a low-probability event as getting it right on the first try.
Given Cornelia's early death, if it weren't for the memories of Gildarts she left in her diary, Cana probably wouldn't even know who her father is.
Moreover, Cana's journey to reunite with her family has been quite bumpy. Every time she tries to tell Gildarts who she is, she's interrupted by other people or things.
As she grew older, she worried that she was too weak to be Gildarts' child, so she buried her longing for her father deep in her heart. This led her to drown her sorrows in alcohol, turning her into a little drunkard whose drinking capacity is now comparable to Gildarts'.
When it comes to drinking together, this father and daughter are quite alike.
"Um... Gildarts, what's your next step?"
Lucy asked hesitantly. She had heard Mira say that Gildarts was carrying out a Hundred Year Quest, a commission that had remained unfinished for over a hundred years.
Unlike Lucy, Natsu didn't overthink things and casually took over the conversation. "Is there even a question? Gildarts is definitely going back to reunite with Cana. As for the Hundred Year Quest... you can leave it to me and Lucy."
"With our team on board, we're sure to complete the mission, making Fairy Tail bigger and stronger, and achieving even greater glory!"
"Aye! Natsu is right~"
The sudden onslaught of Natsu and Happy's back-and-forth banter left Lucy feeling utterly exhausted, especially considering how easily Brandish and Dimaria had previously manipulated the three of them.
Who exactly gave Natsu the confidence that he could handle the Hundred Year Quest?
Are you Happy?
Hearing Natsu's bold statement, Gildarts finally emerged from his self-blame, saying, "Natsu is right. I just want to get back to the guild and see Cana as soon as possible."
"Huh? Is your mission okay? That's a quest that lasts for a hundred years..."
Seeing Lucy's puzzled expression, Gildarts said matter-of-factly, "Don't worry about the commission. There's no time limit for this task, otherwise why would I have been wandering around Ishgar for so long?"
He said he went shopping, right?!
Lucy was already puzzled as to why Gildarts would appear alone at the hidden landing point of the Alvarez Empire; it turns out he had been wandering around all along...
How much free time does he actually have? Is he really carrying out his mission properly?
Lucy originally respected this man who had the title of "the strongest in Fairy Tail," but every time Gildarts spoke, his position in Lucy's heart would drop.
Gildarts was unaware that in Lucy's mind, he had already fallen to the point of sitting at the same table as Natsu.
However, Natsu's growth was also greatly influenced by Gildarts.
After Natsu's meddling, the atmosphere improved considerably. Gildarts got up and looked at the warship on the shore; he had something to take care of before returning to the guild.
When Dimaria saw the drunkard looking over, she felt a little scared. If he were to attack her and Brandish, they would have nowhere to escape from the unreasonable Crush on the high seas.
"You two young ladies are incredibly strong."
"Can you tell me the purpose of the Alvarez Empire sending you to Ishgar? Otherwise, don't blame me for bullying the weak."
Faced with Gildarts' forceful questioning, just as Dimaria was wondering how to get through it, Brandish's indifferent voice rang out.
"Our operation this time was not ordered by the Empire."
"I wanted to go back to my mother's hometown to visit, and Dimaria came along because she was worried about me."
Brandish wasn't lying; she genuinely thought and acted that way after capturing Lucy. Judging from Lucy's behavior on Caracole Island, it's easy to see that Lucy came specifically to find her.
Brandish's only connection to "Heartfilia" is her mother, who died many years ago. Brandish already felt that her mother's death was suspicious, so she naturally wanted to hear the truth from Lucy.
If Dimaria hadn't been there, and if they hadn't done something to make it look like they were on a mission, Brandish wouldn't have captured Lucy.
Gildarts did not question Brandish's statement. "Going back to your hometown is fine, we can give you a ride if we're on the way, but the soldiers who are with you are not allowed."
"Keeping an eye on me on the way?" Brandish nodded knowingly. "I can handle it all by myself. I'll get them out of Ishgar."
When Dimaria saw Brandish leaving alone, she panicked. As someone who was attracted to women, how could she possibly watch Brandish "walk into the lion's den"?
Dimaria then expressed her desire to be with Brandish.
Gildarts did not object; with him watching over things, even one more person wouldn't cause any trouble.
"Let's not delay, let's set off."