Chapter 255: Eighty Draws
"Hmm? This magic seems familiar..."
"Aye."
Natsu Dragneel tilted his head, his onyx eyes narrowing as he watched the young man in the center of the guild hall. Beside him, Happy the Exceed hovered, a paw on his chin in deep contemplation.
Before them, Romeo Conbolt stood with a confident grin. He snapped his fingers, and a burst of vibrant, multi-colored flames erupted from his hand. The fire danced with hues of purple, yellow, and green, radiating a strange, cold heat that felt nostalgic to the Dragon Slayer.
"I've been secretly learning it at Totomaru-sensei's magic class, without my dad knowing," Romeo whispered, glancing over his shoulder to ensure Macao wasn't within earshot.
"That guy... is doing that again!"
Gajeel Redfox, leaning against a pillar nearby with his arms crossed, let out a rough, metallic chuckle. A rare, genuine smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Totomaru... one of the Element 4. He always was a weirdo about his fire."
Although Totomaru had been an enemy during the Phantom Lord war, seven years was a long time. Time had washed away the animosity, leaving only the familiarity of old soldiers who had survived the same era. Totomaru was a skilled flame user, and knowing he was now teaching the next generation brought a strange sense of peace to the Iron Dragon Slayer.
"I miss it so much! I haven't tasted all the colors of that guy's flames yet! I want to go see him with you!"
Natsu shouted excitedly, his fists igniting with his own crimson fire. His stomach growled at the memory of the unique, flavorful magic. "Purple fire tastes like grapes! I gotta have some!"
"Sorry, 'Natsu-niisan' is a forbidden word in front of him," Romeo refused instantly, crossing his arms in an 'X' shape. "He still holds a grudge about you wrecking his spirit furnace."
"How long has it been? He's still so petty! How stingy!" Natsu grumbled, kicking at the floorboards.
"Aye! He's definitely stingy!" Happy agreed, munching on a fish.
While Natsu was lamenting his lost snack, a commotion broke out on the other side of the hall.
"You two got married?!"
Erza Scarlet's voice rang out, filled with genuine shock and delight. She stood before Alzack and Bisca Connell, her brown eyes wide.
The two gunslinger mages stood side-by-side, their hands naturally brushing against each other. They had matured over the seven years; Alzack's hair was longer, framing a face that had lost its boyish softness, and Bisca carried herself with the grace of a mother.
"Yes, six years ago," Bisca said, a soft blush coloring her cheeks. She smiled up at her husband.
"Listen, Erza," Alzack started, scratching the back of his neck nervously. "I was actually the one who... well..."
"I was the one who proposed," Bisca interrupted with a proud grin, poking Alzack in the ribs. "If I had waited for this dummy to ask, we would have been old and gray! Alzack, he... he just kept stuttering!"
"Don't bring that up again..." Alzack groaned, covering his face with his hat to hide his embarrassment.
"Con... congratulations to you two," Erza stammered, her armor clinking as she bowed slightly. A dreamy, faraway look entered her eyes. "Marriage... a husband... waking up to miso soup every morning..."
"Although I'm not very sensible, please take care of me..." Erza muttered to an invisible suitor, her face turning a bright, ripe tomato red.
Elfman Strauss, standing nearby with his arms crossed, looked confused. "What are you talking about, Erza? Who are you talking to?"
"She's probably imagining herself getting married," Mirajane Strauss said with a gentle giggle, walking up beside Ren. She placed a hand on her cheek, her blue eyes sparkling with amusement. "But speaking of marriage..."
Mira secretly glanced at Ren from the corner of her eye. Her gaze lingered on his profile—the sharp jawline, the calm confidence that had only deepened over the years. She was nineteen when they disappeared; now, biologically, she was still nineteen, but her peers were twenty-six.
'I seem to be at an age where I could get married too,' she thought, a sudden heat rising in her chest.
"That's great! Do you have children?" Lisanna asked, her eyes shining. She loved kids.
"We have a daughter named Asuka," Bisca said, pulling out a small lacrima photograph. "She's staying with the girls in the dormitory right now. You have to meet her!"
Just then, the heavy wooden doors of the guild hall creaked open. Sunlight flooded the entrance, silhouetting several figures standing on the threshold.
"Oh oh oh!!"
"With all my love, I congratulate you on your return!"
A flamboyant voice echoed through the hall, followed by a pose that was all too familiar.
"What a boisterous guild! Has it returned to its former state?"
"Rejuvenation? Or perhaps... a resurrection of MEN!"
"For these guys, seven years haven't aged them at all. It's truly PARFUM!"
The figures stepped into the light. It was the Trimens of Blue Pegasus—Hibiki Lates, Eve Tearm, and Ren Akatsuki—led by their ace, Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki. But they weren't alone. Beside them stood a group of mages wearing earth-toned robes and emanating a heavy, solid pressure.
"It's you!!" Gray Fullbuster exclaimed, stepping forward.
"Lamia Scale?!"
The newcomers were indeed Lyon Vastia, Jura Neekis, Sherry Blendy, Yuka Suzuki, and Toby Horhorta. They looked older, more seasoned. Lyon's hair was longer, and Jura... well, Jura looked as immovable as a mountain.
"When searching for Tenrou Island, Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale both helped us," Macao explained, stepping down from the bar. "They never gave up, even when the Council did."
"Then aren't we indebted to these guys!" Natsu grinned.
Lyon Vastia stepped forward, his ice-cold demeanor softening slightly as he looked at his rival, Gray. "No need to fuss over such trifles. Although Blue Pegasus got a head start with their magical bomber, in terms of strength, we are superior."
"Uh... you care about that?" Gray couldn't help but retort, raising an eyebrow. "You haven't changed a bit, Lyon. Still obsessed with rankings."
Their Fairy Tail had never cared about such things. They fought for family, for what was right, and naturally became the strongest Mage Guild in the Ishgar continent as a byproduct.
Sherry Blendy flipped her pink hair, striking a dramatic pose. "Because, in these seven years, our Lamia Scale has climbed to the position of Fiore's NO. 2 guild! What a pity, Miss Lucy. It seems love has favored us!"
"Does that mean Blue Pegasus is number one?" Lucy exclaimed, connecting the dots.
"How is that possible!!" Toby shouted, barking like a dog. "Those pretty boys?!"
"Don't get angry so easily, Toby," Yuka sighed, adjusting his eyebrows. "Number one isn't Blue Pegasus. It's... well, that's a story for another time."
Jura Neekis stepped forward, silencing his guildmates with a gentle raise of his hand. The Wizard Saint's presence was commanding yet humble.
"That's not important right now," Jura said, his deep voice resonating through the hall. "It's good that everyone is safe. That is the greatest blessing."
He walked through the crowd, heading straight for the white-haired young man leaning casually against the bar.
"Your Excellency Ren," Jura said, bowing his head slightly in a sign of deep respect. "It's been a long time."
Jura greeted Ren individually, bypassing even Makarov. After all, when the allied forces fought against the Oración Seis, it was Ren who had turned the tide. It was Ren who had saved them all from the trap of Nirvana. Jura always remembered this kindness and the terrifying strength the young man possessed.
Ren smiled, pushing himself off the bar. "Jura-san. You look well. Though, for me, it's only been about a month."
"Indeed," Jura chuckled. "Time is a mysterious thing. But seeing you unchanged... it gives this old soldier hope."
At this moment, chaos erupted on the other side of the room.
Lyon, having finished his banter with Gray, turned his head and locked eyes with a woman standing near the punch bowl. She had blue hair that flowed like water, and eyes that held the depth of the ocean.
Juvia Lockser.
Thump.
Lyon clutched his chest. "Is this...?"
He flashed in front of Juvia in a blur of speed, dropping to one knee and taking her hand.
"Is this the legendary love at first sight?" Lyon declared, sparkles seemingly appearing around him. "Oh, fair maiden of the water! Your beauty eclipses the moon!"
"Eh? Eh? Eh?" Juvia froze, her face turning pale. She looked frantically at Gray. "G-Gray-sama?!"
"Wow... how direct!" Lucy gasped, covering her mouth.
Gray stared at the scene, a vein popping in his forehead. He had a bad premonition. "Trouble is coming again!! Why does this guy always have to be so weird?!"
"Bwahahaha! That's how it is! I'm Cana's dad!!"
A booming laugh drowned out Lyon's confession. Gildarts Clive, the strongest mage of Fairy Tail, was parading around the hall with his arm wrapped tightly around Cana Alberona's neck. He was introducing her to everyone—Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, even the barrels of booze.
"Look! This is my daughter! Cana! Isn't she cute? She looks just like me, right?"
"Hey! Don't cling to me!" Cana shouted, her face flushed with embarrassment. She tried to pry his arm off, but it was like trying to move a steel beam.
Cana regretted it a little at this moment. She didn't expect this old man to be so clingy. Ever since the truth came out on Tenrou Island, he had been making up for lost time with the subtlety of a landslide.
"Gildarts... you're embarrassing me!"
"Embarrassing? Nonsense! I'm expressing my fatherly love! RIGHT, CANA?!"
The guild was lively, filled with laughter, shouting, and the clinking of glasses. It was a cacophony of joy that washed away the silence of the last seven years.
Ren stood at the edge of the celebration, watching them. He took a sip of his drink, the cool liquid doing little to settle the complex emotions in his chest.
He looked at the guild—at the faces that had aged, and the faces that hadn't—and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Everyone was safe. They were home.
But beneath the relief, a sliver of guilt pricked at his heart.
'Seven years...' Ren thought, watching Romeo laughing with Natsu. 'For me, it was just a flash of light. A nap inside the Fairy Sphere. But for them... for Romeo, for Macao, for Laki... it was seven years of hell. Seven years of waiting, of declining, of being humiliated by guilds like Twilight Ogre.'
During the Tenrou Island incident, he actually had many ways to resolve that crisis.
He could have used the Flying Thunder God Technique to transfer everyone off the island instantly. He had marked almost everyone during the exam.
He could have used the Arrancar's 'Garganta' to tear open the dimensional fabric and lead everyone into the void, hiding them in the space between worlds until Acnologia left.
Ultimately, he did none of that. He chose to confront the Dragon King.
'And I lost,' Ren admitted to himself, his grip on the glass tightening. 'I hit him with everything I had. The Tailed Beast Bomb. The Resurrección. It wasn't enough.'
The final outcome of the battle was his defeat. Mavis had to step in with the Fairy Sphere to save them, sealing them away.
However, despite the defeat, he gained a lot.
Ren's eyes narrowed, a sharp glint appearing in his pupils.
'At least Acnologia... the ultimate BOSS of the Fairy Tail world... he isn't invincible. I saw him bleed. I saw him knocked back.'
In his eyes, the Dragon of the Apocalypse was no longer a god. He was just a powerful monster with a massive health bar.
'As long as I continuously increase my magic power... as long as I unlock more templates... I can defeat him.'
The laughter and joy in the guild lasted for three days and three nights. It was a marathon of celebration that tested even the stamina of S-Class mages.
By the time the party finally wound down, Ren was also somewhat exhausted. Not physically, but socially.
In the evening of the third day, Ren slipped away from the guild hall. He walked through the quiet streets of Magnolia, heading towards the riverbank.
He stopped in front of a small, two-story house. His house.
He unlocked the door and stepped inside. The air was stale, but not musty. He looked around. Seven years had passed, and the house looked a bit old—the paint was peeling slightly, and the wood had weathered—but it was generally very clean.
There was no thick layer of dust on the tables and chairs. The floor was swept.
'Someone has been here,' Ren realized, running a finger along the mantelpiece. It came away clean. 'Someone has been cleaning it. Regularly. For seven years.'
A face popped into his mind. A girl with purple hair and glasses, who had a strange way of speaking but a heart of gold.
'Laki,' Ren guessed, a small smile touching his lips. 'Among the guild members, only Laki would be so meticulous. She probably came by to dust, hoping I'd come back to a clean home.'
He felt a warmth in his chest that had nothing to do with magic. He would have to thank her properly later.
Ren went upstairs to his bedroom, sat on the edge of his bed, and exhaled deeply. He was finally alone.
"System."
A translucent blue panel shimmered into existence before his eyes.
[Host: Ren]
[Age: 19 years old (Biological)]
[Race: Human]
[Magic Power: ★★★★★★★ (7-Star)]
[Magic: Take Over Magic: Anime Soul]
[Character Cards: Ulquiorra Cifer (Gold), Edward Newgate (Gold), Minato Namikaze (Gold), Gojo Satoru (Gold), Ichimaru Gin (Gold), Uchiha Itachi (Gold).]
[Current Number of Draws: 81]
Ren scanned the data. His eyes lingered on the Magic Power stat.
At this time, there were only six Gold Character Cards left in his inventory. He had recycled almost everything else—the blues, the purples, the trash—to feed his growth. Although the number of character cards decreased a bit, it was exchanged for a high seven-star magic power.
'It wasn't a loss at all,' Ren thought.
Seven-star magic power. In this world, that was the threshold for a Ten Wizard Saint. He was now, officially, a powerhouse capable of standing at the apex of Ishgar without even needing to transform.
'But...' Ren frowned. 'It's enough to handle the Grand Magic Games. It's enough to handle Zeref's demons. But it is far from enough to face Black Dragon Acnologia.'
He remembered the pressure of the Dragon King. The way the world seemed to bend around his power.
'Eight stars... or even eight and a half stars. I need at least that much magic power to contend with Acnologia on equal footing. To kill him? I might need Nine.'
He shook his head, clearing the heavy thoughts. He looked at the bottom line of the interface.
[Current Number of Draws: 81]
What Ren was most satisfied with was this number.
81 times!
When he first saw this number upon waking up on Tenrou Island, Ren was very excited. He had never seen so many draws before.
'The System...' Ren thought, gratitude swelling within him. 'It operates independently of the world's time.'
Over the seven years he was frozen in the Fairy Sphere, the System had continued to count the days. It had faithfully rewarded him with one free draw per month.
12 months a year. 7 years. That was 84 draws. Plus the ones he had saved... well, he must have spent a few or the math was slightly off due to the exact date of awakening, but 81 was a massive hoard.
Although the Super Magic Fairy Sphere froze his body and his biological time, it couldn't freeze the System's internal clock.
There was nothing happier than waking up from a nap to find you had become rich.
'Eighty draws,' Ren calculated, tapping his knee. 'That's equivalent to the reward of doing eight S-Class missions. Doing eight S-Class missions isn't physically difficult for me... the real difficulty is finding eight S-Class missions to do.'
S-Class quests were rare. They didn't grow on trees. Getting 80 pulls from quests would have taken him years of traveling and hunting.
Now, he had them all at once.
Ren rubbed his hands together, feeling the familiar itch of the gambler. The thrill of the unknown.
"I wonder how many Gold Cards I can draw this time. It's really exciting."