Mirajane crouched down, her fingers using Take Over to sprout claws, and lightly hooked them.
Lucy's limbs were numb from being tied up. As the rope loosened, she collapsed onto the ground like a pile of soft mud, panting heavily.
Lucy rubbed her reddened wrists and stretched her stiff joints.
"Th-thank you, Mira."
Riyao, meanwhile, walked to the card table, bent down to pick up a card, and held it up to his eyes for a closer look.
Trapped inside the card was a middle-aged man wearing a floral shirt, still clutching a handful of chips. He looked quite awkward and uncomfortable being stared at by Riyao.
The man shrank back inside the card, his face flushing slightly.
"Hey there, young man, could you please stop staring so intently?"
(´つヮ⊂︎)
Riyao examined it back and forth with a smile, pinching the edges of the card to feel the residual magic fluctuations, and then nodded.
"I was just trying to see how to release you guys. It looks like you'll be automatically released once the magic wears off, so don't worry too much."
He laid all the cards flat on the ground, spacing them out evenly so they wouldn't end up on top of each other when they came out—that wouldn't be a very pretty sight.
Then he found a staff member and explained the situation.
"Come help out. Keep an eye on these cards and wait for the people inside to come out on their own. Don't let them wander off."
The staff member walked over tremblingly, swallowed hard as he looked at the cards covering the floor, and nodded.
Lucy climbed up from the ground, ignoring the pain in her wrists, feeling extremely anxious.
"I heard them say Erza was taken away, and Natsu and Gray are in danger too! Riyao, go check on them quickly!"
Riyao and Mirajane exchanged a look and walked quickly toward the ruins of the bar.
The bar had been blown beyond recognition, with wood fragments and glass shards scattered everywhere, and the residual ripples of magic still lingering in the air.
In the middle of the ruins, Gray lay there with his eyes rolled back, his expression frozen and motionless.
Riyao looked down, then raised his foot and gave him a kick.
Bang!
Gray's body shattered directly into several pieces, ice flying everywhere and scattering across the floor, the shards sparkling under the lights.
Lucy screamed in terror, her voice loud enough to be heard throughout the entire Casino.
"Riyao! What are you doing?! Gray is shattered!"
Σ(っ °Д °;)っ
She rushed over frantically, trying to piece the shattered ice back together. She picked up one shard and pressed it against another, but they wouldn't stick; the more she tried, the more they crumbled.
Riyao spoke up leisurely from the side, waving his hand.
"That was just an ice sculpture of Gray."
Lucy's movements froze. She looked down at the ice in her hands, then at Riyao's nonchalant expression, her mouth hanging open, unsure of what to say.
Just then, a stream of water surged from the side. Water droplets gathered in the air, swirling and condensing until they formed the silhouette of a person.
As the mist cleared, Gray's figure appeared before everyone, completely unharmed, though he was a bit damp.
Seeing Gray emerge from the water, Lucy jumped back in fright and ducked behind Mirajane, only her eyes and the top of her head peeking out.
Juvia stood nearby, her hands clasped to her chest, her tone as gentle as if she were describing the happiest thing in the world.
"Gray-sama was safe and sound inside Juvia's body."
Riyao rubbed his chin and spoke up abruptly.
"So, does that mean Gray is basically Juvia's child now?"
The whole place went silent for half a second.
Juvia's face instantly turned beet red, and steam began to billow from her head like a boiling kettle. She made a "wuuuu" sound and covered her face with her hands, but she couldn't hide the smile peeking through her fingers.
She muttered under her breath, her voice getting quieter and quieter, even as the steam from her face grew thicker.
"Ch-child... Gray-sama's child..."
⁄(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)⁄
Mirajane reached out and poked Riyao's forehead with a hint of reproach.
"Watch your mouth."
Gray stood there, soaking wet, his mouth twitching several times. His fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly.
He really wanted to beat Riyao up—he really did—but he couldn't win, and Mirajane was watching.
He took a deep breath. While taking off his soaked shirt, he said in a low voice, "Everything went black for a moment. I made an Ice Substitute to see what was going on, but as soon as it was ready, Juvia swallowed me."
Lucy poked her head out from behind Mirajane and asked weakly, "Swallowed you?"
Juvia's steam rose even more intensely.
Riyao was munching on melon seeds nearby with the expression of someone watching a good show, only toning it down after Mirajane glared at him again.
Just then, Natsu also woke up.
He sat up abruptly, his mouth opening and closing a few times as if he were testing something, and then he let out a roar.
"What kind of decent person shoots someone in the mouth?!"
Lucy rolled her eyes and retorted, "What kind of decent person stays alive after being shot in the mouth?"
-_-||
Riyao cast a Healing Magic, wrapping Natsu's head in a green light. The injury receded at a visible rate.
"I almost didn't make it in time. Any later and the wound in Natsu's mouth would have healed on its own. I also checked to see if you had any mouth ulcers while I was at it."
Lucy was momentarily at a loss for words.
So you're saying Natsu would have been fine on his own, and your Healing Magic was just there for show?
Natsu rubbed his forehead, feeling much better. He stood up suddenly, his face full of rage, his fists cracking as he clenched them.
"Damned bastards! I'm going to catch you and give you a good thrashing!"
He charged out like an enraged bull, his heavy footsteps making the corridor floor vibrate.
Lucy shouted from behind, "We don't even know where they are!"
Mirajane smiled slightly, her hands folded in front of her, looking completely confident.
"Natsu has a very keen nose. Whenever I lose something, I just ask Natsu to help me find it, and he's never failed to find anything."
（＾ワ＾）
Lucy felt like her capacity for retorts was about to overflow tonight, her lips twitching as she spoke.
"Mira, you're basically using Natsu like a dog."
Mirajane tilted her head, looking innocent.
"Isn't he very useful?"
Lucy was speechless.
Natsu rushed all the way to the seaside, the sea breeze making his clothes flutter loudly.
He stood on the beach, cupping his hands around his mouth, and shouted out toward the pitch-black ocean.
"Hey! Come back here!"
His voice echoed over the sea, startling a few seagulls, and then everything returned to silence.
The sea did not respond, nor did the enemy; there was only the sound of waves lapping against the shore.
The others ran out behind him, and seeing Natsu shouting at the sea, they all covered their faces in unison.
Lucy sighed weakly, "This idiot."
Gray crossed his arms and turned his head away, pretending he didn't know Natsu.
Riyao munched on melon seeds and nodded, "Yeah, he really is an idiot."
Mirajane suppressed a laugh and patted Natsu on the shoulder.
Natsu turned to look at Mirajane, then back at the pitch-black sea, and scratched his head.