This inability to receive a response from the "water element" was simply unimaginable to her—after all, she was someone who could influence the weather with her emotions!
"Has even our magic been swapped?!" Juvia (Cana) was utterly shocked.
She looked at her own body beside her, finding it hard to believe.
How could this have happened?
"Splash!"
"Natsu" was instantly engulfed by a sudden surge of icy, bone-chilling water.
His flames extinguished with a sizzle, sending up a cloud of white steam.
He stared blankly at "Mirajane," who had doused him with water.
At this moment, "Mirajane" was clad in a silver-white [Crateris Silver Cloth], with water elements slowly flowing and dissipating around her.
She looked valiant and heroic, but this was clearly not Mirajane's magic.
"No, why can Marco still use his own magic?!" Cana (Juvia) shouted, her face full of disbelief.
Why couldn't she use hers?! Was she doing it wrong?
"I can't use any magic at all..."
Marco (Mirajane) timidly raised her hand, her voice carrying the gentle soft tone unique to Mirajane.
Her face was full of confusion, and Marco's deep eyes now brimmed with helplessness.
She couldn't use her own magic, nor could she use Marco's.
Now, she was left with a body full of magical power but no way to use it.
"Dammit! Natsu, you idiot! What are you doing?!"
The drenched Natsu (Gray) felt a bit more comfortable.
He glared at Gray (Natsu), who was spitting out ice pellets, and felt a surge of anger.
What was this guy doing with his body?! Why was he doing something so stupid?
"Pitter-patter, pitter-patter."
Natsu trembled all over, his mouth wide open as he continued to spit out ice pellets, looking like he had frozen into a complete fool.
"This bastard!"
Gray was so furious he wanted to throw a punch, but in this situation, he couldn't bring himself to do it.
After all, that body was his own! Wouldn't that be like helping Natsu beat himself up?!
"Everyone, quiet! Listen to me!"
Amid the chaos, Marco jumped onto a table and roared, instantly silencing the noisy guild.
Seeing Mirajane's serious expression and fierce demeanor, everyone looked a bit strange.
After all, Mirajane had been gentle for the past two years, only occasionally revealing her original mischievous or feisty side.
Seeing Mirajane like this felt quite unfamiliar to everyone, especially with Marco standing gracefully to the side, looking deeply concerned.
This made the scene even more bizarre!
"Everyone, sit down quietly. Right now, we need to solve the problem, not make a racket. You don't want to stay swapped forever, do you?"
Mirajane (Marco) continued speaking, completely unfazed as he acted naturally.
The top priority was to find a way to fix this, not to fool around.
"Can you break it, Marco?"
Happy (Erza) asked with a serious expression, her cat face somehow managing to convey Erza's signature sternness.
She certainly didn't want to live as a cat forever.
"I'll need to study it." Marco shook his head gravely.
This was precisely why he was anxious.
If it could be resolved immediately, he wouldn't be worried and could even let them continue their mischief a while longer.
This unknown magic was the most dangerous kind.
Hearing Marco's words, everyone's hearts sank.
If even Marco couldn't solve it, they immediately understood the severity of the situation.
Marco could use his own magic, yet even he couldn't resolve this - it must be truly troublesome.
'"That was an ancient Wimperan language magic called 'Exchange'. It swaps people's souls and magic entirely."
Just as the guild atmosphere grew heavy, a familiar voice suddenly rang out - the voice of someone trustworthy.
Old Man Makarov had returned.
''Exchange? Quite succinct indeed.''
Mirajane (Marco) sighed, having already picked up the request form again to seriously attempt deciphering it.
''Master! Do you know how to change us back?!''
Happy (Erza) looked at Old Man Makarov and immediately rushed over excitedly to ask.
Makarov was currently the only person Erza didn't have to crane her neck too much to see clearly, as the old man was only slightly taller than Happy.
''Well... I don't know how.''
However, Makarov's answer disappointed Happy (Erza).
The blue cat's expression turned shocked, as if the world had lost all color, filled with dread for the terrible life to come.
''Hey everyone! I'm back!''
Just as Happy (Erza) looked devastated and heartbroken, a heavenly voice sounded.
The guild door swung open again, morning sunlight outlining a petite figure.
Happy (Erza) sharply lifted her head, a faint spark rekindling in her dim eyes as she looked toward the entrance.
The blue-haired girl who had just entered was none other than Levy, who seemed to be carrying light with her.
''Levy! You're finally back! Quickly, help decipher this ancient text!''
Seeing Levy return, the despairing Erza's eyes lit up again.
She practically flew over, tightly grabbing Levy's skirt with her cat paws, ready to drag Levy away.
Her urgent manner suggested she had grabbed her last lifeline.
''?! Happy? Everyone, what's going on here?''
Levy looked completely bewildered.
She noticed everyone was looking at her as if she were their savior, and moreover, everyone seemed somewhat strange - at least not quite their usual selves.
When dragged to the table near the request board, Levy saw 'Mirajane' holding the request form.
Unlike the usual gentle 'Mirajane', this 'Mirajane' stood tall and straight with sharp, focused eyes, radiating an intangible pressure.
Her unusually serious expression made others afraid to look directly at her.
''Levy, you're back. Perfect timing - let's research this together.''
After seeing her, 'Mirajane' gently set down the request form, speaking with Marco's characteristic calm and steady tone as she invited Levy to join the research.
''Mira, what exactly is going on?''
Still completely confused, Levy quietly asked 'Mirajane'.
"I'm Marco. The situation is a bit complicated—due to the magic on this paper, several of us have swapped bodies."
Marco (in Mirajane's body) sighed and explained the current predicament.
With the real Mirajane watching nearby, Marco moved with excessive caution, feeling as if he couldn't touch anything or move freely, even walking carefully.
'This body swap isn't fun at all.'
'We'd better change back quickly,' Marco grumbled inwardly.
Of course, he wouldn't voluntarily mention his instinctive chest-hugging reaction earlier—he'd pretend it never happened.
"Wh...what?!"
Looking at the "Mirajane" before her, then at the "Marco" beside them, and finally at everyone's varied expressions, Levy was utterly bewildered.
"Time is tight and the task is urgent! No overthinking—let's get to work!"
Marco (in Mirajane's body) reached out and patted Levy's shoulder, snapping the stunned girl back to reality. It was time to focus on the mission!
"We need to find some books in the library. I roughly remember which ones contain relevant ancient scripts—they should help us decipher this!"
After glancing at the request form, Levy immediately switched into work mode.
She put on her "Galeforce Glasses" and prepared to search through books for references.
"Excellent!"
Hearing this, everyone cheered as if the problem were already solved, which suddenly made Levy feel immense pressure—she'd never been the center of such high expectations before.
"Don't worry, I'll work with you." Marco (in Mirajane's body) spoke up to encourage Levy.
He had actually recalled some relevant books himself and had a general direction for solving the problem.
With Levy's assistance, his confidence grew significantly.