Chapter 89: Ciel Illusian and Ciel Nightwalker (4)
"Waaah!"
"Eek!"
"Hiiik!"
High above Edolas floated the island in the sky — the kingdom of the Exceeds, Extalia.
Happy and Charle were on the run, fleeing through their birthplace for the first time in their lives.
They had just learned the horrifying truth: the Exceeds, their own kind, were manipulating human lives at will — and worse, that Happy and Charle had been sent to Earthland for the sole purpose of eradicating the Dragon Slayers.
Six years ago, under Queen Shagotte's decree for human management, a hundred Exceeds were dispatched to Earthland.
Each was sealed in an egg and programmed with "information" that, upon hatching, they were to find and eliminate the Dragon Slayers.
But when the humans of Edolas created Anima, everything changed.
Instead of killing them, that very phenomenon began converting Dragon Slayer magic into a permanent source of energy.
Hearing Nichiya and Nadi's explanation, Charle refused to accept it.
Everything she had done to protect Wendy — all of it — had been preordained by someone else's plan.
She had unknowingly driven her own friends toward death.
The realization filled her with fury and despair.
Even Happy, who had no memory of the mission, rejected it outright, and together they fled.
Branded as fallen angels, the two were now fugitives, hunted by the soldiers of Extalia.
"Stop right there, stop right there—maaan~!!"
"Over there! Let's hide!"
They dove into a wagon full of hay, escaping Nichiya's pursuit, but the runaway cart carried them all the way to the edge of the floating island.
The cart broke apart, sending them tumbling into a pile of dirt.
Bruised and filthy, they stood back up, refusing to give in.
Then, ahead of them, they saw another floating island drifting opposite them.
"Happy, look!"
"A magic crystal—it's floating!"
"It's way bigger than the one in the capital…"
"Fairy Tail! That's where it was all along!"
Only then did they realize where they were — one of the countless floating islands suspended in the sky.
When Happy looked down, the royal capital of Edolas appeared far below them, no larger than an anthill.
"This… we're in the air!?"
"The capital's all the way down there…"
"How are we supposed to get back?"
"We can't even use our wings right now…"
If they could summon their wings, they could have descended in an instant.
But in a world where magic was sealed, escaping the floating island was impossible.
Just then, a voice called out behind them.
"What are you two doing in my field?"
"Oh no!"
Behind them stood an older blue cat with a thick beard, brandishing a pickaxe angrily.
"Ahh~… so you're the so-called 'fallen angels' the soldiers have been searching for."
"…"
"Get out! Out, I said!"
"Hiiiiiik!"
"Out of my field right now!"
"S–Sorry! We didn't mean to!"
"I said out!"
"O–Okay! We'll leave right away!"
"And then, come to my house!"
"Eh?"
"…"
Startled by his sudden shift in tone, Happy and Charle glanced at each other — but when they heard the distant voices of pursuing soldiers, they followed his instruction and hid inside the small wooden house where he lived.
….
"Oh my, oh my, you two were in real danger out there."
Inside the middle-aged cat's home, Happy and Charle were treated kindly.
They were given food, a warm bath, and even fresh clothes.
Sitting in a chair, munching on the snacks offered by the older couple, Happy spoke up.
"Thank you, mister, ma'am… For hiding us, and for all this food and clothing."
The cat's wife smiled warmly.
"My husband never agreed with the kingdom's ways. We were cast out long ago, and we've lived out here ever since."
"Kaah! Enough useless chatter!"
"Yes, yes…"
"I see… so that's why…"
Listening to the older cat couple's story, Happy somehow found himself opening up about his own.
As they exchanged stories, the gruff, loud husband and the gentle, soft-spoken wife didn't seem so bad anymore.
After a while, when their talk had settled and the two young Exceeds were resting on the wooden floor, the lady approached them.
"Your names are Happy and Charle, right? Such lovely names."
"Miss…"
"…"
"You were born in Earthland, weren't you? Then who gave you your names?"
"Natsu… my friend."
"Me too… my friend."
At her question, both cats immediately thought of their friends, who were still imprisoned in the royal capital.
"Our friends are being held in the capital. We have to go save them."
"Saving humans, huh?"
"In Extalia, even thinking like that would be considered wrong…"
Charle muttered weakly, her voice filled with doubt as she wrestled with her own identity.
Had her thoughts and emotions truly been her own?
Or had everything she'd ever felt been manipulated from the start?
Even now, were her words born of her will—or someone else's?
The question gnawed at her heart.
Seeing Charle's despair, Happy finally snapped.
"Those words are yours, Charle! Those feelings are yours too! The will to save everyone—that's ours!"
"…Male cat…"
Happy refused to accept that they were being controlled.
The feelings he had—the wish to stay by Natsu's side, to protect his friends—could never be fake.
The memories in his mind weren't fabricated.
Everything was real, born from his own choices, his own heart.
And that conviction was what he wanted Charle to understand.
The old cat's wife smiled gently, adding her own words.
"You're both confused right now, but it'll be alright. You've got a fine knight by your side, after all."
"Wh-what?!"
"…"
"You'll find your heart soon enough. No—actually, you already have it. You just need to realize it. Believe in that feeling—the one that comes from truly loving someone."
At her words, Happy felt all his doubts vanish like mist.
He was an Exceed—but also himself.
His feelings for Wendy, his memories with Natsu—none of it was forced or false.
They were his truth.
The result of his own choices, his own will.
Charle gave a small, amused smile and looked at the lady.
"You're… a strange one, aren't you?"
"Am I?"
"Most Exceeds think they're some kind of 'angels,' looking down on humans like they're inferior creatures."
"Once… I was the same."
Her expression softened into a sad smile.
"But after the queen took my child from me, I changed. That so-called 'Dragon Slayer Extermination Project'—they collected a hundred eggs… our children."
The old cat sat down, gazing at Happy and Charle with quiet, aching eyes.
"In the end… my child, whom I never even got to see, was sent away to Earthland like that."
"The moment we opposed that plan, we were cast out of the kingdom," the old cat's wife said softly.
"After that… we realized we weren't gods or angels at all—just parents. And once we understood that, it stopped mattering whether someone was human or Exceed. My husband might sound rough, but he feels the same way."
"Kaah~~! I told you, stop spouting nonsense!"
The old tom, who must've overheard them, stomped in angrily.
"How long are you two planning to freeload here?!"
"Dear…"
"Why the long faces?! You should be grateful just to be alive! Kaah! Don't act spoiled!"
"Hiiiiiik!"
"Out, out with you!"
"Dear… you don't have to be so sudden—"
He barked and grumbled, waving his paws as he scolded them.
But to Happy, those words struck a spark.
"No… the old man's right. We need to go—our friends are waiting to be saved."
"If you keep trembling in fear, you'll never get anything done! Do today's youngsters not even know that much?!"
His rough shouting oddly filled them with courage.
Happy's heart ignited with determination as he stepped outside.
They had no time left to waste—they had to move now, to save everyone.
"Thank you, mister! Thank you, ma'am!"
"Kaah! Don't ever come back!"
"Be careful out there," the wife said gently.
As soon as they left the house, Happy raced toward the edge of the floating island, Charle running beside him.
"Charle! Do you get what the old man meant now?"
"Yeah… I think I do."
"When we first got to Edolas, I was terrified—I thought I'd collapse from fear."
"Me too…"
"But now it's different! We have to move forward! We have to fly!"
At the very edge of the floating island, the two Exceeds leapt into the open sky—and at that moment, they understood.
They were Exceed.
The only race in this world born with magic inside their bodies.
The reason they couldn't use it before was because their hearts had been clouded with fear and doubt.
When their hearts shone clearly, their wings would carry them forward.
As they soared upward, radiant white wings spread wide across their backs—the same wings they'd once used in Earthland.
"Heh~!"
"…Hmph."
The two cats exchanged a brief smile midair before looking ahead, determination burning in their eyes.
"Let's go! We have to save everyone!"
"Aye!!"
Watching the two Exceeds fly off toward the royal capital, the middle-aged couple stood outside their cottage, gazing after them as if sending them off with their blessings.
"Kaah! Look at 'em go! Perfectly fine on their own!"
"They remind me so much of you, dear."
"Don't talk nonsense! I wasn't like that—I recognized them at a glance!"
"…Do you think that girl might be his girlfriend?"
"Kaah! The boy barely has fur on his head and he's already bringing home a girl?!"
"He's grown into such a kind child… one who knows how to care for his friends."
"Kaah~~! You—my little…!"
The elderly couple laughed and cried all at once as they watched their child soar away.
Tears welled up as pride mixed with the ache of letting go.
Before their eyes, the child they had lost so long ago had miraculously returned—but they couldn't bring themselves to say the words "We're your parents."
Instead, they swallowed their tears and silently sent him off.
....
Edolas – Royal Capital Square
The plaza was tense. Soldiers ringed the massive lacrima crystal at its center, standing guard with weapons drawn.
"Hey, you! Don't come any closer!"
"…"
A man in a tattered black cloak ignored the warning and walked straight toward the lacrima.
"Another step and we'll—what the—?! Gyaaah!!"
"E-enemy attack!!"
Before the soldier could finish shouting, the cloaked man sent him flying with a single barehanded strike.
The guards immediately surrounded him, weapons raised.
"D-don't move!"
"State your name, intruder!"
"Heh… my name, you ask?"
『Uwaaaaaaaahhh!!!』
With a sharp, almost deranged laugh, the man tore off his cloak.
Long black hair spilled out. Metal piercings gleamed on his brow and nose.
His crimson eyes were sharp as blades.
Black feathered ornaments hung from his shoulders.
Gajeel — the Iron Dragon — had arrived.
In a single motion, he slammed the soldiers aside, their weapons clattering uselessly to the stone.
"I am the Iron Dragon, Gajeel! Kihihih!!"
The plaza fell into chaos—soldiers groaning on the ground, civilians fleeing with screams of terror.
Gajeel covered his body in gleaming iron scales and clenched his fist.
Then he slammed it into the massive crystal.
"Iron Dragon's Hard Fist!"
"The—The lacrima! It's breaking apart!"
"Everyone, fall back!"
The crystal shattered with a thunderous crash, fragments scattering across the plaza like shards of light.
The terrified soldiers fled toward the castle as the enormous lacrima began to glow—its fractured core reshaping, forming the outline of human figures.
"Heh… just like Mystogan said."
As the light swelled, three silhouettes emerged from within—returning to flesh and blood.
Gajeel grinned as he watched them take form.
"Wha—what's going on here?"
"And where the heck are we?"
"This is strange… I was just talking to Erza, heading out of the guild, and then suddenly—?"
Erza, Gray, and Mirajane stood in confusion, glancing around the plaza, trying to make sense of it all.
Gajeel slammed his iron staff against the ground, smirking impatiently.
"Kihih! If you're awake, start figuring out the situation already!"
"Gajeel?"
"What the—? We were just in the guild! Where the hell are we now?"
"This place… they called it 'Edolas,' I think," Gajeel replied, scratching the back of his head. "Mystogan said it's some kinda parallel—uh, something. Anyway, it's a world different from ours."
"A parallel world?" Gray frowned. "Then why are we here?"
Unlike Gray and Mirajane, who were still reeling, Erza managed to stay calm and turned toward Gajeel.
"Gajeel, explain. What's going on?"
Gajeel looked a bit uncertain. "Well… I'll try. Mystogan tried explaining it to me, but all that dimensional talk was a headache, so I'll just tell you what I remember."
He pulled out a small glass vial filled with orange capsules and handed it to them.
"Anyway—yeah, it's a parallel world. The magic here's all dried up, so they dragged Magnolia into Edolas and turned all the Fairy Tail wizards into lacrima crystals. That's the gist of it."
"They turned people… into lacrima?!"
"That's insane! Is something like that even possible?!"
"Don't ask me!" Gajeel barked. "I just did what Mystogan told me to do! He said if we take these pills, we can use magic here. Go on—take one each."
The three of them took the vials and swallowed the capsules.
A bitter, metallic taste filled their mouths, making them grimace.
As they were still reacting to the aftertaste, Gajeel's tone grew urgent.
"More importantly—we need all the help we can get right now! That 'Salamander' kid and the little one, Wendy, they're locked up in the royal castle!"
"Natsu and Wendy?!"
"And there's something even worse," Gajeel continued. "If we don't hurry, Ciel might die."
"What do you mean by that…?"
At those words, Mirajane's pupils dilated in shock.
In an instant, her body flared with power, demonic aura rising like a storm as her voice trembled with rage.
"What. Do. You. Mean."
Startled by the sudden burst of killing intent, Gajeel clicked his tongue and backed off slightly.
"I—I don't know the details! Mystogan just said if Ciel stays in this world, he could die! He told me to help as fast as possible, that's all I know!"
"Ciel…!"
"H-hey, Mira!"
"Gray, we're going!"
"R-right!"
With a surge of energy, Mirajane's body transformed—Satan Soul bursting forth in a blaze of dark wings and markings—as she launched herself toward the castle.
Erza, Gray, and Gajeel dashed after her. But as they neared the square, Gajeel suddenly stopped, planting his feet between the others and a wave of soldiers rushing in.
"Gajeel!"
"I'll hold these bastards off! You go help that demon woman!"
"Understood. We'll leave this to you."
"Heh! You can count on me!"
Erza gave him a quick nod before sprinting off toward the castle with Gray.
Gajeel turned, grinning savagely, and cracked his knuckles as the kingdom's troops surrounded him.
The Iron Dragon took a deep breath, the ground beneath him cracking from the pressure of his magic.
"Alright then, let's play."
And with that, the sound of clashing steel and roaring magic filled the square once more.
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