Looking at the empty second floor, Roland remained seated, having no intention of going to the appointment.
If he were free, he wouldn't mind wasting a few minutes to teach Laxus a good lesson on the Master's behalf.
Too bad, he had more important things to do this afternoon.
"Mirajane, are you done arranging things?"
Shaking his head with some regret, Roland turned to look at Mirajane and asked.
"Yes, I'm all set on my end, but—" Mirajane's tone shifted, and she reminded him with a smile, "Aren't you going to tell Levy?"
"No need. I believe little Levy will understand me," Roland said nonchalantly, then stood up and walked out of the guild.
Understand? Understand his attempt to be a player?
Watching his departing figure, Mirajane sighed with a helpless expression.
Suddenly, she didn't know how she was going to face Levy.
She was first, after all...
"Well then, Master, I'll be leaving the guild in your hands for the next three days!"
Pushing aside the slight guilt in her heart, Mirajane also waved to the Master and quickly followed after Roland.
————
The back hills of Magnolia.
Dense, tall forests stood, and a clear, cool stream gurgled by. From time to time, fish could be seen leaping out of the water, splashing droplets that glittered like diamonds.
Mirajane, dressed in a pure black dress, stood in the center of a flat, open area. Across from her, Roland was squatting by the water's edge, admiring the scenery.
"I'm ready!"
Taking a deep breath, Mirajane said with a serious expression.
"Alright, then I'm making my move."
Tossing the grilled fish in his hand into the now-boiling stream, Roland slowly stood up, his left hand resting on the tachi slung at his waist.
He chose not to use his sun magic. Although it was the afternoon—a time when the power in his body gradually weakened—even in its weakened state, it wasn't something the current Mirajane could handle.
If he accidentally burned her, Roland wouldn't know what to do.
"Transformation: The Fire Dragon in Natsu's Heart!"
With a soft cry, a large cloud of smoke instantly spread out. A huge, fiery red figure loomed within the mist, giving off a strange sense of pressure.
"This is my most powerful transformation magic at the moment!"
As the smoke cleared, Roland fell silent as he looked at the so-called fire dragon form.
Red scales, a chubby body like a lizard, and even a conspicuous lock of white vertical bangs on its head—aside from the red scales, what part of it looked like a fire dragon?!
Forcibly suppressing the urge to retort, Roland held it in for a long time before giving his opinion.
"...Cute."
"That's what Natsu said back then, too."
The chubby lizard with sky-blue eyes squinted happily, its snake-like tongue flicking out.
"..."
Wordlessly, Roland drew his long sword. Pitch-black magic power surged from his hand, spreading like veins from the hilt to the tip of the blade.
Knight of Owner—an ability he obtained from defeating Erza.
Its core ability was to turn any weapon he touched into a Noble Phantasm, even a tree branch. A true weapon master in every sense.
The swordsmanship in his memory was already second nature to him. With a raise of his hand, he instinctively took a forward-thrusting stance.
Boom—
The dirt under his feet flew as a cold, crescent-moon-like slash of the blade suddenly cut through the air. While Mirajane was still dazed, the blade had already landed on the chubby body.
"Eh?"
With a 'pop', the giant, cute lizard turned into a cloud of smoke. The silver-haired girl, back in her original form, knelt on the ground, subconsciously letting out a sound of confusion.
"Be a little more serious, Mirajane."
Pulling Mirajane up from the ground, Roland patted the dust off her back and said helplessly.
"But that was my strongest magic... Also, could you please not pat there?"
"Ahem—sorry, I couldn't help it..."
After that playful exchange ended, Roland stopped holding back and began to get serious.
He had to get Mirajane back to her original state today.
The result—
"Wait, my clothes!"
"The strap is broken too... Please, stop for a moment!"
"..."
Half an hour passed. Mirajane clutched her chest, tears welling in the corners of her eyes as she looked at Roland pitifully.
Her delicate, fair face was covered in dust, and her pure black dress was slashed with numerous cuts, revealing her jade-like skin.
She looked incredibly alluring.
"I really, really can't use Take Over magic!"
"Looks like we'll have to try another way..."
He had originally thought that after resolving her mental block, Mirajane would be able to quickly recover from her psychological trauma. Now it seemed he had been too optimistic.
As the sun gradually set in the west, Roland could clearly feel his own strength weakening, and a few beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.
"Mirajane," he called out softly.
Mirajane looked up, but before she could respond, she heard Roland continue:
"You should know that in the world of Edolas, the status of 'Fairy Tail' is the complete opposite. It's basically equivalent to a wanted dark guild."
"Even the Guild Master, Makarov, died while being pursued by the empire."
"In a sense, if we continue to let Lisanna stay in that world, the possibility of an accident is very high."
"The Master's counterpart... is dead?"
Mirajane's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Yes, to cover the retreat of the guild members." Roland took a deep breath and continued, "In short—to bring Lisanna out of that world, we must use your power."
"But why... isn't your power..."
Mirajane looked at him, puzzled, her fingers clutching the tattered hem of her black dress.
"My magic is called 'Sun'. As the name implies, I only have sufficient power when the sun is out. As the sun sets..."
Roland placed his hands on her shoulders, slowly leaning closer to her ear, and said softly, "Mirajane, if you don't want anything to happen to Lisanna—"
"I don't!"
Feeling the warm breath by her ear, Mirajane's body trembled slightly as she replied in an unnatural tone.
"Do you know Erza?"
"Erza..."
"Yes. The Erza in the parallel world is a Fairy Hunter. Guild Master Makarov died at her hands."
Roland looked at her dazed eyes and said in a light tone.
"Just think, your sister Lisanna dying a desperate death at Erza's hands—"
"!!"
Before Roland could finish, a torrent of magic power instantly erupted from her, blasting him into the air.
"Mission complete..."
Watching the demon-like figure in the center of the clearing, a slight smile lifted the corners of Roland's mouth as he flew through the air.
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