A Familiar Plot

Magnolia Station was the main railway station in the town of Magnolia.

As a magic-driven commercial city with a long history, Magnolia naturally had an extensive transportation network, with trains connecting it to cities throughout the Kingdom of Fiore.

The destination for Yuri and Erza's mission was a small village called Xiro Village, located in a remote part of the Kingdom of Fiore.

Since it was so far away, the two decided to take a train.

"Where's your sword?" Erza asked in confusion. As usual, she was pulling her cart piled high with luggage, but Yuri hadn't even brought the Red Queen he always carried on his back.

She was always well prepared, as anyone could tell from her cartful of luggage, which drew plenty of stares.

Yuri had long wanted to point this out.

She was a mage with Requip Magic, yet even with a Requip space, she still had so much extra luggage.

He was genuinely curious about what she kept in that space of hers... Could it be as peculiar as her way of thinking?

"It broke in the last battle. It hasn't been repaired yet," Yuri replied, withdrawing his curious gaze.

As mentioned before, the Red Queen's third gear couldn't be kept active for long, or it would risk breaking down at any moment.

In the final battle with Cain, Yuri had not only activated third gear, but also driven the Red Queen into Cain's body, which was full of scorching steam, before it was subjected to a terrifying steam explosion.

As a result, after one final dance, the Red Queen's internal combustion engine had completely given out.

Yuri had originally planned to repair it himself, but the damage had turned out to be too severe, so he'd had no choice but to send the Red Queen to a mechanic friend for repairs.

But its components were far too unusual. Many of the parts simply couldn't be bought on the market and had to be custom-made, so the repairs had dragged on until now.

Things were better now, though. With the funds sponsored by the guild master, he should be able to get it back before long.

It wasn't as if he'd really spend all the money on food, drink, and entertainment, was it?

In fact, as Yuri continued to grow stronger, the Red Queen and Blue Rose, the two weapons that had been at his side ever since he first set out, were gradually failing to keep up with him.

Although the Red Queen and Blue Rose were both anti-demon weapons made to fight demons, they weren't demon implements, after all. They hadn't originally been designed as equipment for mages, either; they were more like weapons tailored for mercenaries who trained their bodies.

As a result, neither weapon was particularly good at conducting magic power or compatible with it. They were far inferior to genuine demon implements, let alone a legendary demon implement like the Yamato.

But as a legendary demon implement, the Yamato was still beyond Yuri's current ability to wield.

He could swing it around a few times or cut through space to escape. After all, those were the Yamato's inherent sharpness and ability; all he needed to do was provide the magic power.

But if he used the Yamato in an intense battle... for one thing, he didn't have enough magic power yet, and for another, that guy [Devil] could easily sense it.

So Yuri was fairly restrained when using it. He also occasionally considered whether he should have a demon implement suited to him made.

But where to have one made was a real problem.

The demon implement Yuri needed wasn't an ordinary magic weapon; the term was short for "demon weapon."

The greatest difference between it and ordinary magical equipment was that a demon implement was a unique piece of equipment specially crafted using materials from a demon as its primary components.

He was half a demon himself, more or less, so naturally only a demon weapon tailored to him could bring out the demon power in his body to its fullest.

Of course, it was still too early to talk about any of that. For now, he had to finish the mission first. After all, without money, all the talk in the world was useless.

The mission site was even more remote than the two had initially expected.

By the time they reached the village, dusk was approaching.

"This place really is remote..." Yuri looked at the village before them and checked it against the map.

If Griffon hadn't guided them from above, they might never have found the village surrounded by mountains.

"Let's find the client and go over the mission first. We may have to spend the night here," Erza suggested, looking at the gradually darkening sky.

Yuri nodded, and the two passed through the village's modest entrance, where the words "Xiro Village" were written in large characters.

Inside the village, low, old houses stood scattered about, and large stretches of farmland were a common sight. It seemed the people here were self-sufficient.

There was hardly anyone on the village road, though... Then again, with a demon in the village, who would dare wander about as night approached?

Using the information on the request sheet, the two found their client: the village chief, an elderly man with a graying beard.

"And you are?" the chief asked.

"We're mages from Fairy Tail. We took the request you submitted. Here's the request sheet." Yuri handed it to the chief, then he and Erza showed him their guild marks.

Unlike their earlier trip to Caro Town, this was how a mission normally went.

"Th-that's wonderful! The mages have finally come! We're saved!!!"

After confirming their identities, the chief grew very excited and hurriedly invited them into his home.

"I'm terribly sorry. The village isn't very well-off, so I'm afraid you'll have to make do."

The elderly chief brought them two cups of tea, each with a chip on its rim.

The two accepted them politely. After taking a sip, Erza got straight to the point. "Could you please tell us exactly what happened?"

The chief nodded and began. "Actually, that demon has been in our village for a very long time."

"It was just sealed inside the church all that time."

"With the seal protecting us, we lived peaceful lives."

"Until..."

The chief paused, and the expression on his face visibly turned to one of terror.

His body trembled slightly, and his eyes were filled with fear and disgust. Beyond that, there was also a trace of anger that was almost impossible to discern.

Yuri raised an eyebrow. He had seen that expression far too many times during his years of traveling.

The chief continued, "Until that girl released the demon!!!"

"Released... the demon?" Erza turned and exchanged a look with Yuri, her expression a little strange.

This plot seemed somewhat familiar.

A similarly remote village, a similarly unsealed demon... If a half-demon girl showed up next, that would really seal the deal.

Still, out of professionalism, they asked, "If the demon has already been released, how have you managed to stay safe? Surely it can't be because of a god's protection."

"No, that's not it. It's because the demon possessed that girl that we're safe for the time being," the chief explained, then added gravely, "But sooner or later, she'll lose her mind and turn into a ferocious demon, slaughtering everyone in the village."

"Hmm... a classic plot from an old horror movie, full of the art of fearmongering," Yuri remarked after taking a sip of tea.

Smack!

Erza gave him a light slap under the table, signaling him not to talk nonsense. "So she hasn't started hurting anyone yet. Am I right?"

"Uh..." The chief was momentarily at a loss for words, but he insisted, "That's only for now. No one can guarantee what will happen later, can they? Besides, she's already showing signs of becoming a demon."

"Is that so? Then hurry and take us to see her," Yuri said with interest, draining the tea from his cup.