Hurts So Good

Just before the sharp ice spear could fully take shape, Riyao's figure suddenly flickered like a ghost. In an instant, he crossed the distance between them and appeared in front of Gray.

Without holding back, he drove a fist into Gray's unguarded stomach.

"Gray, you're too slow. Remember, when it comes to martial arts—oh, no, magic—speed conquers all."

"Ugh—"

Gray let out a muffled groan. The intense pain made him curl up like a cooked shrimp, and he dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach.

Before he could cry out in pain, Gray looked up in bewilderment, his eyes full of confusion, and felt his stomach.

Riyao, however, didn't spare him another glance. He dusted off his hands and walked straight out of the guild to take care of his commission, leaving behind only the dashing figure of a man who concealed his achievements and sought no fame.

Just then, little Cana popped her head out from behind the bar nearby, smiling until her eyes narrowed into crescent moons.

"Gray, did your stomach hurt like crazy one second, then suddenly feel really good the next?"

Gray nodded blankly.

"That was Riyao's Healing Magic at work."

Cana covered her mouth and giggled. "He can cast healing magic while he's beating someone up. He always says he has a healer's compassionate heart and can't bear to see people suffer, so he heals them while he hits them."

"But... that feels even worse than just getting beaten up!"

Gray complained, his face full of frustration.

"That feeling of being stuck in between—I was all ready to roll around on the ground in pain, and then suddenly I felt good again. I don't even know how to let my feelings out!"

Makarov stroked the tuft of white beard on his chin and remarked mercilessly, "That brat does it on purpose. You only took one punch just now, so you haven't really experienced it. Imagine if he hit you a dozen times, or a hundred times, at top speed, healing you as he went. Your brain wouldn't be able to keep up with whether it should be crying out in pain or feeling good. In the end, you'd completely give up even trying to defend yourself and let him do whatever he wanted."

The two old hands, Macao and Wakaba, came over with their drinks, lingering fear on their faces, and continued, "That's not even the worst of it. The pain cuts off abruptly, and then comes that soothing feeling of being healed. We nearly got beaten into wetting our pants. What decent person goes straight for the groin in a fight? That brat fights dirty."

Cana blinked her big eyes.

"Didn't Riyao explain that? He said he's too short to reach any higher right now, so he has no choice but to attack down there."

"Cana, you're still too young and innocent. You don't understand how treacherous the world is." Macao patted Cana on the shoulder earnestly.

"Yeah, didn't you hear him shouting 'Jingle bells' while he was hitting us? He sang 'ding' every time he landed a hit. He was obviously mocking us!"

Wakaba added indignantly.

Gray rubbed his chin, as if he had grasped some truth from the conversation.

He suddenly raised his head, the fire of fighting spirit blazing in his eyes again. "I get it! All I have to do is keep his fists from hitting me! Next time, I'm definitely going to beat that bastard up and wipe away this humiliation!"

"Gray, your clothes..." Cana pointed at Gray's bare upper body and reminded him helplessly.

"Huh? When did I take them off?!"

Only then did Gray realize it, and he hurriedly started looking everywhere for his clothes.

Meanwhile, Riyao, who was making a house call on the other side of town, suddenly let out an enormous sneeze.

He rubbed his nose and muttered to himself, Someone must be bad-mouthing me behind my back.

He decided that when he got back, he would find another excuse to beat Gray up. There was no other reason: the new punching bag really did feel good to hit.

On a hot summer day like this, how wonderful, how pleasant it was to have a human punching bag that came with its own cooling properties.

Riyao happily made plans in his head: When that hothead Natsu arrives later on, I can beat Natsu up to keep warm in winter and beat Gray up to cool down in summer. Wow, life will be absolutely awesome!

"Grandma Grace, try lifting your arm. Does the joint still hurt?"

Riyao pulled himself out of his thoughts, put on a gentle, professional smile, and spoke to the kindly old woman in front of him.

A soft green light was emanating from his hand, slowly seeping into the old woman's joint like the warm sunshine of spring.

Grandma Grace raised her arm as instructed and gently moved it around. A smile appeared on her face, and she said warmly, "Oh, it really doesn't hurt anymore! I can't feel a thing. Little Riyao, your magic is getting more and more amazing."

After carefully giving her a few instructions on daily care, Riyao headed to the next house. Along the way, the townspeople greeted him warmly, pressing all kinds of fresh fruit and homemade snacks into his arms.

It was only natural. On this continent full of magic, people who could use it to heal were exceedingly rare.

As he recalled from the original story, the only ones who seemed capable of it were Porlyusica, who lived in seclusion deep in the forest, and Wendy, who joined the guild later. Both of them also had countless connections to the Sky Dragon's legacy.

Whenever the guild's members returned from an intense battle, the main cast were all covered in injuries. Usually, all they could do was slap on some bandages and rely entirely on their monstrous physiques to tough it out and recover.

As long as they weren't missing any vital parts, they would be bouncing around again after a while.

In the Oración Seis arc, even Wendy, who had yet to fully grow up, had earned the resounding title of "Sky Sorceress." That showed just how rare Healing Magic was in this world.

By the time Riyao finally finished all the healing commissions in Magnolia, he was drenched in sweat.

Still, looking at the bags and bundles of fruit and snacks in his arms, he felt quite a sense of accomplishment.

With heavy steps, he returned to his room in the dormitory behind the Fairy Tail guild.

He had just dropped the bags and bundles heavily onto the table and hadn't even caught his breath when the little girl Cana poked her head through the doorway.

Her big, shifty eyes swept around the room. Once she saw the "spoils" inside, she swaggered right in without hesitation, deftly opened a bag of snacks, and stuffed them into her mouth, eating with relish.

The corner of Riyao's eye twitched. Seeing how naturally Cana acted, he suddenly felt that the little girl was already beginning to resemble the free-spirited drunkard she would become.

It must all be the fault of that bunch of drunkards in the guild! Especially the old man, the ringleader of those drunkards.