Three Abnormal Life Forms

More than four hundred years later, Zeref finally met Natsu.

He stood in the forest, looking at the boy before him, and his eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Four hundred years of waiting, countless days and nights of torment, all surged up at this moment.

Zeref looked at Natsu, tears streaming down his cheeks and falling drop by drop onto the grass at his feet.

"Natsu... little brother..."

His voice choked, and the rest of his words got stuck in his throat.

Natsu frowned, looking the strange man up and down.

Who is this person? Standing in the forest, crying and sobbing, and calling out "brother" at the top of their lungs.

"Hey! Who are you? What are you doing on our guild's island?!"

Natsu clenched his fists and assumed a fighting stance.

The red flare had just exploded; this suddenly appearing stranger must be the enemy the flare warned of. No doubt about it.

"Tell me! Where are your accomplices?"

Zeref didn't answer; he just stood there, tears streaming down his face, his lips trembling slightly.

Natsu waited three seconds, and since this guy just cried and didn't say anything, then he wouldn't be polite.

[Fire Dragon's Iron Fist]

Flames exploded on Natsu's fist, and he lunged forward, his fist, still scorching hot, striking Zeref squarely in the face.

Bang!

Zeref was sent flying, his body tumbling several times in the air, crashing through two trees before finally landing in a bush some distance away.

Natsu flicked the flames off his fist, but before he could even feel smug, he saw Zeref stand up from the bushes.

His face was still streaked with tears, but his expression was eerily calm.

"Not enough, not enough to destroy me."

Zeref wiped away his tears and was about to speak again when his expression suddenly twisted.

He clutched his head in anguish, curled up into a ball, and dug his fingers into his scalp as he squatted down.

A suppressed growl escaped his throat, as if something was tearing inside.

[Death Hunt]

The pitch-black storm suddenly spread out from him.

It was a pure darkness, carrying a strong aura of death.

Where the storm passed, the grass withered instantly, the soil turned black, and even the air became heavy.

Natsu's pupils contracted sharply, and he grabbed Happy, throwing him away with all his might.

"Happy! Run!"

He quickly stepped back, slipped, stepped on a loose stone, lost his balance, and fell to the ground with a thud.

The pitch-black storm instantly engulfed him.

Natsu!

Happy flew in mid-air, shouting anxiously.

That terrifying, pitch-black storm carried the aura of death; just looking at it made you feel breathless.

The cat's heart was pounding, and its paws were trembling in mid-air.

Ignoring Natsu's condition, Zeref covered his head and stumbled away from where he stood.

He couldn't stay here; every time he lost control, he hurt the people around him, and he didn't want to see anyone else die because of him.

The storm came quickly and went quickly.

After the dark storm subsided, Natsu got up from the ground and looked down to touch his body.

"Huh? No damage?"

He checked it over and over again; his arms were there, his legs were there, and there was no hole in his stomach.

That black storm looked so scary, but nothing happened to it.

Happy flew over, circled Natsu once, and noticed something amiss.

"Natsu, why has your scarf turned black?"

"Ah?!"

Natsu looked down, quickly pulled off his scarf, and held it up in front of his eyes.

The scarf turned completely black; its original warm white color was entirely swallowed up by the black.

He rubbed it with his hands.

"Ah!! That bastard!"

Natsu's roar shook the leaves of the trees.

"How dare they turn Igneel's scarf into this mess! When I find him, I'll beat him to a pulp! I'll send him flying into the sky!"

"Stop yelling and give me the scarf."

A hand reached out from the side.

Natsu turned his head and saw it was Riyao.

He appeared beside me without me even noticing; he walked without making a sound.

What are you doing here, Riyao?

Natsu instinctively handed over the scarf, and then his mouth started moving uncontrollably.

"What was that flare? How many enemies were there? Who were they? Was it that strange guy in black? Why did he call me 'brother'? I don't know him at all!"

You ask too many questions.

Riyao took the scarf, and a bright green light appeared on his hand.

The soft light enveloped the scarf, and the black parts faded at a visible speed, gradually restoring the white scarf to its original state.

"In short, you two need to get to the camp immediately. They need manpower there."

"Alright, you guys should get going."

Riyao handed the scarf back.

Natsu took the scarf, examined it twice, and his angry expression instantly turned into a silly grin.

"Hey, the scarf's back! That's great! Riyao, you're amazing!"

He rubbed his face with the scarf, overjoyed.

He would go mad if Igneel's things were destroyed.

"Riyao, you just mentioned the camp..."

Natsu wanted to ask more questions, but when he looked up, there was nothing in front of him.

There's no trace of Riyao anymore.

"What about Riyao?"

Natsu looked around; the only sound in the forest was the wind rustling through the leaves.

Happy scratched his head; he hadn't noticed how the Riyao had disappeared either.

"I didn't notice, they disappeared in the blink of an eye. Let's hurry back to the camp. Since Riyao said that, something must have happened."

"Yes, let's hurry! If we're too late, we'll be at a huge loss if there are no enemies left to fight!"

Natsu immediately forgot about the scarf and ran towards the camp with Happy.

A person and a cat raced through the woods, the branches rattling as they bumped against each other.

Riyao found Zeref on the other side of the forest.

Zeref leaned against a large tree, his breathing not yet fully calmed, and the cold sweat on his forehead still damp.

"Shouldn't you leave Tenrou Island?"

Riyao walked over, hands in his pockets, speaking casually as if he were greeting a neighbor.

Zeref looked up at the unfamiliar young man in front of him.

"Who are you?"

"I'm a member of Fairy Tail. I saw that crying scene just now."

Zeref paused for a moment, then his gaze fell on Riyao, his expression shifting slightly.

"Your life energy is so abundant, are you a mage who has mastered Life Magic?"

"Yes, you have good eyesight."

When Zeref heard Riyao admit it, his eyes lit up.

That light carried a glimmer of hope, something that hadn't appeared in his eyes for a very, very long time.

"Can you do me a favor?"

He took two steps forward, his voice urgent.

Riyao raised his hand and made a stop gesture.

"I can't help you."

"You know what I'm trying to say?"

"I know about the curse on you. Someone told me about your situation, the curse of the god Ankhseram."

Zeref's body trembled slightly.

Riyao continued speaking unhurriedly.

"The curse cannot be lifted without the permission of God Ankhseram. Even if I help you lift it once, He will simply cast another curse upon you. It would be a losing proposition if God Ankhseram were to cast a curse upon me as well."

"Is that so...?"

Zeref's eyes dimmed, but he quickly raised his head again.

Is she still alive?

"I guess so?"

Riyao shrugged.

Zeref's hand trembled slightly.

Why won't she see me?

"What do you want? You little lolicon."

Riyao uttered those words expressionlessly.

"Well..."

Zeref's face instantly turned extremely awkward. He opened his mouth, though he had never heard the word before, he could guess what it meant.

He stood frozen in place, his expression incredibly complex.

In the distance, Mavis stood on a branch in a tree and stomped her foot.

"Who's the little girl! You bastard, Riyao!"

She pouted angrily.

Zeref seemed to sense something and looked in that direction.

His gaze pierced through the layers of leaves and landed on the tree in the distance.

Riyao clapped his hands, drawing Zeref's attention back.

"Alright, it's time for you to leave. You've seen your brother now; if you don't leave soon, this place will be in complete chaos."

"You know about Natsu's situation?"

Zeref frowned; he always had a feeling that Riyao knew far more than it showed.

"I'm not deaf. I heard you call out 'little brother' just now."

Riyao walked up behind Zeref and pushed him forward with both hands on his shoulders.

"Let's go, let's hurry. I have a feeling He's watching us. The three of us together have probably already attracted attention."

Zeref was being pushed along by Riyao, his body somewhat stiff.

How long has it been since he felt human touch? The last time was with Mavis.

Subconsciously, he reached out and touched the back of Riyao's hand.

Warm, the temperature of a living person.

Riyao jumped back three meters, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Damn it! I don't like men!"

"Uh... me too."

Zeref's expression became even more awkward; his hand froze in mid-air, unsure whether to retract it or not.

"Then why did you touch me!"

"I haven't run into a living person in so long, so... I wanted to confirm."

"Then go check with Natsu! He's tough as nails, you can't hurt him! If you do hurt him, you can just... restore him."

Riyao rubbed the back of his hands together, looking disgusted.

Zeref was so embarrassed he wanted to disappear into a crack in the ground.