Treasure Hunt, Part Seven
The crystal ball projected a light screen.
When Riyao saw this opening, he raised an eyebrow, his eyebrows twitched upwards, and the curve of his lips changed from a slight upturn to a wide grin.
"This is in text."
Levy and Riyao glanced at Freed at the same time, their eyes landing on the same person simultaneously, as if they had rehearsed it.
The first figure that appeared on the screen was a boy named Laxus leaning against the wall, listening to music with his eyes closed.
He leaned against the wall of the guild hall, his back against the stone wall, his arms crossed in front of his chest, and he was wearing headphones.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, casting a golden beam across him, but he remained motionless, like a statue embedded in the wall.
At this point, Laxus only seemed a bit cold, not as obsessive as he would later become.
Little Natsu suddenly darted out, appearing from who-knows-where, his legs moving incredibly fast, his feet thumping heavily on the floor.
A small fist wrapped in flames, the flames dancing on the surface of the fist, leaving a trail of orange-red flames as it slammed towards the young Laxus.
Without even opening his eyes or moving his head, young Laxus punched Little Natsu away.
Little Natsu was sent flying backward by the impact, tumbling twice in the air before crashing to the ground, sliding several meters and overturning a table.
Bare-chested Little Gray was squatting next to Little Natsu; he'd appeared there at some point.
He was only wearing a pair of shorts, squatting on the ground with his hands on his knees, looking at Little Natsu's miserable state with his mouth wide open, laughing so hard he was doubled over.
Laxus, standing outside the light screen, looked confused.
He frowned, stared at his reflection in the light screen for a long while, and then shook his head.
He had little recollection of that period; back then, so many kids came to fight him every day, one after another, and after he finished one, another would come. Who could remember them all?
However, it was Freed, who was beside him, who was restless.
Freed's body began to tremble slightly, his shoulders hunched, his neck tucked into his collar, his palms were sweaty, and his fingers rubbed against his trousers.
His gaze was fixed on the light screen, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.
Riyao came up behind him, put his hand on his shoulder, and pulled his fingers down to hold him still.
"Don't rush, don't rush, the real show is just beginning."
Everyone noticed that a green-haired boy was staring at young Laxus from behind.
Young Freed stood behind a pillar, his body hunched over, only half of his body and a pair of eyes visible.
He held a notebook in his hand, the cover of which was dark green, and stared intently at the young Laxus, his expression as focused as if he were appraising some masterpiece of art.
"Hey, isn't that Freed? What's he doing?"
Young Freed was writing and drawing in a notebook.
The pen tip moved swiftly across the paper, and a swishing sound came from the light screen, as fast as a copying machine.
He wrote a few words, then looked up at young Laxus, before lowering his head to continue writing, repeating the process over and over, a sense of indescribable satisfaction on his face.
The expression on his face looked a bit perverted.
The corners of her mouth were slightly upturned, her eyes gleamed with an unusual light, and her cheeks were flushed with an unnatural blush.
Outside the light screen, Freed was being held down by several people.
Laxus's gaze towards him grew increasingly complex.
He first looked at the boy, Freed, in the light screen, then at Freed being pressed to the ground.
"No!!"
Freed wailed, the sound squeezed from the depths of his throat, filled with a heart-wrenching Despair.
He struggled to get up, but was pinned down and could only thrash about on the ground like a fish out of water.
The camera panned across the screen, revealing the contents of Freed's notebook.
Laxus's hobbies: He likes to listen to music with his eyes closed, likes to lean against a wall with his arms crossed, and likes to hum a cold tune...
The entire page is filled with Laxus's daily life, hobbies, and routine.
The way everyone looked at Freed was very complicated.
Some people had their mouths open, some were scratching their heads, some were covering their mouths, and some had their faces contorted, unsure of how to react to the scene before them.
His gaze shifted back and forth between the light screen and Freed, and with each shift, the shock in his eyes grew stronger.
Laxus closed his eyes, his mouth twitched, and the muscles in his face twitched.
Freed buried his head in the floor, his forehead pressed against it, curled up in a ball, completely unwilling to face the world.
His ears were so red they looked like they could drip blood, and the redness stretched from the tips of his ears all the way down to his neck, making him look like he was being roasted over a fire.
Inside the light screen, the camera moved in sync with the young Laxus's movements.
Young Laxus straightened up, stepped out from behind the wall, and strode towards the outside of the guild hall.
Wherever young Laxus went, young Freed followed.
His footsteps were so light they were almost silent; it was clear he had practiced.
His notebook never stopped moving.
Seeing this, young Bickslow tilted his head, then strode over to watch the spectacle.
He wore an expression of watching a show, his hands behind his head, and followed lazily behind young Freed, keeping a greater distance.
The two of them continued to follow the boy Laxus.
Young Laxus walked down the corridor and into the restroom.
Young Freed wanted to go inside.
He reached out to push the door, his fingers already touching the door panel, and he leaned forward, stepping out with one leg.
The young boy Bickslow grabbed him by the back of his collar, hooked his fingers around his collar, and pulled him back.
Young Freed was pulled back two steps, his collar tightening around his neck, his face turning red.
The two of them were talking in a string of Chinese characters.
The screen vibrated, as if something big had happened.
The image jittered, the ripples at the edge of the light screen flickered, and then stabilized.
Young Freed took out his notebook and wrote down a few words after the pen paused on the paper for a second.
The camera then shifts, and the contents of the notebook appear on the screen.
"Laxus had a huge diaper change today."
Laxus, standing outside the light screen, blushed.
His face turned red from his neck up to his forehead, his whole head looking like a boiled shrimp.
Golden lightning spread out from his body, crackling in the air.
Whose dark history is this referring to?! It feels like it's aimed at him.
Everyone burst out laughing.
Laughter erupted like a flood bursting its banks, spewing from everyone's mouths. Some laughed so hard they slammed their fists on the table, some rolled on the floor, and some laughed until tears streamed down their faces.
Bickslow laughed the loudest, the laughter bursting from his lungs, his head tilted back.
Freed looks kind of dead; death is death anyway.
He lay sprawled on the ground, limbs outstretched, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, his lips trembling slightly as if he were trying to say something, but not a single word could be heard.
The light screen hasn't stopped.
The video continues playing, the camera moving from the toilet entrance to the side, and then to the women's toilet entrance.
A young girl Evergreen emerged from the women's restroom, her face filled with utter despair.
Judging from his lip movements, he seemed to be cursing; his lips were moving rapidly, his speech was extremely fast, and his expression was distorted.
Lucy analyzed her lip movements, tapped her chin with her finger, narrowed her eyes, and moved her lips, reading each word out one by one.
"Who is it? Is it someone going to the bathroom or is it thunder?!"
Evergreen grabbed Erza's arm wrapped around her from behind, pulling her into a tight embrace.
Erza's expression screamed, "If everyone dies together, it's the same as nobody dying."
The young girl, Evergreen, was dragged away by the two men.
Boy Bickslow grabbed boy Freed by the collar, and boy Freed grabbed girl Evergreen's sleeve. The three of them disappeared down the corridor, Leila at each other.
Young Laxus emerged from the restroom, looked around, and scratched his head.
Golden lightning crackled around Laxus, who stood within the light barrier, as he glared menacingly at Riyao.
Riyao rubbed his face, scrubbing it with both hands to wipe away any possible smile.
He lowered his hand, adopting a serious expression, but the muscles at the corners of his mouth were still twitching slightly, threatening to break his composure at any moment.
"I didn't laugh, I really didn't laugh, I've had professional training. Okay, let's look at the last ball."
He held the last crystal ball, raised it, and shook it under the light.