Metalicana

"You bastards!! You actually abandoned your mother to go to Hargeon Port for a seafood feast!"

Cana stood with her hands on her hips, pointing at Riyao and the others, and roared loudly, her fingers almost poking into Riyao's nostrils.

She was still wearing a bartender's apron, the front of which was stained with juice and beer foam, and the sleeves were rolled up high to her elbows. Strands of hair on her forehead were stuck together with sweat.

Riyao felt guilty and didn't dare to look Cana in the eye. Everyone else silently turned their heads away, not daring to look at Cana either.

Lucy looked down at the tips of her shoes, Levy lice off Grandine, Lisanna scratched at the air a couple of times, and everyone tacitly pretended not to hear.

After all, it's really not a very ethical thing to leave an entire tavern full of customers to a drunkard who only knows how to drink, while the rest of them just pack up and fly off to the harbor to eat and drink to their hearts' content.

Cana berated these bastards for a full hour, digging up all of Riyao's dark history from childhood to adulthood, her rant flowing freely and full of dramatic intensity.

She didn't stop until her throat was completely parched and she had no more alcohol to drink.

She slammed the empty wine jug on the table, panting, her chest heaving, and glared fiercely at the people in front of her.

Riyao nudged Mirajane on the shoulder, gesturing for her to go and comfort Cana. Mirajane pursed her lips, not really wanting to go.

Seeing Riyao's pitiful state, almost drowning in spittle, Mirajane sighed and went over to hug and comfort Cana.

"Cana, don't be angry. How about I go to the wine cellar and get you a barrel of wine later?"

Mirajane's voice was gentle and soft, like a cool spring, as he reached out and stroked Cana's back, gently stroking her fur.

Cana pouted and held up two fingers, clearly indicating that she would continue to make a fuss if she disagreed.

Mirajane took her hand.

"Okay, two buckets it is."

Seeing that Mirajane agreed so quickly, Cana tentatively raised her third finger.

Mirajane gripped her hand tightly, not giving her a chance to lift it, his eyes turning utterly ruthless.

A chill ran down Cana's spine, and she swallowed the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

He hummed twice, no longer dwelling on the three buckets; at worst, he'd just sneak a drink later.

Riyao pulled Mirajane past him and pushed Cana away.

"Okay, go back to sleep. If you want to hug someone, go hug Lisanna."

Like a possessive little animal, Riyao pulled Mirajane into his arms and unceremoniously pushed Cana into the group of girls behind him.

After he finished speaking, he carried Mirajane back to his room.

Mirajane's ears turned red, and she patted the restless Riyao.

"Stop fooling around, let's talk inside."

"Okay."

Riyao grinned like a cat that had just stolen some fish, and with a gust of wind, he pulled and carried Mirajane up the wooden stairs to the second floor.

The two of them, all lovey-dovey, disappeared from Lucy and the others' sight.

Lucy and Levy exchanged a glance and rolled their eyes simultaneously.

Seeing that Cana was no longer angry, they went over to talk to her and went back to their room together.

The girls chatted and laughed as they helped the exhausted Cana back to her room to wash up and rest. As night deepened, the entire wooden building finally returned to tranquility.

The next morning.

The sky was just beginning to lighten with a pale, fish-belly white, and a cool morning breeze swirled fallen leaves through the empty streets.

Gajeel received Levy's letter and returned to Magnolia with Lily.

His long, spiky black hair was blown wildly by the wind, and his black trench coat was open, revealing his muscular chest.

Beside him, the black cat Panther Lily, wearing a green Little Makarov and carrying a large sword, was pacing around, looking at everything.

The two of them were standing under the Parasol Tree, looking at the four dragon eggs.

In the center of the courtyard, a huge Parasol Tree stretched out its dense branches, and four dragon eggs, emitting faint magical fluctuations, hung quietly from its canopy.

Gajeel tilted his head back, his angular face studded with iron rivets, and rubbed his thick thumb against his chin.

"The little dwarf said in his letter that the dragon egg is cooked. What does that mean? It's perfectly fine."

He muttered loudly, looking at the eggs from every angle, but couldn't see anything on the shells that looked cooked.

Lily tugged at Gajeel's trouser leg.

The black cat looked up, pointed to the empty, thick branch, and deduced with a serious expression.

"The dragon egg that's missing Wendy's has most likely already been eaten by Riyao."

"What?! That bastard!"

Gajeel's forehead veins bulged, and his roar was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, the sound waves exploding throughout the entire courtyard.

This shout woke up the dragon eggs in the tree.

The branches and leaves on the treetop suddenly shook, and the surfaces of the remaining four dragon eggs simultaneously lit up with a faint fluorescence.

They peered through the eggshell to see what was going on.

Just as Gajeel was staring wide-eyed, searching for Riyao's figure, the dragon egg hanging on the treetop, its entire body gleaming with a dark gray metallic luster, began to tremble violently.

The Iron Dragon wobbled and fell off the tree, hurtling towards Gajeel.

With a whoosh, the incredibly heavy metal eggshell slammed down on Gajeel's face.

"That brat actually came back to see me, he's grown up."

A hoarse, deep, metallic voice, like that of an old-fashioned blacksmith, emanated from deep within the eggshell.

With a solid, muffled thud, the giant steel egg slammed into Gajeel's face with perfect precision, sending him sprawling backward onto the ground.

Before he could even get up, that round, hard iron ball, relying on its tough skin, bounced around wildly on Gajeel's chest and belly like a solid lump of iron.

"Ouch! That hurts!"

The Iron Dragon bounced back and forth on Gajeel's body, making Gajeel howl in pain.

Lily was completely dumbfounded.

"What's going on? Didn't Riyao say that this egg would take another two years to mature?"

Riyao appeared in his pajamas and yawned.

His golden hair was messy with a few stray hairs sticking up, his hands were tucked into his wide sleeves, and he stared half-openly at the horrific scene in the yard.

"Why are you back? What are you yelling about so early in the morning?"

"Stop smashing it, stop smashing it, you bastard!" Gajeel was nearly killed by the Iron Dragon.

He desperately tried to protect his head with both hands, his long legs kicking wildly on the grass, his face covered in bruises from being hit.

"I am an egg now, that's true, but not a bastard, you brat, still looking so fierce."

Metalicana stopped moving and landed steadily on Gajeel.

The massive metal egg, weighing hundreds of pounds, pressed heavily on Gajeel's stomach, and no matter how much Gajeel pushed, it wouldn't budge.

"Stop playing dead, you brat! Quickly channel magic into the egg!"

Metalicana's voice carried a hint of impatience, yet his urging tone also carried a subtle trace of anticipation.

Although Gajeel didn't understand what was going on, he still reached out and placed his hand on the Iron Dragon, slowly channeling magic power into it.

Those calloused hands pressed tightly against the cold, rough eggshell, and the Iron Dragon Slayer magic within him flowed into the egg through his palms.

With a humming sound, countless runes suddenly lit up the once seamless surface of the metal eggshell.

With a clicking sound like mechanical gears, several neat cracks slowly appeared on the surface of the eggshell, like a sophisticated mechanical artifact unfolding layer by layer.

The Iron Dragon opened slowly, like a machine, and a dazzling green light burst forth from the cracks.

The upstairs windows were pushed open one after another with a series of crashes.

Levy and the others were all woken up and went downstairs to see what was going on.

When Levy saw the disheveled, dark-haired young man lying on the grass, her eyes lit up instantly.

"Gajeel's back? The letter was only sent out yesterday, and it's already back so quickly."

When Lily saw Levy, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

He put his paws in the pockets of his Little Makarov and deliberately cleared his throat.

"As soon as Gajeel saw your letter, he rushed back and even skipped team training."

Levy blushed slightly, her whole face turning bright red instantly, and she nervously twisted the hem of her nightgown with both hands.

Lisanna and the others put on a smug look and stared at Levy.

Levy flustered by the intense gazes directed at her, and she waved her hands in a panic.

"We're fine. By the way, Lily, what did you just say about team training?"

She tried to steer the conversation away from herself, looking at Lily with curiosity.

Lily's expression turned serious, and his tone became somewhat calm.

"Gajeel and I have joined the newly reorganized Magic Council."

The air fell silent for a moment.

Levy froze on the spot, her mouth agape in a small circle.

"Huh? Gajeel? Joined what? A dark guild, right?"