Ultimately a Tragedy (3)

After Survivor Number One finished speaking, Ulu looked up and scanned her surroundings, then sighed, "Although I had heard of Deliora before, I never imagined his strength would be so terrifying."

Upon hearing the Ice Beauty's words, the survivors lowered their heads and responded with the sounds of their teeth and fists.

"Splash!"

Just as the atmosphere grew increasingly tense, a sound of rolling rubble suddenly came from the ruins on one side. In an instant, everyone present, except for Survivor A who was in a frenzied state, turned their gaze towards the direction from which the sound came.

Under the scrutiny of dozens of eyes, the maker of the sound was quickly identified.

"Look! There's someone under the rubble!" (Survivor B)

As soon as the cry of alarm faded, the searchlights that had been wandering elsewhere instantly focused their fire on the rubble.

"A survivor! Leon, let's get there quickly!"

"Um!"

After they finished speaking, the master and apprentice started walking towards the rubble, and the survivors followed, supporting each other and limping along.

"Hey! Are you alright? (Leon)"

The moment the Lord Zero Emperor's questioning voice fell, the black-haired boy buried under the rubble groaned and then slowly opened his eyes.

"Who... who are you?"

After uttering the last character, the black-haired boy's head lolled to the side, and he fainted again.

"Don't waste time, save them!"

"Yes!"

After exchanging answers, the master and apprentice immediately began clearing away the rubble. Seeing this, the survivors standing behind them rushed to help.

Looking down at the busy crowd, a cold-blooded (calm) creature in the sky shook its head.

"I never imagined things would turn out this way!"

After finishing his reflections, Old Suo lowered his heavy eyelids, furrowed his brows, and let out a series of heavy breaths.

A moment later, His Majesty the Emperor, having completed his self-regulation, suddenly opened his eyes and stared for a long time in the direction where the Cautious Demon had disappeared.

"Since you are wary of me, then let your destined one lure you out!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Old Suo waved his hand and scattered three nearly transparent silver orbs of light. After they entered their designated positions, a burst of silvery-white light flashed in mid-air.

A moment later, a cold wind blew by, making the empty clouds clear and clean.

Several days later, thanks to everyone's efforts, simple tombstones were erected on the north side of the town.

After bidding farewell to their loved ones, the survivors left the town one after another, some to seek refuge with relatives and friends, some to venture out into the outside world, and some, like the young man kneeling before the Ice Beauty, to seek out masters, improve their strength, and prepare to defeat Deliora in the future.

"Please, take me as your disciple!"

Looking at the black-haired boy in front of her, the Ice Beauty remained silent for a long time before saying, "Our training is very arduous. Are you sure you want to join us?"

"Sure!"

Upon receiving the boy's reply, the Ice Beauty nodded.

"In that case, go say goodbye to your parents, and then come with us on our way!"

Upon hearing the Ice Beauty's words, the black-haired boy stood up with a look of surprise, while the silver-haired boy standing to the side let out a subtle hum.

After collecting a bouquet of flowers in the town, the black-haired boy, filled with a mix of emotions including excitement, hatred, and sorrow, entered the cemetery, finally stopping before a tombstone. (Why a tombstone? Because the couple was buried together!)

"Dad, Mom, just you wait! I will definitely defeat Deliora and avenge you!"

After making a vow in his heart to the two people in heaven, the black-haired boy placed the white bouquet in front of the tombstone, and then wiped his tear-streaked face on it.

Just then, a call came from afar, pulling the black-haired boy back from his grief.

"Gray, it's time to hit the road!" (Ulu)

"Oh~~"

After answering, the black-haired boy wiped the marks off his face and turned to chase after the two people in the distance.

"Gray, can you keep up?" (PS: This and the following are all borrowed classic quotes from Mashima.)

"My spiritual practice is much more arduous than I imagined!"

"Whoosh"

"Whoosh"

After catching his breath, the black-haired boy raised his head and said stubbornly, "Ah~~ No matter how hard it is, I will persevere. As long as I can obtain enough power to defeat Deliora, I am not afraid of any hardship!"

Looking at his junior brother's clenched fists, the silver-haired youth said speechlessly, "Really!"

"Alright, let's begin!" (Ulu)

"Okay! I'm ready to start anytime!" (Gray)

The moment the black-haired boy finished answering, a rustling sound came from ahead. The next second, a familiar-looking brown jacket flashed past the boy's eyes, and he was startled by the person in front of him and let out a scream.

"Ah!?"

"What... what are you doing?" (Gray)

"You should take your clothes off too!" (Ulu)

"Are you kidding me?!" (Gray)

"How can you take off your clothes in such a cold, snowy mountain?"

After criticizing the woman in front of him, the black-haired boy turned to the silver-haired boy beside him and asked for confirmation, "Right, Leon!"

The moment his gaze fell upon them, he froze, for the silver-haired boy had unknowingly taken off his clothes and was standing naked in the snow.

"Why are you all dressed up too?"

Seeing the shocked black-haired boy, the silver-haired boy blinked his right eye and then teased, "Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and take it off! Don't you want to gain power?"

Hearing the silver-haired boy's words, the black-haired boy raised his hands and said with dissatisfaction, "Alright, I know! I'll take it off, I'll take it off!"

Seeing the black-haired youth begin to undress, the Ice Beauty said with satisfaction, "That's good! To control the cold air, you must become one with it; that's the primary task."

After the Ice Beauty finished her concluding remarks, the silver-haired boy, trembling but with a relaxed expression, added timely, "You'll get used to it soon..."

"You yourself are shaking the whole time... (Gray)"

"Come on, let's start with a run!"

After saying that, the Ice Beauty turned and ran ahead, with the silver-haired boy immediately following her, while the black-haired boy protested, "Hey, teach me magic already!"

"Stop talking nonsense and run!"

"Even I'm training with you from the basics!"

Hearing the silver-haired boy's words, the black-haired boy, though dissatisfied, had no choice but to run after the two.

In the days that followed, Gray followed the Ice Beauty through basic training, continuously strengthening his tolerance and perception of cold air. (The specific training methods are shown in the anime and manga, so Great Owl won't list them all here.) (PS: Okay, I admit, those scenes are hard to describe, so I'm being lazy and not writing them down.)

Once his physical abilities reached a certain level, the Ice Beauty began to teach him basic magical knowledge and some simple spells.

It was at this moment that Ulu engraved the words that would influence his entire life deep into his soul.

"Listen carefully, among the many types of magic, Shape-Making Magic is a type of free magic. The magical shapes that can be created are all different. Practice hard, and then... find your own shape!"

While Ice Beauty and the others were busy here, Sordil, one of the parties involved, was not idle either.

After leaving Lockdia Town, this guy didn't return to Magnolia, but instead barged into the lady's bedroom and began his seclusion there.

"Da da"

"Da da"

Hearing footsteps outside the door, Old Suo, who had transformed into Owl, opened his closed eye and then waved his arm to erase himself from the room.

"Splash!"

Just as Old Suo completed his invisibility, the crystal door opened, and the next second, the dazed lady was pushed in. Then the door closed, and footsteps gradually faded away from the room.

Once she was sure the other person was far away, the lady's eyes instantly regained their sparkle.

"Old Suo, stop hiding, they're far away!"

"Whoosh!"

The moment the lady finished speaking, a sound came from the southeast corner of the room, and then someone who had vanished into thin air reappeared there.

"How's the situation, (Old Suo)?"

"Just as you said, they've started to increase the intensity and frequency of their experiments. (Ultear)"

"Hmph! Looks like someone's already gotten what they wanted! (Old Suo)"

"Compared to that, I care more about your promise! (Ultear)"

Seeing the lady staring at him with a puzzled look, Old Suo quietly wiped the water droplets from the back of his head and then said, "How was tonight?"

"Hmm... you'd better not lie to me, or This Lady 'll kick you out!"

Hearing the landlord's seemingly sincere threat, the shameless man hurriedly nodded.

"Hmph! That's more like it!"

After speaking, the lady slowly walked to the bedside and then suddenly pounced on it.

After letting the bed rock her up and down a few times, the lady suddenly realized there was someone else in the room, so she grabbed a slipper from the side and threw it at the other person.

"You pervert, shut yourself up and don't peek!"

After the pink slippers slipped off his face, the lecherous So didn't turn around and go into seclusion. Instead, he floated onto the lady's head. Um... let me solemnly declare, Old Suo is not a pervert, not a lolicon, and not a pedophile. He did this because he suddenly remembered something and wanted to give the lady a heads-up, that's all!

"Beautiful lady, don't go to sleep yet, I have something to tell you!"

"Um?"

After slowly opening her left eye, the lady asked, "Are you trying to say that Mom recently took on two new disciples and that I shouldn't be jealous when I see them?"

After being outmaneuvered, His Majesty the Emperor was stunned for two seconds.

"You..."

After the words of inquiry were about to come out, Old Suo swallowed them back down.

"Hehe! It seems you've finally remembered!"

Hearing the lady's teasing, His Majesty the Emperor pretended to be serious and said, "Hmph! I am, after all, the ruler of a region. I have so many things to deal with every day, it's inevitable that I'll forget some things!"

His Majesty the Emperor finished speaking, the lady nodded in agreement and said, "That's true. I have to keep in touch with my Mom, Leila, Grammy, Sonia, Irene, me, Kana, Lucy, Brandish every day, and I can't let anyone find out. Just thinking about it makes me feel tired."

When the lady looked up, a white cardboard sign with the words "Please let me go" written in blood appeared in front of her. At the same time, His Majesty the Emperor was pounding garlic on the ground.

Looking at this mesmerizing scene, the lady's lips curled up slightly.

"Alright, I'll let you off this time. Now go and prepare for the appointment!"

Upon hearing the lady's words, the nodding machine stopped operating, turned around, and disappeared into the southeast corner of the room.