Lucy

Qi Yan had watched the anime, so he knew Lucy was a girl who could talk forever, but even he had not expected her to be this talkative.

Still, although she talked a lot, she was not annoying. If anything, she seemed rather cute.

Lucy turned her head. "By the way, you look like you're searching for someone."

Happy nodded. "That's right. We're looking for Igneel."

"We heard he came to this city, but when we got here, it turned out he hadn't."

"You could tell at a glance that guy called the Fire Dragon wasn't him."

"I was sure Igneel would be here. Sigh! What a wasted trip."

Qi Yan looked speechless. "You two really are idiots. How could Igneel possibly appear here? If he really showed up, wouldn't the whole city have been thrown into chaos already?"

Lucy was slightly frightened by that. "What would this Fire Dragon have to look like to throw an entire city into chaos? As a human..."

"Hm? He isn't human. Igneel is a genuine dragon."

"!!"

Lucy was instantly left dumbfounded. "Then how could he possibly show up on the streets?! Are you idiots?!"

"Oh!"

Natsu and Happy immediately looked as though they had just realized something.

"Hey!! Don't act like you're only figuring that out now!!"

By then, they had arrived at the little diner Qi Yan had mentioned. Quite a few people were already seated inside, so Qi Yan and the others found a spot by the window and ordered some food.

"Alright, I should get going. Enjoy your meal."

Lucy paid for the food and stood up to leave. They had only met by chance, and she had merely wanted to thank them.

"Thank you for treating us to a meal!"

"Thank you!"

"N-No need to thank me... You helped me too, didn't you? It's only proper to return the favor. Alright, I'll be going now. Bye-bye."

Lucy waved and turned to leave.

"She's such a good person!"

Natsu sighed as he watched Lucy's retreating figure. She had treated them to a meal just because they had helped her without thinking. It was the first time they had met someone so kind.

"Aye!"

Qi Yan curled his lip. "She treats you to one meal, and she's a good person? Then what am I, after treating you to so many meals?"

"Then you're an even better person! Hehehe!!"

"Aye~~~!"

"Waiter! We want to order!!"

Natsu waved the waiter over, then picked up the menu and began ordering with Happy. Before long, they had filled the entire table with food.

"Hey!"

Natsu grinned. "We don't know her that well, so we wouldn't feel right eating too much. We only ordered a little earlier to be polite. But it's no problem if it's you, Qi Yan. You just completed an S-Rank Mission, so I'm going to eat my fill."

"Aye~~!"

Happy agreed excitedly.

"Aye, my ass!"

Qi Yan lightly flicked Happy on the head. Natsu might seem carefree and thoughtless, but he was occasionally rather considerate.

The three of them chatted while they ate, but Qi Yan's thoughts were on Lucy. Although he could no longer remember many details of Fairy Tail's plot, he still vaguely remembered how the story began.

Qi Yan recalled the middle-aged man surrounded by girls, and a trace of killing intent appeared in his eyes. That man was impersonating Fairy Tail.

After more than half a year in this world, he had come to regard Fairy Tail as another home. Anyone who tarnished Fairy Tail's reputation deserved to die. For now, he would let them enjoy their last moments of happiness.

Evening.

Night fell, and soft white moonlight shone over the sea. The reflected glow coated all of Hargeon in a lustrous sheen, keeping the town bright even at night. Together with the cool sea breeze, it felt wonderfully comfortable despite the summer heat.

Many people had come out to stroll along the coast at this hour. They could enjoy the beautiful seaside nightscape and walk off their meals, just like Qi Yan and the others.

"Ah! That was so satisfying!!"

Natsu patted his round, stuffed belly in satisfaction.

"Aye! I haven't been this full in ages!"

"You two really didn't hold back at all! Try causing less trouble from now on. If Erza finds out... Eek~~~!" Qi Yan shuddered.

Natsu's face immediately turned pale. "Don't say something so terrifying at a time like this!"

"Now you know fear? Hahahaha!"

Teasing Natsu made Qi Yan feel quite pleased.

"Right, the Fire Dragon said he was holding a party on a ship. Is that the one?"

Happy, walking along the seaside railing, spotted a ship sailing away in the distance. He remembered that the man called the Fire Dragon had said he would be holding a party aboard a ship.

"A ship... Ugh... I feel like throwing up..."

The moment Natsu saw the ship, nausea rose in his throat.

Suddenly, a girl's voice came from nearby.

"Look! That's the ship, Fire Dragon-sama's ship! Ah~~! I want to go to the party too!"

"Fire Dragon?"

The girl's close friend seemed unfamiliar with the name.

"You don't know? An incredibly powerful wizard came to our town. He's that super-famous Fairy Tail wizard."

Natsu and Happy froze, then looked toward Qi Yan. Qi Yan shook his head.

Natsu's expression instantly changed. Veins bulged on his forehead as he gritted his teeth. "That bastard... He dared to impersonate Fairy Tail!!"

"Happy!!"

"Aye!"

Happy immediately spread his wings, grabbed Natsu, and flew toward the departing ship.

"Hey!"

Qi Yan did not even have time to stop them.

"That idiot, did he forget he gets seasick again?"

He had originally planned to wait until they were farther away, then catch up and quietly deal with those people. Now, he had no choice but to go too.

Full Takeover: Ulquiorra Cifer!

Turquoise light radiated from around Qi Yan's body, and his appearance rapidly changed. In the blink of an eye, he had taken on Ulquiorra's form.

Qi Yan stomped down hard on the railing.

Boom!!

The railing shattered, and Qi Yan shot through the air toward the ship.

At that moment, every girl aboard the ship had dressed herself to the nines for the party.

Inside the cabin, Lucy sat in a black evening gown with a forced smile on her face.

She had run into the man called the Fire Dragon again at the park. He had promised to let her join the Fairy Tail Guild she had dreamed of joining, on the condition that she attend this party. In order to join Fairy Tail smoothly, she had agreed. Once she dealt with this idiot and joined Fairy Tail, she would kick this annoying guy to the curb.

"Your name is Lucy? What a lovely name."

"Thank you."

"Let's have a drink first."

"Wouldn't it be rude to ignore the other girls?"

She did not want to spend too much time alone with someone like him.

"It's fine, it's fine. Right now, I only want to drink with you."

Snap!

The Fire Dragon snapped his fingers, and the wine in the glass slowly floated into the air, forming droplets.

"Please open your mouth. The jewels of wine will slide into your throat."

So annoying!

That little trick might work on ordinary girls who could not use magic, but to her, it only made her feel physically sick.

Still, she had no choice. She had to endure it, endure it, endure it. Lucy closed her eyes and opened her mouth.

Whoosh, smack!

Lucy suddenly stood up and swatted all the wine to the floor, her expression turning ugly as she said:

"What are you trying to do? There's sleeping medicine in the wine."