Decision

Night

Home

Mirajane and Elfman sat silently on the sofa. The house that had once been filled with laughter and joy now held nothing but silence.

Qian Guang grew angry when he saw Elfman acting so cowardly. Lisanna had told him not to blame himself until the very end, yet he was still going to keep running away like this?

"Elfman, come to the study for a moment."

Qian Guang suddenly spoke, and both Mira and Elfman looked up at him.

"Qian Guang, don't..."

Mira looked at Qian Guang with tears in her eyes. She thought he was blaming Elfman, and she did not want there to be a rift between them.

Qian Guang patted her head. "It's fine. I just want to talk to him. Go check on Dumb Dumb first. He's been looking gloomy all this time, like he's sick."

Mirajane did not insist any further. She had been so anxious just now that she had lost her composure. She had seen how Qian Guang treated Elfman. Though he complained about him, he regarded Elfman completely as a younger brother, just as she did. How could he possibly blame him?

"Let's go!"

Elfman silently followed Qian Guang upstairs, moving as though he were a machine.

The study door slowly closed. Qian Guang turned around and carefully looked at Elfman before him.

A weary face, a hunched body, and eyes without the slightest trace of light.

Bang!

Qian Guang viciously pressed his head against the wall. "Elfman! Look at yourself right now!"

"Is this what you call being a man?!"

"What kind of man is like you? Can you still use magic? Are you even a wizard anymore?!"

"Lisanna was still worrying about you until the very end! And you? You're wasting away here, like a block of wood!"

Qian Guang treated Mira and Elfman very differently. Mira was hurting too, but she had not become like a machine like this.

He had watched Elfman these past few days. He had been living in self-blame, without the slightest spark of life.

Every word Qian Guang spoke struck mercilessly at Elfman's wounds.

Elfman trembled as tears streamed down his face.

"Brother Qian Guang, I killed Lisanna."

Qian Guang grabbed him and lifted him up. "The one who killed Lisanna was the Beast King! Bastard! Don't you want revenge?! That thing's soul is inside your body. Take control of it!"

Elfman stared blankly at Qian Guang. It was not as though no one had told him these past two days that it was not his fault. Even the guild master had come to counsel him, but he simply could not listen.

Qian Guang looked at Elfman with some heartache. He had long since regarded himself as a member of this world, this guild, and this family.

He did not know whether he would bring change to this world. He only wanted to do everything he could to protect them.

"You did great, Elfman. You protected Mira. You protected the residents. The demon was simply too strong—so strong that you lost yourself. Next time, don't lose again. You're the strongest man there is."

Elfman looked at Qian Guang, choking up. Qian Guang patted his head, took out some food, and walked out.

"Aaaahhh!"

As he left, Qian Guang heard Elfman's heart-wrenching sobs.

"Hang in there, Elfman."

Downstairs

"Is Elfman all right?"

"He's fine. He just needs to let it out. He's been bottling everything up too much."

"I see."

Mira no longer wore her usual smile. Even her ever-present ponytail had come undone.

Dumb Dumb had already fallen asleep nearby, but judging by the waves of magic power radiating from him, this sleep would bring an unusual change.

"Qian Guang... I think I can't use magic anymore."

Qian Guang's body stiffened. He had guessed as much, but he had still held onto a faint hope that, with him here, perhaps Mira's fate might be different.

So what had I changed, exactly?

Qian Guang began to doubt himself a little. Was he really nothing more than a spectator?

But when he saw Mira's tear-filled eyes and bitter smile, the unease in his heart vanished, leaving only heartache.

Goddess, spectator or changer, please don't let her be sad.

Qian Guang gently wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay. I'm here. I'll solve it. I'll stay with you."

"Aah, Qian Guang... what am I supposed to do?"

Mira could no longer hold back her emotions. She felt as though she had fallen into an abyss, and Qian Guang was the only support available to a drowning person.

The little witch of the guild, the famed Demon of the outside world, was helpless for the first time. Even when the villagers had excluded her back then, she had stubbornly lived on and worked hard.

"All right, stop crying. Are you trying to make Lisanna laugh at you?"

"Come on, follow me."

Qian Guang led Mirajane out of the house.

He pointed to the brightest star in the sky. "Look. Lisanna is watching us. Can you bear to let her see her all-powerful big sister crying?"

Mirajane stared blankly at that shining star. It was so bright, truly just like Lisanna.

"Lisanna."

Mira spread her arms as though she wanted to embrace someone.

An illusory Lisanna flew down from the sky and arrived before Mira.

Mira stared blankly at the figure before her. "Lisanna... Lisanna!"

She tried to grab Lisanna, but her hands passed straight through her.

Mira refused to give up and kept trying to pull Lisanna into her arms, but she was nothing but an illusion.

The illusory Lisanna only looked at Mira tenderly. She reached out, wanting to wipe away Mira's tears. She kept saying something, but her voice could not reach Mira.

Mira wanted to hold the hand on her face, but she was afraid—afraid that it would pass through again. She only gently copied Lisanna's movements and stroked her cheek.

"Lisanna, I'm sorry. I really was such an unqualified big sister. I couldn't protect you."

"You have to take good care of yourself. You can't be as mischievous as before. Brother Qian Guang won't clean up after you anymore."

"I'll take care of Elfman. I also believe he can move on. He's a real man, after all."

Mira understood something. She did not force anything, slowly giving reminders and talking about the trivial details of life, just as she had in the past. But she knew this was her final farewell to Lisanna.

Qian Guang stood some distance away, watching Mira continuously pour out her feelings.

A magic circle lit up in the hand behind his back: a rare magic, Illusion Magic.

Gradually, Mira's voice grew softer and softer. She simply looked quietly at Lisanna.

Lisanna gradually rose into the sky. With her familiar smile, she waved goodbye to Mira and headed toward the brightest star.

"Goodbye, Lisanna! Take good care of yourself!"

Mirajane shouted, all her former gloom swept away. She could not let that child worry about her.

Qian Guang returned to Mira's side.

"Sorry. I said so much that you didn't even get a chance to speak."

"You know me. I can't say goodbye."

A smile appeared on Mira's face. "I don't believe that."

The next day

Qian Guang and Mira went to speak with the guild master about some matters. Natsu and the others did not hear what they said.

However,

From that day onward, the guild's bar had a beautiful, gentle poster girl. She had long, smooth white hair, with her bangs combed over the top of her head, and she usually wore a dress.

A medicine storehouse was also opened beside the bar. A dejected-looking young man was always holding a pipe in his mouth, filled with unknown herbs. The only thing certain was that it was not tobacco.

He usually brewed medicinal wine, went fishing, made potions, annoyed the guild master, annoyed Porlyusica, treated patients, and flirted with our poster girl. The key was that the poster girl was happy about it! At night, the two of them even went home together!

What? Elfman?

He was probably studying philosophy in the boys' dormitory.