Fairy Tail Destiny

"I'm so speechless that I don't even know what to say," Erza rolled her eyes at Natsu in the prison of the Magic Council's Fiore branch. "This was just a formality."

"Formality?" Natsu, whose intelligence in political matters was in the negatives, had several question marks popping up above his head.

"It means that arresting Erza is just for show. In order to maintain order in the magical world, even the Council has to demonstrate its authority to the public," Noel explained to Natsu.

"What kind of nonsense is that? I don't get it at all!" The straightforward Natsu clearly couldn't grasp this concept.

"In other words, although she was found guilty, there was no real punishment. If you hadn't caused trouble, we would have been able to leave today," Erza stated plainly, opting for the simplest explanation upon realizing Natsu wouldn't understand the details.

"W-What?" Upon hearing Erza's words, Natsu immediately turned to stone, realizing that his well-intended actions had backfired.

"Forget it, Erza," Noel interjected with a small smile. "Natsu meant well, and besides, this has been an interesting experience, hasn't it? This place… gives me a familiar feeling. It reminds me of my past…" His voice softened.

"Your past?" Both Erza and Natsu looked at Noel in confusion.

Noel hugged his knees, falling silent for a moment before speaking again.

"Yeah… a long time ago, probably after I turned four. I lived in a place like this… No, compared to that place, this is heaven. At least… here, no one would be so afraid of you escaping that they'd nail your hands to the wall—making every slight movement feel like your hands were being torn apart. And… no one would look at you with the same kind of fear… like you were a monster."

Erza and Natsu both fell silent.

They knew nothing about Noel's past—only the Guild Master seemed to know something, but whenever they asked, he would always remain quiet.

"…Did you know?" Noel's voice became distant and ethereal, as if drifting from another world. "I once had… a beautiful dream. A truly beautiful dream. But in the end, a dream is just a dream… When the person who gave me that beautiful dream… personally shattered it before my eyes… that was when I realized something. The most painful thing isn't losing something—it's watching what's most important to you being crushed right in front of you… and being powerless to stop it."

"Noel…" Erza murmured his name, but no words followed.

The usually warm and gentle presence that surrounded him now felt so cold and distant, as if he existed in another time and space—no matter how hard she tried, her fingers could never reach him.

(Noel… he is the kindest person in the world, yet also the cruelest. He cherishes life more than anyone, yet longs for death more than anyone.)

Makarov's words echoed in her mind.

(That fool… deep in his subconscious, he always ignores his own wounds, his own pain, his own existence. Yet, he cares about others' well-being more than anyone. He worries about others' feelings more than anyone… That is his affliction. And it has consumed him so deeply that even he doesn't realize it. He continuously denies his own presence, denies everything about himself… If anyone can save him, perhaps it's only you and Mira, Erza.)

(Master… is this what you meant by Noel's affliction?) Erza silently gazed at Noel, lost in thought.

"Sorry, I got a little lost in my thoughts." Noel came back to his senses, realizing that he had unknowingly recalled his past without considering that Erza and Natsu were still present.

"Noel."

"Hm? What is it, Natsu?"

For once, Natsu's expression was serious as he looked straight at Noel. "Right now, you're a member of Fairy Tail. Aren't we family? We'll always be together."

Noel was stunned for a moment, then a warm smile appeared on his lips. "Yeah, we'll always be together."

(Master, maybe you were a little wrong about one thing. The ones who can save Noel… it's not just me and Mira. Everyone in Fairy Tail has that chance.)

Erza watched as Noel and Natsu started playfully bickering with each other, and a gentle smile formed on her face.

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The next day, at Fairy Tail Guild

"Ah, the air of freedom is truly refreshing!" Natsu sighed in satisfaction. "This is the best!" His excitement was through the roof after finally being released from the Magic Council's prison.

"So noisy."

"Shut up already."

The guild members voiced their complaints about Natsu's racket.

"Natsu's liveliness is what makes him so lovable," Mira said with a gentle smile as she watched him run around the guild.

Lucy, meanwhile, slumped over the table in exhaustion. "So in the end, it was all just a formality? I worried for nothing…"

Gray, on the other hand, suddenly had a look of realization. "I see now! It's because the frog messenger came right back!"

(Note: This is a pun in Japanese, as "frog" (カエル, kaeru) and "to return" (帰る, kaeru) sound the same.)

"As expected of the Ice Mage, that was ice-cold," Elfman said expressionlessly, clearly unimpressed by Gray's joke. Then, turning to Natsu, he shouted, "Speaking of which, how did your real man's battle with Erza go, Natsu?"

Natsu blinked in confusion before suddenly realizing. "Oh, right! I forgot! Erza, let's finish our fight!" He turned eagerly toward her.

"Forget it, I'm too tired right now," Erza waved him off, looking completely uninterested.

"I'm coming at you!" Natsu, too hyped to listen, clenched his fist and charged straight at her.

"Sigh…" Erza let out a tired breath. Then, to everyone's shock, she suddenly threw out a punch—hitting Natsu squarely in the stomach with perfect accuracy.

"Well, I guess we can start now," she said casually.

"It's already over," Happy commented as he looked at Natsu, who was sprawled on the ground, limbs twitching and eyes rolled back from the single hit.

"Hahaha, what a disgrace, Natsu!" Gray and Elfman laughed mercilessly at him.

"Erza really is strong," someone in the guild remarked in awe.

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