The Black-Winged Demon of Fairy Tail

The next morning, Yushi arrived at Magnolia Town's train station. It didn't take long for him to spot Erza, who was pushing a massive cart full of luggage.

"Sorry for the long wait!" Erza greeted.

Yushi couldn't help but chuckle. "You always carry so much luggage. It's like you're moving every time."

Though this was his first mission with Erza, he'd often seen her set out on trips with an impressive amount of luggage.

"Is it really that exaggerated? I think it's pretty normal," Erza replied nonchalantly. "The train's leaving soon. Let's board."

As they stepped onto the train, neither noticed two figures sneaking into the car behind them.

"Come to think of it, this is the first time I've ever gone on a mission with you," Yushi remarked once they were seated.

When Yushi first joined the guild, Erza had already been an S-Class mage. A year later, he attained the same rank, but they'd never teamed up until now.

"That's true. Why? Do you dislike the idea?" Erza asked.

"Not at all!" Yushi replied earnestly. "In fact, I wouldn't mind going on missions with you for the rest of my life."

Erza's cheeks flushed faintly at his words. For a brief moment, she looked uncharacteristically shy, but her expression quickly returned to its usual calm.

"Let's focus on the task," she said, steering the conversation back.

Yushi was curious about what could have prompted someone as independent as Erza to ask for his help.

Erza began explaining. After finishing her last mission, she had stopped at the mage bar at Onibas Station.

There, she overheard a group of mages discussing their plans to unlock the seal on something called *Lullaby*. Initially, she dismissed it as idle chatter.

However, as she traveled back to the guild, she remembered hearing the name Erigor—a dangerous figure known as the "God of Death."

"Erigor?" Yushi repeated.

"Yes. He's the ace of the dark guild Eisenwald," Erza confirmed.

Yushi raised an eyebrow. The title "God of Death" intrigued him. As someone who wielded the power of *Hollows*, he felt an inherent connection to the concept.

"Erigor's reputation comes from accepting assassination jobs. That's how he earned his nickname," Erza explained.

"Dark guilds," Yushi muttered.

Erza nodded. "Eisenwald was expelled from the Mage Guild Alliance six years ago. They've been a dark guild ever since."

Yushi rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Over the past four years, he'd made a habit of targeting dark guilds. Destroying them and absorbing their essence had significantly increased his fusion levels.

For the dark guilds, Yushi was a nightmare—a figure of death and destruction.

Meanwhile, in the last car of the train, Lucy was trying to spy on Yushi and Erza.

"This distance is no good! I can't hear what they're saying," she muttered. "We'll have to keep following them."

"Lucy, are you a stalker?" Happy asked, hovering beside her.

"NO!" Lucy snapped. "If you two hadn't dragged me into this, I wouldn't even be here."

"But you look interested," Happy teased.

"I am not interested!" Lucy insisted. Then she glanced at Natsu, who was slumped over in his seat, barely conscious.

"And why would Natsu come along when he gets motion sickness so easily?" she added in exasperation.

"Haaah… Haaah…" Natsu groaned, looking like he might faint at any moment.

The train pulled into Onibas Station, and Yushi and Erza disembarked.

"Quick! They got off. Let's follow them," Lucy urged.

She and Happy hurried after the pair.

"I was too careless," Erza said as they walked. "If I had realized earlier who Erigor was, I could've dealt with the entire group back at the bar."

"They're trying to unlock *Lullaby's* magic. Whatever they're planning, we can't let it happen," she added firmly.

Yushi smirked. "So, the plan is simple—destroy Eisenwald, right?"

"Exactly," Erza replied. With Yushi by her side, she was confident they could succeed.

"Do we know where Eisenwald is?" Yushi asked.

"Not yet," Erza admitted. "We'll have to split up and investigate."

Yushi nodded. "Sounds good, but first, there's something else we need to deal with."

He turned abruptly, his gaze landing on Lucy and Happy, who were hiding poorly behind a wooden box.

Startled, Lucy and Happy quickly ducked down, whispering:

"They can't see me! They can't see me!"

When they looked up again, Yushi's face was directly in front of them.

"AAAAAHHH!" Lucy and Happy screamed, clinging to each other.

"Are you the new girl?" Erza asked, recognizing Lucy from the guild.

Yushi crossed his arms. "Lucy? Happy? Why were you following us?"

Both shook their heads frantically.

"No, no, no! It's not us—it's Natsu!" Lucy stammered.

"Natsu?"

The trio turned around, only to realize that Natsu was nowhere to be found.

"No way… Natsu's missing?!" Lucy gasped.

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800 words

The usual...