As the sky gradually darkened, the recovering comrades left the guild one by one to return to their homes and rest.
During this time, Chase carefully studied the newly appeared Card Space. Just like when he had first transmigrated and hadn't obtained any cards yet, it was a barren plain with nothing noteworthy. After investigating alongside Dark Magician and the others, they ultimately reached this conclusion: it could basically be confirmed as a new deck independent of "Mutou Yugi's" deck, but its specific contents could only be determined once new cards dropped!
Night had enveloped the bustling Magnolia.
Orange street lamps cast their glow across the streets, sparkling with dancing specks of light on the gently flowing river beside them.
Chase, Mira, and Erza walked along the path back to their temporary residence.
In truth, the shy girls had initially planned not to come along, but after learning that Chase's new Card Space, which had appeared after unlocking his Second Origin, was still unstable, they couldn't help but worry.
"The night scenery of Magnolia seven years later—it's changed so much..." Mira said, gazing curiously at the surrounding nightscape.
"It feels much quieter than before," Erza added, then cupped her chin thoughtfully. "Could it be because Chase doesn't exist here?"
Last night, they had been too focused on getting to Chase to pay attention to such trivial changes.
"Oh my, that's entirely possible. After all, wherever Chase goes, he always receives a warm welcome from the citizens~" Mira giggled behind her hand, emphasizing the word "warm."
Upon hearing this, Erza clenched her fists with determination: "Don't worry, Chase! When we get back, I'll definitely put in a good word for you with the citizens!"
"Hey, you two! My relationship with the citizens has always been perfectly fine!" Chase quickly protested from the middle.
Though Erza's resolve—acting not as a comrade but as a girlfriend—was heartwarming, he still wanted to say that there was no need to take this matter so seriously.
Sure, the citizens usually acted like they wanted to avoid him, but if there were a "Most Popular Mage in the City" ranking, he was confident he'd take first place!
Just then, an old fishing boat slowly drifted by on the city's ring river.
"Hey there, young man and you two lovely ladies! Try not to wander around at night if you can help it—Magnolia's security hasn't been great these past few years," called out the kind-hearted boatman.
"Got it! You stay safe too~" Mira replied with a smile.
She had a strong impression of this warm-hearted boatman. It seemed he had already been a fisherman when she had first arrived in Magnolia with Elfman and Lisanna.
After bidding the boatman farewell, the three continued on their way.
"Security not great?" Erza found it strange, glancing at the houses with their closed doors and windows. "Before, even if a drunkard was lying by the roadside, they'd sleep safely until morning."
"Is that drunkard you're talking about Cana, by any chance?" Mira asked with a smile.
"Huh? Is it that obvious?!" Erza's eyes widened in surprise.
"Who cares. Security's bad, so what? Who would dare rob—"
Before Chase could finish his sentence, two masked men wielding blades suddenly burst out from a dark alley at the street corner ahead.
Wait—there really were?!
"Stop right there! This is a robbery! If you know what's good for you, hand over all your valuables!!" the lead thug shouted menacingly.
The sharp daggers gleamed coldly under the streetlight.
"They actually showed up this fast—"
Erza, with her overflowing sense of justice, frowned and stepped forward coldly, ready to teach these two good-for-nothing thugs a lesson.
Then a fearful voice from behind made her freeze mid-step.
"Chase, I'm so scared! They're robbers! You'll protect me, right~"
Erza turned around to see that shameless Mira had nestled herself into Chase's arms, putting on a pitiful, frightened act!
Whether it was out of jealousy, sheer annoyance at Mira's antics, or a desire to show Chase a more feminine side of herself, the ever-stiff and strong-willed Erza's mind went blank. As if making some sort of resolve, she turned around, marched back with painfully stiff steps, and tugged at Chase's sleeve.
"Ch-Chase... I-I'm scared too."
But compared to Mira's natural performance, Erza's tense expression looked far too forced.
Though she had dreams of being a stage actress, as seen from the theater job in the commercial city of Onibas, her talent in this area was severely lacking.
"Damn it! You think we're idiots?!" The two robbers felt deeply insulted, their mouths twitching with rage. "We're vicious robbers! We're not part of some kinky roleplay!!"
"So which is it—are you robbing us for money or for our bodies?" Chase asked.
He felt these two were oddly comical, not like locals from Magnolia at all.
More than that, he was actually more worried that if this kept up, the upright Erza would eventually be "corrupted" by the crafty Mira.
"Is that even a question?! Money, obviously! We're not the type to do things against a woman's will!" the lead robber declared, brandishing his dagger with righteous indignation. "Don't worry—as long as you pay up, we won't hurt you!"
Not bad—they had some moral standards.
Chase glanced at Mira, who was "trembling" in fear beside him, and Erza trying to imitate her. He couldn't help but feel dissatisfied. "What? You don't think my girlfriends are pretty?"
"Super pretty—even prettier than the cover girls in Weekly Sorcerer Magazine!" The lead robber's compliment slipped out instinctively, before his exposed eyes flickered with menace. "But what does that have to do with us robbers?!"
"Dammit, boss! He's got two girlfriends!" The underling robber gritted his teeth in envy, his priorities clearly misplaced.
"Haha, I agree," Chase said, thoroughly pleased.
Combining the biggest change in Magnolia seven years later and the boatman's resigned tone, he could roughly guess the identities of these two robbers.
"Enough talk! Hand over the money!"
The laugh, inexplicably irritating, made the lead robber lose his patience. Gripping his dagger tightly, he began advancing toward them.
Still, deep within his eyes lurked a barely noticeable hint of cowardice.
Then, the next second—
"Coming out so late to rob people—you two must work hard," Chase said, walking off with Mira and Erza.
The two robbers stood there dumbfounded, staring at the stack of bills in their hands, lost in deep thought.
"Are you kidding me?! Get back here!" The lead robber shouted at their retreating backs. "Do you have any idea how much mental preparation it took for me to work up the courage to do this?!"
"Yeah, yeah! At least show a little genuine fear!" the underling chimed in.
At that, Chase and the other two stopped in their tracks.
"Oh my, mental preparation, is it..." Mira smiled—a little too sweetly.
"What?! I didn't manage to convey 'genuine fear' as an emotion?!" Erza began seriously reflecting.
Scene change.
The two robbers, now unmasked, huddled in the corner with black eyes and swollen faces.
"Since part of the blame for this might fall on Fairy Tail, I was planning to just pretend I didn't see anything," Chase said, brushing the dust off his clothes as he looked at them helplessly. "So... can we go now?"
***
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