"Everyone! I really saw a Dragon! A huge, big black Dragon!"
The little girl raised her hands, trying to gesticulate the size of the black Dragon she spoke of.
But the adults around her didn't take her seriously. The little girl had said such things many times, and they just dismissed it as childish babble.
"Daphne, you're fantasizing again."
"How can Dragons still exist in this world?"
"Yeah, all the Dragons are dead."
"Could it be that she mistook a winged lizard monster for a Dragon? Children have the best imaginations, after all."
"..."
The adults smiled and humored the little girl, but Daphne still insisted she'd seen a Dragon with her own eyes. Her repeated claims made some adults impatient.
"Stop being unreasonable, Daphne! What good is all that imagination for a parentless brat like you?!"
"How can you argue with a child!"
"Daphne, are you okay? Uncle will buy you some candy..."
"..."
The little girl, pushed down and then helped up, had red eyes. That day, she made a firm decision: she would make Dragons reappear in this world.
Since she couldn't prove that the giant black Dragon she'd seen with her own eyes was real, she would create one herself!
From then on, for the sake of the Dragons she admired to reappear in the world, Daphne studied hard every day until late, eventually becoming a very talented Magic scientist.
However, research in Magic science required a lot of funding and resources, especially a project as resource-intensive as recreating a giant Dragon. Daphne simply couldn't afford it and couldn't find anyone willing to invest.
But then, a Black Magic Priest who claimed to be interested in Dragons approached Daphne, offering to invest in her and providing her with a Fire Dragon Slayer Lacrima.
Faced with this rare opportunity, even though Daphne knew the other party wasn't a good person, her longing for Dragons made her accept it without hesitation.
The Black Magic Priest asked Daphne not to conduct her research in areas monitored by the Council, so she returned to her hometown, a small town, and opened a research institute in a corner of it.
As her research deepened, Daphne gradually became obsessed with only "Dragons." She created conscious artificial life forms and endowed them with the form of giant Dragons.
For her experiments, Daphne even did absurd things like forcing the town residents to fight her artificial life form, Dragon Cavalry.
But all the town residents knew Stealth Magic. Fearing Daphne, they all hid using their Magic.
This angered the fanatical Daphne, so she used the power of the Dragon Cavalry to seal off the town and prevent the Stealth Magic from being dispelled.
However, the research on Dragon Cavalry quickly hit a bottleneck.
Although the Dragon Slayer Lacrima was made from the heart of a dead Dragon, its Magic Power was ultimately limited and could not sustain the activity of the Dragon Cavalry for long.
The life force and Magic Power of Dragons far surpassed that of humans. In the present, with the extinction of the Dragon race, the only way to find Magic Power that could match theirs was to use a Dragon Slayer who fought with "the power of Dragons."
Since the Dragon Cavalry was created with a Fire Dragon Slayer Lacrima as its core, Daphne needed to find a Dragon Slayer of the same attribute.
The cherry-haired young man who'd broken into Silent Town at that time was a suitable target.
But the cooperating Black Magic Priest stopped Daphne, because the guild of her target was quite troublesome, and they couldn't handle it.
She hadn't found any other Fire Dragon Slayers all these years, but Daphne never expected that the target she'd once set her sights on would deliver himself to her doorstep.
Natsu's reflection appeared in her glasses. The Dragon Cavalry behind her roared. Daphne stared intently at Natsu, consumed by extreme emotions.
Make the Dragon Cavalry a true Dragon!
The artificial life form, the giant Dragon, opened its mouth and spewed enormous, blazing flames, mercilessly engulfing the outsiders.
Dachiru, the Black Magic Priest in white robes, glanced at his partner. "Hey! Daphne, don't burn that Dragon Slayer to death."
"Don't worry, a Fire Dragon Slayer is immune to most flames. We'll need your help to capture him later."
Daphne commanded the Dragon Cavalry to attack, her true purpose being to eliminate the outsiders other than Natsu.
Unfortunately, she underestimated the Dragon Slayer and overestimated the power of the Dragon Cavalry.
The flames spewed by the Dragon Cavalry suddenly twisted and coiled into noodle-like forms, and Natsu devoured them all under Daphne's shocked gaze.
Beyond immunity, there was also consumption. How could Dragon Slayer Magic, which granted humans the physique of a Dragon, be so simple?
Wiping his mouth, Natsu's lips couldn't help but curl into a slight smile.
"Thanks for the meal."
"Next, it's my turn to return the favor!"
Magic Power erupted, and Natsu once again used his Fire Dragon's Iron Fist.
However, this time, Natsu's punching right arm was covered in a mysterious, inky black sheen, and even the rotating fiery Magic seal was tinged with a deep black.
Roaring Dragon Slayer flames, an unyielding Haki Iron Fist.
With a single blow, the Dragon Cavalry had nearly half its body shattered by Natsu.
Noah casually knocked out a Black Magic Cult member, then expressionlessly looked at the Dragon Cavalry being torn apart by Natsu.
A Dragon-shaped weapon with a Dragon Slayer Lacrima as its core going up against a Dragon Slayer — it would be strange if it didn't get destroyed.
An artificial life form, a giant Dragon, was not a true Dragon after all.
However, this also gave Noah a deeper impression of Dragon Slayer Magic.
That was, he must never let his Dragon Knights go up against a Dragon Slayer. Noah didn't want the four hundred years of effort in Edolas to be torn to shreds like the Dragon Cavalry.
"Noah! Stop posing and showing off! That Black Magic Priest is escaping!"
Gray's ice hammer sent the minions screaming, but he couldn't stop Dachiru, the Black Magic Priest, who was determined to flee.
However, before Noah could move, Mirajane, who was using Satan Soul, chased after him even faster. Watching the two fight further and further away, Noah chose not to follow.
Although it was publicly rumored that a Black Magic Priest was equivalent to an S-Class Mage, based on Noah's previous encounters with three Black Magic Priests, this statement was completely unfounded.
Other guilds might not know, but at least Noah could be sure that the S-Class Mages of Fairy Tail were definitely stronger than a Black Magic Priest.
Wasn't it normal for a guild that fought group battles every day to be a little stronger?
Moreover, Noah had another reason to stay.
Daphne's artificial life form, the giant Dragon, had a certain level of self-awareness, which meant it had life.
Noah wanted to get his hands on this technology.