Makarov sighed helplessly. These brats were all growing up, each with minds of their own.
Honestly, when he first saw the newspaper, he was scared out of his wits. Even though Kaien had defeated the dragon in the end, the whole ordeal had been terrifying.
After all, dragons were legendary creatures.
But when he saw Kaien winning the Sword Tournament and protecting an entire city, he also felt an immense sense of pride.
Kaien and Erza quickly slinked back into the crowd.
"Kaien! Kaien! You really beat a dragon?! Did it say anything about Igneel?!"
Natsu rushed over, eyes shining. He had spent years searching for Igneel, but to no avail.
Kaien shook his head. "No. And it might not even know who Igneel is. It had been sealed for 400 years and went straight for revenge against humans after it was released."
Kaien knew the truth—that Igneel was inside Natsu's body, building up antibodies—but that wasn't something he could explain. It was too hard to justify how he'd know such a thing.
Besides, if Natsu found out, he might just stab himself in the stomach to "see for himself." Better not stir up trouble.
Gray muttered, "Kaien, are you cursed or something? Both times you've gone on missions, the missions have leveled up mid-way."
"Cursed? I'd say I'm lucky. S-Rank missions pay better, after all."
"..."
No one could keep that conversation going. It was way too… humble-braggy.
Elfman asked, "Kaien, what exactly is your Take Over Magic? I thought it was like my sister's—Mirajane uses Take Over: Satan Soul—but how come you can transform into a swordsman?"
His sister used demon-type Take Over. He himself used beast-type. His little sister used animal-type. But Kaien clearly didn't fit any of those.
Everyone was curious. After all, Kaien's Take Over forms were way too powerful—he even slew a dragon.
Kaien had already prepared an answer: "I Take Over the souls of heroic spirits from other worlds."
"Heroic spirits from other worlds?!"
Everyone looked confused.
Kaien explained, "You may not know this, but beyond our world, there are many other worlds. My magic allows me to Take Over the souls of heroic spirits from those other worlds."
Erza asked, "Then are Yoriichi Tsugikuni and Ulquiorra Cifer real people?"
Kaien nodded. "Yes. Yoriichi was the strongest swordsman of the Demon Slayer Corps in his world..."
Kaien began telling them the story of Yoriichi. Having inherited the man's memories through Take Over, he was able to describe it in far more detail than what was shown in the anime.
Suddenly—
Elfman burst into tears. "Waaaahhh!! Yoriichi was too tragic!!!"
"Yeah... it was heartbreaking! He was branded as cursed from birth, his own father tried to kill him, forced him to become a monk by age ten. He didn't even speak a single word until he was seven. His beloved mother died, his wife and child were killed by demons, and even his own brother became a demon! It's horrible! Those demons are too evil!!"
Mirajane also broke into tears, sobbing along with him.
Others, too, were silently tearing up.
No one had expected that such a cruel world existed, where man-eating demons roamed freely.
"What about Ulquiorra?"
Someone asked, since they hadn't seen Yoriichi in action, but they had seen Kaien use Ulquiorra's powers at the guild.
"Ulquiorra's life was simpler. He lived in a place called Hueco Mundo, and he was a kind of spirit known as a Hollow."
"Hollow?!!"
Everyone was startled.
"Yes. In that world, Hollows devour each other to grow stronger..."
Kaien gave a brief introduction to Ulquiorra. His life was simple—rejected by his peers due to his unusual color, he grew strong through sheer willpower, eventually reaching Vasto Lorde level. Even before meeting Aizen, he had already undergone Resurrección.
He only followed Aizen to try and understand the meaning of his own existence.
Kaien's description was concise, but everyone was completely drawn in by the Bleach world's setting. No one had expected such a bizarre and mysterious world to exist.
Afterward, the guild members asked more about the Sword Tournament, the monster tide, and the dragon. Kaien answered everything in simple terms, satisfying everyone's curiosity.
Eventually, as it got late, people started to disperse. When the Fairy Tail guild closed at sunset, Kaien, Mirajane, and Elfman headed home together.
Part of it was because they lived in the same direction—but the real reason was that Kaien wanted the Goddess's Blessing again.
Soon, Kaien arrived home first.
"Mirajane, can we do that thing again?"
"That thing?"
Mirajane blinked, then realized what he meant.
"Kaien, why do you keep asking me to do that?"
"Oh, that! Well, since my magic is Heroic Spirit Summoning, I try to summon heroic spirits from other worlds. But the odds of summoning a powerful one are really low, so I want the Goddess's Blessing to boost my chances."
"I see..."
Mirajane blushed slightly, then said shyly, "But I'm not really a goddess... I doubt I actually raise your luck."
"No! In my eyes, you are a true goddess!"
Kaien stared earnestly at Mirajane, his tone completely sincere. After all, she gave him two golden legends with just two 10x draws—what else could she be but a goddess?
Flustered by his heartfelt words and intense gaze, Mirajane smiled.
"O-Okay then! Kaien, I hope you're lucky again today!"
Her smile was like a blooming flower—so pure it healed Kaien's soul.
Ding! You've received the Goddess's Blessing! Luck +100!
"YES!"
Kaien pumped his fist. With the blessing of the goddess, he had to pull something amazing tonight!
Mirajane grew a little shy. "Alright Kaien, we're heading off. See you tomorrow."
"See you!"
Kaien waved from the doorway. After the two left, he turned back into his house.
He hadn't realized it, but he'd been away for nearly half a month. Being home just felt right.
He enjoyed a long, hot bath, washing away all the fatigue from the journey.
Once everything was settled, Kaien sat down on his bed and opened the system interface.
"Let's do this!"