Chapter 112: FTRJ: Chapter 112

He shook his head again. “No, that’s not quite right anymore. My physical body is long gone; I exist now only as a spirit.”

“To atone for my sins, and to wait for someone who could replace this powerless spirit and completely destroy Nirvana, I’ve been here for four hundred years.”

A smile finally touched his lips as he looked towards Finn and the others. “My task is finally complete.”

“This… how can I accept this…” Wendy murmured, her head bowed low.

Carla, her expression filled with concern, looked up at Wendy. She gently took Wendy’s drooping hand, as if trying to offer some comfort to the distraught girl.

“Originally, to protect Nirvana, I lived alone in this abandoned village for four hundred years.”

“Those four hundred years were incredibly long,” Roubaul said, gazing up at the sky.

“Loneliness, even for a spirit like me, was unbearable. Until Wendy’s arrival…” Roubaul’s gaze softened as he looked at Wendy’s small figure.

His eyes were filled with affection and a touch of melancholy.

“Alone?” Finn suddenly sensed something amiss and swept his gaze across the members of Cat’s House.

The members of Cat’s House noticed Finn’s gaze and looked up at him, wry smiles on their faces.

Under Finn’s intense scrutiny, their bodies began to shimmer, becoming increasingly translucent.

Tiny particles of light began to emanate from the bodies of the Cat’s House members.

However, they seemed oblivious to this phenomenon, their gazes fixed on Wendy and Carla, their expressions conveying a mixture of reluctance and serene acceptance.

Whoosh…

A figure dissolved into points of light, vanishing without a trace, as if it had never existed.

This disappearance served as a signal; one by one, the other figures began to vanish in the same manner.

Without exception, their final gazes were all directed towards Wendy and Carla.

They left behind their final, most beautiful smiles for the two girls.

“What’s happening? Everyone?” Wendy looked around frantically, her eyes darting from one disappearing figure to the next, her voice filled with alarm.

“Everyone… what’s going…” Even Carla, usually so composed and mature, was visibly shaken.

“Magna, Pepel…” Wendy cried out, her voice choked with emotion, tears welling up in her eyes.

“What in the world is going on? People are just disappearing!” Lucy gasped, her hand covering her mouth as she watched the unfolding events with disbelief.

“No… everyone, please don’t disappear!” Wendy cried, rushing towards one of the vanishing figures, desperately trying to grasp her hand, only to grasp at empty air.

Roubaul watched Wendy’s distress, his heart heavy with pain.

He lowered his head, his voice filled with remorse. “I’m so sorry for keeping this from you for so long.”

“The members of this guild… they were all merely illusions that I created.”

Wendy’s eyes widened, her expression frozen in a mixture of shock and disbelief.

“What did you say?!” Natsu exclaimed, his voice filled with incredulity.

“These were all illusions, each possessing their own distinct personalities. What astonishing and terrifying magical power!” Even Jura couldn’t help but express his astonishment.

“Seven years ago, a young boy brought Wendy to the place where I resided, entrusting her to my care,” Roubaul said, his voice drifting off as he was lost in a flood of memories.

“The boy’s eyes were filled with such sincerity that I couldn’t help but agree to his request.”

“Looking at Wendy back then, I suddenly found a renewed purpose in my life,” Roubaul said, a gentle smile finally gracing his lips.

“Simply watching Wendy grow and thrive, seeing her happy every day… that was enough for me…”

“I’m truly sorry, Wendy. At the time, to prevent you from feeling any sadness, I used the last of my remaining magical power to create the members of this guild.”

“He created an entire guild… for Wendy…” Finn stared at the old man, his eyes filled with profound respect.

Even as a mere remnant spirit, he had expended his last vestiges of magical power to create a sense of belonging and community for a single, innocent young girl.

Cat’s House was a guild that existed solely for Wendy.

Wendy pressed her hands tightly against her ears, her voice trembling. “I don’t want to hear this! I don’t want to hear it!!”

“Please, Pepel, Magna, don’t disappear!” Wendy cried, her tears flowing freely as she watched the last two remaining figures, excluding Roubaul, begin to fade away.

Roubaul wiped away the tears from his own eyes, his heart aching with the desire to leave Wendy with at least one happy memory of him.

“Wendy, Carla, you no longer need these illusory companions,” he said, raising his arm and gesturing towards the group of figures standing behind Wendy and Carla.

“You already have true companions by your side, don’t you?”

He laughed heartily, his body emitting a warm, radiant light.

Tears streamed down Wendy’s face as she fell to her knees. “No… Guild Master…” she cried out.

“Your bright future… it’s only just beginning,” Roubaul’s body began to dissolve into translucent particles.

“Guild Master!!” Wendy cried out, running towards him, only to reach out and grasp at empty air, collapsing to her knees.

Roubaul had completely vanished, dissolving into countless shimmering particles of light that scattered into the surrounding air.

“Everyone, thank you so much. Please look after Wendy and Carla!”

“I am eternally grateful.”

His voice, though no longer physically present, lingered in the air, carrying his deep affection and concern for Wendy and Carla.

The blue cat-shaped mark on his right arm also dissolved into light, dissipating into the sky.

“Guild Master——!!”

Wendy cried out to the heavens, her voice filled with raw grief and despair.

Lucy averted her gaze, unable to bear witness to Wendy’s overwhelming sorrow.

Suddenly, a warm hand gently rested upon Wendy’s small head.

“Wendy, you should actually be happy for Guild Master Roubaul. Four hundred years of wandering has left his soul weary. This… is a form of release for him,” Finn said softly, his gaze fixed on the dissipating particles of light.

“Let the bonds with your new companions help heal the pain of parting with those you love,” Finn added gently.

Wendy turned to see Finn’s kind smile.

He extended his hand towards her.

And once again, he spoke those words.

“Come. Join Fairy Tail.”

——————

Warm sunlight bathed the surface of the ocean as a sailboat glided across the water, gently rising and falling with the rhythm of the waves.

Natsu, his face beaming with delight, stood at the edge of the boat, enjoying the refreshing sea breeze, before breaking into a spontaneous run across the deck.

This was the first time Natsu had ever experienced the thrill of travel by sea.

“Wow! Turns out, vehicles are actually pretty awesome!” Natsu exclaimed, his voice filled with wonder as he continued his enthusiastic run.

Wendy smiled gently. “Troia will be wearing off soon.”

Troia was a specialized magic designed to counteract motion sickness.

As if on cue, shortly after Wendy’s words, Natsu’s joyful demeanor vanished, replaced by a look of utter misery as he collapsed onto the deck, his mouth puckered in discomfort.

Natsu reached out a trembling hand, his voice laced with pleading. “Please… please cast that magic on me again…”

Wendy sighed, her voice laced with a touch of exasperation. “If you use it consecutively, it’ll gradually lose its effectiveness.”

From his reclining position in a rocking chair at the rear of the boat, Finn, sporting a pair of sunglasses and basking in the warm sunlight, chuckled. “Wendy, you really don’t need to bother yourself with that fellow. The world will be a much quieter place without his incessant complaints.”

“I’ll give him a hand,” Erza said, stepping forward and delivering a powerful punch to Natsu’s abdomen.

Instantly, Natsu’s eyes rolled back, and he fell unconscious.

Lucy’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Erza’s swift and decisive action.

“I feel like I’ve seen this scene somewhere before…” she murmured thoughtfully.

Wendy, her voice laced with concern, addressed Erza. “Are you sure that’s alright?”

“Haha, don’t worry about him!” Gray added, his voice echoing Erza’s nonchalant attitude.

A day had passed since Roubaul’s disappearance. After a period of much-needed rest and recuperation, the group prepared to embark on their journey back home.

Wendy and Carla, having accepted Finn’s invitation, had decided to join Fairy Tail.

However, before that could happen, members of Blue Pegasus and Serpent Tail also expressed their desire for Wendy and Carla to join their respective guilds.

They extended invitations to both Wendy and Carla.

However, after a round of “friendly” negotiations orchestrated by Finn, the members of the other guilds reluctantly abandoned their attempts to recruit Wendy and Carla.

Of course, the primary reason for this was that Wendy and Carla had already made their decision to join Fairy Tail.

With the comfort and support of her newfound companions, Wendy gradually began to overcome her sadness. She had long harbored a deep admiration for Fairy Tail.

Many of the mages she had always looked up to were members of Fairy Tail.

For example, Finn, Erza, and Natsu, a fellow Dragon Slayer.

As for Carla, in her own words: “I’m only going because Wendy is.”

The happiest about Carla’s decision to join Fairy Tail was undoubtedly Happy, knowing that the prospect of spending more time with Carla would undoubtedly lead to more exciting adventures and stories.

And if one were to consider who emerged as the most fortunate individual from this entire expedition…

Finn suspected that it was Lucy.

Turning to look at Lucy, who was holding three golden keys, her face beaming with unrestrained joy, he knew that his suspicions were correct.

This was because, following Angel’s arrest, the contracts binding them to Angel had been automatically dissolved, resulting in the spirits seeking out Lucy once more.

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