Chapter 53
"Welcome, children who have traveled from far."
When Marshall and Cana arrived at the settlement aboard the Flying Card, an elderly man with a white beard came forward to greet them, accompanied by the "villagers."
He wore clothing resembling the traditional dress of an indigenous tribe.
"My name is Roubaul. You could say I’m the Guild Master of Cait Shelter."
He smiled gently.
"I never expected such young children to visit a place this remote. May I ask what brings you here?"
"This really is a wizard guild?" Cana looked around in surprise. "Cait Shelter... I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it."
"Our guild isn’t particularly famous, but we are officially registered with the Magic Council."
Marshall pretended to examine the surrounding village before suddenly speaking.
"A guild with only one member?"
Roubaul turned toward him and sighed.
"Your talent for Telepathy Magic is remarkable, child. I suppose there was no hiding it from you."
"What? What are you talking about?" Cana stared around in confusion. "There are lots of people here!"
Marshall tapped the side of his head.
"This village is unusually quiet. There are almost no distinct voices."
"If you calm down and sense their magic carefully, you’ll notice that every one of these ’people’ possesses exactly the same magic power."
He looked toward Roubaul.
"If I’m not mistaken, they’re all Thought Projections."
"...The younger generation truly is extraordinary."
Roubaul regarded the tiny Marshall with a complicated expression.
"You are correct. This guild was created entirely from my Thought Projections."
"The truth is, there is only one person standing before you."
The moment Roubaul felt a wave of Telepathy Magic sweep across all his projections, he knew the deception had already been discovered.
That was why he had stepped forward and spoken directly to Marshall.
"Of course, I had my reasons for doing this."
He folded his hands over his staff.
"But before I explain, may I ask what brought the two of you here?"
Cana was still stunned by the old man’s immense magic power and answered without thinking.
"We’re just passing through. We came into this forest to hunt Magical Beasts, and when we spotted a village nearby, we decided to take a look."
"I see... So your arrival was merely a coincidence."
Roubaul studied them.
"Are you also members of a wizard guild?"
Marshall snapped his fingers.
The Fairy Tail emblem on his back was projected into the air behind him as an enormous image of light.
"That’s right. I’m Marshall, she’s Cana, and this is Ruby."
He gestured to the kitten on his head.
"We’re Mages from Fairy Tail."
"Hello, nya!"
Roubaul stroked his beard thoughtfully.
"Fairy Tail? I remember hearing of a guild by that name becoming increasingly active over the past century."
He paused.
"Although its reputation seems somewhat... questionable. An old acquaintance of mine on the Magic Council often complained about your guild."
"..."
Marshall and Cana both fell silent.
They knew their own guild far too well.
Marshall smoothly changed the subject.
"Our guild members are simply more honest about expressing themselves."
"Since you know someone on the Council, you should also know our Guild Master. He’s one of the Ten Wizard Saints."
"My apologies. I rarely communicate with the outside world and maintain only the minimum necessary contact with the Council."
Roubaul didn’t pursue the subject.
"Still, a guild capable of raising such exceptional young Mages can’t be entirely terrible."
He then began explaining without further prompting.
"The truth is, I created all these Thought Projections for the sake of one child."
"She was brought to me last year. She had nowhere else to go and desperately admired wizard guilds."
Roubaul’s expression softened.
"I wanted her everyday life to be a little happier, so I had no choice but to create this place."
"What?!" Cana exclaimed. "You created an entire guild by yourself just to keep one little girl company?"
Her eyes widened with admiration.
This old man was incredibly kind—far more grandfatherly than Makarov.
Marshall, however, looked at Roubaul with newfound respect.
"...Maintaining so many Thought Projections must consume an enormous amount of magic power."
His voice became quieter.
"And without a physical body, you can no longer replenish what you use."
"Wait..." Cana’s expression changed. "Sir, are you...?"
"Hehe. It doesn’t matter."
Roubaul smiled peacefully.
"Being able to see the faces of old friends again after so long has already brought me great happiness."
He turned away.
"Come with me. I’ll introduce you to Wendy."
"I hope you’ll take that child with you."
Roubaul began walking toward the largest building in the settlement.
"I’ve spent a long time waiting for someone trustworthy to appear and give Wendy a new home. Perhaps your arrival truly is the guidance of fate."
"You trust us that easily?" Marshall asked.
"Hehehe. How wicked could two children possibly be?"
Roubaul looked back at him with amusement.
"And regardless of anything else, living with you would surely be better than spending her life surrounded by a group of people who are already ’dead,’ wouldn’t it?"
He tapped his staff against the ground.
"Why don’t we consider this a request entrusted to your guild?"
"..."
Cana hadn’t thought much of the village until Roubaul said that.
Only then did she suddenly realize there wasn’t a single living person around them.
A chill ran down her spine, and she moved behind Marshall.
"Marshall... I think we accidentally found another incredibly serious job."
"We’re already here. We might as well see where this leads."
Roubaul guided the two children and their kitten into the settlement’s largest building—the Cait Shelter guildhall.
The place had seemed lively from outside, but it suddenly became eerily quiet the moment they entered.
Only one small girl inside seemed out of place among the projections.
She was holding a white kitten in her arms!
"A cat! Another cat, nya!"
The moment Ruby spotted the white kitten, she excitedly flew from Marshall’s head.
"Hello, nya! I’m Ruby, nya! Let’s be friends, nya!"
"A kitten!" the little girl exclaimed. "Carla, look! It’s one of your kind!"
"A-Are you truly the same kind as me?" Carla asked cautiously. "And why do you add ’nya’ to everything you say?"
The white kitten frowned deeply at the pink-striped cat in front of her.
Ruby seemed a little foolish.
Did she even understand what she was?
"Because Boss told me to, nya! We’re cats, so what’s wrong with saying nya?"
"Boss?"
"That’s right. Ruby is my cat."
Marshall spoke with complete confidence.
"Cats are supposed to add ’nya’ when they speak. Isn’t that common knowledge?"
"Is... Is it?"
Carla had only been alive for two weeks herself.
She stared at Marshall’s perfectly serious expression and began doubting everything she knew.
He didn’t look like he was lying.
Could she be the strange one here?
The little girl hugged the wide-eyed Carla closer and happily examined the new guests.
"Grandpa Roubaul, who are they?"
"Wendy, these are your new companions."
"What?!" Wendy’s eyes lit up. "Are they joining our guild?"
She quickly bowed.
"H-Hello! I’m Wendy. It’s very nice to meet you!"
The moment Cana saw the tiny, shy girl before her, every thought of refusing Roubaul’s request vanished.
Her eyes sparkled.
Perhaps she could become like Mira and have both a little brother and a little sister!
Roubaul shook his head gently.
"Wendy, they are not becoming members of our guild."
His voice remained warm.
"You will be joining theirs."
Wendy froze.
"Wendy, I should be the one thanking you."
"The time we spent together allowed me to remember the happiness I once lost."
Roubaul’s smile became sorrowful.
"But now... it is time for us to say goodbye."
All color drained from Wendy’s face.
"G-Grandpa Roubaul?"