Chapter 50
Erza had been in an excellent mood lately.
And it wasn’t only because Marshall had named his cat Ruby.
The day Marshall carried the little clothed kitten into the guildhall and announced her name, the place had erupted into chaos.
Natsu and the others constantly teased Erza about how fond she seemed of Ruby, but she didn’t care.
In fact, she adored the kitten—not merely because Ruby was cute, but because Marshall had proudly introduced her as a new member of his family.
To Erza, it felt as though the bond between her and Marshall had grown even stronger.
Of course, that alone wouldn’t have been enough to keep her this happy.
What truly delighted her was that Marshall had finally stopped burying himself in magical research and started training with her!
That alone could have kept Erza cheerful for an entire month.
Very few Mages in Fairy Tail used traditional weapons, so Erza had never had many suitable training partners.
The fact that Marshall was willing to practice with her made her genuinely happy.
And to her surprise, he wasn’t merely playing around for novelty’s sake.
He was remarkably talented with weapons too.
At first, Marshall had asked her to teach him how to use a katana.
Somewhere along the way, however, he had suddenly become extremely excited and started asking about spearmanship instead.
After only a few days, he could already handle a long spear with impressive confidence.
He could even exchange several proper moves with Erza now.
"Hah!"
Clang!
Spear and sword collided.
Because of his smaller body, Marshall was driven several meters backward, but there was no disappointment or frustration on his face.
Only excitement... and pure delight.
The reason was obvious.
[Spearmanship LV1: 50.8%]
When someone was truly happy, there was no hiding their smile.
Marshall hadn’t managed to suppress his once in days.
Honestly, he regretted not experimenting with weapons sooner.
He possessed an outrageously powerful System, yet he had never thoroughly explored everything it might be capable of recording.
The thought filled him with shame.
Why had he assumed it could only register magical skills?
He had already tested ordinary abilities like Drawing and Writing, so why had he never considered that martial techniques might also qualify as skills?
Oh, right.
Marshall had always thought of himself as a Mage.
Never mind, then.
Sometimes the most obvious possibility was the easiest to overlook.
If Ruby’s birth hadn’t inspired Marshall to try cosplaying as a monster hunter, he might never have picked up a katana at all.
And if he hadn’t swung it a few times, the System would never have registered Swordsmanship LV0, revealing just how enormous an opportunity he had been ignoring.
As for why he was currently using a spear instead of a katana...
Obviously, spearmen looked cooler!
A spear thrust like a dragon, its cry piercing the sky!
How could a Dragon Slayer possibly neglect spearmanship?
Exactly!
It absolutely had nothing to do with Marshall being too short to reach anyone properly with a katana.
Absolutely nothing.
’Ahem.’
Jokes aside, whether a weapon looked cool was secondary.
Marshall had chosen the spear because martial skills also appeared to involve personal talent.
His Swordsmanship experience had risen very slowly.
After trying several different weapons, he discovered that his Spearmanship progressed the fastest, so he focused on that instead.
Of course, his young age and limited physical development might also have made the other weapons more difficult to use.
Marshall planned to experiment with a greatsword once his Body-Conditioning Magic produced more obvious results.
And after he grew taller, he would give the katana another try.
"Marshall, you’ve already grasped the basics of spearmanship," Erza said. "I can ask someone to forge you a magical spear. A good weapon can increase your combat power enormously."
She looked at him, unable to suppress her own smile.
"Why don’t you learn Requip: The Knight from me too? If we formed a team someday, no one would be able to defeat us!"
Cana, who had been watching nearby, immediately waved an angry fist.
"Go away, Erza! Marshall is already on a team with me and Levy! Don’t even think about stealing him!"
"When did the three of you form a team?" Erza asked. "Why wasn’t I told?"
"Hmph! We’re the Book Lovers Team! We’ve even taken a job together, so how does that not count?"
"You didn’t actually complete that job..."
While the two girls argued, a fluffy white-and-pink kitten came wobbling through the air while carrying a towel.
"Boss! Here! Wipe sweat, nya!"
"Ruby is such a good girl!"
Marshall enthusiastically rubbed the kitten’s head.
He was extremely satisfied with his obedient little cat!
Under his careful guidance, she would surely become a fully capable magical companion in no time.
Marshall still didn’t know what species of magical cat Ruby belonged to.
Not only was she highly intelligent, she had also been born with the natural ability Aera, allowing her to sprout wings and fly.
Her growth rate was equally astonishing.
She had only been alive for a week, yet she could already speak about as well as a three- or four-year-old child.
Marshall was convinced that his Ruby was smarter than Natsu’s Happy.
"That’s so nice..." Cana sighed, resting her chin in both hands as she watched Marshall and Ruby affectionately interacting.
"Now I want a cat too..."
It was difficult to tell which of them she was actually jealous of.
"Marshall, are you really planning to take Ruby with us when we hunt Magical Beasts? I’m worried we won’t be able to protect her."
Marshall and Cana had agreed that once his egg hatched, they would set out together to collect Magical Beasts for her Summoning Cards.
He had no intention of breaking his promise and had been ready to leave several days ago.
But once Cana learned that Marshall planned to bring the newborn Ruby along, she suddenly became the hesitant one.
"Don’t worry, Cana. I’ll protect both of you."
Marshall smiled confidently.
"I might not be the strongest fighter, but when it comes to escaping, I should rank among the top three in the entire guild~"
Cana stared at him.
"?"
"You little brat! Which one of us is supposed to be the older sibling here?!"
She lunged forward to pinch him, but Marshall escaped with a short-range teleport.
"I’m serious. With my current Spatial Magic, I can teleport back and forth three times within a single second if I push myself."
"We don’t even need to remain outside overnight. Unless we encounter something capable of killing us instantly, I can’t imagine what danger we’d face."
"Wait. What did you just say?"
"Hm? That my Spatial Magic is excellent."
"No! You said we wouldn’t be staying outside overnight?"
"Of course not. Why would we?"
Marshall looked genuinely confused.
"I have no interest in camping outdoors. We’ll obviously return to Magnolia every evening."
Cana froze completely.
That’s right.
Marshall could teleport back to Magnolia whenever he wanted. There was no reason for them to camp in the wilderness.
Then what about the sweet sibling moment she had spent so long imagining?
The two of them lying together on the grass beneath the night sky, watching fireflies drift beneath the Milky Way...
What was all that supposed to be?!
’Evidence of your impressive imagination,’ Marshall silently remarked.
There was no chance he was sleeping outside like a hobo unless absolutely necessary!
He learned magic to make his life more comfortable!
If he still had to sleep in the wilderness like a caveman, what was the point of knowing magic?
"Then we leave tomorrow!" Cana spoke through clenched teeth, clearly irritated with herself.
Marshall responded with immediate enthusiasm.
"No problem! Ruby!"
"Ruby present! Nya!"
"Starting tomorrow, we’re officially monster-hunting partners!"
"Yes, Boss! Nya!"
"May the gods light your way!"
"Aye! Nya!"
"..."
Cana watched Marshall happily high-five his kitten and sank into deep thought.
Why did it look as though Marshall was only excited because he could go adventuring with his cat?
Could it be...
Was Cana merely the extra?
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