"What?! Gildarts is going to run naked through the city?"
"If it's crossdressing, I'd recommend a black-and-white maid outfit—I think it would suit you perfectly~"
"Oh my, are you really going to follow through with that bet? Gildarts, should I take photos for the record?"
Hearing that there was entertainment to be had, and especially that it involved Gildarts, everyone immediately perked up their ears and gathered around.
Mira, who had witnessed the bet between these two true men on Tenrou Island, smiled and explained the whole story to everyone.
"I see. Well, there's no helping it, then."
Cana let out a helpless sigh, slowly rose, and said with an indifferent air, "If you're too embarrassed, I'll do the punishment together with you."
The bet between Gildarts and Chase was over who would win the S-Class trial—him or Lucy. Setting aside the meaningless rivalry between men, the fact was that she had let down her bastard dad's expectations, so it was only right for her to bear the consequences.
For someone who spent her days drinking in the guild wearing nothing but a bikini, running naked through the city wasn't really that big of a deal—it was even less stressful than wearing a maid outfit!
"Wait, wait—are you serious?" Chase asked.
He had always known Cana was bold, but he never expected her to be this bold.
Maybe he should just call off the second punishment? After all, it didn't have nearly the same devastating effect on Gildarts as the maid outfit did.
"No! Absolutely not!!"
Before Chase could soften and say anything, Gildarts, as the father, jumped in with a look of utter determination. "It's just crossdressing for charity and running naked through the city, right? I can do that in a heartbeat!!"
Compared to protecting his precious daughter's honor, that damned sense of shame naturally became irrelevant.
The atmosphere immediately ignited.
"As for the bet, let's settle it when we get back," Makarov finally spoke up, putting a stop to the commotion.
He was actually looking forward to it too, but as Gildarts had said earlier, the current situation wasn't appropriate.
Everyone, especially those from the future world, let out disappointed sighs.
"Oh? So lively. I thought there wouldn't be many people here this early."
Future Lucy's voice came from the entrance. Lucy stood beside her—the two looked like twin sisters, with slightly different clothes and hairstyles.
Lucy was wearing a casual outfit that bared her midriff, with her hair tied in a side ponytail. Unlike Future Lucy's surprised exclamation, she remained unusually quiet, her gaze fixed entirely on Chase.
The moment Chase noticed something off and turned around, the girl quickened her pace and launched herself straight into his arms.
"Lucy?"
Chase steadied himself to absorb the somewhat heavy impact, a little confused.
"It's nothing. I just... suddenly really wanted to hug you, Chase~"
Lucy buried her face in his chest, her voice infinitely softer than her usual loud self.
If it had been yesterday, Chase would have instinctively thought his silly little sister had taken the wrong medicine. But after last night's reminder from Mira and Erza, he now understood exactly why Lucy was acting so out of character.
She had probably learned from her future self about her father Jude's death—and the tragedy that their father-daughter relationship had never been reconciled before the end.
Speaking of which, with his current magic power, using Monster Reborn to revive Jude wouldn't be particularly difficult. However, since Jude hadn't died instantly, reviving him would most likely draw the attention of this world's Ankhseram. It was clear that doing so would have consequences too severe for both them as "otherworlders" and for the future Fairy Tail to bear.
"Thank you, Chase." Feeling the overwhelming sense of security, Lucy said softly.
Seeing this, a look of relief also appeared on Future Lucy's face not far away.
Even if it was another world, just knowing that her father was still alive and fully supporting "her" work as a mage was already fortunate enough for someone who had just gone through such pain.
"Hey, Lucy, you've been eating a bit too much lately. You feel heavier."
Chase's single remark sent Lucy, still in her sentimental moment, into a panic: "Huh? Huh?! Really?! I've been training hard lately!"
"Could it be from eating too much grilled meat on Tenrou Island? No way! This can't be happening!!"
Weight gain was the worst news any beauty-loving girl could hear—but right now, she had an even more terrifying crisis on her hands.
"Hey Lucy, if you keep hugging him, you might not make it out alive, you know~" Cana kindly warned.
Not make it out alive?
Before Lucy could process what that meant, she faintly heard the sounds of Requip and Take Over magic activating. She instinctively looked up over Chase's shoulder toward the source of the commotion. In an instant, the newly minted S-Class mage's soul nearly fled her body, her eyes bulging out.
"Lucy, have you had enough of hugging my boyfriend? If not, I'd be happy to take over~"
"I hear you've gotten quite strong. When are you going to challenge me? How about right now?"
The palpable pressure bore down on her.
"No need for Mira to take over, and I have absolutely no desire to challenge Erza!"
Driven by pure survival instinct, Lucy didn't have time to dwell on the subtle changes in those two compared to yesterday. She swiftly and mercilessly shoved Chase away: "Mira, Erza, calm down and take a closer look! I'm—I'm just Chase's little sister!!"
Seeing this, Mira and Erza finally dispelled their magic, their gentle smiles returning.
Of course, they knew Lucy didn't have those kinds of feelings for Chase. The jealousy lasted only a split second—the rest was just teasing and scaring her.
"Hey Chase!"
At that moment, another voice came from the entrance. Gray and Future Gray had also arrived.
Just like when Lucy had appeared, now that Gray had learned that Ur had already passed away in this world, his downcast eyes were fixed intently on Chase.
Under everyone's gaze, wanting to give a hug to express his gratitude, he stepped toward Chase—and as he walked, he unconsciously stripped off his shirt.
"Chase, I—"
"Get the hell away from me!!"
BOOM!
Before he could finish his sentence, Gray, arms still wide open, was kicked into the sky by Chase and embedded in the ceiling, stuck so firmly he couldn't be pried loose.
This scene happened to be witnessed by the two Juvias as they arrived at the guild.
"Huh? How could this be... Could it be that... Gray-sama actually likes boys?!" Juvia covered her mouth in disbelief.
"Come to think of it, whether it's Natsu, Loke, or Bickslow, Gray-sama has always had rather ambiguous relationships with the boys..."
Future Juvia collapsed in despair, then stood back up with determination. "If it's for Gray-sama's sake... I... I'm willing to become a man!"
Juvia seamlessly picked up the thread: "But if that happens, GrayJu, Juvia, Graybis, Juviana, and Grayjuya won't be able to be born!"
At those words, the lively scene fell into dead silence.
Both Lucys burst into the frame simultaneously: "What kind of strange things did you two even talk about last night?!" x2
Both Grays followed right after, shouting in unison: "Don't say things like that in public and cause misunderstandings, damn it! I don't like men, and I'm not a pervert either!!" x2
Looking at the two of them standing there completely bare-chested, everyone synchronized perfectly, all casting looks of absolute certainty.
Whether you two like men or not is anyone's guess—but being perverts? That's beyond any doubt.
***
Dive deeper into the story with 30+ advance chapters, available now on Patreon!
patreon.com/CNBLUE
If you're enjoying the novel, please consider leaving a review. Your support is crucial and helps the story grow immensely. Thank you!