Gray gave a soft cough and eventually spoke first.
"You care about Juvia that much. Are you her friend?"
Grinju clenched his fist a little nervously, then forced himself to remain calm as he said, "Yes. She's been very good to me ever since I was little, though right now… she probably doesn't remember me."
Gray assumed this kid was some younger boy Juvia had played with in the past, similar to Rogue with Gajeel, so he nodded and did not press further.
But what Grinju was saying was actually something he had always wanted to tell his father face-to-face, taking advantage of the fact that his father did not recognize him.
"Ever since I was little, my dad never seemed to like me very much…"
Grinju spoke with some disappointment.
Gray frowned and looked at him.
Grinju's expression turned stubborn, and in one breath, he poured out the frustration that had been accumulating in his young heart for years.
"I worked hard to learn Dad's magic, but he always said my magic was stiff and rigid. I wanted to chat with him, but somehow he would end up lecturing me. He always had a stern face and never said anything nice…"
"Every time that happened, it was… Juvia who encouraged me. Because she supported me, I was willing to become a mage in my father's guild. But even then… Dad still never gave me a smile."
Gray listened seriously to the boy's small complaints and frustrations toward his father.
His gaze drifted forward, where a father was smiling as he lifted his son onto his back.
The father and son laughed brightly together while watching a street performance at a nearby stall.
"What a… stubborn and unpleasant father," Gray said with a faint tremble in his eyes, smiling as he spoke.
Grinju nodded in agreement. "Exactly."
"But I actually think your father is probably just scared."
Gray rested his chin on his hand, his voice low and muffled.
Grinju immediately shook his head. "He's an S-Class mage in the guild. He isn't scared of anything!"
Although he carried some resentment toward his father, in Grinju's eyes, his father was still an upright man who could support the sky.
Gray, however, smiled carelessly and denied it. "Why wouldn't he be scared? It's your first time being a son, and it's also his first time being a father."
Grinju did not quite understand what he meant.
Gray leaned back against the bench, staring blankly up at the sky, and suddenly said, "Although I don't really understand this sort of thing either. And… I can barely remember what my own dad looked like anymore."
"Hm?"
Grinju looked confused.
"I don't know what a father is supposed to be like. But I was raised by my teacher. She taught me many things, and with her life, she showed me just how heavy the responsibility of being a parent can be."
Gray could not help reaching out to pat Grinju's head.
He smiled comfortingly and said, "If I ever have a child in the future, I might not even do as well as your father. Raising and guiding a young, fragile life until they grow up… just thinking about it makes me feel terrified."
"Terrified?"
"Yeah. Didn't I just say it? Your dad is a beginner too. He'll be afraid and uneasy. He'll be clumsy and bad at expressing himself. But please believe this: even then, he is still one of the first people in this world you can trust without reservation."
Gray patted his shoulder, then withdrew his hand and teased him with a smile.
"So the two of you should work hard together. Help out your rookie dad properly."
A bright smile gradually appeared on Grinju's little face, and he nodded hard.
"I understand!"
Looking at the boy who had been pretending to be cold and arrogant finally reveal a smile, Gray also grinned in satisfaction.
This boy who looked so much like him really did resemble the version of himself who might have grown up in a peaceful era…
Cold and hard on the outside, warm-hearted on the inside, delicate in feeling, and always overthinking things.
Feeling the love from his father's younger self, Grinju could not help asking almost the same question Naciel had asked.
"Gray-san… why don't you accept Juvia's feelings? Do you really not like her?"
In Grinju's impression, his mother had always been like this, loving his father to the point of obsession.
Even her highest praise for him was, "You're so handsome, just like your dad~"
Gray's face turned red.
Then he sighed and mumbled vaguely, "Feelings are something kids don't understand."
Grinju looked puzzled.
Gray hurriedly stood up.
After thinking for a moment, he still said, "Habit and love aren't the same thing. Until I figure out which one my feelings toward her are, I can't accept Juvia's love."
After saying that, Gray did not explain any further.
Grinju was already used to his young father's awkwardness, so he went with Gray to meet Juvia, who had returned after buying medicine.
…
The youth team had only just arrived in Magnolia, yet one by one, they all lingered beside their parents and refused to leave, completely defeated.
In the future, most of their parents had become S-Class mages, and when things got busy, they sometimes would not return home at all.
Their mothers were also important members of the guild.
Take Lucy, for example…
Who would have thought that the future Lucy would become Fairy Tail's guild master?
Amid these fatherly and filial meetings across time, one scene was especially strange.
Rogue wore a miserable expression as he shouted at the boy they had cornered in front of them, "Kid! Hurry up and give Frosch back to me!"
Sting, Rogue, and the others had successfully found Frosch on a deserted street.
However, Frosch had fainted in the arms of a young boy.
The boy's appearance was cold and aloof. His handsome, almost otherworldly face, combined with short silver-white hair, made his aura even more detached.
Facing Sabertooth's Twin Dragons, he showed no fear at all. Instead, he reached out and stroked Frosch's fur.
Sting and Rogue could clearly see the disdain in the boy's crimson eyes.
"Sting, Rogue. You two couldn't even last three rounds against Naciel's dad. What are you acting so arrogant for?"
"What did you say?!"
Sting first shouted in irritation.
Then he turned his head in confusion and asked Rogue, "Who's Naciel?"
Rogue shook his head.
'No idea. And who's her dad?'
Just as the two of them were wondering whether this kid had burned out his brain, the boy suddenly raised his hand and tossed Frosch over.
Rogue hurriedly reached out and caught him.
Before Rogue could get angry, the white-haired boy curled his lips, lowered his body into a fighting stance, and beckoned to them.
His smile was bold and confident.
"Come fight me! This is perfect. I want to see how much of a gap there is between me and my 'uncles' at the same age."
"You've been saying weird stuff this whole time…"
Sting's one-track brain could not understand what was going on, but if it was a fight, he was more than happy to oblige.
Rogue was still sniffling while holding Frosch and did not join Sting, which seemed to make the white-haired boy across from them very unwilling.
Sting stepped forward.
Before he could even throw out a few harsh words, he saw a fist rapidly enlarging in his vision.
Bang!!
The white-haired boy teleported right in front of Sting's face and struck him squarely in the face with a full-force punch without the slightest mercy!