"Arlen?!!"
"Big Brother Arlen?!! Why are you here?!"
Mira and Lisanna's eyes widened in shock as they stared at Arlen walking toward them.
"Hmph. If I hadn't shown up, how exactly were you two planning to clean this up? Especially you, Lisanna—when an attack is coming at you, do you not know how to dodge?"
Arlen shot them an annoyed glare, his voice laced with anger as he berated them.
"Arlen… Elfman… please, save Elfman."
Mira was filled with guilt. If she hadn't been so careless, things would never have escalated to this point. Looking at the completely out-of-control Elfman—no, the Beast King—her face was full of pleading.
"Y-Yeah, Big Brother Arlen, you must have a way to save Elfman, right?"
Lisanna also realized she had acted recklessly, but thinking of Elfman, she grabbed Arlen's arm anxiously, her voice trembling with urgency and worry.
"You two stay put and keep quiet. I'll deal with Elfman first—then I'll deal with the three of you."
Arlen snorted coldly. Seeing their battered state, his eyes held not only frustration but also a trace of concern.
Just a little later—just a little—and he might've been collecting Lisanna's body.
For someone as usually calm as Arlen to scold someone like this, Mira and Lisanna were the first. Honestly, just based on that alone, the two of them could probably puff out their chests and proudly say they were the first ones ever to be lectured by him.
"Roar!"
While Arlen was scolding the two sisters, the Beast King—no, Elfman—who had just been knocked back by Arlen's earlier strike, let out a ferocious roar. With savage purple eyes locked onto Arlen, the massive body lunged forward like a falling mountain.
"Big Brother Arlen, be careful!"
"Arlen, watch out!"
Arlen didn't even lift his head. In an instant, he teleported above the descending Beast King, his expression indifferent, and brought his foot down heavily onto its head.
With a scream, the Beast King crashed to the ground even faster than it had leapt. Compressing gravity into his foot, Arlen stomped down again.
Boom!
The Beast King's massive head was driven straight into the ground. The overwhelming gravity crushed the earth beneath it into a deep depression.
After letting out a mournful cry, the Beast King fell unconscious.
Arlen jumped down from its body. Soon after, the magic around it fluctuated and dissipated, and Elfman's original form was restored. He was covered in injuries, lying face-down, peacefully snoring.
"Alright. Elfman's reverse takeover has been dealt with for now. But if he wants to fully absorb this Beast King in the future… he's got a long way to go."
Arlen spoke calmly.
"Thank you, Big Brother Arlen!"
Lisanna suddenly threw herself into Arlen's arms and planted a loud kiss on his cheek before hopping over to check on Elfman's injuries.
Arlen remained completely unfazed. He was long used to this sort of thing—after all, it hadn't happened just once or twice. Ever since Erza had stolen a kiss from him the first time, he had gradually gotten accustomed to it.
"Thank you, Arlen… If you hadn't come, I don't even want to imagine what would've happened."
Mira lowered her head, her emotions tangled—gratitude, fear, and lingering dread.
"Take this as a lesson," Arlen said.
"No matter what kind of mission it is, you cannot afford to be careless.
"If Ultear and I hadn't just returned, if we hadn't happened to run into Master Rob and come looking for you—have you thought about what would've happened if I hadn't made it in time?"
His tone softened slightly, but he continued seriously:
"Have you thought about it? If any one of you—whether you, Lisanna, or Elfman—had been hurt because of this, it wouldn't just be your pain. It would be mine, and everyone else in the guild's as well."
"I'm sorry… it's all my fault. I was too careless."
Mira had no rebuttal. She lowered her head deeply.
"Alright, that's enough. Rest here for a bit, then we'll head back to the guild."
Seeing her like this, Arlen didn't press further. He gently patted her head, his voice softening.
"Thank you… Arlen, really… thank you."
Mira finally couldn't hold it in anymore. She buried her face in Arlen's chest, silently crying.
Arlen wrapped one arm lightly around her slender waist, the other resting on her head, quietly comforting the frightened girl.
—
In the blink of an eye, a month passed.
After a full month of recovery, Mira and Elfman's injuries had completely healed.
But during that month, everyone—including Arlen—could clearly feel the changes in both of them.
Elfman, who had once been a not-yet-grown, somewhat immature and overly emotional boy pretending to be a "man," had become truly mature and dependable.
As for Mira, her change was even greater.
The delinquent girl she once was had become a thing of the past.
Now, her speech had grown gentle and soft, and her outfits had shifted to dresses and similarly elegant clothing.
Of course, appearances could be deceiving. While her personality had become gentler, anyone foolish enough to provoke her would still quickly learn that "Demon Mira" was no joke.
Everyone in Fairy Tail knew that these changes stemmed from the Beast King incident.
Although Arlen's timely arrival prevented a tragedy, both Mira and Elfman carried lingering guilt.
Mira blamed herself as an older sister—for being careless, for putting her brother in danger, and nearly costing her sister her life.
Elfman blamed himself for losing control and nearly hurting both of them.
Still, in a way, it wasn't a bad thing.
All three siblings had grown because of it. Rather than being consumed by it, they chose to move forward, tempering themselves even further on the path of magic.
One more noteworthy change—
Mira and Lisanna had both become receptionists at Fairy Tail, responsible for managing and assigning guild requests.
According to Mira, she was simply tired and wanted time to settle herself.
Of course, she was still an S-Class Mage and would occasionally take on missions—but she would now spend more time at the guild.
Lisanna's reasoning was similar. Besides, she had never been particularly fond of fighting to begin with—otherwise, she wouldn't have chosen Animal Soul Takeover magic.
Erza, Ultear, Cana, Kagura, Ur, Mavis, and Arlen had all spoken privately with the two sisters.
Seeing that they were sincere in their decision, everyone gave them their blessings. What they feared most was that the three siblings might become trapped in their own guilt.
And so—
Fairy Tail gained a new pair of "poster girls."
Following Arlen, they became the second and third iconic faces of the guild.
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