Chapter 38

Eclair obtained immortality.

She is one of the very few in the Tail World who survived from four hundred years ago to four hundred years later.

It's just that, in Fairy Tail, there seems to be no true immortality in the strict sense; nearly everyone who gained immortality has more or less flaws.

The Black Mage progenitor Zeref needs no further mention — cursed by the gods, he lived a life utterly wretched.

Even when he met his true love, he could only watch as the curse upon his body stripped the life away from her. How bleak.

The Black Dragon Acnologia cannot really be said to have gained immortality — only a lifespan as long as that of dragons — but judging from the original work, his mental state isn't much better either.

Erza's mother, Valkyrie Ailin.

The queen of the Dragon Kingdom four hundred years ago, a heroic figure — but after transforming into a dragon, she likewise paid no small price: she nearly lost all of her senses.

Taste, touch — nearly every single one of them, gone.

One could say she completely lost the meaning of living on.

And finally, there is Eclair.

Eclair's immortality is the most effective kind in Fairy Tail; its only side effect is merely the loss of memories caused by the passage of time.

Right now, Eclair is in a state of memory loss.

It's just that, even with her memory loss, the scene from four hundred years ago — her own village being destroyed by greedy mages — is etched into her bones. That is why, even now with her memory gone, Eclair still utterly despises mages.

She harbors a loathing of mages that is carved into her very soul.

"Eclair doesn't dislike bustling cities, does she."

Seeing Mengmeng's mood a little low, Lin Cheng turned his gaze to Eclair and said with a smile: "Eclair dislikes the mages and Mage Guilds that exist again in bustling cities, doesn't she."

"When we go sightseeing in a big city this weekend, can't we just avoid mages and Mage Guilds?"

As he spoke, Lin Cheng casually took out tomorrow's newspaper.

Mm, that's right — tomorrow's newspaper.

This was a newspaper template prepared in advance by a few puppets Lin Cheng had dispatched to work at a newspaper office, who confirmed it would be published tomorrow, and so transmitted it to Lin Cheng ahead of time for him to review.

Looking at the contents of the newspaper, Lin Cheng said to Eclair with a smile: "Magnolia will be nice."

The two strongest guilds of the Fiore Kingdom — Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord — have gone to full-scale war.

And in the end, Fairy Tail achieved a complete victory.

But the Fairy Tail guild headquarters has already been reduced to ruins, and they are preparing to rebuild it into an even more magnificent building, intending to make it one of Magnolia's landmark structures.

Lin Cheng read out the contents of the newspaper to Eclair, saying: "Right now, all the mages in Magnolia are busy constructing their brand-new guild headquarters."

"So, if we go sightseeing in Magnolia, we can just avoid the area where Fairy Tail is located."

"We definitely won't run into any mages from the Fairy Tail guild."

With Lin Cheng's continuous persuasion, the expression on Eclair's face visibly grew somewhat hesitant.

Actually, Eclair wasn't insisting on staying in a city without a Mage Guild — it was just that, because of her instinctive hatred of mages, she followed her own mood and chose to live in towns that had neither Mage Guilds nor mages.

But ever since she created Mengmeng, and then encountered Lin Cheng, Eclair has, as time kept slipping away, actually begun to care a little about Lin Cheng's and Mengmeng's feelings.

Though she says she doesn't want to make friends, she has indeed come to treat Mengmeng and Lin Cheng as her friends.

That is why Lin Cheng's persuasion works.

Otherwise, if anyone else had come, even if they talked until flowers bloomed from their mouth, Eclair still wouldn't have paid them any attention.

"Yeah, yeah!"

"Eclair, just come with us to the big city to have fun~"

Mengmeng also noticed Eclair's somewhat hesitant expression, and hurriedly flew in front of Eclair, saying a little coyly: "I promise we definitely won't run into any mages Eclair dislikes."

"Lin Cheng has always been very reliable."

"He definitely won't lie to Eclair."

"Fine, then."

"I really can't do anything with you two."

Eclair looked at Mengmeng, who was clinging to her arm and acting coy with her, and at Lin Cheng, who sat not far away behind the bar counter smiling at her, and let out a small sigh, saying: "Just this once."

"Don't make a habit of it."

Under Lin Cheng's and Mengmeng's joint persuasion, Eclair temporarily set aside the prejudice against mages in her heart.

At the same time, when agreeing to Lin Cheng and Mengmeng, Eclair unconsciously touched the half-stone that had always hung around her neck — Eclair only knew that this stone was called a Phoenix Stone.

Anything more specific than that, Eclair did not know.

"Yay, awesome!"

"Then let's get some rest early today!"

Seeing Eclair agree, Mengmeng happily bounced up, saying excitedly: "We'll take the earliest train tomorrow, so we can get there before noon."

"I've wanted to go to the amusement park in a big city for ages~~~"

GLOSSARY:

【Lin Cheng, Long Wang, Valkyrie Ailin, Class Mage, Daoshigong Society, Weibagong Society, Lianggong Society, Xingong Society, Lincheng Sect, Tail World, Mengmeng, Zeref, Acnologia, Erza, Fiore Kingdom, Dragon Kingdom, Fairy Tail, Phantom Lord, Magnolia, Phoenix Stone】