Chapter 25

Chapter 25. About negotiations.

There should have been something brilliant here, but I was too lazy, so there is only this ^ _ ^ '.

Lazy author.

Now I have to clean up the laboratory - Ur really ... I really missed it, and I still thought about changing the table to a new one, ahem ... hmmm. However, entertainment is entertainment, but business does not wait and the first thing I need to do is visit Master Li ... The ice sorceress remained to sleep right on the sofa in the laboratory, responding to any attempts to wake her up with indistinct muttering and charges of ice crumbs, however, let sleeps off, how to get out of here she must remember, as well as how to close the stone slab, which serves as a kind of door to my holy of holies.

My girls again crawled out on business - someone was gathering guildmates on a spree, someone tried to knock out of Makarov a decree on the abolition of such a shocking public "form" of waitresses (you will need to offer to change it to my options, or at least once a month arrange something something like "kitty day" ... mmm, dreams, dreams), someone just, um ... in general, was somewhere outside the guild building. In other words, nothing in general interfered with my visit to Lee, and therefore, in just a couple of tens of minutes, on my own wings, I was already at the "modest" house of the artifactor. This Chinese met me .., in the sense, an imperial, as a native.

- Oh, Sephiroth, have you decided to visit the old sick Imperial? Okay, okay, Sarochka just put the duck in the oven. Ever tasted Imperial duck? Real, and not that garbage that goof sells ... tourists in eateries ?! Not? Well, I highly recommend it.

-Em, I would have a player, - I decided to wedge myself into the stream of words of the wizard.

- Yes, yes, of course, - the old man nodded and named the price.

-How much, how much? - I didn't believe, - but last time you took almost twice less for the recording device together with the player!

-What to do, - this bad man sighed sadly, - the roads are restless, again your king did not share something with his neighbors, supplies are irregular, there are not enough materials ...

- Then it's better to repair, - I handed the remains of the deceased unit to its creator, he looked at the dead artifact and sighed sadly.

-M-yes, it was definitely not calculated for the power of Aetherion. And how do you, Fakes, always manage to get involved in history? Eh, taking into account the rubbish that used to be my masterpiece, I can throw off thirty percent of the price, but more than that, deliveries really go intermittently, and the stocks are not endless, it's not easy for you to fix the weaving, here the physical damage is very significant - Hmmm, it seems, he really won't throw it off, he even put off his playful manner of conversation.

-It's a little expensive, of course, but okay, - I sigh with an indifferent look, do not worry about this in fact? Although I feel that after Lee will have to go to take orders for gangs or some fat monsters, eh, money quickly leaves, quickly ... - by the way, tell me, older man, how much does it cost you to make armor?

-Well, you asked, - the magician jumped up, - depending on what material, mine or the customer's, its size, desired charm, urgency ... and what, did you decide to follow the example of little Elsa? She is often bought from me, though not for everyone, hehe, not for everyone.

-Mmm?

-She, of course, is not a poor girl, but it is very expensive for a Rearmament magician with its capacity to buy ALL equipment from me, so there are a couple of blacksmiths supplying her with weapons and armor, however, these inept sometimes cannot even fit the cuirass normally, but "Fairy Armor" or "Cherry Sword" ... heh, they definitely won't master it.

-Here's how ... and enchant an already finished weapon? - the blacksmith winced in response.

-I can. But I don't like it - when you forge a blade yourself, it is imbued with your spirit, becomes a part of you and accepts the spell more willingly. The same applies to armor, but for your money, as they say, any whim.

-Hmmm ... - I thought. - Is it possible to ask for a couple of lessons? - according to common sense, it is better to enchant on your own, firstly, the sword in some way really forged "I", secondly, knowledge is never superfluous, and thirdly - I really don't want to shine with reserves of metal unknown in this world, even in front of an old friend of the Master, he may even be a friend to Makarov, but I'm not Makarov.

- One hundred thousand per lesson and I warn you right away, you are unlikely to succeed the first time, even if you have an interesting brooch, - Lee nodded at the sign of the Chosen One, which now I had to carry in the form of a small amulet, heh, but try not to drag it - Makarych will live with the light, the prestige of the guild, the honor of the magician, and so on, horror, in a word. Of course, prestige and the resulting volume of orders were in the first place, well, yes, that's right, you have to find funds somewhere to cover fines, hehe.

-Old, be afraid of um ... someone, the price is three times too high!

-Well, I don't insist - and there are enough things to do without students, only I am the best artifactor in these parts and up to the borders of the blessed Pergrand you will hardly find someone even close to me in terms of level - hmmm, modesty is not about us, although Dreyar really would hardly recommend any "shabashnik".

-Tts, you will leave me without pants, dear, - hmm, but not if I play on his pride and obvious passion for his work? Perhaps it will be possible to bargain for more acceptable terms, on the other hand, risks ... although, if you think about it, what might emerge? "Magic" sword, settled in the hands of God's chosen magician with the nickname "Demon", will they want to associate with it for the sake of some kind of blade, albeit three times unusual? It is unlikely, there are many problems, little sense, they would have contacted for the secret of the metal, but for a single product ...

"I suppose you agree," the imperial rubbed his palms in anticipation, "where do you want to start, armor or weapons? Although, what am I talking about? Basics and general theory first ...

-Wait, master, what do you say about this? - I call on my blade, the channels are no longer tugging, which cannot but rejoice, I am slowly coming to my senses. Lee almost rests against the blade with his nose and starts muttering something over it, then I feel a wave of magic from the artifactor to the blade and ... sweat coming out, a quick glance in my direction, a look ... nothing from a funny old Jewish man in he is no longer there, then the master seemed to pull himself together, sighed and turned to me.

-Where did you get THIS ?! - there were some strange notes in the magician's voice.

-Family heirloom, all that remains in memory of the past - we make a completely honest face. Although I no longer like the beginning, the effect of the blade was clearly more impressive than I wanted - is there something wrong?

-Not this way? Boy, do you know how artifacts are made?

-Well, how to say ... in general terms ... If I knew thoroughly, would I ask about training?

So, follow me to the workshop, and at the same time, listen, - Lee almost dragged me along with him, explaining the basics along the way, - usually the spell is woven into the structure of the material, the easiest way to do this is with lacrima, and so it is, in essence crystallized magic, other substances must first be properly saturated with magic and only then work with them, and metals in this regard are perhaps the most "stubborn" material, and the higher the strength of the metal, the more difficult it is to weave a spell into its structure, they are really not much better to stay there, but if done correctly. So you have to be sophisticated, making various inserts, and sometimes artificially reducing the strength, and then additionally enchanting a thing for this property, have you ever seen how a magic sword or armor almost crumbles after developing its resource or loads that exceed the enclosed enchantments? That's just because of this. Now, back to your blade. Besides the fact that "Strength Analysis" just went off scale, the metal of the sword seemed to ... absorbed the structure and somehow, hmm, I don't know how to say it, used it for its own needs? But there is not an ounce of magic in it! At all. And ... I don't understand how it works! - Lee threw up his hands, and I recalled the information about adamantium, including its "adaptability" to environmental conditions, which gave him such high characteristics. The metal itself was hmm ... interested in increasing its survivability, and therefore could vary its properties quite widely, I remember that applied to the bone and simply frozen in air differed quite significantly from each other.

-It's curious, - I gave the master an attentive look, he didn't seem to like him. Well, the situation is delicate, I would have known .., however, why now talk about what has been done? Here it is necessary to look for a way out - and what does it give in the end?

-Do not you understand?! - the old man was slightly nervous. - For your sword, even without taking into account the possible enchantments, you can buy half of the Empire, and for surrender - the whole Fiore, along with the inhabitants. Only the Emperor can afford such a weapon! ... - Lee somehow hesitated and thoughtfully examined me, - so what do you want to do with the sword?

- I have a couple of thoughts, but first ... How much will you charge for the job? - the old man thought, and very hard.

-Eh, you can't take money here, I would like to put my mark on a similar miracle, but this sword was forged thousands of years ago (thanks to Ultear for wasting time), and I have never heard of a similar metal, however, - interrupted himself blacksmith - this is not surprising, I myself would never even mention that I saw such a thing. Even knowledge of the existence of such blades is never paid with money. "Lee looked at me seriously. - Only with blood. But I trust Makarov enough to believe his recommendations more than some facts of your biography ... and, I'm glad that I happened to touch the dream, but don't let anyone consider him, guy, if you don't want big problems for yourself and yours loved ones, although, taking into account your brooch, they may not climb. Say what you wanted for this handsome man, today at the expense of the institution - the imperial really turned out to be a fan of his work, however, I did not expect that he would be able to understand so much with just a few spells. It's unpleasant. Hmmm, after all, magicians who have managed to live to the point of deep gray hair do indeed possess transcendental skill, albeit only in a particular area. Well, as it turned out, the emigrant really respected and trusted Dreyar STRONGLY if he decided to reveal to me the full value of the blade, knowing what could happen after that, because it was not for nothing that he spoke about blood, and his views ... But he could have kept silent, and then try to somehow "confiscate" the blade, well ... perhaps he really will keep his mouth shut.

-I would like to enchant him myself, that's why I asked for lessons.

-I understand, but ... even to the level of an apprentice, you need to practice for several years, and such a blade is worthy only of the hand of a master.

-Variants?

-Hmm ... in fact it is not accepted to do this, but for such a handsome man, - Lee looked at the weapon with love, - you can slightly deviate from the rules, I can develop the necessary enchantment complex for a specific metal, and then just train you, Of course, you will not become a normal artifact weapon-maker, but with due diligence, you can quickly learn to work with this metal at the proper level ... six months or a year, although you still need to learn the basics first, you can't do without them.

However, the timing is already much better, namely the adamantium enchantment is required for me, in addition, the bonuses from the lack of sleep and perfect memory, together with specific vision, can speed up the process even more.

-I agree.

"Well, then, first, you need to master the basic material," the blacksmith nodded to two healthy cabinets at the end of his laboratory. The cabinets were almost bursting under the weight of the impressive folios resting on their shelves - well, then practice will begin, at least you must know the basics ...

Ndaaa ... I can't really load the artifactor - a completely new section of magic, based on strict calculations and subtleties of execution, what could be better? Unless the information on working not only with adamantium, but also with dragon bone, subjected to lacrimization, but how, without arousing suspicion, I still had no idea how to get this knowledge out of Li.

Leaving the hardworking imperial to pore over the calculations of weaving for the metal (at the same time watching how he removes data from the blade using some complex manipulations with "pure" mana), I went back, although ... it would be nice to have a bite first, and it costs some to whom to remind about the favor. If it is relatively easy to collect the necessary information according to Fiore, then regarding other countries or continents ... I am very curious what Deliora, the demon Zeref, did in the far north, if Zeref himself had more fun in our latitudes? Got there on a sly in four centuries? It is unlikely, and this path would have been marked in the annals of history, but then it surfaced quite suddenly, I suspect that the researchers there simply managed to get into one of the laboratories of the Black Mage and do something there, well, or they just climbed and stumbled upon a hungry man and evil "watchdog" is not an option? But where exactly did this happen? Were there any further attempts and was there anything left of where Deliora was found? There were a lot of questions, in general, information was needed, ranging from rumors and ending, perhaps, with some old archives. And some one-armed "master of the sea" can help me with this. Indeed, not to demand trivial money for our contract with his daughter? Fortunately, the letter can be sent just from the neighboring town, as for the feedback ... I think the cave, in which the acquaintance with his daughter took place, is quite suitable as an exchange office. But now, perhaps, it is worth returning home and thinking things over properly.

At home, however, plans changed dramatically. Why? Oh, it was the official letter I found in my mailbox to blame. The puffy envelope, emblazoned with the Council's seal, promised obvious problems. Opening the seal, I unfolded the thick paper and plunged into reading, meanwhile, my feet themselves carried me towards the guild, so, "Dear Sephiroth ... a lot of unnecessary words ... in connection with the dissolution of the old composition of the Council ... so, again verbal lace ... and all of the above ... but how much can you ?! " Something bumped into me from the side, I listlessly, mechanically waved it off. "Oh, that's the point ... we offer you to take one of the seats in the New Council ..." Some other annoying midge ... "So, in the Council ... interesting, although expected." Hmm ... someone lit a fire in the aisle. It interferes ... A log ... no, I don't need ... "I wonder how Ultear is doing there? Something has not been heard from her for a long time. But the Council ... initially I did not plan to join, but if you think about it ... Yes, you definitely need to think, maybe you can consult with the Master? Eh, where can I get another thirty hours a day? I wonder if there is something like a flywheel of time in the storehouses of the Council? If so, then you can join ... "

I was thrown out of my thoughts by the approach of Lucy and I found myself already in the guild building, sitting at my favorite table, with a letter from the Council in my hands. What is called - thought.

-Hi, Sef.

-Well, hello, the light of my eyes, - getting up, I hug a very embarrassed girl for some reason and inhale the aroma of her hair, mmm, something raspberry ...

-I ... wanted to introduce you to someone ... here, this is my ... dad, - I looked at a tall man of about forty-five years old, blond hair, mustache, light beard and a spiky look, now jumping from my face to the medallion of the Chosen One, and from it to the letter still clutched in my hand with the coat of arms of the Council on expensive paper.

"Nice to meet you, young man," Lucy's father's voice was calm and benevolent. Ahem, meeting the girl's parents, a procedure that is undoubtedly necessary, but for some reason often causes some panic in the boyfriend. Only one thought remained in my head, sounding approximately like "Bliiiiin" ...

Shortly before the events in the guild. Lucy Heartfilia and someone else.

The girl walked along the avenue along the canal, she had a difficult choice. On the one hand, I really wanted to buy that dress and hit one "old, experienced suicide" with it, as Sephiroth was jokingly called lately, and wipe my friends' nose, but on the other hand ... the next term for paying rent for the house was approaching, and there was only enough money for one thing, and the refrigerator showed the bottom, however, recently it turned out that she ate mainly at the silver-haired man's house or in cafes at his invitation. Hmm, maybe you should even move to him? But ... the imagination, spurred on by the books and magazines read, began to draw interesting pictures of the possible leisure time for young guys and girls who were attracted to each other, and even stayed under the same roof. Not that the heiress of the Heartfilievs objected to such a course of events, on the contrary, besides, she was terribly interested, but ... suddenly, what could happen "suddenly" Lucy herself could not really formulate, but this "suddenly" was very frightening , and she dreamed of her own house (albeit just a rented one) for a long time, besides, Sephiroth could not agree, and what would she look like then? The desire to be closer to her beloved, the eternal female curiosity and some kind of amphibian (so far just pretending to be an economy) fought against uncertainty and fears, and the latter so far won. Here the attention of the young sorceress was attracted by a detail that did not fit into the atmosphere of her district, which was quite good, but still not so much that an expensive manamobile could stand at the house ... at her house. And if we consider that this manamobile had the logo of the Fiore railways, then the visitor's identity left no doubt. And, for sure, as soon as the girl came closer, the door opened and a man dressed in an expensive suit stepped out of the bowels of a luxurious vehicle, known throughout the kingdom as one of the richest merchants - Jude Heartfiliy.

-Lucy...

-Father, - the Spirit Summoner had two feelings - their past parting was quite ... loud, and the whole story with "Ghosts", but it was still the most ... one of her closest people.

-Can you invite me for a cup of tea? - the person included in the five most influential people of Fiora looked embarrassed, seemed to feel uncomfortable, although the latter was unlikely - the words of Jude Heartfilia and "awkward" in the understanding of the girl could not be in the same sentence.

- Um, of course ... - the daughter opened the door of her house and invited her father to settle down.

- And here ... it's cozy, - the tycoon expressed his opinion with restraint.

-Thank you, - there was an awkward pause, whose silence was broken only by the whistle of a boiling kettle.

-You know ...

- I ... - father and daughter began to speak in perfect sync.

-Em...

- Well ... - and again they did not succeed, the pause dragged on.

-Yes, this is more difficult than I thought, - the man finally said, - I ... I want to ask you for forgiveness, for everything. I did a lot of stupid things, I thought it was all for the good of the family, but in the end ... okay, from the very beginning it was all doomed to failure, '' sighing heavily, Jude was already heading for the exit, when a graceful female hand with unfeminine strength grabbed his sleeve.

-I missed ... dad, - Lucy buried her nose in her father's suit and sniffed, leaving wet stains on the expensive fabric, but neither father nor daughter worried about the damaged suit.

For several hours they just chatted, diligently avoiding some slippery topics, until it turned to the "most slippery" one.

-Will you show me your guild? Yes, and it would be nice to meet the young man for whom you are refusing ... hmm, just to meet your boyfriend, '' Jude quickly turned the topic down, with a sixth sense feeling the invisible edge, after crossing which, a quarrel with his daughter will flare up with renewed vigor ...

-Uh, maybe not? - sounded so pitiful that the tycoon laughed involuntarily - his daughter is still such a child, however, this "child" is already an adult and independent (sometimes, excessively), a sorceress, capable of driving a good gang of robbers into the ground (at least, according to informants, and they have nothing to lie to).

- I must know who managed to outshine the best suitors in the kingdom? - "and if it turns out to be some kind of crook, then who will I need to bury," the caring parent mentally finished the phrase.

- You won't calm down until you find out? - sounded doomed.

"I'm Heartfili," the man replied with dignity, smiling with only his eyes.

In the guild, the atmosphere of general (Arctic fox) chaos and anarchy, usual for the Fairies, was waiting for them, no one seemed to pay attention to the guest, wine and beer flowed like a river, and the fists of the people itched enormously.

-And you have here ... fun ... - the question was spinning in the tycoon's head, how, how could this rabble get the strongest guild in the country?

"They're still calm today," Lucy said nonchalantly.

- Spock ... - Mr. Heartfilia's question was interrupted by a wild roar.

-FIERY!!!

-IRON!!! - echoed his answering roar (no less wild), and then the owner of the railways received an approximate answer to his not asked question - two monsters staged a real battle right in the center of the hall, and those around them, only sat down further away, some people generally watched with curiosity and even made bets, but what kind of madhouse is this?

-Uh ... maybe they should be stopped?

- No, they will calm down themselves, or run into Elsa, or Sephiroth, or the Master, or Mira, or Kana with a hangover, - under her father's widening eyes, Lucy began to list.

-Hmm, yeah, is this where you met your boyfriend? - the tycoon asked a burning question.

-Well, to be precise, we met before joining ... and here he is, - the girl worried, looking at the guy reading on the go. He was completely carried away by some kind of letter and did not pay attention to those around him. And his route ran clearly between the two fighting dragonslers.

- Maybe we should stop him? - misinterpreted Jude's daughter's excitement.

-Late, - said the witch sadly, - they can no longer be helped ...

-Them? - in the meantime, the guy, without stopping from reading, with some indistinguishable movement drove into the floor a pink-haired magician engulfed in fire, and from above he stamped with an "iron" wizard and calmly walked on - without slowing down and seemingly not even noticing the obstacle, although those they actively tried to resist, however, the pendant with the sign of the Chosen One explained a lot ... except for the absence of any magic in the alien's actions. And THIS is the guy of his heiress? Jude began to frantically remember what he had heard about this magician and what he remembered he did not like.

-Wait, daughter, is it by any chance the same Sephiroth that bears the nickname "Demon from Onibas"?

- Well ... - Lucy thought for a couple of moments, remembering something, - like yes. True, I only heard his nickname once.

-Clear.

There are only ten God-equal in the whole country, so it was not difficult to understand who exactly was in front of him, but the tycoon had to make sure ... and was convinced. The more he remembered looking at the silver-haired mage, the more uneasiness he felt. Rumors described the "Demon" as being, hmm, a demon and attributed to him phenomenal rigidity, bordering on cruelty towards his opponents, however, rumors are characterized by exaggeration. Reliable facts about the magician were sadly few, but those that were still known were impressive ... yes. But the choice of the heiress puzzled, greatly puzzled, and even that story with the "shaking the soul" of the warlock acquired an interesting look in a new light ... While the head of the family strained his memory, the heiress of the Heartfilievs was already enclosed in the arms of a blond wizard, now buried in the girl's hair with an expression complete bliss on his face, and the tycoon himself caught himself thinking that ... he was jealous. Let his girl grow up, but giving it to everyone - a look at the face of Sephiroth - to suspicious types - on a badge - albeit the Chosen of God - on a sheet suspiciously similar to the official letter of the Council - albeit one conducting some business with the rule of magicians - on the face of a daughter - even if you like Lucy, you still really don't want to.

- I ... wanted to introduce you to someone ... here, this is my ... dad, - he heard the voice of his little sorceress and instead of the already prepared test for lice, surprised to himself, he said completely different words.

- Nice to meet you, young man.

Some time later.

Jude Heartfilius was pensively smoking a pipe filled with expensive tobacco, kindly offered by the owner of the house. He was sitting visiting the magician Sephiroth and at the moment was engaged in an important matter - he was looking at the environment, much more luxurious than in the kennel that his daughter rented and called her home. For today, the tycoon has had plenty of conversations with the chosen one of Lucy, and now they will have a "man's" conversation, in which the gentle ears of his daughter will be redundant. In general, as the merchant managed to understand, Sephiroth enjoyed a good reputation in the guild and often represented its interests, and he did not make the impression of a creepy monster, however, their head also looked like a nice grandfather, but none of the people with brains belonged to this " to a funny old man "condescendingly or with disdain. In other words, the candidate for the son-in-law was quite good, if not for one "but", more precisely, three "buts".

-So what did you want to talk about, mister Heartfiliy? - the owner of the house smiled politely and poured the wine into the bowls.

- You see, Mr. Sephiroth, I am a little embarrassed that in addition to my daughter, you show attention to several other young ladies.

-It is logical to show attention to beloved women, no? - the interlocutor smiled politely. Jude had a clear feeling that he was being bullied.

-And Lucy ...

-I love her, as well as Elsa, Mira and Juvia. And no, I don't see this as a problem - I'm quite capable of paying attention and care to everyone, "the magician answered before the tycoon had time to formulate the question.

-Hmm, can anything change your opinion? - here it is a hint and "check for lice".

-I ... a very greedy creature, - the tycoon mentally winced, if all the "love" of this magician rests on banal money ... - and therefore I will never give anyone what I consider mine. And my girls - first of all.

"I can pay a lot," the wizard just laughed.

-Mr. Heartfili, don't make me doubt your sanity - money is not a problem for a Life mage. How much is the "one-armed baron" willing to give to embrace his daughter with his own limbs? Fifty million? Hundred? Or our respected monarch, so as not to get off the next favorite seven times without a break? Do not misunderstand me, I love your daughter and I will protect her life, health and interests more than my own life, but Elsa, Mira, and Juvia are also very important to me, besides, the girls have already become friends, agreed and, it seems, shared a certain magician among themselves, - Jude did not share the fun of his counterpart, but in some ways the guy was right, he could provide a comfortable existence for his daughter, her happiness ... family, everything that he could not do, and concerning a comfortable existence ...

- I won't say that I accept your arguments, but ... I understand them. Let me ask one more question then. That story with the security hole and the dark ones, yours? - the tycoon looked into the features of Sephiroth's face until his eyes hurt, but he did not even raise an eyebrow.

-What do you mean? - in the voice, misunderstanding and some curiosity, was it wrong? But why does intuition literally scream that the person sitting in front of him is somehow connected with this whole business?

-Yes, do not pay attention, well, I hope for you, - having taken a short bow, the owner of the railways left the Sephiroth mansion, torn apart by conflicting thoughts and feelings.

The same time and place. Sephiroth.

Fuh, it was hard, especially Jude's last question, no, even if it comes up that Sephiroth and Lansher are essentially the same person, they won't be able to show me anything, perhaps, except for public censure for cruel treatment of criminals, but Better still, let us be considered "good friends" than one person. Hmmm, but I did not expect such a banal test of greed from Lucy's father, although ... no one really knows anything about the real possibilities of the magicians of Life, for four centuries much has been forgotten, and even more invented and misinterpreted, in any case, mister Heartfilia is too used to just "buying" the right people. I won't say that this is bad, but it does not always work. Be that as it may, but neither Lucy, nor any other of my girls, I will not let go - my point, and whoever disagrees, let him go to ... the calm voice of the man who appeared at the door did not give me the thought.

-You were busy. I didn't want to get in the way.

- Mystogan, I already began to think that you decided to leave without saying goodbye, - wrapped from head to foot in different rags, the guy stood next to the chair where the tycoon was recently sitting - will you sit down? - Prince Edolas silently flopped into a chair.

- You wanted to talk to me. About what? - as always, brief, if he did not know that he simply does not communicate with almost anyone, he would have thought that the very conversation with me is very unpleasant for him.

-As I reported earlier, about Edolas ... and the passages there.

-Why do you need? - the prince tensed.

-There is a suspicion that Lisanna somehow got there, in any case, the disappearance in a round dance of glowing snowflakes, as Mira described her "death", is not much like what death should look like from a blow with a hefty clawed paw.

-What were the conditions?

-In terms of? - I did not understand.

-Season, weather, terrain, - began to list the guest from another world.

-So, it seems we should invite some more to the conversation, do you mind?

-All the same it would have happened sooner or later, what is it now, - somehow hopelessly waved his hand Jellal. So I quickly darted after Elfman, he contacted Mira, and she, in turn, pulled Elsa out of the dormitory (judging by her sleepy face, the warrior had already gone to bed and was being thrown out of bed), where the male part of the team was ordered to go - our the girls will first be beaten (shot, strangled with lianas, cursed, pierced, fried, etc., emphasize the necessary), and then they will be interested in what this guy brought to them. By the way, such a "cute" tradition was established by the First Master Mavis, who at one time lived in Fairy Hills, driving away from there, sometimes with very radical measures, either admirers of her beauty, or brutalized comrades, who were mad at the end from her sense of humor and character (in any case, this is the story Polyushka told me over a cup of tea). But then we all gathered at my house and Jellal began his interrogation, Mira answered, although it was hard to remember the events of two years ago, I just sat down next to my blond angel and hugged her, calming and sharing her strength, and Elsa ... she just studied the face of a person, like two drops of water similar to her old friend and could not decide in any way in her attitude towards him. Finally, the list of questions came to an end and the Edolan made his decision.

-It was Anima. A portal between worlds, pumping magic from this world and transferring it to that one. It is possible that the magician can also be sucked in, after all, the concentration of magic in the practicing magician is much higher.

-And why then didn't transfer us from Elfi? - Mira smiled, there was just a storm of delight in the girl's emotions. Her sister is alive. Let it be somewhere very far away, in another world, but alive!

- I'm not sure, you were both exhausted then? Jellal rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

-Mmm ... yes, I spent on containing the Beast, and my brother on absorbing it, - the giant silently nodded, confirming the words of the assistant Master.

"Lisanna was full of strength, so they were enough to transfer the physical shell along with the magic," I finished.

"Most likely," the prince confirmed.

-We have to get her back! - the exclamation of Mira and Elfman turned out to be marvelously synchronous, however, it would be strange to expect otherwise from them.

- It won't be easy. Anima always opens in a random place, and its power is different, I'm not talking about returning here - if you are attracted to that world due to your magic, then it will be much more difficult to get out because of it. This is not to mention the problems with witchcraft on the other side, your ignorance of local laws, geography and political alignments.

-You will help? - so much hope in Mira's voice. Jellal was silent for a few seconds, which must have seemed to the girl forever.

-Yes...

- I have a question, - Elsa suddenly spoke, - why do you look so much like Jellal from our world?

- I don't know, our worlds are in contact quite closely and somehow it turns out that everyone has their own "double" ... uh, what is it with him? - the most unsociable fairy magician nodded in my direction, but what am I, I'm nothing - I just rolled my eyes demonstratively, made a blissful expression on his face and mumbled quietly under his breath ...

-Mmm, two Miras ... and Elsa ... and ... - the entire gloomy atmosphere was drowned in the indignant scream of the girls, who immediately switched to a noble cause - an attempt to strangle my beloved, at one of these moments Mirazhana whispered in my ear " Thank you "and ... continued to choke me cheerfully, eh ...

Slightly defusing the situation, we continued to develop the plan, although what kind of plan was there, in the first place was "to get to Edolas somehow, and we'll figure it out", Jellal was supposed to deal with the delivery, as the most experienced in the issue of a parallel world, but that's rested on the Anima, I knew that sooner or later she would appear over Magnolia, but by that time I had to be fully armed. But even so, we sat up deeply after midnight, and began to crawl home only at the second hour, having come to the decision to inform the rest of the guilds and slowly begin to collect the raid group. Just in case. The people left, although no, some remained.

-I don't want to fall asleep alone today, - Elsa embarrassedly looked down, funny, she is still shy, despite what happened between us.

-Of course, dear, - I embrace the girl who is trustingly clinging to me, - maybe you will move to me? - The warrior quickly turned red and shook her head negatively, - Well, I'll wait - now, judging by the sensations, a nod. And we just went to bed, the fairy queen changed her usual armor for a nightie and hid under the covers. After a little fiddling, the scarlet-haired woman threw a leg over me, kissed me, and soon sniffed softly, burying herself in my neck. Yes, with such bright and quiet moments this life is valuable. I closed my eyes - heavy conversations today have exhausted me too, so a little "sleep", as this process is typical for symbionts, would be quite good.

Ur Milkovich. Morning.

Ur gladly walked through the city, inhaling the damp morning air. There were no people on the streets yet and Magnolia was dozing in the last minutes of silence. Considering the frenzied temperament of her current guild and the permanent bedlam that is happening there every day, such moments of calm and pacification brought special pleasure. It is a pity that it was rarely possible to get up early enough to enjoy them, but today, thanks to some people, she slept almost until the evening and the night along with the early morning were at her complete disposal.

By the way, she was now heading to this someone. Until the magician escaped on his own business, there was one important issue to be discussed ... again. The girl turned a little pink, remembering how such a discussion ended yesterday. But she was not going to retreat, it would be from what, hee-hee. Meanwhile, the problem was ripe, for all the time after her "resurrection" Ur only once saw her daughter live, and what kind of family meeting was this, when at the beginning you had to play a whole performance? She wanted normal communication, preferably for a couple of days, or even a week, and so that "everyone" would not get underfoot. But it was not so easy to organize everything, if she herself could go anywhere at any time and for almost any period, without asking permission from anyone and for all this she could receive only slightly louder greetings when returning than usual, then Ultear is so not could. And since her life depended on the success of her daughter's conspiracy, she had to endure and wait.

And tonight, during another conversation, Ultear said that she had prepared almost everything, all that remained was to invite Sephiroth, with whom her daughter also wanted to meet. True, she herself could not do this, since ... Ur had the communication ball. And no!

The girl even jerked her head slightly.

"She didn't steal! She temporarily borrowed it. Yes, and Sef himself allowed ... though he was very busy with something and said" yes "... not very consciously, but it doesn't mean anything! Allowed, and yes does not need to return yet ... "

For fun thoughts about the silver-haired magician, the girl reached his house. A small key of ice formed in his hand as usual and the ice princess went inside. The hinges in the house were well oiled and did not creak at all, so the penetration was quiet and imperceptible. True, the next twenty minutes made the sorceress regret this fact, since Sephiroth was nowhere to be found.

Having searched the laboratory (the first place where you should have looked for it!), The library (very, by the way, suspicious - not a single book on magic, only fiction, collections of laws, history and so on, for the house of such a magician who is keen on research - Very suspicious!), kitchen (at the same time stealing a cake from the refrigerator), living room and other rooms, Ur, already almost certain that the house was empty, went up to the bedroom. The door silently opened, the sorceress stepped inside without slowing down and ... ran into sleepy looks from the bed, reflexively awakened by the sudden movement of people.

- Oops ... I'll come back another time, - and before Sephiroth and Elsa could open their mouths, the ice princess jumped out the door. The picture of yesterday's conversation about interrupting interesting moments emerged in my memory, as in evil, - Nakarkala ...

Sephiroth. Also morning.

I wonder if she was on purpose? Is it really so hard to at least knock at first? Hmm, by the way, I have long wanted to know where she got the key to my house? Not that I was against it, but somehow not comme il faut. No, after all, in vain I once gave up minefields, very in vain. Although, judging by the "Oops", is it still accidental or not? As the Council incident showed, Ur can be a very good actress ... okay, then I'll talk to her about her privacy and invasions. Meanwhile, Elsa, finally awakened, was in a quiet panic.

-What are you doing?

-Well, she ... and I ... with you ... we are here ... here ... - a panicking S-rank magician, in his usual state with an iron hand, imposing a semblance of discipline in the ranks of violent fairies, is a rather funny sight.

-And what, aren't we adults? - I embrace the seemingly domestic girl now, mrrr, cutie. Hands, as if by themselves, began to stroke the slender body.

-Yes, but ... oh! Seeeef, stop it! - however, contrary to her words, the sorceress was in no hurry to fight back, - what if someone comes in again? - eh, still pulled away.

-No, I will definitely put a minefield around the house! - Elsa only giggled in response and flew out of bed towards the bathroom, but I decided to take the second one, silently praising my prudence - initially it was assumed that there would be several tenants in the house, most of whom would not mind to soak an hour or two ... So in the house itself there were two bathrooms, plus one by the laboratory, yes, behind a hefty granite slab. Just in case, which, as you know, are different.

Ur met me in the kitchen, already chewing something over the stove. The ice princess hummed softly to herself, while wagging her ass seductively. Hmm, someone will now answer me for the missed moment, the main thing is to sneak up imperceptibly, so, just a little more and ... A resounding slap spread through the kitchen.

-Hey! - the witch shuddered and rubbed the injured part of the body.

-Sephiroth! I'm making them breakfast here, and they beat me in the ass for it! - how much righteous anger.

-By the way, this is the second time, thanks to some ice lady, such a moment leaves nothing, so I deserve it.

-Sorry, I think it will lift your spirits a little, - Mrs. Milkovich completely turned to me and dug into a deep kiss, the fact that Elsa splashing somewhere above only added adrenaline, that's the same ... hmmm, for such a special do not be angry, than the devil and shamelessly uses.

-Hmm, this is certainly very pleasant, however, it does not remove the question, why did you decide to visit me at such an early hour? - After a couple of minutes, I still asked.

-Urteer prepared a meeting place so as not to raise unnecessary questions from ... the environment, so that in a couple of days it will be possible to cross. And you are invited to the meeting.

- Didn't you just want to sit together, confess there or something?

- Planned. And let's sit, but, firstly, you seem to be not a stranger to us either, not a stranger at all, - the ice princess licked her lips as if there was a very tasty dish in front of her and now the sorceress was wondering which side of it would be best to start eating - and secondly, - the witch has become a serious, - she has some information for you.

-This is how, it is clear, by the way, you do not know where my communication ball has gone? I can't find it anywhere - actually, I knew perfectly well where the ball is now, but confusion and embarrassment are perhaps the most "tasty" emotions for me. In short, I am rushing to confuse people, especially pretty girls. Although not so strong as to start shocking the audience with the method of Master Bob, I hope I never get to his methods.

-Well, you know ... - oh, how she fidgeted, hehe.

Already forty minutes had passed, breakfast was on the table, Ur was sitting on it, planning to apologize to Elsa as well - the moment was still ruined for her, but more and more often thoughts came to my mind to go and rub the back of the warrior and when I was lathered himself to carry out these inclinations towards the beautiful maiden, the aforementioned maiden had already gone down to breakfast herself. A frustrated groan escaped his chest.

-Mmm?

-I was already going to go rub your back, but you went out yourself, oh, no luck ... - no, after all, when her face begins to blend in color with her hair ... there is definitely something in this, and the presence of the "mentor by seduction "(Ur confessed that Scarlett really approached her for advice. Well, she advised her, for which a special thanks to her) only added oil to the fire, hehe. Noticing my satisfied look, Titania frowned and crossed her arms over her chest.

-You're on purpose, aren't you? - the intonations in the voice of the sorceress would envy the best interrogators of the Gestapo, and this look ... it is under this gaze that Natsu and Gray immediately begin to portray best friends, hug and almost swear to each other in eternal love, lovely. The ice princess's choked chuckle became a good background.

- I can't help myself, you are so cute when you are embarrassed, - in response I received a new portion of embarrassment and smiled rather. Good breakfast.

But all good things come to an end sooner or later, and if this is a delicious meal in the company of two charming ladies, then it ends very quickly. Mrs. Milkovich's apology was accepted by the harsh warrior and the girls left together, talking about something and occasionally laughing. And I had two days of relatively free time before meeting with the "candidate for the New Council", during which I had to resolve a couple of issues with Makarych, and at the same time collect seedlings from the seeds I sown a few weeks ago.

But it was not so easy to do it. The distance was very great, so, for a start, I had to relocate closer to the goal. What am I up to? Oh, it's very simple. The symbiote cells in Jellal's body should have finished gathering information on this mage. Fortunately, through the efforts of the Council, he was constantly kept with zero reserves, and even in a shirt with stylish sleeves - the guy had gone off the rails thoroughly and was now in a room with soft walls (an obsession with meeting Zeref, heavily involved in a forced change in attitude towards those closest to him, pledged by the "good" Ultear, and multiplied by the failure of the plan with the Tower, the roof tore off the only way) in a closed institution for crazy magicians on a small island. The island was so small that it was not even displayed on the maps, or the reason for this was a contingent of "islanders" - after all, the criteria for insanity for magicians are seriously ... expanded, so to speak, so if magicians recognize someone as crazy, then it means there is absolutely a clinic. Why aren't psychos killed? Unprofitable, oddly enough. After all, you can constantly drain mana from them and charge lacrima crystals or artifacts, in fact, the principle is the same in the prisons of magicians. Why not feed them to the state for "just like that"? Therefore, either in the quarry, or in the "batteries", well, or both there and there at the same time, hehe.

And so I sit on the rocks and portray a proud bird, and along the way rummage through the flow of information from my deranged "friend", which I can say is very, very interesting, the Magic of Heavenly Bodies, a general theory, spell design, which includes developments from various "schools", here and "Self-destruction" on a mixture, as I understand it, the energies of Darkness and Death (transformed from neutral mana) and "Material Copy", even with a passing view, showed that I went the way, albeit correct, but very perverted , and interesting moments in the magic of Fire, especially the "Golden Flame", and a bunch of everything else, eh, study and study. But there is also information that was "only for official use", by the way, it contained an explanation of why the deranged carrier of state secrets was not dug in despite the usefulness of the God-chosen battery. There was some story there with the sealing of something very thick and unpleasant, suspended from the life of a "key", so that Jellal was not threatened with the death penalty in any case, maximum life. Unfortunately, this section of memory was magically sealed for nondisclosure, and even the cells of the symbiont could not get close, what I found out, I found out exclusively on associations, and then no, no. However, the magic of Heavenly Bodies is also a very worthy acquisition, although for me it is almost useless - given the "costs" of concentration that are required to use completely non-profile "Meteorite" or "Star Wrath" (one of the most sophisticated and powerful attacks) , I will be able to create a uniform Hell and a Dark Break at the same time ... well, when I can finally maintain the required degree of control without using the "Demon Mask". Although, if not at the same time, then you can try now, and I can organize the invasion of various evil creatures and spirits from the depths of the Abyss without any problems - Jose's lessons were not in vain, besides, the inhabitants of Darkness were wonderfully obedient. And why did the former head of "Ghosts" write and think that subduing these creatures is problematic? But for Lucy, this school will be ideal: both in terms of "quality of mana" are very close, and, especially at first, it takes time to prepare a spell ... which her Spirits can give her.

The question remained what to do with Jellal himself. It was possible to solve the problem radically, "no man, no problem", fortunately in this state of the magician I can arrange for him a heart attack, stroke and renal failure at the same time without difficulty, but ... an amphibian threatens with a noose, well pumped and tuned after that shameful drain of several hundreds of gigawatts of power to nowhere, and sorry, not to anywhere, but to the player, which is even worse. I really don't want to lose the almost orphaned body of the God-equal magician, someone can be tried there and there will be a "fallback" in the event of the death of the main carrier, now he is greased, and the consciousness "wanders in darkness." So let it be better to stay here - under reliable protection and protection. But his roof flew off with the help of magic, which means there is a chance that magic can return this roof, but why do I need a hostile God Chosen One with a normal roof? We do not need such good, which means we will do so that we cannot cure Jellal. For example, let's adjust his memory ... to zero, there is a chance that he will go nuts from this, but ... I, in fact, need this, right? In addition, I "scanned" his memory and I know where everything is, I don't need a vegetable at all, so let there be "motor" memories, but everything else, down with it. Give the command ... well, that's all, now the only copy of consciousness is only in my head, and the chamber has acquired another variation on the theme of Fess (* read more in the cycle "Keeper of Swords" by N. Perumov * author's note). You can go home - "digest" a whole mountain of information and write it down in the Book, and this is only for theory, and with practice let one blonde suffer, mwa-ha-ha (note for the future, how to rehearse sinister laughter).

Somewhere in Magnolia, Lucy Heartfilia shrugged her shoulders chilly, family intuition warned her mistress of future troubles.

So it turned out that it didn't work out normally to relax at home (except for another trip by our small but very friendly team to the presentation of magical jewelry that was held in the city. Toad, without talking, allocated money from the fund and my girls got a couple of souvenirs, and I - a cocktail of positive emotions and a couple of kisses from each), first, an entry into the Book (maybe you should give it a name? But only the hackneyed pretentious Grumorum Arkanorum is spinning in my head and ... Index Librorum Prohibitorum ... uh, no, nafig, if in a saying " As you call the ship, so it will go "there is at least a grain of truth, then it is better to Grumorum, well, or let it remain just a Book), then a meeting with Makarov, and then the deadline has come to be nominated, by the way about the meeting ...