Chapter 299: Invitation Vouchers
"That's more like it, Mustache Pops!"
Lucy winked and gave the Celestial Spirit King a big thumbs up. The Celestial Spirit King responded with a wide, toothy grin.
"This is a pardon. Give thanks to the guidance of the stars!"
"Please, wait... I—"
Tears streamed down Loke's face. He was at a loss for words.
"If you still wish to atone, then I command you to become the strength for that friend. Live on—she is a friend worth doing so for. Stake your life to protect her!"
"That's what he said!" Lucy said to Loke with a smile.
Loke covered his face with his hands, tears dripping through his fingers. A golden gate opened behind him, and his figure began to gradually dissipate. He lowered his hands, looking at Lucy through blurred eyes.
My sin will not vanish because of this, but you have given me the courage to move forward.
"Thank you, everyone! Thank you, Lucy! I'll be in your care from now on. Next time, it will be my turn to lend you a hand."
"I'll be in your care too!" Lucy replied happily, catching the golden key that fell from the light.
"Spirit King, it's been a long time."
Seeing that the King had finished handling the internal affairs of the Spirit World, Noah stepped forward to greet him.
"Old friend, indeed, it has been quite a while."
The Spirit King looked at Noah. While Noah had a Thought Projection in the Spirit World, this was the first time in a while he had seen the main body.
"However, old friend, your strength is growing far too fast. I can no longer see through the depths of your power."
The Spirit King observed Noah. It had only been nine years since Noah first sent a Thought Projection to study in the Spirit World. Back then, Noah was talented, but the Spirit King had seen many powerful beings; Noah had only received special treatment because of his connection to Layla.
By the Spirit World's time flow, barely 35 or 36 days had passed. Now, the Spirit King felt he had to treat Noah as an equal, for his strength had become unfathomable.
"I've just put in a lot of effort to get here," Noah said with a smile. "Thank you for what you did for Loke. He is a member of our guild, after all."
"This was a special case created by the intersection of an old friend's criticism and a beautiful bond between spirits." The King paused, then addressed both Lucy and Noah. "Old friends, you are welcome to visit the Spirit World again anytime."
"I'll be there, Mustache Pops!"
"Mhm, I'll go as well."
"Then, may the stars guide your path forward."
With those words, the Celestial Spirit King transformed into a mass of light and vanished. The nearby waterfalls, which had been frozen in time, resumed their flow with a thunderous roar.
"Good, everything is settled," Noah said, clapping his hands.
"Noah, you knew Loke was a spirit all along, didn't you? You even lent me Grandpa Crux's key on purpose. Since things are resolved, I'm giving this back."
Lucy pulled out the Crux key and handed it to Noah.
After putting the key away, Noah noticed the rest of the guild members looking at him curiously. "Lucy and I visited the Spirit World together a long time ago. You were young then, Lucy, so you probably don't remember their faces well. Plus, with your mother's help and the King's permission, I've kept a Thought Projection there to study, so I'm very familiar with them."
The others realized the truth. It wasn't strange once he explained it—everyone in the guild knew Noah was obsessed with learning.
"That was nine years ago," Noah continued. "I visited with the Heartfilia family and met the King, the Zodiacs, and many other spirits. I've been studying there ever since. When Loke joined the guild three years ago, I recognized him immediately. I wasn't entirely sure until I ran into him recently and heard his story. I wanted to help him then, but the incident had just happened and he was too emotional. I had to let him process it first. That's why I waited until today to guide Lucy into helping him."
With the full explanation, everyone understood. They had wondered why Noah hadn't acted if he knew Loke was in danger, but seeing Loke's intense reaction to the past just now made it clear that he wouldn't have listened three years ago.
"Since it's resolved, let's head back. We need to let everyone know so they stop worrying."
Noah raised his hand, used Teleportation, and brought everyone back to the guild. After giving a brief summary to the other members—omitting the painful details and simply stating Loke was a spirit and the issue was fixed—everyone relaxed. Since it was late, they all headed home.
The next day, Lucy summoned Loke at the guild. A crowd immediately gathered around him.
"Loke, you're actually a Celestial Spirit?"
"Mhm—that's the gist of it."
As Loke stood there, Natsu circled him, inspecting him closely. He hadn't had the chance to look properly the night before.
"We didn't notice at all!" Gray and Elfman stared.
"Wait a second! You aren't a bull or a horse!" Natsu asked curiously.
"Natsu, you know Virgo looks human, right?"
"No—that girl can turn into a giant gorilla too."
"True enough."
"Loke is the Spirit of the Lion, the leader of the twelve Zodiac gates," Noah added, chiming into the conversation.
"A lion?!"
"A LION!"
Hearing this, Wendy-kun, Meredy-kun, and Yukino-kun all huddled together in fear.
"You could all beat a lion with one hand, why are you scared?" Carla sighed.
"We can't help it... lions just seem so fierce and scary..." Wendy-kun whispered, while Meredy-kun and Yukino-kun nodded frantically.
Sorano hugged her sister, nuzzling her. "Don't be afraid! Your sister is here!" Ultear also patted Wendy-kun and Meredy-kun on the shoulders to comfort them.
"Is a lion just a grown-up cat?" Happy asked, looking at Loke.
"Exactly."
"Not at all!" Lucy shouted.
"Stupid Happy," Carla muttered, looking at him like he was an idiot.
"Whoa, so cool!" Happy's eyes sparkled as he looked at Loke.
"But is your body alright?" Noah asked.
"I haven't fully recovered, but I wanted to say hello to everyone, so I asked Lucy to summon me. I won't be able to hang around the guild like I used to because Lucy is my owner now. I'll appear gallantly whenever she's in danger—kind of like a Prince Charming role, right?"
Loke suddenly scooped Lucy up in a bridal carry and started walking away. "So, let's go talk about our future together!"
"Hey! Put me down!" Lucy struggled and jumped out of his arms.
"So lucky... I want a Celestial Spirit too..." Natsu watched with envy.
"What kind of spirit would you want?" Noah asked.
"A dragon, obviously! What's the point of learning Dragon Slayer magic if I never get to fight a real dragon?!" Natsu punched the air excitedly.
Noah laughed and shook his head. That was such a Natsu answer.
"Spirits aren't for sparring!" Lucy sighed.
"Exactly, exactly. Spirits are for romance—" Loke leaned in toward Lucy, but she held up his key with a look of disgust.
"You should head back. You haven't fully recovered yet."
Lucy prepared to send him back, but Loke stopped her.
"Wait!"
Loke reached into his pocket and handed Lucy several slips of paper.
"What are these?"
"Invitation vouchers for a Holiday Inn. Since I can't stay in the Human World for long periods anymore, and you've all taken such good care of me, take these. Go have some fun!"
"A trip to the beach!" Lucy looked at the vouchers, delighted.
"OOOOHH!"
"I've never stayed at such a fancy hotel!" Gray and Natsu's eyes sparkled.
"I already gave vouchers to Erza, too. Enjoy yourselves!" With a final wave, Loke turned into a ball of light and returned to the Spirit World.
"Wow! I want to go too!" Wendy-kun and the others looked at the vouchers with envy.
"If you want to go, Sorano and I will take you," Ultear said, patting Wendy-kun's head.
"Really? Thank you, Ultear-san! Thank you, Sorano-san!" The younger girls beamed with joy.
"What are you all dawdling for? Do you want to be left behind?"
Erza appeared, already dressed in beachwear. She wore a straw hat, had a swim ring around her waist, and was pulling a cart full of beach gear.
"Too fast!" Lucy and Gray shouted in unison.
Seeing Erza's outfit, it was clear she had been ready for the beach for some time.
"My, Erza certainly has a lot of initiative," Mirajane said with a smile.
Unfortunately, Noah was about to interrupt that peaceful mood.
~~~
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