Under Ultear's teeth-grinding protest, Shane finally put away that nasty "human kite" mindset.
He dropped to a lower altitude. His wings held a relaxed, effortless glide as he slowly circled above the endless sea of trees.
With the gale no longer trying to shove itself into her skull, the girl finally managed to breathe. She clung to Shane's calf with one hand as a pivot, while pressing her temple with the other, eyes closed in concentration.
When she'd studied Nirvana's sealing formation earlier, traces of residual magic had carried scattered fragments of information.
She needed to piece those scraps together into an approximate direction.
"...That way. Out past the forest—around twenty kilometers."
A moment later, she opened her eyes and pointed uncertainly. "Circle around near there."
"Hold steady."
Shane answered casually. His dragon wings tilted, carving a wide arc through the sky as he swept in the direction she indicated.
Once he accepted a job, he saw it through—one of Shane's few reliably good traits.
Even if they were just aimlessly searching, he was patient to the end.
Time slipped by as they looped the skies. The sun gradually turned a reddish hue.
When Shane finally flew beyond the forest, looping around a steep mountain ridge, the view opened up all at once.
Below lay a broad clearing surrounded by jagged rock formations.
And in the middle of that weed-choked emptiness stood a cluster of crumbling buildings—ruined beyond recognition.
"This should be it," Ultear said, staring down. "Go down."
Shane folded his wings. Airflow gathered beneath him into a cushion, and the two of them descended slowly at the village's edge.
The moment her feet touched the ground, Ultear released him and stepped back two paces.
She even brushed at her clothes twice, as if Shane himself were dust.
Shane ignored the petty gesture and surveyed their surroundings with curiosity.
Dead silence.
That was the only feeling this place gave him.
No birds. No insects. Only the wind moaning through shattered walls and broken beams.
"Does anyone seriously still live in a dump like this?"
Shane kicked aside a chunk of rubble blocking his path, skeptical. "This looks like it's been abandoned for decades."
"I can't be sure either," Ultear said, tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear and revealing a pale, delicate ear.
"But we look."
"You're getting better at ordering people around," Shane complained, but his feet moved anyway. "Fine. We're here, so let's look."
He headed straight toward the most intact stone building near the center—something that looked like a main house.
But before they could reach it—
Creeeak.
A teeth-grating sound suddenly cut through the air.
That rotten old door… opened.
Shane stopped short.
An elderly man, short and dark-skinned, slowly stepped out.
He wore an exaggerated, colorful feathered headpiece, with face paint that looked a lot like the "Native American" styles Shane remembered from his old world.
The old man's eyes swept over them, then he gave a strange, low grunt.
"Deception—… You two touched that thing, didn't you?"
"Huh? 'Deception'?"
Shane blinked, momentarily thrown by the weird verbal tic.
But the confusion lasted all of one second before he tossed it aside.
Ever since joining Fairy Tail, his tolerance for nonsense had been stretched to absurd levels.
The guild had a pantsless exhibitionist who stripped down to his underwear at the drop of a hat, a lecherous drunk uncle who flirted with women whenever he got booze in him, and a red-haired girl with basically zero common sense…
Compared to that, an old man with a strange catchphrase was practically normal.
Shane glanced at Ultear.
Since the man had brought up Nirvana, they'd clearly found the right person.
Ultear—the one with questions—stepped forward.
Her clothes were still a bit disheveled, but the calm, controlled air around her didn't waver in the slightest.
"You're the Nirvits Tribe's Nirvana guardian of this generation?"
Her gaze flicked over the empty ruins. "Is there… no one else here?"
The old man didn't answer the second question.
He simply looked at Ultear, and a gentle smile spread across his wrinkled face.
"Guardian… you could say that."
His attitude was unexpectedly kind—nothing like the suspicious, territorial watchman of a forbidden place.
Curious, Shane couldn't help but butt in.
"Old man, what's your name? We secretly messed with the taboo magic you're guarding—shouldn't you be angry? Why are you so calm?"
"I'm Roubaul."
The old man didn't even raise his eyelids. He ignored Shane completely, his eyes still fixed on Ultear.
"Deception—… I can sense what you did."
He spoke with clear seriousness.
"You touched Nirvana and were forcibly flipped into a vile persona… but you held onto your true self, returned to normal, and even hid the sealed passage afterward."
His eyes softened further.
"You're a good child."
Being completely ignored, Shane scratched his cheek awkwardly, shrugged, and retreated to the side to play background character.
Ultear's expression didn't change at the praise. She simply said flatly,
"It isn't worth complimenting. Hiding it was just… making up for my careless mistake."
Then she locked onto Roubaul with a sharp, focused stare and stepped closer.
"I came here to ask you one thing."
Her tone was strange—almost edged, even sharp.
Roubaul didn't seem bothered by her rudeness. He lifted a hand in a small, forgiving gesture, like a grandfather indulging a sulky granddaughter.
"Ask."
Off to the side, Shane watched in silent amazement.
So… he wasn't deciding whether to answer—he was deciding where to begin?
Ultear's charm stat was that high? First meeting and the old man's affection meter was already maxed?
Ultear didn't notice Shane's drifting thoughts—if she had, she would've absolutely punched him in the stomach.
Right now, she was fully focused on Roubaul.
"The question is simple," she said, voice steady but intent.
"Four hundred years ago—what was the Nirvits Tribe's purpose in creating Nirvana? A magic so dangerous it had to be sealed away by its own creators."
"...A very blunt question."
Roubaul adjusted the colorful feathers on his head and let out a long sigh.
He didn't get angry. Instead, he fell into a long silence.
"Where should I start…?"