The two of them leaned against the red maple tree and sat there for a very, very long time.
Maybe it was the power of blood.
Maybe it was the bond of family.
Or maybe it was because Erza had learned what Irene had suffered.
Erza did not feel much hatred toward Irene.
After all, Irene had spent three years imprisoned and still used her Magic Power to protect her.
Even after turning from a dragon back into a human, she had still given birth to Erza.
Although Irene had never fulfilled the duty of raising her, Erza still owed her life to her.
"I can understand it," Erza said quietly. "But I still can't accept it right away. I think... I may need some time."
Raizel raised his hand again and gently patted the top of her head, as if soothing her troubled mood.
"I'll respect your decision. If you don't want to see her, then—"
Erza straightened herself and gathered her emotions again. She raised a hand and wiped lightly at the corner of her slightly damp eyes.
Her own sadness was secondary.
More than anything, she felt sorrow over what Irene had gone through.
"Are you all right now?" Raizel asked with a faint smile.
Erza thought for a moment, then seemed to let out a small breath of relief.
"I'm fine, Probably. I'll think about it when I actually meet... her. We haven't met yet, after all."
"Let me warn you in advance. Don't expect her to show you a kind face."
Erza pressed her lips together almost imperceptibly before saying, "I know. Otherwise, she would not have gone twenty years without coming to find me, would she?"
"I told you already. You don't need to pretend in front of me."
Raizel looked at her and shook his head helplessly.
It was far too obvious.
Erza tightened her lips, then forced herself to glare at him calmly, her cheeks puffed slightly in frustration.
"I know!"
A faint, almost unnoticeable blush colored Erza's cheeks.
Then she turned her head away as if guilty.
She could feel embarrassed too, all right?
"When we reach the Alvarez Empire, I'll try talking to her."
Erza stopped beneath the red maple tree and tilted her head slightly, gazing in the direction of the Alvarez Empire as if lost in thought.
Sunlight spilled over her scarlet hair, and the faint, dazzling light was reflected in her dark eyes.
Little by little, the corners of her lips lifted again.
"In the end, things will turn out well... right?" she murmured softly to herself.
...
August had once told Raizel something.
When August mentioned that he had met Erza, Irene's breathing had paused for the briefest instant.
An ordinary person would never have noticed it.
But he was August.
He had noticed.
Of course, as someone with very high emotional intelligence, August had wisely chosen not to point it out.
When August suggested bringing Erza to meet Irene, Irene refused outright.
After that, August tested Irene several more times, but Irene refused to budge no matter how he approached it. Even August could do nothing about it.
And then August shamelessly threw the problem back to Raizel.
After all, he had already told Raizel very clearly before that the chances were not high.
Fine, cards on the table, but he was giving up!
Wouldn't traveling with Mavis be more enjoyable anyway?
If this had been before, Raizel would not have had much confidence either.
But now, things were different.
Whether he could persuade Irene or not was another matter. At the very least, he no longer had to worry about being unable to beat her.
Irene still had motherly love for Erza.
Besides, Irene really was...
Raizel hoped the mother and daughter could reconcile.
He did not want to see them draw blades against each other because of something like "sides" or "positions."
And he certainly did not want to see war break out between two continents.
Raizel also hoped Irene could live a better life.
Ideally, after her side effects were removed, she could settle down in Magnolia.
If that happened, time could slowly resolve everything.
The only problem was that he still had not found a way to cure the aftereffects of Irene's dragonification: her lost sense of taste, her inability to sleep, and everything else.
But Raizel had a strange intuition.
Perhaps on the northern continent, Guiltina, he might be able to find a good solution.
It might be time to take a trip to the northern continent.
Raizel quietly made his decision.
Erza chose to keep this matter hidden for the time being.
Ultear and the others had their own guesses, but since Erza did not say anything, they tacitly chose not to mention it either.
...
One month after Erza learned about her mother, Irene, Gildarts returned.
Raizel had asked Cana to trick him back using a card.
The moment Gildarts returned, Raizel went to him and invited him to go fishing.
While fishing, Raizel asked in a seemingly casual tone, "I want to know about the contents of the Hundred Years Quest. Or at least some information about the northern continent."
The continent of Guiltina was located north of Ishgar and Alvarez
. It was remote and rarely communicated with the outside world.
The Magic Council did not have much information about Guiltina either, so the only person Raizel could think to ask was Gildarts, who had attempted the Hundred Years Quest.
"Pffffft—!"
Gildarts, who had been drinking beer, sprayed it straight out of his mouth.
Beer foam hung from the corners of his mustache as he coughed nonstop.
"You're not thinking of doing it, are you?"
Gildarts looked frightened, his mustache still wet with beer.
He already knew that Raizel had fought side by side with Igneel and the others against Acnologia.
He also knew Raizel's strength was no longer what it had once been.
Even so, he could not help worrying!
Before going fishing, Raizel and Gildarts had sparred once and Raizel had already surpassed him.
But the Hundred Years Quest was truly difficult.
Gildarts had spent three years on it, and his progress could basically be described as zero.
Before Gildarts, no one who attempted the Hundred Years Quest had ever returned alive.
He had come back alive, yes, but he had paid the price of one arm.
Of course, in truth, there was another person who had survived the Hundred Years Quest, but he had been judged as a failed participant.
That person was the Dragon Eater guild master, Georg Reizen.
"No," Raizel said, shaking his head.
He was somewhat interested in the Hundred Years Quest, but not right now.
At the very least, Acnologia had to be dealt with first.
Besides, that quest had already been around for a hundred years. Waiting another year or two probably would not matter.
"Then I definitely can't tell you!" Gildarts covered his mouth with one hand and shook his head wildly.
"Why?"
"I signed a confidentiality agreement! I swore on my character!"
"If you don't tell anyone and I don't tell anyone, who's going to know?" Raizel raised an eyebrow.
At Raizel and Gildarts's level, if they sealed their minds, not even someone with Hearing Magic could listen to their thoughts.
Gildarts scratched his hair, looking deeply troubled.
That confidentiality agreement did not actually have any magical binding power.
In the end, it depended purely on the Mage's personal integrity.
After Gildarts returned in failure, no one had dared challenge the quest again.
Raizel was never someone with a loose mouth and he had also helped him reunite with his daughter.
Raizel was stronger than him now too, and Gildarts could not beat him.
If that old man came after him, he could say he had been forced.
Besides, that old man never left the guild anyway. If Gildarts told Raizel, how would he know?
People were like that.
Once their mind started leaning in one direction, they could always find plenty of excuses.
And besides, did he, Gildarts, even have integrity?
If he did not have any, then swearing on it probably did not matter much.
Gildarts decided to give up.
He had failed the quest anyway.
While fishing, he began telling Raizel.
"The one who issued that request is a Magic Guild in Guiltina called Magia Dragon."
"That guild only has one person left now, and that's their guild master, Elefseria."
"That old man is a Dragon Slayer. When I first met him, he appeared in dragon form. I think he wanted to scare me a little. When that didn't work, he changed back into a human."
"I don't know exactly how strong he is, but he should be far above me."
"And the contents of the Hundred Years Quest are..."
"To seal the Five Dragon Gods!"