Internet Magic in Fairy Tail

Chapter 175: Chapter 175: Another Money Grabber

Under the influence of Total Hypnosis, the kingdom's First and Fourth Magic War Divisions began fighting each other.

In each soldier's mind, they believed they were battling the dark guild, Fairy Tail. Panther Lily clashed with Sugar Boy, soldiers fought one another, and a fierce battle unfolded in the sky.

Below, Fairy Tail's members watched in stunned silence.

Lady Cana murmured anxiously, "What's going on? Are they fighting among themselves?"

"It's Nate's magic, isn't it?" Edolas Juvia exclaimed in amazement.

From within the guild hall, Levy's shout echoed, "The teleportation magic is ready! We can activate it anytime. Everyone, get back!"

"It looks like we don't need it..." Edolas Lucy stood with her hands on her hips, awestruck. "Such powerful magic—does it come from that sword?"

In the sky above, Nate calmly watched as the soldiers exhausted themselves. Under the spell of Total Hypnosis, they had no chance of seeing through the illusion. Generally, only three methods could counter such a powerful ability: gripping Kyoka Suigetsu's blade before it activated, being immune to magic, or being blind. Clearly, none of these soldiers met those criteria.

After waiting for half an hour, until the soldiers had drained much of their strength, Nate tossed a handful of cards into the air. Each card, formed from condensed magic, flew precisely toward a soldier. As soon as each card struck, it activated, pulling the soldier into its card space.

A series of bright flashes erupted in the sky as, one by one, the soldiers were sealed into the cards, leaving hundreds of cards drifting down to the ground—including two that contained the Division captains.

Only then did the hypnosis end.

Panther Lily, realizing what had happened, shouted, "What's going on?!"

Nate caught the two cards holding the captains and smirked at the black cat inside one of them. "Don't call me underhanded—your kingdom of Edolas has been trying to drain Earth Land of its magic, which isn't exactly noble."

"An illusion?" Panther Lily's face registered shock. A large-scale illusion of such intensity and duration was unimaginable.

"Not merely an illusion," Nate replied. "But if that's how you understand it, that's fine."

He snapped his fingers, sending a pulse of energy out. The cards floated into his hand, neatly stacking as they came together. Inside, the soldiers' frantic voices grew muffled.

Finding their shouts annoying, Nate cast a Silence spell to quiet them.

Having handled the situation, he descended to rejoin the members of Fairy Tail.

"That was amazing, Nate!" Edolas Lucy looked up at him, her face lit with admiration. "We're the only mage guild left in this world, and for years we've been hunted by the king's army!"

"Yeah, he outlawed magic, calling anyone with magic a criminal." She sighed, impressed by how effortlessly Nate had outwitted such powerful forces.

Nate chuckled, "Do you want to say, 'Teach me, coach?'"

"Could I learn it?" Edolas Lucy's eyes sparkled. "Could I use that sword of yours?"

"Nope."

"Oh... fine!" She gave him a mock glare. If they'd been closer, she'd have used her "48 Lucy Torture Techniques" on him.

Nate thought for a moment and then had an idea.

"Didn't you just offer to help?" he asked.

"Of course! And I would have helped even if you hadn't taken down the king's forces," Lucy replied eagerly. Fairy Tail had already received the gift of the rings, and she felt it was only right to return the favor.

Nate retrieved a small pouch from his inventory and handed it to her. "This contains 10,000 Magic Net rings. I need you to sell them on the black market as quickly as possible."

"10,000?" Edolas Lucy exclaimed, shocked. That was worth a fortune! Each ring contained a lacrima, and in Edolas, where magic was scarce, these were extremely valuable—especially with the king's recent ban on magic driving up prices on the black market.

"Are lacrimas cheap in your world?" Lucy's eyes lit up as she thought of a new scheme. "Nate, if you can travel between worlds, why not bring more lacrimas? I'd buy them from you!"

Great, he thought. Another Lucy with money-making schemes. Interdimensional smuggling, huh?

Nate didn't need money but wouldn't mind more, though his priority now was to complete his task. "First, try selling this batch of rings," he instructed. "Consider it a trial."

"Got it! Just wait and see what I can do!" Lucy replied confidently.

Nate felt she seemed much more reliable than the Lucy he knew back in Earth Land. He added a quick reminder, "Make sure each ring is activated in person."

"Ah, that'll be a bit of extra work... but I understand. I'll make sure each ring is activated!"

While slightly more time-consuming, Lucy knew she could manage.

"As for the sales profit," Nate continued, "you'll get a quarter share." Half the profit would go to Jude to fund further ring production. Of the remaining half, half would go to Lucy—a fair deal.

Lucy felt a bit embarrassed, thinking she might be getting too much, but Nate was more focused on getting the rings distributed.

"Do you use J-currency here too?" Edolas Lucy asked.

Nate shook his head. "The currency is also called J-currency, but it's issued by a different bank. Converting it to gold might be easier for us."

The guild's bulletin board indeed listed J-currency for rewards, though it seemed strange for a "dark guild" to be so involved in public requests. Requests ranged from 500 J to find a lost cat, all the way to 650,000 J for high-level tasks.

"Anyway, I'll leave the rings to you," Nate said. "Add me as a contact on the Magic Net, and I'll come back once they're all sold."

After exchanging friend requests, Nate released Erza Knightwalker, giving her another pouch with 10,000 rings.

"I've sealed your division in these cards," he told her. "Sell these rings, and I'll release them."

Knightwalker readily agreed. She'd already explored the Magic Net and had tried the [Magic Arena] game, finding herself impressed by Earth Land's advanced magic technology. She started to see this approach as a better alternative to the king's Infinite Magic plan.

Without realizing it, she began to admire Nate's incredible magic abilities, thinking it would be great if he were an Edolas native.

"I'll follow your instructions. Just make sure you keep your promise," she replied.

"I don't want to hold them indefinitely. They're the ones who came looking for a fight," Nate replied, offering her a quick handshake. They added each other as contacts, and she set her username as "Fairy Hunter."

As Knightwalker left, Edolas Lucy remarked, "She used to bully us a lot."

"Not anymore," Nate replied. With the Magic Net, Erza would likely realize the importance of trade with Earth Land. Even Lucy had already thought about importing lacrimas; surely, Knightwalker would come to similar conclusions.

The king, though, might not give up his Anima plans so easily. But for now, Nate put those thoughts aside; perhaps the king would soon find himself isolated.

With that, Nate turned to bid farewell to everyone.

"Well then, I'll be heading back to Earth Land now. Goodbye for now, everyone from Edolas."

"Hey, wait—you promised to take me to your world!" Edolas Lucy protested, grabbing his arm.

Nate smiled, "Finish selling those rings, then we'll talk. Sound good?"

"Deal!"

As Fairy Tail's members waved him off, a teleportation circle appeared beneath Nate's feet, and he disappeared in an instant.

...

Nate didn't return directly to Earth Land. Instead, he reappeared on the floating island where he had first arrived in Edolas. He looked out toward the distant royal capital and summoned Ur from the Deep Web.

"Nate, where are we?" Ur asked, immediately sensing the difference in this world.

Nate pulled her into an embrace, planting a kiss on her cheek.

"What are you doing?" Ur laughed, raising an eyebrow. "Did you miss me?"

"There's something I need your help with," Nate said, handing her a stack of cards containing the sealed soldiers and a pouch with his last 10,000 rings. After explaining the situation, Ur understood.

"So, you want me to stay here for a while and make sure these rings get sold?" she teased him with a grin. "And here I thought you just missed me!"

"Of course I missed you—in every way possible," Nate replied earnestly, then took her hand and led her into the nearby forest.

Blushing, Ur knew immediately what he had in mind. "Here? Out in the open?"

"Don't worry, no one will see us," Nate assured her as he wrapped his arms around her, his hand slipping beneath her top.