Fairy Tail: Igneel's eldest son in Anime Multiverse

Inside the Magic Council's prison, four people sat together in silence, exchanging awkward glances without saying a word.

Charles let out a long sigh. "I can understand Natsu acting like this, but Lucy… why would you get dragged into his mess too?"

The hearing at the Council earlier had been cut short due to an unexpected interruption.

Natsu had barged into the courtroom with Lucy in tow. He wore a black wig, attempting to disguise himself as Charles, while Lucy put on a suit of armor and a scarlet wig, trying—and failing—to impersonate Erza.

It was a blatant insult to the intelligence of the Council members. Did they really think such laughable disguises would fool anyone?!

The result? All four of them had been thrown straight into a cell.

Lucy, face full of despair, moaned, "Natsu dragged me into this! I'm a victim too!"

Natsu protested loudly, "What are you saying, Lucy?! Weren't you trying to help Charles and Erza too?"

Lucy's expression twisted in rage, her teeth bared. "Not in this ridiculous way!"

Charles could only shake his head and say helplessly, "I sincerely apologize. Everyone got dragged into this mess thanks to my idiot little brother."

"What do you mean, idiot?!" Natsu shouted, leaping to his feet.

Charles cast him a sidelong glance. "This trial was just a formality to maintain order. We were supposed to be released today. Thanks to you two, we ended up locked in a cell."

"Huh?!" Natsu tilted his head, his face a perfect picture of confusion.

Realizing he'd screwed up, Natsu dropped his head. "Uh… sorry."

Despite the trouble caused by Natsu's antics, all four of them were released the next day.

Once they returned safely to the Fairy Tail guild, Natsu, now free, immediately reverted to his usual hyperactive self. He created such a ruckus that the rest of the guild began grumbling that maybe he should've stayed locked up a little longer.

Then Elfman said something that jogged Natsu's memory.

He turned and shouted at Charles, "Hey! We still haven't finished our match! Let's settle it right now!"

Charles didn't respond immediately—he calmly raised his drink to his lips. But what sloshed inside wasn't some ordinary beverage; it was a stream of flame, flickering like molten liquid.

This was Fairy Tail's exclusive "Flame Set Meal," a specialty crafted from magically refined fire. Until now, Natsu had been the only one ordering it. But since Charles joined the guild, there were two now.

Still receiving no answer, Natsu simply charged straight in. "I'm coming! Take this!"

Charles set down his cup, shaking his head. "Natsu, haven't you learned anything from last time? Do you ever reflect?"

The moment the word "reflect" left his mouth, Charles had already turned and driven his fist into Natsu's stomach, launching him across the guild hall.

"Instant KO?!" Lucy gasped in shock.

"Aye! Instant KO," Happy nodded solemnly.

But then Charles's vision suddenly blurred. He shook his head, trying to clear it, and looked up just in time to see Natsu, who had just stood up, collapse again.

That didn't feel right.

Charles was always precise with his strength. That punch shouldn't have done more than wind Natsu a bit. With his durability, he should've been just fine.

Looking more closely, Charles saw Natsu laying on the ground, a huge bubble inflating from his nose—he was clearly asleep!

Natsu might be scatterbrained, but he wasn't known for suddenly falling asleep like some cigar-smoking marine dog-vice-admiral. Something was off.

Bang!

Lucy's head slammed onto the table. All around, other guild members slumped in their seats or sprawled on the floor.

Charles didn't need further confirmation—something was clearly wrong.

He could sense a magical disturbance in the air. A large-scale spell had been cast, but strangely, he couldn't detect any magical energy typical of a mage. Instead, the ripple seemed to originate from natural magic.

In the Clover Kingdom, magic knights used grimoires to help fine-tune their sensory abilities. They could often identify a mage just by the nature of their mana.

But mages in Fairy Tail's world didn't have that level of precision—they relied more on the distinct traits of spells.

And that precision had a flaw: it made them blind to those with little to no inherent magical energy.

Which is exactly why people like Asta could often get the drop on them. Similarly, Charles hadn't detected this approaching spellcaster—only by sensing the surrounding air did he realize someone was near.

He turned toward the only other person still conscious—Master Makarov—asking, "Master, they're not an enemy, right?"

Makarov sat cross-legged atop the bar, glanced at Charles, and grinned. "Hahaha! You resisted the sleep magic? Impressive, kid! Don't worry, he's not an enemy. He just doesn't like being seen."

Charles nodded. He already knew exactly who this was.

Ever since Mirajane stopped using magic, Erza was considered Fairy Tail's strongest female mage without question.

But when it came to the strongest overall… that was debatable.

Charles knew Gildarts was without peer. But within the guild, few had actually seen Gildarts go all out.

Among the other S-Class mages, each had their fans, and none were clearly above the rest. Natsu and Gray were still too green.

And the man approaching now was one of Fairy Tail's strongest candidates—Mystogan.

In truth, he was the prince of a parallel world—Edolas—and the counterpart of Jellal.

In Edolas, humans lacked innate magic and relied on magical tools called Lacrima. That explained why Charles hadn't sensed any magic from him.

Soon, Charles saw the man walk in—completely wrapped up like a mummy. Even if everyone had been awake, no one could've seen his face.

He carried five distinct magic staves—one in hand and four strapped across his back.

Mystogan stepped into the guild hall, visibly surprised to see Charles still awake along with Makarov.

But he said nothing, merely glancing at Charles, then heading straight for the job board. He pulled off a request and handed it to Makarov.

"I'm off," he said simply.

Makarov nodded casually. "Don't forget to lift the sleep spell."

As Mystogan's figure vanished, the others slowly began waking up.

Some had suspected what was happening even before falling unconscious, so when they awoke, no one panicked. Instead, they began chattering excitedly about the mysterious Mystogan.

Gray started explaining him to Lucy, who still looked confused. As he continued, he also began listing who the strongest mages in Fairy Tail were.

And when it came to Mystogan, everyone naturally wondered: what did he really look like?

Just then, a voice echoed from above.

"Hmph, I know what he looks like."

A young man stood there, dressed in a fur coat bearing the Fairy Tail emblem. He had a cigar in his mouth and headphones hanging from his ears.

A scar ran from his forehead across one eye, ending at his cheek, making him look particularly fierce.

Gray scowled slightly. "Here comes Fairy Tail's other strongest contender."

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