“Pia~”
At mealtime the next day, Aibo—still as cute as ever—suddenly appeared inside the Fairy Tail guild hall.
“Yo, Aibo. Your teleportation magic is getting smoother and smoother.”
Aibo raised a hand to block the buzz-cut man, who was trying to open his mouth wide and take a bite out of him, and said helplessly:
“Big Brother Mest, can you do something about that bad habit of yours? Don’t just eat children whenever you feel like it.”
“Haha, I eat them even when they’re not children!”
“Big Sister Elo, one steak set… Whoa!? Gray, what happened to you?”
The moment Aibo sat down, he noticed a black-haired, pig-faced boy sitting beside him and nearly jumped out of his skin.
“Hahaha, Aibo, let me tell you, let me tell you! This morning, Gray went to pick on that new girl from yesterday, and she beat the crap out of him. I’m dying!”
Cana rushed over at once to mock Gray, vividly recounting the morning’s farce to Aibo while clutching her stomach and laughing nonstop.
“N-nonsense! Look at my face! Who’s bullying whom here!?”
“You are! You ran over and kicked her stool!”
“Who told her to ignore people!? Damn it! Just wait! I’ll get my revenge!”
Aibo scanned the guild and finally managed to spot Erza hiding alone in a corner.
The girl had changed into a clean, pretty outfit, but she was still wearing yesterday’s armor over it, making her look rather mismatched.
“…That girl built herself a castle and locked herself inside… We tried to go talk to her, but she ignored us.”
Cana ruffled Aibo’s hair and leaned over, lowering her voice:
“How about you go help her open up, little Aibo?”
“Me?”
“Your magic lets you communicate directly with her mind. She won’t pay attention when we go talk to her, so we can only rely on you~”
“…All right… I’ll give it a try.”
Aibo scratched his head, feeling that this might be tricky, but he was still quite willing to help a pretty girl.
Yes, the key point was that she was pretty.
Even with one eye covered, Erza was definitely a beauty in the making.
He had a feeling that once she grew up, she would be a real stunner.
He might be young now, but he was bold.
Raising a girl was one of life’s great pleasures.
Besides, the master had given him a task too…
Let me help her fit into the guild.
[Hello there, Big Sister Erza~]
[It’s you. I remember your name. Aibo?]
[Yep, yep. Why are you sitting alone in the corner, Big Sister? Could it be that you hate everyone in the guild?]
[No! The guild is nice. I don’t hate it here…]
[Then come sit with us, Big Sister!]
[…No need. I prefer being alone. Being with other people makes me feel uneasy.]
(The tower… Grandpa Rob… Sho… Simon… Jellal…)
A person’s “thoughts” can roughly be divided into three layers: the surface layer of ideas, “consciousness”; the deeper layer of thought, “preconsciousness”; and the innermost core, “subconsciousness.”
Conversation through Thought Projection Magic takes place on the shallowest surface layer of consciousness, but Aibo’s magic level was high enough for him to hear the “voices” of all three layers.
Normally, the three layers of a person’s “thoughts” are unified.
Only someone in a state of turmoil will be “one way on the outside and another on the inside.”
Erza was in exactly that state now.
She was crying, and calling for help.
[That’s a lie~ But I respect your decision, Big Sister. Then how about we just chat like this? Since we’re both members of the guild, that makes us comrades. Can I be your good friend?]
[No… I… all right… Mm, okay. We’re… friends.]
[Big Sister Erza seems a little nervous. I’m just a kid, you know. Are you nervous even around me? You really are a scaredy-cat. Let’s stop here for now, then. We’ll talk again later~]
[No! I’m not!]
Erza suddenly stood up and turned to stare straight at Aibo.
Aibo turned to meet her gaze as well, blinked mischievously, and then buried his head in his food.
Erza’s face reddened.
Seeing that Aibo had started eating and was ignoring her, she puffed out her cheeks and sat back down.
[I’m not a coward!]
[I wasn’t lying either!]
[Are you still there?!]
[…]
Aibo listened cheerfully without replying and kept eating.
[Looks like he’s really gone… How amazing. The outside world really does have all kinds of magic.]
[This kid is kind… and very pretty… but he isn’t cute! Talking directly with someone else’s mind and all that—that’s way too much like cheating…]
[Grandpa Rob was right. Everyone in this guild is so gentle. The master is kind, just like Grandpa Rob. The adults consider my feelings and give me space. Even a child knows to take the initiative and show me kindness…]
[Except for that naked perverted brat.]
“Pfft! Cough, cough, cough!”
“Aibo! Slow down when you eat! Honestly, here, have some juice.”
Erza turned and saw Cana patting Aibo on the back while giving him something to drink.
Suddenly, the hairs on her body stood on end.
The more she thought about it, the more something seemed wrong.
[He—he heard all of that!? You heard it all, didn’t you?!]
[I didn’t hear anything.]
[Phew~ Good, that scared me…]
“Eek!?”
Erza shot to her feet, nearly falling off the stool, and glared at Aibo in shame and fury.
[Y-you’re not allowed to eavesdrop on my thoughts!]
[All right, Big Sister Erza. Then I’ll be going.]
[…You’re still here, right!? I know you’re still here! I won’t be fooled again!]
[…]
[Damn it! I’ll leave myself!]
Erza opened the door and ran out of the guild, her face bright red.
But the moment she stepped outside the entrance, she heard a violent roar of laughter behind her.
She froze, whipped around, and yanked the door open, only to see some people eating and others chatting, as if the laughter she had just heard had been an illusion.
Macao, who happened to be sitting right beside the door, raised his cup and asked:
“What’s wrong, little lady? Forget something?”
“N-no, nothing. Sorry to bother you.”
By then, the girl’s crimson face was more eloquent than any profanity.
[Hehe~ Big Sister, you guessed right. Actually, everyone in the guild heard our conversation just now. Sorry, I forgot to mention it—I opened a local-area chat.]
[AAAAAAAH! Aibo, you big idiot!!!]
But Erza no longer had the mind to settle scores with Aibo.
Her brain was severely overloaded, and she ran desperately, consumed by shame and fury, quickly disappearing into the distance.
Meanwhile, back inside Fairy Tail, everyone was loudly mocking pig-faced Gray.
“That naked perverted brat! He’s such an embarrassment to Fairy Tail! Hahahahahaha!”
“Wakakaka! You have no idea how hard I had to hold it in just now. That girl was way too cute.”
“Hahaha, she really is a good girl. Just a little awkward. Ah, she must have gone through something terrible before. It’ll probably take her a while to get over it.”
“But now that you mention it, Aibo’s Thought Projection Magic is kind of ridiculous. He can even split people into separate groups for communication? That’s something only a master of Thought Projection Magic could do, right?”
“That’s talent for you. It’s nothing we can envy. The master said Erza’s magic also awakened naturally. She’s probably another little monster just like Aibo.”
“Little monster or not, at least she’s better than a little pervert.”
“Hahahahahaha!!”
“That’s enough, you guys! You keep laughing at me!! Damn you, Erza! I’ll definitely win next time!!!”
[Inspiration Points +233]
Aibo could barely suppress the grin tugging at his lips.
Before he started talking with Erza, he had first pulled everyone in the guild into a Thought Projection Magic group chat.
Then he told them that he was going to initiate a conversation with Erza and broadcast its contents through the group chat.
Erza couldn’t hear the voices in the group chat, but the group chat could hear Erza’s voice, so he told everyone to pretend they knew nothing and not give anything away.
Level 4 Thought Projection Magic wasn’t simply a matter of having a wide range.
With the Thought Projection Magic linked through Aibo, all exchanged information was under his control.
Who could hear what, and who couldn’t hear what, was entirely up to Aibo.
So even if Erza “said” some secret that shouldn’t be known to everyone, Aibo could blur it out immediately so that no one else heard it.
This function of Thought Projection Magic wasn’t something Aibo had only just discovered, but this was indeed the first time he had used it this way.
Judging from the results, the effect was outstanding.
It was excellent for breaking the ice too.
Now everyone in the guild knew that Erza was a forthright and adorable girl, so they would definitely be more tolerant of her from now on.
And Erza had already “made a huge fool of herself” in the guild once, which had greatly reduced her sense of shame.
After this, it should be easier for her to lower her guard and become part of the Fairy Tail family.
Except for Gray, no one had been hurt.
Everyone was happy.
All’s well that ends well.
He just didn’t know whether Erza would come looking for payback.
Well then, it was time to show some real skill.
Erza ran all the way to the river channel and sat down beside a small pond, waiting for her face to cool off.
Just then, the devil-child’s voice echoed in her mind again…
[Keh-keh-keh, Big Sister Erza~ It’s no use~ No matter where you run, it’s no use. I’m always right by your side~]
“Eeeek!!!”