471 Elicia's Fury 3
Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Quatro Cerberus Headquarters.
March 31, x786.
While Alfonzo followed Goldmine up to his office, Elicia, Marin, and Ikaruga followed Guy to the table where he was sitting, before he went to open the guild hall's doors. When they arrived, they found a brown-haired man sitting there with a bottle of sake in front of him.
"Genma, allow me to introduce you to our youthful guests from Fairy Tail." Guy said energetically as the group of four reached the table. "They are Elicia, Marin, and Ikaruga."
Hearing the name Ikaruga, the brown-haired man, Genma, or Genma Shiranui, a shinobi from the Village Hidden in the Leaves, narrowed his eyes as he gazed at the pink-haired former assassin.
"So, it's you, Ikaruga." Genma said calmly. "I still need to repay you for the last time we met. You almost killed me and Raidō back then."
"Mr. Shiranui, it's nice to see you again." Ikaruga replied while bowing her head politely. "I hope you have been well since the last time we met. And I hope you don't hold what happened against me from when we last met."
"Oh, why would I?" Genma asked, his tone still as calm as before. "You only almost killed Raidō. He still has scars from that time on his face."
"*Sigh* And this is one of the things about trying to reform criminals that makes it so hard." Elicia said as she took a seat at the table. "Their pasts always come back to haunt them."
Hearing that, Genma's calm expression broke as he opened his eyes wide. Then his head snapped in Elicia's direction.
"You would actually try to reform a killer like her?" Genma asked while pointing his finger at Ikaruga.
Meanwhile, Marin and Guy also took seats at the table while Ikaruga remained standing behind Elicia.
"And you would so easily show her your back?" Genma continued. "You know who she is and what she does, right?"
"Of course I do." Elicia replied. "Fonzie and I were the ones who destroyed Death's Head Caucus, after all."
"Then why?" Genma asked in a confused tone.
"There are two reasons, actually." Elicia replied while holding up the index and middle finger of her right hand. "First, she's not strong enough to do anything to me or the people I care about. And second, she would never be able to sneak up on any of us."
"Still, you shouldn't trust someone like her." Genma said.
"That's not really fair, is it?" Marin asked with a slight frown on her face. "I mean, you're a shinobi, right?"
"Yeah, what about it?" Genma asked as his gaze shifted from Elicia to Marin.
"Well, you shinobi do the same thing as she did, right?'" Marin asked. "You take assassination quests. The only difference is that you are sanctioned by the kingdom while the dark guild's aren't."
"Exactly, we're sanctioned by the kingdom." Genma replied. "Besides, we only assassinate the enemies of the kingdom. But she killed anyone as long as the price was right."
"Marin, don't bother." Elicia said while shaking her head before Marin could reply. "It's easy to tell that she hurt someone he cares about. A friend or a member of his family. So, he won't want to hear what you have to say."
Then, Elicia made eye contact with Genma.
"But this is something the Magic Council decided." Elicia continued. "Attacking her because of your grudge would be a crime at this point. So, I would suggest you don't do that. I wouldn't want to have to put you in prison. Especially since Fonzie will be going to the Village Hidden in the leaves sometime soon. That would sour relations, you know."
With that, the people at the table fell silent for a few moments. Eventually, Genma lowered his head and released a sigh.
"I get it." Genma muttered. "I won't do anything. But if she does anything to hurt a member of the guild---"
"She'll be put down before she ever gets to that point." Elicia said in a stern tone. "She's my responsibility. So, I'll do what I have to."
As she spoke, Elicia's eyes flashed with resolve. And when Genma saw that, he nodded his head.
"I hope so." Genma said, deciding to leave the topic alone.
"Anyway, let's talk about something more youthful." Guy said, breaking the solemn atmosphere. "Like training hard with youthful passion."
Guy's usual atmosphere caused the others to shake their heads. However, it did lead to Elicia, Marin, Guy, and Genma chatting harmoniously. Meanwhile, Ikaruga took it upon herself to head to the bar to place food and drink orders for everyone.
A few minutes later, the thing Elicia was looking forward to the least happened. Bacchus, with his group of followers, approached the table.
"Elicia!" Bacchus shouted in a drunk slur. "Finally, we can see each other again. And don't worry, in these two months, I'll find a way to free you from that man's clutches. Then, we can be together like the two of us have always wanted."
Immediately, the atmosphere around Elicia changed. While she was chatting with Marin, Guy, and Genma, she was her usual bright and bubbly self. However, as soon as Bacchus began speaking, her aura turned rather gloomy.
"Well, I guess it's better to get this outta the way now, rather than later, huh?" Marin muttered.
Meanwhile, Guy and Genma looked back and forth between Elicia and Bacchus. At the same time, Bacchus' followers cheered loudly for Bacchus' wild spirit.
"I've had enough of this, Bacchus." Elicia said as she stood up from her seat with her head lowered.
Hearing what Elicia said, Bacchus smiled brightly as he opened his arms and stepped forward to embrace Elicia.
"Good." Bacchus said happily. "Then, let us go and find that man who forced you to be with him and---"
*Smack!*
*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*
Before Bacchus could finish speaking or wrap his arms around her, Elicia slapped him in the face and sent him flying across the guild hall, crashing into several tables before coming to a stop against the bar.
Instantly, the guild hall fell silent in dumbfounded amazement. No one present had ever seen Bacchus take a hit like that before, after all. A moment later, however, most of the wizards of Quatro Cerberus, who had not heard the conversation, stood up and flared their magic power.
Before they could do anything, though, Elicia, Marin, and Ikaruga, who appeared behind Elicia, flared their own magic power, putting pressure on everyone in the guild.
"Oh, I definitely have to fight them, now." The bald man with the katana whispered happily.
Because the guild hall was so quiet, though, everyone in the guild hall could hear the bald man's whispers. And Elicia was no exception. So, she glanced in the direction of the whisper. When she did, however, she was surprised. Though, not overly so.
'Well, if anyone from the eleventh squad would join a guild, it would definitely be Quatro Cerberus.' Elicia thought to herself. 'But I really wasn't expecting to see Ikkaku and Yumichika here. Then again, I'm just glad Keni isn't here. Otherwise, Quatro Cerberus might have already turned into a dark guild thanks to his actions alone.'
As Elicia was thinking, the bald man, Ikkaku Madarame, and the narcissistic man, Yumichika Ayasegawa, were people from Bleach, the same franchise as Yoruichi, Ritsu, and Sui-Feng. And they were from a division of Soul Reapers who loved to fight.
'Actually, now that I think about it, they would probably be right at home in Fairy Tail, too.' Elicia thought to herself as she shifted her gaze back to Bacchus, who was slowly picking himself up with a confused expression on his face.
"Elicia, why?" Bacchus asked once he stood to his feet again while covering the glowing red handprint on his left cheek. "Has he even forced you to this point?"
["Wow! I've seen how delusional this guy is from your memories."] Scylla said from Elicia's inner world. ["But seeing it in person is crazy. He really can't see the disgust in your eyes at all."]
'What else would you expect from someone wearing beer goggles a foot thick?' Elicia asked back.
["True."] Scylla replied with a nod. ["I can smell the liquor on his breath from over here."]
'Yeah, I know.' Elicia replied.
"Bacchus, I don't know how many times I've told you this over the years." Elicia said as she began stepping forward. "I do not love you. I never have, and I never will. And for you to think that Fonzie is forcing me to be with him…"
At that point, Elicia stopped speaking and simply shook her head.
"I have loved Fonzie for as long as I can remember." Elicia continued. "And nothing you can say or do will change that. So, you need to let this go. Now."
At first, after hearing what Elicia had to say, Bacchus looked thoroughly confused. However, after making eye contact with Elicia, and seeing the, perceived, pain in her eyes, his expression twisted into one filled with rage.
"So, he's really forcing you to such an extent, huh?" Bacchus said while lowering his head, gritting his teeth, and clenching his fists. "I'll kill him. Then, you won't have to---"
*bang!*
Once again, before Bacchus could finish, he was interrupted.
As soon as Elicia heard Bacchus say that he would kill Alfonzo, her angry expression turned expressionless in an instant. Then, with a burst of speed, she vanished from where she stood. After that, she appeared in the air in front of Bacchus with her right foot raised high before slamming her heel down on the top of his head. AS a result, Bacchus' head was slammed through the guild hall's wooden floorboards.
"What did you just say?" Eliciaa sked in a menacing tone while pressing her foot on Bacchus head. "Did you just say you would kill my Fonzie?"
"Oh snap!" Marin exclaimed. "This is bad. Lici completely loses it whenever anyone threatens Fonzie."
Before anyone could reply to Marin's exclamation, Bacchus started pushing himself off the floor, pulling his head out of the hole in the floor and raising Elicia's foot at the same time.
"That's right." Bacchus said with a livid expression on his face. "That seems to be the only way to free you from his grasp."
*Bang!*
As Bacchus was able to raise himself onto his hands and knees, Elicia exerted more force with her right leg, slamming him back into the floor, this time leaving an indent of his entire body in the floorboards.
"Why is it so hard for you to understand, Bacchus?" Elicia asked as threads were ejected from her fingertips.
*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*
A moment later, Elicia removed her foot from the back of Bacchus' head, causing Bacchus to rejoice, thinking Elicia was finally coming around. However, before he could rejoice for too long, the threads Elicia ejected from her fingertips wrapped around his arms, legs, and torso. Then, Elicia spun on her heels and whipped Bacchus into the nearest wall. Then, she followed up by slamming him into the opposite wall, followed by the ceiling.
Elicia spent the next two minutes slamming Bacchus into every surface in the Quatro Cerberus guild hall, destroying many tables and chairs while she was at it.
"We need to stop her." Genma said in a concerned tone. "If she keeps going like this, Bacchus will end up seriously injured.
"No, we let her keep going." Guy replied with a sigh. "Master Goldmine said as long as she doesn't cripple or kill him, she's free to do as she pleases with Bacchus."
"Seriously?" Genma asked in disbelief while turning his head in Guy's direction.
Instead of responding verbally, Guy only nodded his head with a solemn expression on his face.
At around the same time, Elicia finally stopped swinging Bacchus around, letting him fall to the floor once again. And now that he was not whipping through the air at high speed, everyone in the guild hall could finally see the condition he was in.
Currently, Bacchus' face was covered in blood. He had a cut over his left eyebrow and blood was leaking from his undoubtedly broken nose. There were also cuts on his exposed chest and abdomen, not to mention a number of bruises. On top of that, the armor plates covering his arms were dented and cracked all over.
To everyone's surprise, however, Bacchus was still conscious. In fact, he was trying to pick himself off the ground right now.
"Do you get it yet, Bacchus?" Elicia asked as she slowly stepped over all the debris while approaching Bacchus.
"Yeah… I get it…" Bacchus said as he slowly climbed to his feet.
Hearing that, Elicia breathed a sigh of relief. Although she didn't want to, if Bacchus had continued, she was ready to take much more drastic measures, completely ignoring Goldmine's request to not cripple or kill.
However, when she heard Bacchus' next words, Elicia's expression darkened immediately.
"Alfonzo Marcus needs to die." Bacchus said in a resolute tone. "The way he's hurting you by forcing you to be with him against your will is abhorrent. I can no longer stand to see the pain in your eyes."
At that point, everyone in the guild looked at Bacchus with incredulous expressions on their faces. Even Bacchus' followers, who had always believed Bacchus was right about Elicia's feelings, could tell that she was truly not in love with him.
"I see." Elicia said as she lowered her head, allowing her bangs to cover her eyes. "If that's what you can see, then…"
Before she finished, Elicia, once again, vanished from where she stood in a burst of speed.
"Lici! Stop!" Marin shouted as she threw herself forward.
Ikaruga also dashed forward to stop Elicia from doing something she would never be able to take back.
"… you don't need such a defective pair of eyes." Elicia said coldly as she reappeared in front of Bacchus with her threads spiraling around her right index and middle fingers, that were being thrust towards Bacchus' eyes.
Completely surprised by Elicia's actions, Bacchus could only stare in horror as he was about to lose his eyes.
"That's enough, Lici."
Just before Elicia's fingers could pierce into Bacchus' eye sockets, a large, brown-skinned hand wrapped around Elicia's wrist, completely stopping her forward momentum. At the same time, just as the hand came in contact with her skin, an orichalcum bracer, with anti-magic sigils carved all over its surface, materialized around her arm, as well. As a result, Elicia's threads were dispelled less than an eighth of an inch from Bacchus' cornea.
"Fonzie, let go!" Elicia shouted, completely enraged as she struggled to thrust her hand forward. "He said he was gonna kill you! I won't forgive him for that!"
"And you don't have to." Alfonzo replied as he pulled Elicia towards himself before wrapping his arms around her. "But this mother fucker ain't worth it."
Continuing to struggle for a little longer, Elicia eventually stopped when she realized that she was unable to break away from Alfonzo's grasp with her magic power sealed. So, she simply settled for glaring at Bacchus with hatred as Alfonzo pulled her away.
"Come on, Marin, Ikaruga." Alfonzo said as he picked up Elicia in a princess carry. "We'll call it a night for now. Let's head back to the hotel in Karakura and get some sleep. It's been a long day."
Nodding in response, Marin breathed a sigh of relief that Alfonzo was able to stop Elicia in time. Meanwhile, Ikaruga glared at Bacchus with such vitriol that there were more than a few people who thought she would finish what Elicia just tried to do. Luckily, after only a moment, Ikaruga turned around and followed Alfonzo, Elicia, and Marin out of the guild hall.
Meanwhile, Bacchus, who had completely sobered up after feeling death from so close, because he knew that those spinning, vibrating threads on Elicia's fingers would not have stopped at just destroying his eyes, flopped down on his butt after the guild hall's doors closed.
For the next few minutes, the only thing Bacchus could think of was the pure, unadulterated hatred and disgust in Elicia's eyes as she almost killed him. In the meantime, Goldmine, who had followed Alfonzo out of the guild hall when he took Elicia with him, approached the dazed Bacchus after re-entering the guild hall.
"I told you this would happen one day." Goldmine said as he looked down at Bacchus.
However, Bacchus only continued to sit there in a daze, seemingly without even registering Goldmine's words. Goldmine, on the other hand, only shook his head at Bacchus lack of response. Then, he turned to address the rest of his wizards.
"Anyway, let's get this mess cleaned up." Goldmine said, snapping the rest of the guild out of its stupor. "Go in the back and get the spare tables. Set them up over all the holes in the ground for now. I'll get someone out here to fix the floor tomorrow. And after the tables are set up, you all can call it a night if you want. Or you can stay and do what you always do."
With his orders given, Goldmine turned towards the door leading to the stairs and started walking. Just before reaching the door, however, he stopped.
"Oh, and someone get Bachus to the infirmary." Goldmine ordered. "And make sure he doesn't have any more alcohol tonight. I want to talk to him after he snaps out of it. And I want him to be sober."
