12 . Ruby Heartfilia

{ A.N: I will sometimes write about fairy tail world in between Danmachi world . But mostly it will be like small summary and there will be huge time skips in fairy tail world cuz I'm too lazy to write about Ruby's experience there . Also Ruby won't change much of the plot there will only be small changes and most of the world's I write about will be AU so please don't complain about how it doesn't follow the plot of the light novel or anime . Also the difference in time, I won't bother explaining cuz its too troublesome , the time difference will be big . }

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*Fiore , Ishgar , Heartfilia Estate *

In the backyard of the Heartfilia mansion a young girl could be seen repeatedly swinging the sword and practicing sword techniques , and not too far way from her another girl who had some similarities to the first girl was watching her while sitting on the sides as not to disturb the other girl. Her name is Lucy Heartfilia and she was watching her sister Ruby practice as this was a daily occurrence.

Even though they were sisters, Lucy always found her sister to be very distant. Her sister was very cold and she only spoke with her and her mother, she doesn't smile that much and she spends a lot of time training and practicing instead of playing even when she was little. She always thought of her sister as a cold person who doesn't care about anybody else and if not for the event that happened 6 years ago she would have never been so close to her sister as she is now.

From the time she could remember Lucy has always seen her mother in bed, her mother had very poor health, and giving birth to them only made it worse. Even though she was sick she would always have time for her whenever she went to visit her and she also complains about her Sister to her mother . Her mother would always listen to everything with a smile. Lucy hasn't met her father that much and had seen him only a handful of times and she didn't like him one bit, he was very cold and he never cared for her or her sister and she could see that the relationship between her mother and her father wasn't that good. She came to know from the maids gossiping that her father was dissatisfied with her mother for not giving him a son. Her mother played the role of both parents in her life and she loved her mother very much. Even though she was little she knew her mother was sick and she could see that her mother was getting weaker and weaker every day. She still remembers that day very clearly, it happened when they were 4 years old. Their mother's maid came to get them and brought them both to their mother's room. Lucy still remembers when she saw her mother at that time and how she looked. She looked very weak and it looked like she was struggling to be awake. When both of them came to their mother's side she smiled at them and grasped their hands and talked to them with a smile. Lucy could tell that something was wrong but she couldn't understand what it was. Then she looked at her sister and was surprised to see her crying. Lucy was surprised because her sister never showed many emotions. Unknowingly tears started streaming from her eyes. Her mother hugged them both and tried to comfort them but it only made it worse as her sister started wailing while hugging their mother. But what happened next shocked them all, as green flames erupted from her sister's body and covered the three of them. Seeing the raging flames coming toward them she got scared and closed her eyes and hugged her mother tightly but the pain she was waiting for never came, instead, she could feel a calm and soothing feeling. All three of them were surprised by the event and after some time the flames vanished, leaving two surprised girls and a shocked woman.

Lucy could feel that her body was much better than before and the flames didn't cause any burns, also her mother looked much healthier than before which made her happy.

Layla herself was very surprised by this discovery, she knew her condition very well and knew that she didn't have much more time to live. But now she can feel that although she isn't fully healthy she could still live. Which was a relief for her as she didn't want to leave her two daughters behind because she didn't trust her husband to take care of them.

Due to that event, Lucy had a newfound respect for her sister and tried to get closer to her, she adored her sister very much and asked her for help if she had a problem, she could see that although her sister showed annoyance she was still happy to help and she knew her sister loved her and their mother very much. Due to her sister's maturity, she started treating her as the older one and would try to stay with her more even if her sister tried to shoo her away, due to her persistence her sister stopped trying to chase her away when she tried to watch her train or tried to hang out with her. She also hugged her sister from time to time, although her sister acts like she was annoyed at the physical contact, Lucy knows her sister isn't displeased but she's just acting cold. There are only two people she cares about most in her life, her sister and her mother.

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Ruby Heartfilia was practicing her swordsmanship in the courtyard as usual but she could feel a gaze on her and she turned her head to meet the gaze and as expected it was her sister Lucy, Ruby likes no one to disturb her when she was practicing and she has told Lucy countless times but she just doesn't listen, after some time she just gave up and didn't say anything when she accompanied her. It wasn't that Ruby didn't like her sister, on the contrary, she loved her very much. The concept of a family was a new thing for her, having a loving mother and a sibling was a new thing for her. She didn't know how to deal with Lucy so she opted to be the way she was in her previous life.

Thinking about it, it has been 10 years since she was born in this world, and she still finds it hard to believe. The last thing she remembered was feeling faint due to loss of blood and when she opened her eyes again she saw a tired woman smiling at her, she came to realize that she was a baby. It was hard to believe for a few days because reincarnation was only a myth and she didn't believe in it until now. Finally, she came to terms with it and decided that she could only train while letting her annoying but adorable sister do whatever she wanted, it's not like she didn't mind the company. She just felt awkward asking her to accompany her while she told her to stay away before, so she just kept silent about the issue, not agreeing or disagreeing with her company.

She was happy with her new life because she had a loving mother and a sister, but one thing that never changed even in her new life was the presence of a scum father which further reinforced her belief that men can't be trusted,

she blamed her death in her previous life on that man whom she called her father. That man never saw her as his child, he just saw her as a tool to increase his influence, she never felt the love of a parent growing up. Her mother supposedly passed away after giving birth to her and from what she heard from others she was a gentle woman, who was forced to marry her father due to her family.

Growing up she got used to the fact that her father didn't see her as his child and also the rest of the family didn't care about her, so she ended up raising a protective barrier around her heart and adopted a cold facade in front of others. If all things went according to plan she was to be used as a pawn by her father to further increase his influence and it should have happened that way, if not for him.

It was a normal thing for people with ill intentions to target her but they would not succeed due to her having a lot of bodyguards around her. But on that particular day, she decided to leave the house with just a single bodyguard and it soon turned out to be a bad choice on her part. She got ambushed by a group of people In a car who first killed her bodyguard and then threatened to shoot her if she did not go with them.

She complied with them because she was sure they wanted her alive and whoever was behind this was aiming for her family but she was sure they would be disappointed because her family would not think twice before abandoning her if her existence harms their interests too much.

She was being led by the leader of the group and she noticed something strange there were 4 more people following behind them and she could hear their footsteps but suddenly it got quiet all of a sudden and before she could understand what was going on she felt something warm on her face and she turned her face to look towards her right side and what she saw left her stunned. Her assailant was gasping with a knife lodged into his throat, she was stunned for a moment. Then she looked towards the owner of the knife and she was once again surprised as it was a young man in his late teens it seems, and the most striking thing about him was his appearance, he had long silver-white hair and a face which could only be said to be perfect in every sense and a pair of silver eyes. All those pretty boys and models she has seen in her life couldn't hold a candle to him. Ruby had seen a lot of handsome men in her life so her immunity to them was high but seeing him for the first time she couldn't help but fall into a daze, but she quickly snapped out of it and took a look around them, what she saw shocked her, She could see the rest of the group of assailants lying on the ground dead.

After taking a few moments to calm herself down, she knew she wasn't out of danger yet, because who knows what this new person wants, what if he is also a person sent to capture her, her thoughts were further reinforced by seeing him pull out his knife from the other guy's neck and after throwing it away he started coming towards her direction. She knew that she was in danger again and wished that if he wanted to kill her just do it without causing any pain. She closed her eyes waiting for it to be over but it never came, instead, she felt something warm on her face and when she opened her eyes she was surprised to see a napkin on her face, and when she looked towards him with a questioning gaze.

"Wipe the blood off your face," he said in a calm voice.

She now remembered that she had blood on her face and before it could dry and become sticky she wiped it off and looked towards him.

"Since you are fine now, I'm gonna be on my way so call your guards or family to come to pick you up " with that said he started walking away from her.

Seeing him walk away like that she was a little unwilling, it's not because of his handsome face (maybe just a little), she felt he could maybe bring some colour into her dull and gray life, so she did something which would most likely get her in trouble with her father.

" You...., Do you want to work for me " she didn't know why she did that, heck she didn't even know his name, but she didn't want to just see him walk away, maybe it was because of the life she had all these years or the cold unfeeling family or just on a whim, she didn't know but she knew she wanted to know more about him.

Hearing her question he suddenly stopped and turned around to face her, she could see the surprise on his face but it only lasted a moment and was replaced with a smirk

"Sure"

She never knew that this would be a decision she would come to hate and love, in the future.

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As expected she got into an argument with her father over the matter of Siegfried, yeah that is his name. He doesn't have a family name because he said he was an orphan.

Her father refused to allow her to employ him, he told her what can a kid like him even do, in response Siegfried knocked all 3 of her father's bodyguards, and he had no choice but to begrudgingly accept him as her new bodyguard. She really enjoyed seeing that man's sour face, she got a kick out of it.

She was really surprised when she found out Siegfried could do the duties of a butler too, so he was appointed as her butler in the end.

After a few days of being appointed he got used to his job, but there was just one problem, this man was so damn infuriating. He would throw verbal jabs at her whenever he can, telling her to act like a proper lady and saying she would scare off her suitors.

At first, she ignored him and kept a cold front but after a lot of times he just became more and more irritating to the point she wanted to smash his perfect face in, and believe her she did try but the bastard was too slippery. He would dodge her fists and the things she occasionally threw at him. And his annoying smirk when he chides her by saying ' Violence will ruin your image My lady '. She regretted asking him to work for her but deep down she appreciated his presence in this cold and dark house.

A year had passed with him as her butler and it was probably the best year she has ever had in her 15 years of life. As infuriating as he was she really liked his presence. One more thing she found out was she had a crush on him, and finding it out was really troublesome. She was annoyed to found that she had feelings for this playboy, bastard, flirt, scumbag, and all those things.

If she didn't step in, this bastard would have seduced all her maids, he can't keep his hands to himself and it really annoyed her to the point she kept him by her side always.

Although he was annoyed at her brat-like behavior, he still did his job properly.

She was 16 and most things in her life hadn't changed except for his presence which made her dull life more and more colorful. She hated the fact that her feelings for him only grew, and around him, she didn't need to mask herself and she could be herself.

One thing she really couldn't understand was, why did he agree to work for her, from what she knew about him for all these years, money is the least thing he needs, all in all, he was very enigmatic.

Whenever she asked about his past, he would just laugh it off and ruffle her hair treating her like some child, which she hated, she didn't like the fact that he treated her like a child.

One event really surprised her, she still remembers it clearly.

She had just become 16 and her so-called father had come to visit her. She knew he was here for something and knowing him it must be something related to his damn business.

And she was right on the money on that guess, as expected of the slimy bastard, he wanted her to get engaged to some prick from the Ashton family. Oh, She had met that guy in a gathering for the upper classes and she only had one word to say about him 'Disgusting', she was only 15 at that time and although not a bombshell, she was still considerably beautiful, she was what one could describe as a perfect mix between a Japanese and a British woman. It helped that her mother was a very beautiful woman and her bastard father's genes weren't half bad.

And back to the party, she met that guy there and she felt repulsed by just standing near him, she could still remember how his rotten eyes roamed her body and she was just a second away from driving a fork into the bastard's eyes, but luckily she was excused from there with the help of an acquaintance.

Remembering up to here made her stomach turn, now she has to marry that shit, no way in hell. There was no chance of her agreeing before and now there's zero chance of her agreeing because she already has her eyes set on someone else but it's infuriating when the person in question ignores your advances, She had seen Sieg always taking glances at the maid's chests that were exposed through their uniform, it didn't help that these maids would bend a little more for him to see, if it weren't for her she knew for sure that these thirsty women would have dragged him into their beds already. Even though it was annoying she still got some inspiration, and she also tried dressing sexily when it was just the two of them, she would always unbutton two more buttons in her dress and act like it was very hot in there, but the fool wouldn't even bat an eye, and it truly irritated her to no end. She was annoyed that he still treated her as a child.

Now back to the topic of engagement, she didn't even think twice about considering it, she rejected it immediately. She was far more confident these days, for one, she knew she had a lot of properties and businesses in her name, and second, She had Siegfried. She was confused about one thing, she never knew why her father was cautious of Siegfried to the point that she felt like he was afraid of him.

She stood up from her chair

"Sieg," she said to him in a calm but graceful way.

" Yes, My Lady " he bowed to her and turned towards her father.

" Sir, if you may, please allow me to see you out, " Sieg told him with a professional smile.

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From that day she hasn't heard of any marriage matters or anything of that sort, she really expected her father to play some tricks or underhanded methods to make her agree to his terms but she hasn't heard of him ever since. And she knew very well who was the cause of all of this, she looked towards her side to see a man preparing tea and noticing her gaze, he presented his trademark smile towards her causing her to avert her eyes with a blush, making him chuckle in the process.

With an angry huff, she picked up a cushion from the sofa and proceeded to throw it at his face, but as always he dodged it.

She hated this scumbag, why did she have to fall for him?

Yes, she has accepted the fact that she has st fallen in love with him and she hated it. She was pretty sure if she didn't watch over him like a hawk he would have already done something to the maids working in her mansion. He would flirt with them any chance he gets, but due to her presence, things don't escalate. But she's pretty sure the bastard goes outside to play around from time to time although rarely. It infuriates her to no end, she always felt uncomfortable about it she wanted him all for herself, if only he paid more attention to her rather than treating her as a child.

....

Two years had passed since her father came to talk about her engagement and she was glad she didn't have to hear anything about it ever again.

These last two years were one of the best years in her life, She and Siegfried got closer over the years and she had him call her by her name when they were alone. They could be said to be somewhat friends, well Siegfried was her only friend if it was like that. But she wasn't satisfied with that she wanted him to notice her feelings and she wasn't confident enough to confess to him for fear of being rejected, thus maintaining the status quo.

She decided in her mind that she would tell him about her feelings on her 18th birthday, and she was anticipating that day and couldn't wait for it to arrive.

But who would have thought a tragedy would strike and would turn her bright and colorful world back to the previous grey and dark.

She couldn't do anything, she could only watch as he was gone from her life. Her heart became empty and she was filled with emptiness which she now realized was previously filled by him. She hated this feeling, She hated him for causing this, She blamed herself for his death because she knew if he was alone he could have easily handled the assassins but he got shot due to protecting her.

The bodyguards from her family came to pick her up, but she didn't want to leave him, she stubbornly embraced his body without letting go, finally, the hospital staff convinced her to let them take his body back so they can prepare it for a funeral. But after following them back to the hospital, his body vanished. She was furious, she wanted to see him one last time, she wasn't ready yet to bid farewell.

She threatened them to find his body, but it was to no avail, she asked her subordinates to search for his body but no result was obtained. It was like he vanished into thin air, her car was right behind the ambulance so the chance of something happening was impossible.

A week had passed since his death, she couldn't get over it, she had locked herself in her room this past week. Skipping meals often, but the servants were understanding as they could hear sobbing sounds from her room whenever they passed by it.

....

It was so cold, dark, and empty just like it was every day since the last week. But today she had a bad premonition and it was proven right when her scummy father came to see her.

It was about her engagement, and the bastard brought it up again and she refused it. In this life, she won't be anybody else's other than Siegs.

But what he said next made her filled with rage. He told her she had no choice because she had nobody to rely on anymore and he could always tie her up and send her to the Ashton heir. And she couldn't do anything because she didn't have the power to oppose the Faust and Ashton family.

" I heard you couldn't even find his body to give him a proper burial, Hahaha. Poor bastard, if only he didn't poke his nose in somebody else's business he wouldn't have ended up six feet under " she heard him say with a disgusting laugh.

" You have a month to get ready, you will marry the Ashton heir and there is no option to refuse," he said to her and left soon after.

After he left she couldn't hold it anymore and she started smashing the things in the room, she knew the assassination was too suspicious, they knew her exact location and now she understood it must have been an insider's job and who else would have the power to command her servants. She knew it, it's all her fault if not for her Sieg would still be alive.

Then she remembered her father's words, in a month she will be married to that prick, she shuddered thinking about this. She would never marry another man in her life and definitely not that guy, she decided what to do.

After all, what's the point of living on, if he's not anymore?

She didn't want to return to her cold and grey life again, She was afraid of it, she truly understood how important he was to her.

" Don't worry Sieg, we will be together again" The last thing she remembered was her consciousness getting fuzzy due to losing too much blood.

.....

Ruby suddenly got out her inner thoughts and she could feel something wet on her cheeks, she suddenly wiped her tears away lest Lucy sees it and got worried over it.

' As expected all men are useless, especially him ' because she had suffered a lot in her previous life and the cause were men, there may be good men out there but her heart was already filled with someone else. She hated him for making her feel empty, one of the reasons she got her drive to work hard was this was a world of magic and anything is possible, and she knew her magic had some connection to life or healing aspect and if she was strong enough wouldn't it be possible to revive the dead. She didn't know if it was possible but there was a chance and she was willing to believe in it. And she would make him pay for all the pain he caused her and make him compensate her, she would tie him up and never let go.

While she was in her thoughts she felt someone hugging her and squishing against her cheeks.

" Lucy ! , I'm filled with sweat, stop it ! " Ruby said in an annoyed tone but she was happy in her heart because her heavy mood was lifted.

" It's fine Sis~, *sniff*you smell so good~ and I can hug you all day "

" Ughhh let go of me now, let's go see mom, she must be waiting " Although she sounded annoyed she couldn't stop the tiny smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

" Okay ~"

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_______________* Orario*_______________________

Sieg was going in the direction of the adventurers guild so he could register as an adventurer and when he was just a few kilometers away from it he heard some noises from the nearby alley and from the sounds of it it was a bunch of drunkards and from the looks of it they were surrounding a cloaked figure with bad intentions.

He could figure out that it was a woman, and after seeing someone in trouble he just couldn't walk away right ?, and from the looks of it her curves couldn't be hidden by the long cloak, *ahem* we are getting out of topic, but the fact is he can't leave someone in trouble especially if it's a woman so he did what was natural.

' Ah shit, here we go again '