Chapter 43: Mother and Daughter

"Stop!!!"

Bang—

Faced with an unbearably awkward situation, Selene, unable to tolerate the atmosphere, chose to step forward and slammed the table.

After hitting the table, she exhaled deeply, "Phew~~ That's better."

Selene kept fanning herself with her hand, "Stifling, stifling, stifling..."

After briefly breathing in the fresh air, she turned to Erza, "Since she doesn't want to talk, can I say a few words?"

Erza remained silent for a moment before nodding.

"What you just said, I won't refute because in my view, you're right."

Seeing Selene being so straightforward, even the still-indignant Erza couldn't help but be a bit surprised.

Irene, however, wasn't surprised. Selene was always straightforward, saying what she thought.

"Irene is my friend, so inevitably, I will lean more towards her side."

"But you must also acknowledge that it was she who protected you with her magic for three years, nurturing you with her magic for over three hundred years in seclusion, hoping you would be born as a normal human."

"She did try to use personality transplant magic on you, but in the end, she gave up. Otherwise, you wouldn't have the chance to sit here, would you?"

"Although I know this may sound absurd, abandoning you in Rosemary Village was an act of maternal love, as she couldn't control herself in her potentially frenzied state."

Selene shrugged lightly, "I haven't had as rough an experience as you. Four hundred years ago, out of fear, I moved from Ishgar to Guiltina. Aside from some loneliness, I didn't suffer much."

Selene raised two fingers, "My life's goal is simple, summarized in one word—pleasure."

Seeing Erza purse her lips, Selene chuckled softly:

"In your view, seeking pleasure should be easy, right? But I want to tell you, seeking pleasure also has its conditions."

At this point, the smile on Selene's face faded, and her expression turned serious, making even Erza subconsciously feel affected.

"First, a peaceful era without the turmoil of war. The time you live in is undoubtedly peaceful."

Selene paused, pointing at Irene as she continued:

"You don't know what it was like for her four hundred years ago, living as a human in constant fear and hardship."

"But I know. Struggling to find the next meal, unable to remove her armor, never knowing when her nation might be destroyed by dragon factions."

Selene wasn't lying. She hadn't seen Irene's struggles firsthand but had witnessed the wars in Ishgar four hundred years ago,

And had seen the conflicts between humans and dragons in Guiltina over the past four hundred years, so she disliked war and sought peace.

"You indeed went through many painful experiences, but so did Irene. I don't know how she could recount her past to me so lightly."

Selene slammed the table, "If it were me, I would've killed them all long ago!"

Her sudden outburst startled both Irene and Erza, but it also alleviated the heavy atmosphere a bit.

After venting, Selene took a deep breath and continued, "Second, as a person, seeking pleasure itself has necessary conditions."

"I noticed you seem to enjoy eating, right?"

Seeing Erza nod, Selene smiled, "Can you tell me what you like to eat?"

Erza answered without hesitation, "Soufflé, strawberry cake, most sweets."

Selene snapped her fingers, "Great, I like those too."

At this point, Selene suddenly turned to Irene and asked, "This is what I mean by necessary conditions. Two months ago... was it two months ago?"

Irene, slightly exasperated, replied, "Can you not dwell on the time?"

"Please, I'm very meticulous."

"Sixty-eight days ago."

"Yes, up until sixty-eight days ago, she couldn't taste soufflé or strawberry cake."

"If I had asked Irene what she liked to eat sixty-eight days ago, guess how she would have answered?"

Faced with Selene's question, Erza remained silent.

"Let's exclude her getting angry and fighting me..."

Ignoring Irene's glance, Selene shook her head:

"She couldn't answer because all food was tasteless to her."

"Moreover, she suffered from extreme cold, insomnia, and other side effects."

"Let me put it this way, she may look like she lived for over four hundred years, but her life essentially stopped when she turned into a dragon."

"Because from that moment, she was no longer human. I don't mean she turned into a dragon but..."

Irene shook her head, stopping Selene, "That's enough."

Selene wanted to say more but ultimately sighed helplessly.

Erza observed Irene's face, which was trying hard to remain calm, and nodded slightly, "I understand."

"Actually... I always had a dream of having parents. No matter what... I was a bit moved when you actually appeared... Thank you for finding me."

It took Erza a long time to finish this short sentence.

Irene gazed tenderly at Erza's face. After a while, her smile faded, and she looked down, muttering,

"I'm sorry."

She had wanted to say this the moment she saw Erza.

But would a simple apology be enough?

She believed she needed to take action, but when she tried to, she didn't know where to start.

Because maternal love was a distant memory for her.

So, facing Erza's accusations, she didn't refute. She knew Erza needed to vent, just as she once did.

The atmosphere grew silent again. Unable to stand it, Selene finally asked, "So, what's your plan?"

Erza took a deep breath, "Please give me some time to think."

Irene reached out to stop Selene from pressing further and softly said, "Okay."

They didn't use magic to return to Fairy Tail's tavern quickly. Instead, the three of them slowly walked back from the Eastern Forest. As Selene expected, Irene and Erza didn't speak a word along the way.

'This is too tough... I should have just used magic to go back.'

Despite thinking this, Selene stayed between them,

Knowing that if she left, the atmosphere between the two would become even more awkward.

...

Aegon, Irene, and Selene decided to settle down in the East Forest, located to the east of Magnolia.

This was Irene's suggestion, which coincided with Aegon's wishes, so he agreed without hesitation.

Selene took care of all the arrangements. Although she was more of a commander type, she did release the castle that once belonged to the "Magia Dragon."

Upon entering the castle, Irene naturally took Aegon's hand and said, "You go help Selene. I want to rest for a while."

After staring into her eyes for a moment, he nodded. "Alright."

...

Knowing that Irene was merely trying to send him away, Aegon wandered around outside for a while before returning to the room.

Sometime later, Irene had already curled up and fallen into a deep sleep on the bed.

He stood there, slightly stunned, and then walked quietly to the bedside and sat in the chair next to it. Perhaps it was an illusion, but Aegon saw her frowning slightly, her lips slightly parted, and then pressed tightly together.

Leaning forward, he listened to her gentle breathing and unconsciously reached out to gently smooth her furrowed brow.

'It seems the conversation wasn't pleasant. I should have eavesdropped. Now I don't know how to comfort you. This is really a headache.'

Irene slept until late at night, which even surprised Aegon, who had been keeping watch by her side.

After all, Selene and the others were working fervently outside, organizing the castle, yet it didn't disturb Irene at all.

"Damn, I just wanted to lie down for a bit."

She had felt mentally exhausted after returning to the castle, and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she fell asleep.

After confirming the time, she looked at Aegon, who was smiling at her. "Did I sleep from noon until now? Why didn't you wake me? Did you eat? Where's Selene?"

Aegon shook his head. "Things can be done slowly. I didn't think you could do much in your previous state. As for Selene, she went to another room to sleep so as not to disturb you."

"Are you hungry? Do you want to eat something first? I haven't eaten either. If you're willing, we can talk about your conversation over dinner. If not, that's fine too."

...

Irene did not choose to share the content of the conversation with the man in front of her but suddenly asked a question.

Her expression was serious and solemn as she asked several questions in a row: "In such a situation, if it were you, what would you do? What if the outcome isn't what you want? Would you let things develop that way?"

Without any prerequisites, it was a very vague question.

After thinking for a long time, Aegon answered seriously:

"I don't like being pessimistic. I focus on the present. You have to start by doing something and give it your all. If you become pessimistic at the start of a task, I think it would be very difficult to complete. As for how things will develop in the future, leave it to the future to decide."

This was also Aegon's view of the ever-changing Earthland. His goal was to strengthen himself as much as possible to face any future changes.

Aegon reached out and held Irene's hand in his palm, gazing into her eyes. "No matter what happened in the past, that's all in the past. Try to move forward."