103 Putting the Techno Organic Metal to Use

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.

September, x781.

The next day, while Elicia led the members of Fairy Tail's younger generation in training, Alfonzo, who usually takes the role of leading the training was absent.

Shortly after finishing his shift in the kitchen, he, instead of training, went to the forest east of the town to see Fairy Tail's master healer, Porlyusica. Standing outside of the front door of the tree house, Alfonzo raised his hand to knock.

*Knock!* *Knock!* *Knock!*

"Who is it?" Porlyusica's voice rang out from the other side of the door in response to the knocking. "And why are you bothering me so early in the morning?"

A moment later, the door was flung open by a clearly annoyed Porlyusica with a broom tightly gripped in her right hand.

"I'm sorry to disturb you so early in the morning, Miss Porlyusica." Alfonzo replied, raising his hands in a disarming manner.

Gazing at Alfonzo with the annoyance slightly reseeding from her expression, Porlyusica set the broom down to the side of the door. Then, she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"Out with it." Porlyusica demanded. "Why are you here, Boy?"

"I wanted to check on my arm." Alfonzo said with a wry smile. "I think I've found a way to restore it."

Hearing that, Porlyusica raised an eyebrow in response.

"You'd better not be wasting my time." Porlyusica replied, turning her body to the side, making space for Alfonzo to enter. "Well, hurry up! I don't have all day!"

Hearing Porlyusica's order, Alfonzo quickly stepped into the tree house with his wry smile widening.

"This tsundere grandma…' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'She spoke so harshly. But she can't hide the happiness in her eyes. She really cares about everyone in the guild, it's kind of cute.'

Just as those thoughts went through Alfonzo's head, Porlyusica frowned in annoyance once again. Then, she picked up her broom with lightning speed and raised it over her head.

"I don't know what it is that you're thinking about." Porlyusica said in a threatening tone. "But for some reason, I feel like hitting you."

In response, Alfonzo flinched. However, he made sure not to allow his thoughts to show on his face.

"You make it sound like I'm thinking something rude, Miss Porlyusica." Alfonzo said with a nervous chuckle. "But you've known me for a long time…"

"And that's why I know you're thinking something rude, Brat." Porlyusica said, eyeing Alfonzo skeptically.

"… So, you should know that I respect you too much for that." Alfonzo continued, not letting Porlyusica's interruption bother him.

With that, Porlyusica's skeptical gaze grew more intense. However, she lowered the broom in the end, causing Alfonzo to sigh in relief.

"I don't have time to waste with you." Porlyusica said, making the broom disappear right before Alfonzo's eyes. Then, she closed the front door to her residence. "Now, let's make this quick. I have a busy schedule."

Deciding it was better for his health to keep his thoughts about Porlyusica's last statement to himself, Alfonzo waited for Porlyusica to walk ahead before following her to where his severed and mangled arm was being preserved.

A few moments later, Porlyusica, with Alfonzo in tow, arrived at a room with many containers holding organs and other body parts of humans, magical beasts, and other organisms floating in colorful liquids.

"*Sigh* No matter how many times I've seen this place, it still creeps me out a little." Alfonzo muttered as he looked around the room.

"Stop gawking." Porlyusica ordered. Then, she pointed to a container on the opposite side of the room as she continued. "Your old arm is over there. Do what you came here to do, then leave."

Nodding in response, Alfonzo took a step into the room. A moment later, he was standing in front of the preservation container with his arm in it, Porlyusica arriving an instant later.

"How do I get it out without making a mess?" Alfonzo asked while looking at the container.

Rolling her eyes with an annoyed expression on her face, Porlyusica pressed a button at the base of the container. Then, the liquid filling the container was quickly drained.

"So, you can do that, huh?" Alfonzo muttered.

A moment later, when the liquid was completely drained, the sound of pressure escaping the container could be heard before the top of the container opened on its own.

Instead of making another comment, mainly because he could feel Porlyusica's burning gaze on the side of his head, Alfonzo reached into the open container and picked up the still dripping arm with his Automail arm.

"How do you intend to restore your arm, Boy?" Porlyusica asked, trying her best to hide her boiling interest.

In response, Alfonzo smiled before he raised his right arm. In the next instant, a whisp of a slithering, silvery metallic substance appeared floating over his palm.

"What in the world is that?" Porlyusica asked as she drew nearer to the Techno Organic Metal Alfonzo created with his magic.

"On my last quest, I came across a never-before-seen living metal that has the ability to heal all sorts of wounds." Alfonzo replied, simultaneously moving his hand away from the approaching Porlyusica. "It was the cause of a disease that was killing miners in the town where it was discovered."

Hearing that the little thing floating in front of her was the cause of deaths in a town, Porlyusica stopped trying to get a close look. However, her curiosity was peaked after hearing Alfonzo's explanation.

"What I found was that on top of healing any injuries it comes across in a host's body, it also strengthens the afflicted body part while giving it a metallic trait without losing the flexibility of the muscles and skin. Alfonzo continued. "Well, that's not completely true. As long as it is still inside the host, the body hardens like any other metal. But after it is removed, the body parts gain that trait."

"I see." Porlyusica replied with a nod. "But I assume there is a catch, correct?"

"Yeah, it puts a serious drain on the hosts magic power." Alfonzo answered with a nod. "A normal civilian would die in a matter of days. And if it turned any vital organs into a metal state, the host would die as well."

"But I assume you have a way around that, correct?" Porlyusica asked.

"That's right." Alfonzo replied with a nod. "Regardless of anything, it's still a metal, meaning I can control it. And although my control was limited when I was in Resenbool.."

"Wait! This took place in Resenbool?" Porlyusica asked curiously.

"Yeah, is that a problem?" Alfonzo asked as he used a weak electric charge to dry the arm in his left hand.

"Did Makarov ask you to go on this quest?" Porlyusica asked sternly.

"Nope." Alfonzo replied with a shake of his head. "I saw it on the quest board and took it because of the symptoms. But now that I think about it, Gramps was acting weird when I took the quest."

"No wonder." Porlyusica replied. "His first love, who had absolutely no interest in him, lived in that town."

Hearing that, the light of realization lit up in Alfonzo's eyes.

"By any chance, was that unrequited lover named Pinako Rockbell?" Alfonzo asked with amusement and anticipation swirling in his eyes.

"How could you possibly know that?" Porlyusica asked with disbelief in her tone.

"Well, Granny Pinako was the client for that quest." Alfonzo replied with a smile. "Oh, I'm gonna tease the hell outta that old man. To think he'd withhold such information from me. Hehehe."

Hearing Alfonzo's sinister chuckle, Porlyusica almost felt bad for Makarov. However, she was also delighting in his misfortune. If she did not hate being around other humans so much, she would follow Alfonzo back to the guild hall and watch him tear Makarov a new one.

Anyway, back to the matter at hand." Alfonzo said, wiping the malicious smile off his face and replacing it with a solemn expression. "If my hypothesis works, I'll have an organic arm again."

"*Sigh* And I'll have to perform the surgery to remove that arm." Porlyusica grumbled.

"NO, you won't." Alfonzo said while shaking his head.

"What do you mean?" Porlyusica asked.

"Well, originally, I intended to learn sigils that could repair the arm enough so that it could be reattached." Alfonzo replied. "So, I made the prosthetic in a way that it could be easily removed. But if my experiment works, I won't need those sigils. I probably won't need surgery to replace it, either. But if it fails, I'll need your help again."

Porlyusica's eyes showed understanding after hearing Alfonzo's words. Then, she looked at the slithering mass of metal once again.

"So, you think that metal… What did you call it again?" Porlyusica asked.

"Techno Organic Metal." Alfonzo replied.

"Yes, that." Porlyusica said with a nod. "You think it can reattach your arm as well?"

"Well, it repairs all injuries it comes cross." Alfonzo replied with a shrug. "And I think a severed arm should identify as an injury."

"Don't get smart with me, Brat." Porlyusica snapped, her broom appearing in her hand once again.

"That wasn't my intention." Alfonzo said in a placating tone. "I was just stating the facts."

"Sure you were." Porlyusica said, eyeing Alfonzo suspiciously. "Anyway, follow me. I'll set up a barrier just in case something goes wrong. I'd rather not have you destroy my specimens."

"Yes, Ma'am." Alfonzo replied, letting the Techno Organic Metal produced by his magic vanish.

A few moments later, after visiting another room along the way, Porlyusica, with a total of six staves on her back, and Alfonzo, carrying his severed arm, reached a room Porlyusica used to isolate dangerous elements.

After arriving, Porlyusica pulled the staves off her back one-by-one. As she did, she tossed the first four in different directions. Instead of falling to the floor, however, they floated slightly above it, standing upright. Then, when she held the fifth, she allowed it to float like the others just in front of her.

'Those look a lot like the staves Mystogan used in the anime.' Alfonzo thought to himself. 'Well, she's from Edolas as well, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that she knows some of the same magic.'

"Don't just stand there!" Porlyusica shouted, pulling Alfonzo out of his internal musings. "Stand in the center of the staves."

"Got it." Alfonzo replied.

Wasting no more time, Alfonzo, with his severed arm in hand, took large steps until he was standing in the center of the room, taking off the thin, long-sleeved shirt he had taken to wearing to hide his prosthetic arm while he walked.

As soon as he was in position, Porlyusica pulled the last stave off her back. Then, she threw it in a high arch toward Alfonzo. Like the others, however, instead of falling, it floated in the air, its end pointed downward toward Alfonzo.

"Barrier Magic:]" Porlyusica said as she clapped her hands together in front of her chest. "[Five-Pointed Prism Array]."

A moment later, all six staves began to glow. Then, lines of light connected the staves with translucent walls forming between them shortly afterward.

"Now, even if you somehow manage to blow yourself and the arm up, my house won't get damaged." Porlyusica said.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Alfonzo replied sarcastically.

Before Porlyusica could retort, however, Alfonzo focused on the arm in his hands. Then, he created another whisp of the Techno Organ Metal and let it fall into one of the many open wounds on the arm.

Continuously supplying the metal with is magic power, Alfonzo watched as his arm healed rapidly. On top of that, the entire surface of his arm turned a glossy, metallic black while the injuries were healing.

Seeing this phenomenon from outside the barrier, Porlyusica's interest was evident. At the same time, she could see why this living metal would be dangerous to civilians.

"I would love to have a bit of that metal to study its medical properties." Porlyusica muttered without taking her eyes off the ongoing process. "*Sigh* But I doubt it's worth the risk of that stuff somehow escaping containment."

Meanwhile, inside the barrier, after five or six minutes, all the visible wounds on Alfonzo's severed arm had been healed. After seeing that, Alfonzo stopped supplying the Techno Organic metal with his magic power, resulting in it vanishing from inside of the arm. Then, he took a deep breath before looking at Porlyusica and nodding.

A moment later, Porlyusica placed her hands on the barrier and released it. Then, as if time were flowing in reverse, each of the six magical staves returned to her hands in the order she threw them out as she strapped them on her back once again.

"Is it healed?" Porlyusica asked curiously.

"I think so, but I think you would be better equipped to answer that question than I would."

Nodding in understanding, Porlyusica took one of the staves on her back and tapped it on the arm in Alfonzo's hands. A moment later, a green magic circle, positioned vertically moved up and down the length of the arm, scanning its condition.

"Just as you mentioned, all the wounds have been healed." Porlyusica said after reading the diagnostic on the magic circle and allowing it to vanish. "On top of that, the muscle and bone density in the arm has increased tremendously."

"Yeah, but along with the color, it should go back to normal over time." Alfonzo said. "Well, by normal, I mean the peak of humanity and not metal life form levels."

"Right…" Porlyusica replied. "Then, you'll be using the same procedure to attach it as well?"

"Yeah, but it will take more control than it did to heal the arm." Alfonzo replied. "I can't have it spreading to the rest of my body, after all. I mean, my heart is on that side of my chest. Don't really wanna risk that."

"Then get it over with." Porlyusica ordered. "I told you; I have things to do."

Nodding in response, Alfonzo turned around and walked to the center of the room again. At the same time, Porlyusica started tossing the staves before invoking the barrier once again.

After the barrier was set up once again, Alfonzo took a deep breath. Then, with his severed arm in his right hand, Alfonzo manipulated the spiked chain in his Automail forearm, that he never got the chance to use, to poke into a certain spot near the base of his shoulder.

*Clang!*

A moment later, Alfonzo hissed in pain while the heavy metal arm fell to the floor.

"Damn, that fucking hurts like a bitch." Alfonzo muttered as he created two whisps of the living metal.

A moment later, one of the whisps of Techno Organic Metal entered the stump left on Alfonzo's shoulder and regenerated the lost tissue, leaving the stump as a clean cut and stopping blood loss in a matter of moments.

At the same time, the second whisp coated the severed section of the cut off arm.

Then, while controlling the metal in his shoulder and making sure it does not spread toward his torso, Alfonzo pressed the severed arm to the newly healed stump. Then, with a burst of unimaginable pain, Alfonzo fell to his knees.

Seeing Alfonzo's current state, Porlyusica, though her expression did not show it, began to panic. Just as she was about to lower the barrier, Alfonzo used his right arm to wave at her, signaling that he was alright.

About two minutes later, Alfonzo, covered in sweat lay on the floor of the room while blankly staring up at the ceiling.

"Damn, that was way worse than I thought It would be." Alfonzo murmured as he stopped supplying his magic power to the Techno Organic Metal, causing it to disappear. "Note to self, don't lose anymore limbs."

Meanwhile, Porlyusica, who had already dispelled the barrier, was approaching Alfonzo.

"I assume everything went well?" Porlyusica asked, tapping Alfonzo with one of her staves to start her diagnostic spell.

"I sure hope so." Alfonzo replied in an exhausted tone.

After a few moments, Porlyusica's diagnostic spell disappeared. Then, she nodded at Alfonzo, confirming that the procedure went without a hitch.

"*Sigh* That's a relief." Alfonzo said with a happy undertone.

"It is." Porlyusica replied with a nod. "Now, get out of my house and stop wasting my time."