Chapter 14: Kakeri Village Part 1

Beta read by n1ch, Shigiya, Solitary heart and 8kagi

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-Train-

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.

The sound of a finger tapping the chair continuously for the last hour was getting on Erza's nerves. Especially when it was purposely done by one of the most infuriating, evil, and biggest bitch in all of the creation she knew of in her short life.

"Will you please stop that, Mirajane!" the redhead jumped from her seat in a burst of rage while pointing at her so-called 'partner', dropping the book that she was reading. "Why can't you just act like a normal person and not be a pain in the ass!?"

The one she was talking to was none other than Mirajane Strauss. The shameless she-devil of the Fairy Tail guild and her worst enemy/rival. Just looking at her clothes made Erza nearly faint of shame from just being near her.

A gothic-looking, overly revealing outfit matched the tomboyish personality she had at the time. Donning a dark, skimpy sleeveless shirt adorned with some light curved motifs on the chest, a pair of leather shorts held up by a studded belt with a demonic-looking buckle, and thigh-high boots with stiletto heels, each bearing a skull adorned by a flower on their upper front parts. She didn't have her front hair in a ponytail, instead of letting a large strand cover her forehead freely, and had most of her hair tied in a high, larger ponytail on the back of her head by a massive dark ribbon.

All in all, in Erza's own words, "You look like a slut."

Why couldn't she just wear something normal?

"Shut the fuck up! I'd rather die than be dressed as a walking armory like you!"

"Walking armory!? I'll have you know that the Heart Kreuz is one of the most fashionable and durable armor in all of Fiore, capable of offering both comforts to your everyday life and protection from all sorts of danger." Erza said proudly, showing off her chest armor.

Nearly all of her clothes were bought from the same brand, and nearly all of them were armor. Each set costed her a small fortune but the result of what she got was worth it in the end.

Her collection included the Flame Empress set, the Black Wing armor, Purgatory, and much more. Currently, she was saving up to buy the 'Heaven's Wheel' set which she would acquire after this quest.

'That is if this bitch doesn't mess things up and the customer doesn't pay because of accidental damages!'

Why was she paired with the most infuriating person in the guild?

'We just had a small dispute in the guild and break a chair or two. It's not like our fight does that much damage compared to Gray and Natsu.'

If Makarov were to hear such thoughts he would explode in anger at the ignorant young woman. These two kids had been responsible for the majority of the destruction done to the guild, not that the two ever noticed. Every month hundreds of thousands of Jewels—sometimes even millions—would go down the drain with their 'small-disputes'.

So as to not die from high blood pressure and bankrupt his guild, the master had the brilliant idea to send them both on a week-long quest so that he could finally get some repair done to the building and for once have a nice afternoon to nap… aka passing out drunk on the bar counter while ogling the barmaids.

"Those damn kids are going to be the death of me!"

That was what he said after assigning them a quest and throwing them out of the guild.

The girls were on a quest to save a small village known as, Kakeri Village, from a recently occurring beast attack. These beasts were identified as Sunflower hornets and were terrorizing the local farmers, ruining their food stock the villagers had put aside for the winter. So out of desperation, the Mayor used every connection he had and put together enough money to place an A-rank quest to the guild.

Normally, being a rank just below S-rank would require Wizards strong enough to handle deadly situations. Fortunately, Erza had just become an S-rank Wizard a week ago—making her the youngest wizard to achieve such a feat in the guild.

Much to the chagrin of her current partner.

But Mirajane wasn't that far off the redhead herself. She was equal to her in terms of strength and would have won the challenges in Tenrou if Erza wasn't there to get in her way.

Safe to say, she was still very salty about the final result.

Makarov, dreading his guild's ancestral land to be reduced to rubble, had immediately brought the two back to the guild… personally… while using his titan magic to run accross the ocean bed if he had to! Fortunately, Macao prepared the boat in advanced solely for those two.

"I can't believe you stole my rightful place as an S-rank Wizard just like that. Have you no shame? Guess not, not with all that smut you read in public… and you have the nerve to call me the pervert!" she shouted at Erza, who went back to reading the smut book in question.

"You want me to prove why I won again, you gothic bitch!"

In her angered state, Erza's telekinetic abilities awakened subconsciously, making some of the luggage nearly float. She brought out her trusty Heart Kreuz sword which came with her armor and pressed the sharp tip of the blade near Mira's neck before continuing

"And my books aren't smut! Their erotic liteture!"

"Humph, same thing! Also, you don't scare me you redhead slut!"

A dark aura surrounded Mira and a part of her arm turned demonic with black claws that looked like they could tear through steel.

"You asked for it!"

Clang!

Once again, Erza and Mira became embroiled in another fight, wreaking havoc and destroying everything around them. Their clash even began shaking the entire train making the engineer wonder what the heck was going on back there.

The other passengers in the cabin had long since evacuated the area and swore to never get anywhere near mages

{Break}

(An hour later)

-Kakeri Train Station-

"You two little demons are banned from ever riding with our service; you're banned! Ya hear! Banned!" The conductor screamed in rage at the two ashamed girls, sporting numerous injuries, bruises, and cuts all around their bodies from their previous fight.

"B-bu—" Erza tried to talk it out but got cut off by the red-faced man.

"No buts! Because of you, I have to buy a new carriage entirely, since the last one was completely destroyed. There is no way I'm paying for that, the bill will be sent to your guild for compensation. Not to mention the medical bill for the conductor that you 'accidentally' hit in the head! And your solution to help him was to hit him unconscious and pat his head!?"

"I'm sorry for my behavior, please hit me!"

This only worsened the man's face.

"LIKE HELL I'M GOING TO HIT A LITTLE GIRL! Are you trying to get me in trouble!? Get out and never come back! Have a nice day!"

The man slammed the door to his office shut before giving them a good day, despite the situation.

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"This is all your fault, fire crotch." Mira muttered, giving a glare at the wanna-be knight.

"What did you say!?"

They truly could not stop being at each other's throats for a moment.

{Break}

-Kakeri Village-

The village was a small place at the edge of the southern region of Fiore, being isolated and a recluse community; not many even knew that this place existed. But they were known for their large goldenrod and lavender flower cultivation fields. These flowers were highly sought-after commodities from the neighboring towns and even throughout the Kingdom of Fiore.

The town was not as populated from Mira's observation, "This place looks like a ghost town."

The roads were covered in dirt and sand. Some houses had broken roofs and others didn't even have a door.

"According to the master, many people left this place to live somewhere safer. The constant attack from the Sunflower Hornets made them fear for their lives and forced many to move away for safety." Erza responded, her eye scanning for any nearby threats.

"Yeah well, I wouldn't want to live somewhere so remote as well, monsters or not. People in this kind of region tend to be ignorant fucks."

"..."

Erza didn't comment on her partner's words. She knew her history, and how Mira and her siblings were thrown out of their home because the villagers didn't recognize the Take Over magic as a magical ability and was labeled as a demon. Mira of course still held some resentment and grudge against the village for trying to hurt her sibilings.

"Don't do anything rash."

"That's what I should tell you."

They soon reached the main building, which was the Mayor's house. After a few knocks, an old butler opened the door.

"You must be the aid we requested recently, please, come in. Master Rican is waiting in the dining room."

They both agreed and followed the old man through the long halls. Pictures of previous mayors and associates were hung on the walls, the frames adorned with gold and jewels.

"Well, you certainly aren't poor for a village in the middle of nowhere. I expected you to live inside a dirt house or something." Mira remarked much to the annoyance of Erza.

The latter wished her partner could be more careful with her wording. The last thing she wanted was for the client to get offended and send them away!

To her surprise, the butler laughed instead.

"Hohoho! You would think that, wouldn't you? Though that assumption isn't completely wrong… About three years ago, back when master Rican hadn't yet gotten the position of mayor, our village was extremely poor. The place was barely populated by a few hundred people and most of their income was the food we got in exchange for the goldenrod and lavender stock. During our biggest harvest, each of us would get a few hundreds of Jewels."

Now seeing the extremely luxurious hall, Erza would have guessed that they prospered thanks to the new mayor's leadership.

"It was when Master Rican took the position of Mayor that our times had changed. He forcefully shut down the trade of our flowers and used his own money to feed the village for a few months. Naturally, the demand for our wares began skyrocketing with the upcoming months, and still, we only handed out a fraction of what we would have harvested that month. This caused the price to increase many folds and using the higher source of income, we created bigger fields and even regular farms for cattle and vegetables to feed our people. Using the help of the local guilds, we established many sorts of fertile lands and even uncovered a gold mine at one point. This was a gift from the gods and our village went from a poor area to a rich and prospering village."

As the butler kept giving them the history lesson of his village, Erza was the only one listening while Mira just played with her fingernails; bored out of her mind. The redhead noticed some inconsistencies with his story, if the village was so wealthy, to begin with, why did the master tell her that the Mayor had to garner financial help from nearby villages?

Something didn't add up here.

"Ah? Forgive me, it seems I've once again started rambling."

Stopping in front of a large black door, the butler made way for them while giving a final bow.

"Master Rican awaits you."

Walking inside, the two spotted a large table filled with food and fruits where at the end an obese man, wearing gold-embroidered clothes and many pieces of jewelry that look it would cost a fortinue. His greasy and round face disgusted Mira to the point that she wanted to smack the man away.

"Aha! Greetings, Fairy tail wizards! It brings me great joy to see our saviors finally arrive in my humble village to save our people from this vile beast scourge!" he spoke with a loud voice, making the fat on his face jiggle like jello.

Mira gave Erza a look conveying that she would not take any part in this conversation.

"Ummm, yes, thank you for having us…"

The uncertainty in her voice was evident, either Rican didn't notice it or decided to ignore it.

"Please, sit down, make yourself at home."

For a guy who had a village in such a state, he certainly looked cheerful.

"Alfred, can you please bring our guests some refreshments? I'm sure the journey must have been arduous and tiring, just look at the injuries they've sustained along the way!"

Neither Erza nor Mira bothered to correct the man.

"Now, I believe it's high time we discuss the details of the quests," Rican said, having a more serious air around him. "Honestly speaking, I do not require your service any longer… so you may return to your guild. I'll even pay you the full reward money and throw in extra as an apology. A million Jewels should suffice."

Two jaws dropped to the floor, as this was not the type of answer Erza and Mira were expecting from the Mayor.

"I'm sorry?"

"Just like I said, we don't need you anymore… you can go back after a night's sleep, of course."

How could he say that after the quite detailed help he sent to the guild? It didn't make sense!

"B-B-B-But—" Erza was cut off mid-speech.

"—But nothing. I'm glad about your arrival, don't get me wrong about that. It's my fault honestly, I made that request quite hastily without a sound mind and grew to regret my decision. The matter with the Sunflower Hornets will be dealt with soon by one of my associate's exterminators, who will be here soon. The village is fine, it's not in any danger anymore."

Erza still argued otherwise, "All of those abandoned and torn houses we just witnessed with the village having no one living inside, shows us that you indeed need our help."

"Those are just a temporary thing, our village will soon return to its former glory and beauty soon enough. We only need to wait a few more days before our problems are gone for good and everything gets taken care of by my associate."

"Surely it would be better to have us help out as well! I am an S-rank Wizard, I can help!"

"I understand your feelings, but please understand, these problems will be taken care of in the upcoming days by reliable people."

That last part didn't sit well with the girls; Mirajane for the most part.

"What the fuck do you mean by 'reliable'? Are you trying to say we wizards from Fairy tail aren't trustworthy!? Are you looking to get your face bashed fatty!?" Mira shouted, not bother to hold back her insults, to the dismay of Erza.

Rican meanwhile gradually lost his smile and looked blankly at them. No given off any hints of anger or disbelief at Mira's outburst.

"The Devon Group has been working alongside me for years, they are an enterprise owned by Marquis Venol, an esteemed member of the royal court who has connections and the backing from Duke Everlue himself. If you further argue with my decision then that would be going against the rules established by the Magic Council and I can have you both classified as dark wizards; we don't want that, do we? Not to mention, your guild has hardly a good reputation with the carnage many of you caused. I don't want this town to be reduced to a crater. Thank you very much."

The tension was high in the air, and Erza and Mira were caught at an impasse.

Despite their differences, both adhered to the teachings of the guild, to never let the innocent suffer and help out those in need. Especially Mira, she already didn't like this guy's mug, but then he starts insulting her guild, calling them incompetent. Even though these words were not used, Rican made his intentions and meaning of his words quite clear to them.

As she was about to teach this guy a lesson, a hand came up to her shoulder and forcefully pushed her back to the seat.

"What the—Erza!? What do you think you're doing!? This fatso needs to learn some lessons!"

"I understand, mayor Rican, my partner and I over here will leave the place as early as tomorrow's daybreak. I'm also sorry for her behavior, she's still new to this and hasn't learned the rules yet on how to interact with the clients."

Out of everyone, Erza was the last person Mirajane expected to drop everything just like that and agree with this sweating pig! She looked at her with disbelief while the latter just dragged her out of the room.

"Please, follow me to your accommodations."

The butler waited right outside the dining room and politely bowed to Erza and brought her to their room.

Just like the rest of the house, this place was lavishly decorated with golden furniture and portraits of Rican himself. With red silk curtains that covered a clear glass window showcasing the ghost town of the once prosperous village.

"If you need anything else, then please pull this rope over here and one of the staff will be here in a matter of seconds. Good night, ladies."

The butler bowed once again and slowly closed the doors.

Clink

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"I expected better from you," Mira said, becoming disgusted by Erza's submissive attitude.

"..."

"What? Got nothing to say!? I always painted you as someone righteous who would go to great lengths to protect the innocent. Your armor certainly adds to that picture. But today I finally found out that you're nothing but a shameless, cock sucking, knee bending redhead bitch!" she screamed, not caring if either Rican or any one of the staff members in the house would hear her voice before continuing her tirade.

"Don't you realize what he did!? He looked down upon our guild! He basically spits on our faces and tells us to go back! How could you just accept that and agree with hi—"

"—He's hiding something."

That caught Mirajane off guard from Erza finally speaking up.

"What?"

"The first sign of there being something wrong with this man is his abundant wealth. In that letter for the quest, it was specifically stated that the mayor needed financial help from nearby towns and villages to fork up enough money for a Rank-A quest. While we see now is how the last thing he lacks in Jewels."

Yes, if anything, he looked like he would drown or get crushed by all the gold around him at some point in the future.

"Another weird point is that there is literally no one aside from them in this village. Not a single villager around, isn't that weird? That quest was submitted a few days ago, not even a week ago, in there it was specifically stated that some of the farmers couldn't work anymore due to the Hornets. Yet I see no farmers around, and the fields are completely barren. Even if they tried to evacuate, why would the Mayor and his servants remain here? They could have changed their meet-up location and avoid any hassle, but they didn't."

It felt unnatural, even if people were scared to live here, not everyone would be gone due to a few Sunflower Hornets. Those things only sought the nectar from the flowers and nothing else. Sure they would attack any humans who tried to prevent them from getting their main source of food, but hardly anyone would die from the hornets if they are left alone.

It was almost as if…

"We'll do a night stake-out." proposed Erza. "At nightfall, when everyone is asleep, let's head out and scour the village outside and see if we can find some clues. If possible, we can even get rid of the hornet issue and this will count as us completing our quest. What do you say?"

The grin on Mira's face was all the confirmation she needed, "Guess you aren't that much of a dumb bitch after all. I'm in, girls night out is a go!"

Erza returned the smile.

Mira could be—was—annoying, but she did have her moments.

After the mission is over, she'd show the white hair gothic bitch her place.

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The next 5 chapters of Snafu, Harry Potter and my 2 Fate fics are already available on my P@treon. With 4 more Broly chapters at /NimtheWriter.