A New Life in Fairy Tail

"It's probably because my talent is just a billion points better, that's all. You don't need to always compare yourself to me. Just focus on surpassing yourself," Noah said, comforting Laxus. He didn't want him to be so discouraged that he lost his drive.

"I've known for a long time that your talent was high. So a while ago, I changed my goal. It's no longer just to win, but to not be left too far behind by you, to catch up as much as I can, and maybe even surpass you one day. Don't you dare let me pass you!"

Seeing the light return to Laxus's eyes, Noah was relieved. "Of course. I'll definitely never let you pass me!"

After their talk, the two of them went back to their own training. During a break, Erza and the others came over to ask Noah how his mission went. Noah told them that during the request, he had met a "sister" and a "little sister." As he said this, he felt a sudden chill, though he didn't know why, and continued his story. He said they were a mother and daughter, but he only gave a brief description, his expression and tone not changing much. Instead, he focused on describing the Celestial Spirit Magic he had learned. As he talked more and more about the magic, the cold feeling gradually faded. Noah scratched his head in confusion and continued his explanation.

After he had finished telling them about Celestial Spirit Magic and broadening their knowledge, he began to answer their questions about their own magic. If they ran into something they didn't know, they would look it up in a book, discuss it amongst themselves, or see if Grandpa Crux could answer. If all else failed, they would ask Makarov.

They spent their days training, researching magic, and sparring with each other to hone their combat skills. Time passed like this.

One day, Noah packed his things, accepted a few requests that were on his way, and said goodbye to Erza and the others, leaving Magnolia.

After completing the missions along the route, Noah arrived at a mountain range, his destination. He took out the information he had asked Makarov to collect for him, checked his position, and then headed in a certain direction.

After a long search, he finally found an abandoned village in the mountains. The village was completely deserted and eerily silent; not a single sound could be heard. Noah walked into the village, observing his surroundings as he went. Most of the houses were made of wood, with thick thatched roofs. Due to neglect, most of them had either a hole in a window or a chunk missing from a door.

He approached one of the houses. The window was covered in spiderwebs. Peeking through a hole in the glass, he could see wooden furniture scattered on the floor inside; the table and chairs were broken into several pieces. A thick layer of dust covered the floor, and a few insects could be seen crawling around. The silence was unsettling.

Noah walked deeper into the village. Most of the houses had wooden planks, barrels, or pottery jars placed in the corners, but they were all broken and dilapidated. Every house he could see was in ruins, until he had nearly reached the deepest part of the village and saw a house that was different from the rest.

The door and windows of this house were intact. The pottery jars by the entrance were also whole and undamaged. It stood out from the surrounding ruins, and it was clear that someone was living there.

Noah walked to the front door, raised his right hand, and knocked gently a few times. He then lowered his hand and waited for a response. He could already sense that someone was inside.

Sure enough, after a moment, the door opened, and an old man walked out. He was short, with a long white beard so thick that it covered his mouth. The sides of his face were also covered in a beard that connected to his eyebrows, framing his eyes and nose. He had a red tattoo on his forehead: a dot in the center, surrounded by two arched stripes. He wore a headdress made of feathers and a necklace made of giant teeth. His upper body was bare, and he wore a golden bracelet on each bicep, with bandages wrapped around his wrists. A thin cloth was tied around his waist, with more feathers hanging from the back. He wore loose, dark pants and simple shoes.

The old man opened the door and saw a boy standing outside, wearing a white short-sleeved athletic shirt, black athletic pants, and a pair of black sneakers. The old man was surprised. This place was so desolate and remote that no one ever came here. Why would a child be here today?

"Grandpa, do you live here all by yourself? Is there no one else?" Noah asked, looking at the old man. This must be the person he was looking for.

"That's right, nabula. And what are you doing here? Are you lost, nabula?"

"No, I came here on purpose. I read in a book that there is a powerful magic sealed by the ancients near here, called Nirvana. I wanted to come and see it," Noah stated his purpose.

The old man was shocked but kept his expression neutral. He asked softly, "Why do you want to find Nirvana, nabula? Do you want to unseal it?"

"No. A magic that was sealed away must have been sealed for a reason. I'm not looking to make trouble for myself. I just came here to see if I could find any related information and study it a bit. By the way, Grandpa, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Noah, and I'm a wizard of Fairy Tail."

Noah held up his right hand, showing the guild mark on its back to the old man.

"I've heard of that guild. It's a light guild. Since that's the case... I am a descendant of the Nirvit tribe, the ones who created Nirvana. I still have some old documents here. If you don't mind, you can stay and study here for a while. By the way, my name is Roubaul."

Roubaul felt the warm magic coming from Noah, and seeing that the boy's gaze was clear and did not waver, he decided to invite him to stay and observe him, to see if he might be the one to fulfill his wish.

"That would be wonderful! Thank you, Grandpa Roubaul!" Noah said, his face breaking into an undisguised expression of joy.

After getting Roubaul's permission, he cleaned out one of the dilapidated houses nearby to use as his residence for the time being. Then, he began to ask Roubaul questions about Nirvana.

The days passed one by one. Every day, Noah would first do his daily training, and then he would ask Roubaul about Nirvana. Roubaul started from the very basics, but seeing how quickly Noah absorbed the information, he began to delve into deeper explanations. Of course, he only did this after observing and talking with Noah for several days.

Roubaul saw not a single trace of desire in Noah to use Nirvana for evil, only a thirst for knowledge. Having observed his character and disposition, he finally decided to teach him the deeper knowledge of Nirvana.

~~~

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