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Chapter 220: A Strange Illness
Chapter 220: A Strange Illness
Thanks to Wendy's help, Natsu experienced the joy of traveling by vehicle for the first time.
However, due to his excessive excitement, jumping around and making a racket, he disrupted everyone's discussions.
Erigosa finally lost her patience and punched him hard.
That day, Wendy's anti-motion sickness magic lost its significance.
The journey was long, almost from the southernmost tip of the Fiole Kingdom to the northern coast, giving Natsu plenty of time to enjoy the ride.
They would stop to cook when they were hungry, stay in an inn if they encountered a town in the evening, and camp out if they didn't.
Everyone was well-prepared for the long journey, especially Erigosa, who had a substantial food supply.
Surprisingly, Happy also had some culinary skills. According to Natsu, they usually either ate at the guild or Happy cooked.
‘Are you all Dragon slayers raised by cats?’
Every time he saw Happy and Charle helping Erigosa cook, Lode wanted to ask this.
With more people traveling together, the journey was never lonely. Whether it was playing cards, chatting, or discussing magic, the carriage was always lively.
Wendy seemed especially happy; this was her second long trip. Traveling with everyone felt great.
Lode was honored to have more travel experience than Wendy, a cause for celebration.
By the time they reached Pippi Town, it was already the third day since they left the Cat's Nest Inn.
It was close to evening when they arrived, and they first went to a hotel to book two rooms.
Wendy and Charle would share a bed in one room with Erigosa.
Natsu and Happy would share a bed in another room with Lode.
However, knowing Natsu, Lode expected either Natsu to roll off the bed or Happy to be kicked off by Natsu at night.
Before entering the town, Lode had already sent Crab to run around the outskirts of the town twice, but didn't see anything suspicious.
After entering the town, they didn't notice anything unusual about the atmosphere.
Erigosa and Lode slightly relaxed, temporarily ruling out the possibility of a direct attack by the Black Magic Cult or any immediate demonic chaos.
After settling their luggage, they began to split up. Natsu, with his keen sense of smell, was sent to scout the town for any suspicious individuals.
Happy and Charle were responsible for aerial reconnaissance.
Erigosa and Lode took Wendy to meet the client.
The client's house was not far from the town center, a three-story building with a small garden in front, though it was currently barren and without flowers.
The man who opened the door looked weary but stood tall. He was the client, Mr. Jova, Liss's father.
Mr. Jova was a member of Pippi Town's security team, barely qualifying as a soldier.
Since Liss was kidnapped, he had been blaming himself for his lack of ability, unable to protect even his own daughter.
After discovering Liss was ill, he took a long leave and traveled extensively to find doctors.
Erigosa introduced the three of them briefly:
"We are mages from Fairy Tail. I am Erigosa, this is Lode. This is a mage from the Cat's Nest Inn, Wendy."
Mr. Jova looked a bit puzzled: "You... are from two different guilds?"
Erigosa explained: "The situation is a bit complicated. Just consider us as two guilds working together voluntarily. Wendy is an expert in healing magic."
Mr. Jova nodded, unconcerned about how many people or guilds were involved, as long as they could cure Liss: "Please come in and speak inside."
The three followed Mr. Jova to the living room. Lode took a quick look around and noted that Mr. Jova's home was well-off, with the living room beautifully decorated.
This was likely due to his wife, Mrs. Avey.
Lode remembered that the information briefly mentioned Mrs. Avey as the daughter of a wealthy merchant.
As for how they met and got married, that was unclear.
However, during their inquiries earlier, the townspeople mentioned that Mrs. Avey ran a clothing store, but it hadn't been open for a long time.
Mr. Jova gestured for the three to sit down: "Avey, the mages who accepted our commission have arrived. Shanna, bring some tea."
Footsteps echoed from the stairs as Mrs. Avey hurried down. Her eyes were still a bit red and swollen, possibly from crying recently.
Mr. Jova introduced his wife to the three mages, and they exchanged greetings.
A maid walked out from the kitchen, served them hot tea, and then quietly returned to the kitchen.
"I remember now! Aren't you two the mages who broke up that kidnapping ring?"
Mr. Jova had just felt that he had heard the names Erigosa and Lode somewhere before, and now he remembered the mayor mentioning them.
One was called the Fairy Queen, and the other was called the Beast Tamer because he had driven a large group of animals to return the children.
Lode still didn't know how his rather unflattering nickname had started spreading from these two towns.
Later, someone found that it matched his performance at the Harvest Festival, so it gained widespread acceptance.
And because some people had seen him transform using Reception Magic, certain areas added the modifier 'Transformative' to his name.
Mrs. Avey became excited: "It's you! Please, you must save my daughter. She's only four, she's only four..."
Mr. Jova, feeling a bit more at ease after learning that these two were very powerful mages, said, "Calm down, Avey. Let's hear what the mages have to say first."
Lode said, "Could you please give us a detailed account of Liss's condition, and then take us to see her?"
Mr. Jova recalled and slowly said, "Liss returned the day before you rescued all the children. She was barefoot, her hair was disheveled, and she looked dazed.
At that time, Liss could only say a few words like 'Mommy and Daddy,' 'I want to go home,' and 'I'm scared.' We thought she was just scared, so we stopped working and stayed home to be with her.
But after a few days, she was still in a daze. She would eat if given food, but wouldn't complain of hunger if not. She would hold a doll if given one, but wouldn't speak if not. She would sit when told to sit and stand when told to stand. And she would become anxious if we left her, saying she was scared and wanted to go home.
We took her to see a psychologist and a psychiatrist, who both said it was due to excessive shock and advised us to spend more time with her.
But even after spending more time with her, she didn't improve. Sometimes she would suddenly faint. We invited many famous doctors from other places to our home, but none could find anything abnormal.
A few days ago, a doctor suggested that she might have been cursed with some magic and recommended that we hire mages to look into it. That's why we posted this commission."
Lode asked, "Do any of the other children who were kidnapped have similar symptoms?"
"We've asked around, and none of them do. Those children are already running around the streets," Mrs. Avey whispered, sobbing as Mr. Jova's words brought back her sadness, "Why is it only Liss..."
The statement was a bit inappropriate, but everyone understood her feelings as a mother.
Erigosa asked, "Wendy, do you have any ideas?"
Wendy shook her head gently: "I would like to see Miss Liss."
(End of Chapter)
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