Fairy Tail: The Journey
Chapter 14
Kai gave a small nod of approval, and the entire guild exploded into chaos the very next second. "How can this bastard have a daughter like Cana?!" Wakaba cursed loudly, slamming the table in disbelief. Macao nodded beside him, equally offended. "Yeah! How can someone like him have such a cute daughter?"
Gildarts, however, stood completely frozen, his mind failing to process what he had just heard. Then suddenly, panic took over. "W-What?! Then who is your mother?" he blurted out, immediately starting to list random names out loud.
Silence fell over the hall. Cana stared at him in disbelief, her expression slowly darkening. Erza's hand moved to her sword, Mira's magic flared as she shifted into her Satan Soul, and Cana quietly drew her cards, the atmosphere turning dangerously tense.
Before things could explode, Gildarts suddenly stepped forward and pulled Cana into a tight hug. "It's Cornelia, right? I know it is… she was the only woman I ever married and truly loved," he said, his voice cracking as tears slipped from his eyes.
"I'm sorry… I wasn't there when you needed me. I couldn't even recognize you," he continued, his grip tightening slightly. Cana's composure shattered at those words, and tears streamed down her face, a mix of relief and long-suppressed pain finally breaking free.
The entire guild fell silent, even Natsu and Gray choosing not to interrupt the moment. After a while, Gildarts suddenly lifted the fifteen-year-old Cana into the air like a child, his mood flipping instantly.
"Listen up! She's my daughter!" he shouted proudly. "Everything's on me today! Let's celebrate meeting my cute daughter!"
"Hey! Put me down!" Cana protested, her face burning red as she struggled in his grip. Meanwhile, Natsu, Happy, and the rest of the guild immediately rushed to order food, turning the emotional moment into a full-blown celebration.
Erza sat at a table with two slices of strawberry cake, calmly observing everything. Kai joined her soon after, and Mira followed with her own plate, the three watching the chaos unfold. Cana, meanwhile, was dragged around by Gildarts as he proudly showed her off to everyone.
Cana wasn't sure if telling him had been the right decision, her emotions still a mess as she avoided eye contact. Around them, the guild members whispered and laughed as Gildarts continued boasting shamelessly about his daughter.
Kai clicked his tongue in mild annoyance. "Tch… a moment ago, you didn't even know she was your daughter. Now you're showing her off?" he said flatly. Macao nodded immediately. "Yeah, this bastard has no shame," while Wakaba added, "You didn't even know her mother properly. Poor Cana."
Gildarts flushed in embarrassment before turning toward Kai with a glare. "You damn brat! You already knew, didn't you? Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded. Kai leaned back lazily. "Why should I?" he replied without hesitation.
"You damn—!" Gildarts lunged at him without warning. In response, Kai instantly summoned multiple kunai and threw them across the hall, his body flickering as he used Flying Thunder God to teleport between positions and strike.
Gildarts' Crush Magic flared violently, shattering several kunai mid-air as he countered. Kai smirked and vanished again, reappearing behind him using a mark he had left during their previous fight, his fist blazing with orange-red energy as he swung forward.
Before the clash could escalate further, two massive fists came crashing down. "You two idiots! Stop wrecking the guild hall!" Makarov roared, smashing both of them into the ground.
Kai disappeared at the last moment, reappearing calmly beside Erza, completely unharmed. Gildarts, however, took the hit head-on and ended up embedded in the floor.
Makarov glared at them. "Fix everything you broke," he ordered sternly. Kai raised a hand innocently. "Old man, I didn't break anything," he said with a grin.
Makarov waved him off dismissively, already knowing he couldn't argue with that logic. Kai simply sat back down beside Erza like nothing had happened, picking up his cake again.
"Damn it, that's unfair!" Gildarts roared from the floor. He glared at Makarov. "Hey, old geezer! Stop showing favoritism!"
Makarov whistled casually. "Hmm? I have no idea what you're talking about. Now fix everything you destroyed," he replied. Cana crossed her arms and added firmly, "And apologize to Kai for attacking him."
Gildarts looked like his soul had left his body. He slowly walked to a corner and sat down, drawing circles on the floor. "Even my daughter has abandoned me…" he muttered dramatically.
Cana's eye twitched. "Stop acting and do what you're told," she snapped. "Apologize and repair everything."
"Aye… ma'am," Gildarts replied weakly. He looked at Kai and said through gritted teeth, "S-Sorry about that," before getting to work fixing the floor.
The entire guild stared at him in shock. "Is this really Gildarts?" one member whispered. "He started working just because she told him to?" another added in disbelief.
Mira smiled softly, clearly amused. "Ara… who would have thought Gildarts had this side to him?" she said, watching the scene unfold. The guild members quickly recovered and began teasing him nonstop.
Meanwhile, Kai calmly continued eating cake with Erza, completely unaffected by the chaos. Cana, still flushed with embarrassment, glanced at him laughing with Erza and sighed before quietly returning to her drink.
Mira noticed the glance immediately, a mischievous smile forming on her lips. "How interesting…" she murmured under her breath.
Nearby, Happy suddenly shuddered, sensing something dangerous in her expression, and quickly flew back to Natsu.