Inside a tent, Chen Fan was tied to a pillar. Erza was holding Lucy's whip, cracking it against the ground. Snap! Snap! The sound was so sharp that cold sweat began to pour down Chen Fan's forehead.
In the corner, the bound Lucy and Happy huddled together, squeezing their eyes shut, unwilling to witness the bloody scene they imagined was about to unfold.
Suddenly, Erza tossed the whip aside. Chen Fan breathed a sigh of relief, thinking to himself that his years of "training" her hadn't been in vain. But his heart skipped a beat a moment later.
A magical sword appeared in Erza's hand. "Don't do anything rash, Erza!" Lucy shouted, terrified that her own fate would be the same as Chen Fan's if she didn't speak up.
Erza acted as if she hadn't heard a word, raising the sword to swing it toward Chen Fan's neck. At the critical moment, Chen Fan couldn't hold back anymore. He screamed, "Wait!!!!"
The sword stopped, though Erza didn't lower it. Lucy and the others opened their eyes, curious to hear Chen Fan's final words before he met his end.
"What do you have to say for yourself?" Erza asked, her voice icy.
Chen Fan looked at Erza with an expression of profound devotion. "When this sword is only 0.01 centimeters from my throat, and knowing that my life might end in the next second, I have decided to say the words I have always kept in my heart."
He flipped his hair and looked away, his voice dripping with emotion as he spoke one deliberate word at a time. "Once, a sincere affection was placed before me, but I did not cherish it. Only when I lost it did I feel deep regret. If Heaven were to give me another chance..." He suddenly snapped his head back toward Erza. "I would say three words to that girl: I love you."
But Erza still didn't lower the sword. Left with no choice, Chen Fan had to double down. "If I had to put a time limit on this love, I hope it would be... ten thousand years!"
"That's so moving! Sniffle..."
"It's truly beautiful. I never knew you were such a romantic, Chen Fan. I really misjudged you! Waaaah..." Lucy cried nearby.
Hey, hey, hey, I'm doing this to save you guys! What are you getting all emotional for? And that last part about misjudging me why does that sound so wrong? Chen Fan complained inwardly.
Erza swung the magic sword and cut the ropes binding Chen Fan. He thought he had finally touched her heart, but his headache returned when the giant iron hammer reappeared in her hand.
"Aaargh!" Another scream echoed out. Those who heard it shuddered again, offering another prayer for Chen Fan.
"Ow! That really hurts! Erza, could you be a bit gentler?" Chen Fan grumbled, rubbing his backside.
"You have the nerve to complain? Do you have any idea how dangerous S-Class Quests are? And yet you brought them along for this nonsense!" Erza roared at him.
"Now, now, don't be so serious. I came along, didn't I? After all, I'm an S-Class Wizard too," Chen Fan said, striking a bodybuilder pose that visibly disgusted Lucy and the others.
"It's because you came along that it's dangerous! Who knows if you'd just sell them out at the critical moment?" Lucy and Happy both gave him looks of deep suspicion.
"Don't slander my character! If you want to blame someone, blame Natsu. That disloyal brat ran off and left me to face Erza's wrath alone. By the way, where's Gray? Where did he disappear to?" Chen Fan shouted, looking around.
"He ran off too," Lucy said, tears still streaming down her face. "Aye..."
"This is bad. They must have gone after those people," Lucy said, a sudden realization striking her with anxiety.
With two quick slashes, Erza cut the ropes binding Lucy and Happy. "Then hurry up and follow them. I'll deal with all of you once we're back at the guild." She turned and ran out of the tent, with Happy and Lucy close behind.
Chen Fan tried to follow, but as soon as he stepped out, a punch landed squarely in his stomach.
"You should stay here and rest peacefully," Erza said. Once Chen Fan closed his eyes, she called two villagers to carry him to a bed and then departed.
Opening his eyes slightly after Erza's silhouette vanished, Chen Fan sat up. By the moonlight filtering through the window, he looked at his hands, clenching and unclenching them as if lost in thought.
Time passed. He didn't know how long it had been when a piercing sound suddenly rang out. Chen Fan immediately used his abilities to shift the direction of the sound. He knew that Deliora had effectively been revived.
He stepped off the bed and walked outside, looking up at the purple moon. He muttered to himself, "I suppose it's time to end this farce."
With those words, two cyclones appeared beneath his feet. Using the cover of the dark night, he flew straight toward the moon.
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