Fairy Tail: You call this Celestial Magic?!

Chapter 317 I Wasn't Human to Be (Please Subscribe!)
Above the sky, the magnificent magical explosion that tore through the night and shook the island finally ended, like the final fireworks of a festival celebration, with colorful magical fragments swirling and dissipating in the night sky.

The thick, oppressive purple light that had enveloped Karna Island, formed by the residual magic of the "Moon Drop Ritual," had completely vanished, and Karna Island returned to a profound tranquility, as if time had reversed, returning to a time before the curse had taken hold.

"I don't seem to feel anything?"

Natsu stretched his body, then took a few deep breaths, scratching his signature cherry-blossom hair with a hint of confusion.

Although Moeng made a huge scene, he didn't feel that anything around him had changed. Perhaps it was because these outsiders had never really fallen into the quagmire of the curse.
"It's still a little different."

Gray shook his head, feeling the night breeze blowing across his face. The cold, damp air seemed to have lost some of its sticky discomfort, and the air on the island felt refreshing.

"Whether it works or not, we'll have to go see the villagers first."

Lucy couldn't help but roll her eyes, put her hands on her hips and complained. They were people who had only recently arrived here, so naturally they couldn't feel the changes. The key was to see if the tormented villagers had regained their human form. She hoped that those poor souls trapped in the alien bodies could be truly saved.

"Buzz!"

With a soft hum, Moen's figure gracefully leaped down from the top of the temple, landing steadily in front of everyone.

Although Moen's imposing aura had subsided, his tall stature and the already majestic Gemini Gold Cloth he wore, combined with his golden light as he appeared before the crowd, still gave them the feeling that "an angel had descended upon them."

"Gulu."

Leon's Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty as he swallowed hard.

At this moment, the way he looked at Moen was as if he were looking at a "god among men," but he was not too affected, because the gap between the two was too great, and it was far less of a blow than being defeated by Gray.

Leon had studied under mages of the "Ten Wizard Saints" level and had witnessed the battle between Uru and Deliora, but none of them were as oppressive as the one facing Moen.

At this moment, Leon finally understood why Gray had grown faster and stronger than him.

With Moen's guidance and having learned Moen's magic, Gray naturally had an advantage over him, which made Leon feel a little better.

At least he could think that if he were treated like Gray, his strength wouldn't be much worse than Gray's.

"Let's go back to the village and take a look."

Moen's lips curled into a gentle smile. As his voice fell, the last trace of golden light emanating from the Gemini Gold Cloth completely receded, restoring its ancient and solemn dark gold hue. The imposing majesty also disappeared, leaving only a steady and heavy metallic texture.

"it is good!"

Lucy responded immediately, her voice filled with urgency and anticipation. She clasped her hands together in front of her chest, sincerely hoping that this matter could be put to rest.

"Should we go too?"

Leon hesitated. They hadn't actually had much contact with those locals. If those people really did get into trouble because of the "Moon Drop Ritual," then they, the "culprits," should go over there.
“Go and see for yourself. Don’t you firmly believe that their changes aren’t due to the Moon Drop ritual?”

Moen looked at Leon with a half-smile, a hint of mischief in his eyes.

Leon is a bit of a joke. He was so confident that those people weren't affected by the "Moon Drop Ritual," but when he was asked to go with them to meet the victims, he started to hesitate and worry about this and that.

However, this hesitation also shows that his conscience has not been extinguished, his values ​​are still relatively sound, and he is not beyond redemption.

"Let's go then! They're definitely not affected by the Moon Drop ritual!"

Moen's words immediately spurred Leon on. He straightened his neck and decided to go and see for himself. Since they were all fine, there was no reason why the locals would be affected. He wanted to prove his innocence with his actions.

Moen shook his head silently and didn't say anything more. In fact, it didn't matter whether the other members of the "Moon Drop Gang" went or not, but Leon had to go no matter what.

At this moment, Leon's identity is still that of a "criminal suspect." Although there is only one casualty among the villagers of Galna Island, if it is confirmed to be related to the "Drops of the Moon" ritual, Leon will still be held responsible. Moreover, his attempt to unseal "Deliora" is itself an extremely dangerous move.

However, there is plenty of room for defense regarding Leon's motives and purposes, and if the matter is investigated, the punishment will not be too severe.

A group of victims, seeking revenge for their loved ones and driven by national and personal vendettas, released the sealed "Deliora" with the aim of completely destroying it. The one who sealed this demon was none other than the master of the gang leader.

There is no "Magic Council" involved at all. The "Magic Council" cannot even use the grounds of "harming the continent of Ishgar" to judge Leon, since "Deliora" was sealed by Uru, not by the "Magic Council".

Now it all depends on whether that local died because of the "Moon Drops Ritual," which will determine whether Leon has a murder charge against him and whether he will be brought to court.

"Let's go too!"

Sherry, Yuka, and Toby exchanged glances and quickly stepped forward, their tone resolute. Now that things had come to this, they wanted to witness the truth with their own eyes. They didn't want to end up getting into trouble instead of accomplishing what they wanted to do; that would be a huge loss.

"Okay, but the rest of you shouldn't follow, or you'll scare them."

Moen nodded, agreeing to let the three of them come along, but that was all. His gaze swept over the group of "Avengers" members in uniform behind Leon. So many people rushing over like that would probably terrify the locals.

"Okay, you guys wait here, we'll go take a look first."

Upon hearing this, Leon immediately turned around and gave the order, his voice regaining some of its former authority, as he still held considerable prestige among these people.

"Lord Zero! Are we just going to let the matter of Deliora go like this?!"

A voice filled with resentment and indignation suddenly rang out from the crowd.

This immediately infuriated Leon, who started searching for who had shouted it. Wasn't this just rubbing salt in the wound? If he could beat Moen, he certainly wouldn't let it go, but the problem was that he couldn't. He couldn't even beat Gray.

"I'll find a way."

Leon answered coldly, which calmed the somewhat agitated "Avengers." They had no choice but to trust Leon. They also knew how terrifying the power Moen had displayed was, and that question just now had already pushed their courage to the limit.

"Think about it slowly."

Moen casually replied, his voice tinged with amusement.

These words caused Leon's lips to twitch involuntarily. He immediately tightened his skin, trying his best to maintain his composure, but the helplessness in his eyes was clearly visible.

"Pfft~"

A clear yet abrupt sneer rang out.

Like a cat whose tail has been stepped on, Leon instinctively looked in the direction of the sound.

Happy hovered on Natsu's shoulder, flapping his little wings. He was covering his mouth tightly with his furry paws, his small body trembling slightly as he tried to suppress his laughter, but the "poof" sounds of air leaking out could still be heard intermittently.

"." When Leon saw who was laughing, his lips twitched even more noticeably, but he couldn't lash out. He couldn't very well argue with a cat, even if it was a strange talking cat.

Lucy wanted to laugh too, but she was professionally trained, so she pursed her lips tightly and suppressed her laughter, her cheeks puffing out slightly.

The young lady of the Heartfilia Consortium quickened her pace, jogging over to Moen's side and deliberately distancing herself from Leon, so that even if she couldn't hold back later, she wouldn't have to care about Leon's opinion.

And so, in a slightly eerie yet somewhat relaxed atmosphere, the group, led by Moen, followed the path clearly visible in the moonlight, through the silent woods, and soon returned to the village where the locals lived.

The high wall remained tightly shut until Natsu rushed over and knocked on the door. Only then did the wall open the "city gate," and the village chief and his men greeted them at the entrance. Regrettably, their bodies still resembled demons and had not returned to their original form despite the disappearance of the barrier formed by the residual magic.

"Mr. Moen, the mages of Fairy Tail, thank you."

However, something even more unexpected happened to Moen and his companions: the village chief immediately expressed his gratitude, as if the problem had already been solved, leaving Moen completely bewildered.

"This"

Moen opened his mouth, about to ask what was going on, but he stopped abruptly when he saw a familiar figure next to the village chief, and the question he was about to ask changed.

"Are you Guide Bobo?"

Moen's expression was strange. Standing behind the village chief was clearly the guide who had brought them to Galna Island. Although the guy was now in demon form, Moen still recognized him.

“Yes, it’s me, Mr. Moen.”

Bobo spoke with a smile, his voice as usual, but it sounded particularly strange coming from that devilish face. He took a step forward and stood in the moonlight, his gratitude clearly visible on his face.

"Thank you so much for helping us solve the problem."

With heartfelt gratitude on his face, Bobo bowed deeply to Moen and the others, and the other villagers followed suit.

"Eh?!"

Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Happy all looked surprised, both by Popo's sudden appearance and by the fact that "the problem was solved."

"What exactly is going on?"

Lucy couldn't help but ask, completely confused, "Is the problem solved?" Their perspectives on the problem seemed to differ slightly.

Moen frowned and squinted, remaining silent and waiting for Bobo to provide an explanation.

"That's right. In fact, we are originally a demon race."

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Bobo began to explain, and his first words surprised everyone, causing them to gasp in surprise.

"what?!"

Natsu's mouth dropped open, his jaw stretched dramatically, clearly shocked by those words. Not only him, but Gray, Lucy, Happy, and Leon and the "Snake Scale" trio were also stunned.

"So, this is what you originally looked like, but... how did you become human? Surely the side effect of the Moon Drop ritual isn't that demons can turn into humans?"

Moen rubbed his temples, accepting this very strange truth, but he continued to ask questions, something that still puzzled him.

"Becoming human is actually our ability, our only ability."

Bobo explained awkwardly that although they had the appearance of demons, their strength, speed, and lifespan were no different from ordinary humans. They did not have powerful physiques or the magical ability to manipulate elements. Their only ability, which could be described as a "racial talent," was the ability to transform into human form.

"."

Moen fell silent. This rather absurd reason left him speechless for a moment. The truth that he had been trying to understand was actually revealed in this way. It was truly a bit humorous. Who would have thought?!
"So, the effect of the Moon Drops ritual actually caused a distorted self-perception in you? Made you mistakenly believe you are human?"

After eliminating all possible wrong options, Moen arrived at the only remaining, and most unbelievable, conclusion with a hint of absurd disbelief in his voice.

"Yes."

Bobo nodded, confirming the matter. His expression was quite awkward, clearly indicating that he also found the matter very "dramatic".

"The reason I left was because I had broken free from that misconception, but I couldn't convince everyone. Instead, I was seen as someone who had completely gone mad, so I faked my death and left Karna Island."

As Bobo finished speaking, he glanced at the village chief and the other villagers, his voice lowering, tinged with helplessness and grievance.

The other villagers' expressions were naturally even more awkward, because what they called "completely driven mad" and "completely turned into demons" was actually a sign of true sobriety.

"."

After listening to Bobo's account, the expressions on everyone's faces were quite varied, a mix of shock, bewilderment, relief, and a bewildered feeling of being shocked by such a huge blunder.

The air was filled with an indescribable, complex atmosphere that fell somewhere between absurd comedy and heartwarming emotion.

"That's a good thing. At least no one died because of it."

Moen took another deep breath, which finally turned into a helpless yet relieved chuckle. Although the way things had turned out was ridiculously absurd, at least it was a happy ending.

He glanced around at the "demon" villagers, each with a different appearance but peaceful eyes, bathed in moonlight. At least none of them had suffered any irreparable harm.

'This significantly reduces the severity of Leon's and his group's crimes; at most, they'll just need to provide some compensation to the villagers.'
Moen glanced at Leon, who was visibly relieved and whose shoulders had slumped. Leon had obviously realized this as well.

'It might not even require paying any price.'
Moen thought to himself that, because of the unique nature of the island's inhabitants, they might not even ask Leon for any compensation.

The villagers' greatest wish is probably to continue hiding on this isolated island, guarding the secret of their "demon race," and maintaining this hard-won peaceful life.

Sure enough, Bobo and the village chief then made a request to Moen.

"Mr. Moen, could you please not take the news that the problem has been solved back with you?"

Bobo's face was full of pleading. He knew that such a request might be a bit excessive, after all, it meant asking Moen to accept the mission and fail, which would obviously be a stain on a mage's reputation.

"We will pay all the compensation!"

Bobo then added a sentence to prove that they were not trying to skip out on the bill.

(End of this chapter)