The desert-edge wind cut sharply past Kai's face as he skated across the uneven terrain. Lucy clung desperately to the back of his shirt, while Happy was latched onto his spider-pixie contraption like a terrified blue barnacle.
The wheels Kai had conjured beneath his feet—an improvised, high-speed fusion of salvaged metal scraps, small crystals, and a single rune-etched gear—cut through sand, dirt, pebbles, and grass as if the world's geography were nothing but a minor suggestion. His speed didn't falter once.
Lucy peeked over his shoulder, her blonde ponytail snapping violently in the wind. "K-Kai?! Are we not… slowing down?!"
"Nope," Kai answered casually. He leaned his weight slightly to the left, effortlessly swerving around a jutting boulder that should have sent them flying. "I'm letting the kinetic flow of the terrain do the work. Efficiency, blondie."
Happy peeked down at the blurring ground and instantly regretted it. "Aye… we're gonna die…"
Kai hummed lazily. "Then do it quietly, please. The wind resistance is annoying enough."
Lucy tightened her grip, her knuckles turning white. "It's not funny!"
"I wasn't joking."
He wasn't panicking; he wasn't even remotely tense. He looked like a man casually skating through Magnolia on a lazy Sunday afternoon, not a rogue mage chasing down a dangerous criminal carrying a legendary, cursed murder-flute.
And soon enough, the fleeing figure came into view.
A man was sprinting at full speed ahead of them, shadows flickering around his boots like exhaust smoke. He wore a white, high-collared shirt, navy pants, and on his back—proudly displayed—was a glaring, bold Eisenwald emblem.
Lucy frowned, squinting through the dust. "Kai… what's that symbol?"
"Eisenwald," Kai replied, his eyes locked dead ahead, his tone utterly flat. "He's proud enough to wear it openly. Smart for recognition. Stupid for survival."
Happy gulped. "Kai, how are you going to stop him?"
Kai didn't answer right away. He simply studied the dark mage, analyzing the way the shadows twisted around the man's legs to grant him sharp bursts of speed. Kageyama's magical presence flickered—subtle, suppressed, and incredibly hard to track for average wizards.
But to Kai? It was as loud as a man screaming in an empty room.
"Looks like he's heading toward Kunugi Station," Kai murmured, almost lazily.
"You can tell that just by looking at him?!" Lucy yelled over the wind.
"I'm reading his pathing," Kai said. "People with a specific purpose run differently. Besides, the nearest city from our starting point is Onibas. If he just wanted to hide, that was the obvious pick. Instead, he's taking the long route that cuts through the mountains. The only train station near that grid is Kunugi."
Lucy blinked, thoroughly bewildered. "That… is simultaneously the most logical and vaguest explanation I've ever heard."
Kai tilted his head back slightly. "I don't owe the world clarity, blondie. Especially if you can't keep up with basic deduction."
Lucy muttered something highly unflattering about his personality, but she didn't dare let go.
Internally, Kai's mind turned inward.
Shadow magic… and a cursed artifact. Even if this guy turns out to be a decoy, I still gain something from this. Materials, fresh magic signatures to analyze, maybe something interesting to dismantle. And if he turns out to be the real deal? I get the flute. I'll just have to break an entire dark guild to keep it.
Red, Gray, and Salamander could handle the bulk of Eisenwald. They were loud. They were flashy. They were the perfect, unintentional distractions.
The terrain suddenly softened beneath them, transitioning into lush grass and thick trees. The looming outline of Kunugi Station materialized in the distance.
"Alright," Kai said, dropping his speed instantly. "Both of you, drop off."
"What do you mean—AAAH?!"
With a smooth, unceremonious flick of his shoulders, he dumped Lucy and Happy off the back. They hit the soft grass rolling—but before they could even open their mouths to protest—
Fwip.
Kai's form flickered like a candle blown out in the dark. Then, he simply vanished.
Shadow Steps.
He didn't turn into mist, nor did he become intangible. He merely moved so blindingly fast, so entirely devoid of sound or presence, that he might as well have slipped out of reality itself.
Lucy gasped, pushing herself up. "He's gone again!"
Happy pointed his tail toward the path Kageyama had taken. "I think he went that way… maybe? Probably?"
Lucy swallowed nervously, looking at the empty forest. "Erza said he's reliable. Why does his version of 'reliable' feel so terrifying?"
Kageyama's POV
Kageyama sprinted, his lungs burning and shadows rippling beneath his boots. Panic fought with adrenaline in his chest. Fairy Tail found out. They're already moving to intercept.
But at least he had successfully ditched those loud brats back on the train. He'd managed to shake them off before they could ruin everything.
Lost in his frantic thoughts, Kageyama failed to notice a stray shadow suddenly manifest right beside his own. There was no physical person standing there—just an extra shadow that seamlessly merged into his.
Without warning, a solid, tangible hand emerged directly from Kageyama's own shadow and grabbed him tightly by the ankle.
"What the—?!"
The sudden anchor sent him crashing face-first into the dirt.
A sharp, blinding pain flared across his nose. Spitting out dirt, he clutched his bleeding face and growled, "Damn rock…!"
He quickly pushed himself up into a defensive crouch, scanning the trees.
Nothing.
He let out a ragged breath, trying to steady his trembling legs. "I'm jumping at my own shadow now… calm down. Focus on Erigor's plan. As long as I deliver Lullaby—"
A hand abruptly gripped the back of his hair, burying its fingers into his skull, and violently slammed his face back down into the earth.
"GAAA—!"
Kageyama scrambled backward like a panicked animal, shadows swirling violently around him. "Who's there?! Show yourself!"
No answer. Just the rustling of leaves.
Desperate, he pumped a massive surge of magic into the surrounding terrain, his dark aura thickening into a dense fog. "You—you're from Fairy Tail, aren't you?! You think you can hide from me?! In the shadows?! I am shadows!"
He slammed his palms together, throwing his hands forward as a dark purple magic circle erupted in front of him.
"DISPEL!"
A magical shockwave burst outward, ripping away all concealed presences and forcefully stripping away any active stealth magic in the area.
The air grew deathly still.
Still nothing.
Kageyama slowly straightened his posture, wiping a streak of blood from his lip, a manic grin spreading across his face. "Ha… see? Nothing! Did your little trick fail—?"
"It worked perfectly, actually."
The voice was a cool, lazy whisper directly against his ear.
Kageyama shrieked, spinning on his heel and throwing a desperate backhand elbow—only for his arm to be caught mid-swing with effortless precision.
Before he could register the grip, a large hand clamped around his throat from behind. He was lifted off his feet like a ragdoll and slammed brutally into the ground. His vision went hazy and white. Before he could pass out, the attacker dragged him up by his collar and tossed him backward.
Kageyama flew through the air, hitting the dirt hard and rolling over jagged stones before finally skidding to a halt. Groaning, his vision spinning, he scrambled away until his back hit a tree. He wiped the dirt from his eyes and looked up.
Kai stood a few paces away.
His golden eyes were half-lidded, his slick brown hair shifting slightly in the wind. The heavy white wrappings around his forearms and shins were pristine, and the prayer beads around his neck clinked softly as he shifted his weight.
He looked bored. Painfully, entirely bored.
And that utter lack of fear twisted Kageyama's stomach into a tight knot.
"You… you're one of those Fairy Tail flies!" Kageyama hissed.
"Mm." Kai tilted his head, giving him a lazy, measuring look. "Your little shadow trick earlier was cute. Really nostalgic, honestly."
Kageyama shakily forced himself to his feet, casting shadows around his hands. "S-Stop following me! If you think you can just—!"
Kai vanished.
Not with a burst of magic. Not with a puff of smoke. He was just… gone.
Kageyama's breath caught in his throat. "W-Where—?!"
A finger tapped him lightly on the shoulder.
"Boo."
Kageyama screamed, throwing himself forward.
Meanwhile — Onibas Station
Natsu practically leaped off the train, immediately spitting out the small pellet Kai had forced under his tongue.
"HAAH—FINALLY! Solid ground! No more weird shaking, no more magic shocks!" Natsu stomped on the discarded pellet vindictively, sparks still popping off his own tongue.
Gray stared at him in utter disgust. "That thing was the only reason you didn't puke your guts out inside the train, moron."
"Yeah, and? I still hated it!"
Erza ignored their bickering entirely, her armor glinting beneath the station lights. "Be serious, both of you. This is the exact location I heard the Eisenwald mages mentioning."
Gray surveyed the peaceful crowd of civilians walking past. "It looks completely normal, Erza. Peaceful, even. Are you sure this is where they're supposed to be?"
"That makes it even more dangerous," she said sharply, her eyes narrowing. "They're hiding in plain sight. Spread out. Look for anything suspicious."
Natsu cracked his knuckles, bright flames igniting around his fists. "Got it! I'm itching to kick some dark guild ass anyway!"
Back to Kai and Kageyama
"Shadow Magic: Orochi!" Kageyama screamed.
The mass of shadows behind him condensed rapidly, morphing into the terrifying form of a multi-headed, hydra-like serpent. The shadow beast roared, rushing directly at Kai.
Kai just stood there, watching the incoming darkness with an analytical eye. As the first few shadow heads reached him, he casually sidestepped. His hand came down in a swift, heavy chop, crushing the dark mass into harmless, dissolving fragments.
But Kageyama kept pouring magic into the spell, sending head after head. The shadow snakes surrounded Kai from all sides, three of them whipping around his torso to bind him, while the others lunged forward with wide-open jaws to consume him whole.
Just as the jaws were about to snap shut, a bright blast of light erupted from Kai's position. He had casually dropped a flash-pellet at his feet.
By the time the blinding light faded, the shadows had snapped on empty air. He simply wasn't there anymore.
He moves like a shadow—but he's not using shadow magic, Kageyama's thoughts spiraled into pure panic. What is he? What IS he?!
"You know, I was thinking…" Kai's voice echoed calmly from behind him. "If you're just a decoy, this is going to be incredibly annoy—"
Kageyama spun around, unleashing a bursting wave of spiked shadows. Kai easily leaped over the dark tide, descending upon Kageyama from above with a lazy, heavy axe kick.
"Shadow Guard!" Kageyama shrieked.
The shadows rushed upward, wrapping around him like a dense, defensive cocoon. Kai's heel connected hard with the surface. A sharp crack echoed through the forest, and the ground beneath them shattered from the residual pressure.
Kai smoothly bounced off the impact, jumping back. Seeing his defense actually hold against the monster, Kageyama let out a breathless, manic laugh.
But his laugh was cut short.
Without warning, the shadow cocoon surrounding him was violently struck a second time—at the exact same spot, with the exact same force—even though Kai was standing meters away.
The secondary impact shattered the defense completely. The kinetic force slammed directly into Kageyama's face, throwing him hard into the dirt.
"Echo Strike," Kai said calmly, stepping forward through the settling dust. "Now, as I was saying… if you were a decoy, this would have been a massive waste of my time."
Kai continued his approach, each step as soft as a whisper. "But since you're not… I'll make this quick. I want whatever you're carrying."
Bleeding from a nasty cut on his forehead, his eye swollen and his face badly bruised, Kageyama scrambled backward until his spine hit the trunk of a tree.
Kai crouched slightly in front of him, his golden eyes gleaming with a playful, yet deeply unsettling threat.
"So…" Kai extended an open hand, a minor, amused smirk playing on his lips. "Hand over the cursed murder-flute, yeah?"
Kageyama's knees shook violently as he struggled to find his voice. "P-Please, wait! I don't have the flute! I was just a lookout, they forced me into this! The flute is with Erigor!"
Kai just stared at him, looking thoroughly amused by the lie.
The sound of hurried footsteps rustled the bushes behind them. Kageyama looked past Kai's shoulder and saw a blonde girl and a blue cat running into the clearing, both bearing Fairy Tail emblems.
Lucy and Happy came to a sudden halt, completely stunned. The formidable dark mage they had been chasing was already thoroughly broken, weeping and begging for mercy from Kai—who didn't even look like he had broken a sweat.
Lucy finally managed to find her voice. "Ka-Kai?! Are you okay? Did you get the Lullaby?"
Happy nodded rapidly. "Aye! Kai, you already beat the guy! Did you get the flute? You didn't use it, right?!"
Kai let out a soft chuckle, finally turning his head to look back at them, still casually crouching over his prey. "Actually, my cute, incredibly slow companions, I was just in the middle of politely asking this gentleman to hand it over. Come on, shadow boy. I know you have it. Why not be cooperative? Do you really want to find out what it feels like to have your fingers, ears, and other vital parts torn off before you give it to me anyway?"
Lucy and Happy looked horrified, their faces turning completely pale. They frantically shook their heads.
He won't do it. He's just bluffing. He's a Fairy Tail wizard, he's just bluffing… right?! They tried desperately to convince themselves.
But Kageyama, looking directly into Kai's deadpan, golden eyes, found absolutely no sign of hesitation, discomfort, or humor. He was speaking with the exact same casual tone he had used while systematically dismantling his magic.
A tear leaked from Kageyama's eye as a shaky, terrified smile formed on his face. "I-I… please. I'll give it to you. Please, don't do that."
Kai smiled warmly at him. "See? I knew we could be reasonable."
Trembling, Kageyama reached deep into the inner pocket of his coat—until a freezing, oppressive gale of wind violently swept through the clearing, and a cold voice cut through the air.
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Kageyama? Getting caught by Fairy Tail flies… and now handing over our masterpiece?"
Kageyama froze instantly, his entire body locking up. He would recognize that suffocating wind magic anywhere.
"E-Erigor…"