The guild hall buzzed with energy as usual—laughing, shouting, the occasional flying mug. But among the noise, Cael sat at his usual table, adjusting a pair of odd-looking goggles with multicolored lenses.
"Still working on that?" Mira asked, setting down a tray beside him.
"They're tactical lenses," Cael muttered. "Designed to detect different magic frequencies. The last prototype exploded."
"In your face?"
He hesitated. "No comment."
Mira chuckled, brushing a bit of dust off his collar. "Well, maybe these won't catch fire. Want something to eat?"
He looked up, smiling faintly. "Would love something that isn't burnt."
As she walked off, Cael noticed Natsu and Lucy arguing loudly across the hall. Happy floated between them, trying to calm the tension.
"They had their first solo mission," Mira said casually, following his gaze. "Daybreak Arc. Just came back yesterday."
Cael raised an eyebrow. "Any casualties?"
"Nope. Lucy used her Celestial Spirits well, and Natsu punched a mansion apart. All good fun."
"Remind me not to live near architecture."
Mira laughed, but before she could respond, the doors slammed open.
Erza.
Everyone froze. The red-haired knight marched into the hall with a glare that could stop time. She carried a mission flyer in one hand and an annoyed look in the other.
"Natsu. Gray. Lucy. Cael. You're coming with me."
Cael blinked. "Did I agree to that?"
"You did just now," Erza replied.
By noon, the five were on a train bound for Oshibana Station. Cael slouched against the window seat, holding back nausea. He wasn't great with motion. His goggles hung from his neck, the lenses clinking softly.
"Why am I here again?" he asked Mira before leaving.
"Because Erza trusts you," she'd said simply. "And she said this one might be serious."
Serious turned out to be an understatement.
Erza briefed them during the ride: a dark guild, Eisenwald, was planning something. The Magic Council was concerned about their activity around train stations and public broadcast stations.
Natsu snored loudly across from him. Lucy was reading. Gray had already stripped to his pants for no reason. And Cael quietly read the Eisenwald dossier, eyes sharp behind his goggles.
"This isn't random," he said aloud. "Why target broadcasting infrastructure?"
"They could spread propaganda," Erza said.
"No," Cael muttered. "They want to reach people. One event. One message."
His thoughts clicked into place—like gears locking down.
"What if they're not aiming to control the narrative? What if they're aiming to kill?"
The group fell silent.
At Oshibana Station, chaos had already begun.
The group disembarked just as a gust of magical wind swept through the station. Civilians ran in all directions. From the upper floors came masked mages with sickles—Eisenwald's signature weapon.
"Scatter and flank," Erza ordered. "Neutralize quickly."
"Finally!" Natsu grinned, flames igniting in his fists.
The guild charged.
Cael didn't rush. He moved behind Lucy and Gray, analyzing the terrain. He had no flashy spells—yet—but he had tools. With a flick of his wrist, he pulled out a small metal orb from his pouch and tossed it toward an incoming enemy.
The orb clacked on the floor—then exploded into a net of glowing wires, wrapping the enemy and pinning him to a pillar.
"Nice shot!" Lucy called.
"Experimental," Cael replied. "Might electrocute me next time."
As they pushed through the station, Cael noticed strange gusts forming again—localized wind, unnatural and controlled. One of the Eisenwald mages chanted into a lacrima, broadcasting something toward the loudspeakers.
"Lucy!" Cael shouted. "Get that lacrima!"
She nodded, summoning Virgo to burrow beneath the floor and snag it from behind. The enemy didn't even see it coming.
"We're too late," Erza said, appearing beside them. "Eisenwald's leader—Erigor—he's gone ahead. He's targeting a public broadcast station. We need to stop him."
"Split up?" Cael asked.
"No," Erza said. "We move together. We can't risk him activating whatever he's planning."
Cael clenched his gloved hand. He could feel his magic pulsing faintly. Machines whispered to him now—concepts and possibilities, blueprints forming behind his eyes.
But he still didn't have control. Not yet.
"Then we'd better hurry," he said, adjusting his goggles. "Or this turns into a mass execution."