Years Upon Years (Private)

In the Capital City of Crocus, there were a lot of businesses and establishments to which the structures of each and every building would be designed by the same architects that were appointed by the Kingdom.  The image of the town is what the head of the Royal Family wishes to maintain, prosperous rich and simply wonderful but that was something that the Magus didn’t like but choose to go with it.

Instead of having his building designed in his own way, he had to make it so that it wouldn’t stand out and if so, it would have captured the attention of the Rune Knights easily.

The name of the establishment was Garan no Dou, a contract based agency whereas most of its contractors are usually guildless mages, there were many of its branches across the world and most of them are set in Fiore.  In the Crocus branch it wasn’t where one would seek out information that the Rune Knights haven’t covered but rather something more of a shop filled with magical items and good toys for the children who belonged to high classed families. There were even books about the basics of magics as well as magical theories authored by famous Mages and as it stands the Branch of Garan no Dou here has become the source of Crocus’s human resources.

It also has a small clinic to boot.

On the second floor was the workshop which was protected by a barrier preventing anyone from “passing by the second floor” as they come up stairs, making it look like the second floor was an illusion or there wasn’t any second floor to begin with, despite the building looking like it has three floors. This was to prevent any undercover Rune Knights from discovering his workshop regardless.

Of course the Magus himself used to be part of the Research team and development in Era but that was all in the past now as during that time, he had so little freedom to do field work.

Not only that he knew something went wrong within the hierarchy of the Rune Knights but he didn’t even bother to investigate, knowing that any involvement might cost him greatly.

The Third floor was the main office where the Magus himself would sit down as he would take notes of everything that is happening in Crocus right now, he had to pass down the strange reports coming from Hargeon about an unidentified creature a few square miles off the coast. It was the most urgent report that needs to be passed to Era immediately. “Robin… do make haste with this one, it’s important that you must deliver this to Era immediately to both the Harbor master, Infinity Hydra's Guildmaster and the Prime minister of Defense.”

Robin stood up tall, his usual hunter’s uniform, as he received and put the letter away, his robe flutters as he left the office leaving the Magus and his assistant, Kyrie. The Magus couldn’t help but stand outside the window looking at the entire block and seeing people pass by, his expression wasn’t his usual one, it almost looks like he was recalling a sad memory.

A few weeks ago in the festival where the Guildmaster of Fairytail played host, within the mass of crowds the Magus saw his little niece… or someone that just looks like her but a gut feeling tells him he cannot be wrong. He was confused and he didn’t want to assume but as the party of Magnolia was about to close, she was already gone leaving Merlin to perform the ritual to harvest and collect the excessive amount of mana generated by the party itself.  Luckily no evil man had the same idea as his.

He couldn’t even sleep afterwards and it took him an entire day’s worth of lecherous behavior and shenanigans to put it off his head.

“Master? Are you alright Master?” Kyrie asked, voicing out her concern.

“Are you afraid that Mr. Hans is doing a bad job advertising down there?”

Well Hans said he wanted to do something useful so he was appointed to advertising Garan no Dou but of course that wasn’t a very simple task, Hans was a former Garou Knight who has thought to have died but due to some circumstances, he’s living another life and looks just as he was years ago. Any of the Rune Knights would recognize him immediately so in order to fit the situation Hans has to put a ridiculous costume on, surprisingly it worked and he captured the children’s attention but both of them know he hates the position he’s appointed to right now.

Well it was better than guarding the Archives all the time, he was getting tired of being idle.

“Kyrie… do me a favor and prepare tea and crumpets…” The magus’s voice sounded sad and Kyrie was concerned.

“Yes master.” Kyrie bowed as he heads to the staff room.

As Robin went downstairs, he passed the clerk and waved his hand telling him that he’s leaving out in a hurry. Hans was outside wearing that ridiculous costume that attracted the children’s attention. Hans intended to stop Robin and ask to trade places with him but Robin doesn’t stop. He was in a hurry as his mission was too important for him to hesitate. He almost bumped into someone along the way but he moved so fast that there was not time to say sorry to the blonde he passed by.

God dammit… alright.. keep it together, I served under the King’s orders for awhile now, became a proud man and leader of the Garou knights but now I serve under the Magus who once also served his highness and if I cannot do a simple task like this, I’d disgrace myself.

Hans thought to himself as he continued to do his job to advertising Garan no Dou. He was doing a great job to which all those who know him would be completely surprised. Merlin would be laughing in amusement but unfortunately Merlin isn’t in the mood to watch Hans work right now.

Across the street was a blonde who looked like she was lost in the big city and so happened to passby this block, for a moment time stopped and Hans would have received the order from the Magus through “intent” to get her attention.

Hans knew nothing about this blonde, only Kyrie, Robin and Ms. Colchis knew of her as he guarded the Archives the entire time he came back to the world. Upon closer look Hans’s cheeks were tinted red but of course nobody could see his ridiculous face with that costume on. His costume was Cotton, Garan no Dou’s little fury animal. One rule is that he wasn’t supposed to speak while in costume as he tried capturing her attention by communicating the children through means of body language, telling them to pull her over here. And so the children did.

“Hey Missa! Cotton-chan wants to talk to you!” Says the little children as they giggled and run around orbiting Seru.

“Kyrie go down the first floor…” The magus said. Kyrie looked at her master’s face telling her that this is urgent. Merlin’s back was turned and was looking out the glass pane. She wasn’t so sure why but perhaps there’s someone coming to the store? Who could it be to caused her master to make that face?

As Kyrie descends down to the store, the Magus could only sit on his chair , drawing his pipe and sitting down, looking forlorn as he tries to come up with a scenario on how to deal with her, well first impression is everything to him of course. In case of course that she wasn’t he person he thought she was, hiring her to Garan no Dou would probably be best.

And as the children were to pull her towards Hans in a Cotton-chan suit, Cotton-chan grabbed her shoulders from behind and pushed her into the store.

Hans from his life of eliminating criminals… he has long forgotten how to socially interact with other people, or perhaps he didn’t care and just do was he was told.

BEFORE THE POST:

Sorry I'm so late.  Kinda lacked motivation to post due to several incidents that happened, but we're good now!  Shouldn't happen anytime soon again.


As she was looking at the enormous castle, she noticed a very peculiar man passing by much quicker than the others, and while it looked strange at the time, Seru didn't make much of it.  Her attention was dragged elsewhere, now, when young children surrounded her.  She was somewhat confused by this, and even more confused by what they had said.  "Cotton-chan...?"  Her immediate instincts were to raise her head to look around, and surely enough, she quickly spotted a figure with...  A peculiar look, so to speak.  Near him was a sign that said "Garan no Dou", presumably the building that was placed behind him.

She wasn't sure what it was for, but it was a great, big building.  She used her Origin Perception to peek inside of the first floor, and to her, it looked more like a store than anything else based off of its content it had inside, though she didn't bother to make out exact details.  Before she could really say anything else, however, the children grabbed onto both of her hands and started walking her towards the figure with the interesting costume.  She decided she wasn't going to fight the children too much; they looked innocent enough, and Seru wasn't one to suspect anyone unless given reason, especially when it came to cute children.  It was very clear based off of their clothing that they were of high class or very wealthy families.

They didn't walk quickly, but they didn't need to, though, as they were approaching the figure with the costume, she very quickly noticed that it wasn't looking any other way - it was eyeing only her.  She felt it rather suspicious of him to do so, but didn't doubt him, anyways.  When they reached the strange person in a furry costume, it grabbed onto her shoulders and pushed Seru into the store.  She stumbled lightly, though quickly caught her balance and looked behind her, the furry costumed figure back to interacting with the kids and presumably advertising for the store, seeing as she saw multiple plushies with its same look.

Now that she was inside, she could make out more of the content inside of the building, and indeed, it truly was a store mainly composed of magical items, toys, and even some volumes of magic she would probably never be able to use.  This isn't such a terrible place...  It's quite nice, actually!  Though, I do wonder why I was called by that strange creature and pushed into the store...  Hmmm... She only spent a few seconds pondering over her own internal question when a girl had descended down a flight of stairs. "Ah, hello!", Seru called out to her, "I was for whatever reason called into this building. May I be informed as to why?"

If only she knew.

What the hell was Hans doing!?  That wasn't supposed to be how he would call her into the store! Well I guess there’s a first time everything. He’ll have to be re-evaluated about his skills later. When Kyrie saw her, it registered in her mind that this was probably the reason why her master sent her down to the store.“Oh you mean cotton chan? Well i guess he's just doing his job advertising for the store! Is there anything you'd like to buy from us? We have a variety of items and not just for children!" Kyrie wanted to get to know this person better and so she must introduce herself.

"My name is Kyrie, assistant of Garan no Dou's Founder Mejai Kaijura, its a pleasure to meet you." Kyrie bowed down slightly as she fixed her glasses.

"By the way, I do believe fate brought you near our store, would you like to inquire for our services? We also provide information to  those who needs it, since Cotton-chan pushed you in. If you want to know r the reasons you came here then you can follow me upstairs but if you're not interested then that's fine." Usually Kyrie would have pulled her up to her master already but she has her own methods, Its up to her to decide what she wants to do. Perhaps wandering aimlessly through several places didn't do her much good as she cannot familiarize herself with the environment. If she wishes to explore the world on her own, then the story ends here, otherwise if she were to follow Kyrie then it continues on.

Kyrie would have lead her upstairs, for some reason they ended up in the third floor already and it was made noticeable once Seru looked outside the window by the stairs. There was a door awaiting them at the top. Upon entering the door, Kyrie and Seru would be greeted by a long hallway with a set of doors on each side, which was strange given that the building they are in isn't that big.

Kyrie thought to herself."Master Mejai, you forgot to lift the spell!" She knocked on the wall hoping that her master were to hear it and the nearest door would have opened. Kyrie turned to Seru and bowed in apology. "My pardons, Master has taken extra precautions in case intruders were to come to the third floor, please follow me." They entered the door that had opened up and found themselves in a huge office, a cabinet that contains files and transactions, reports were filed and compiled in books neatly on shelves, a sofa sits at the middle of the room accompanied by a table with a glass surface. On the opposite end of the room was a desk, there the Magus sat comfortably but only this time he wasn't known as Mejai Kaijura from his appearance. "Please... sit." The Magus's back was turned as Seru was guided to sit on the.

The Magus drew a rune in mid air as it disappeared. He stood up and walked over to reveal himself. His movements were slow but perhaps its because he couldn't believe that the girl who looked so much like his little niece is sitting right there. "You look like you're not from around here, are you lost little one?"

Again.... When she went out to find the Goshawk, in the forests, she stumbled into what appeared to be some kind of workshop. She met Merlin while he was trying to get some water from the well. The same words he used when they first meet.

"You look like you're not from around here, are you lost little one?"

Robin was making haste as she bumped into Lily on his way. “HEY WATCH WHERE YOU’RE GOING YOU BLOCKHEAD!” Lily shouted as she waved her fist up in the air, pouting and throwing a small tantrum at his rudeness. Today is the day of Lily’s piano recital and Robin just tore a bit of her dress, she entered the theatre as she mended the torn cloth with magic, hoping that nobody realizes that flaw in her appearance. The stage was set, the crowd starts to applause at the sound of her name being called to the stage where the piano lies, waiting for its composer.

“Lily Colchis, and her musical piece called… Moon Princess, Rebirth!”

---

The older magus hasn’t spoken a word, as tears well up her eyes, there was no mistake, and it’s his little niece, the one who was destined to become the king of her kingdom, left by her father Uther Pendragon, an old friend of his.

When he first met little wart, she was in search of the Goshawk that she and Kay let loose in the forest where the older magus lived. At that time Merlin was absolutely sure he had set his boundary field so that nobody would find his place and that those who enter it will wander aimlessly in circles, unless they follow the straight path that connects the farmlands towards the outer villages, but somehow Wart came, emerging from the thick foliage, all alone and tripping down on her feet, hungry and cold after spending the night looking for the Goshawk. It was then revealed that the late ghost that wandered through the woods had guided her to his home. Poor little wart was a victim of the boundary field’s curse, still shivering, lost and confused.

He put his robe around her to keep warm and allowed her to take shelter in his home. There she met Archimedes, the talking owl and learned the existence of magic.

Merlin had drew a napkin and wiped her tears away, kneeling down on her level and places his hand on her chin and stared right into his eyes. How is it that their encounter in crocus was just as the same as when they first met? Perhaps it was fate they would meet again.

She was different, somehow only a portion of her exists in another soul, an ambiguity of spiritual beings. Eyes that was able to see through the world, a gift only the Magus himself possessed, to see not just the surface but beyond the meaning of what seemed to be “beautiful” in a sense. She isn’t completely his niece but he’s glad to see a familiar face. He ran his hand across her cheek, swiping away a lock of her hair.

“Now, now don’t cry little one, now tell me what brings you to Crocus?”
“Now, now don’t cry little one, now tell me what brings you to this Forest?”
These words were all too familiar and he asked a question to which he knows what her answer will be.

“Now may I ask you this… is your name by any chance, Artoria Pendragon?”

After Vivien, the lady of the lake, imprisoned him in the crystal cave, he thought he’d never see her face again, but now he is glad he was wrong and once again did they both meet under different circumstances. If she’d burst out in a hug, he’d welcome her with open arms and that he’d shed tears before his little King. Perhaps the greatest crime he committed against his King was abandoning her to the Kingdom, allowing circumstances to happen, allowing him to be cornered and separated from her.

---

Hans was certainly doing an excellent job in attracting the kids, perhaps he did his job too well that they somehow organized themselves to tying him up and taking him to the kiddie park. “What. Just. Happened?”

A thought came to Merlin just now, Hans must be wearing the experimental magic costume he made, designed to draw the interest of consumers, so he wasn’t so sure if its effect is going to work completely.

“Tskkk…. DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRN!!!|” Well they wouldn’t hear Hans scream as Merlin’s office is completely void of the outside. If one were to sneak up on the third floor whereas Merlin had not authorized, they will be lost in a labyrinth, similar to the maze Atlas which Hephaestus designed, which Seru and Kyrie encountered on their way up.

It was cruel, a cruel fate that it had to turn out this way. The memories were no longer hers but the feeling still remains. “Hush, no matter what you become, you’ll always be dear little wart to me.”


When she gave out her name, it didn’t turn out as he expected, she had a new name, known as Seru. He smiled; her coming back to him was enough even though her memories were all but broken dreams to her. “Seru,  what a wonderful name” meaning that he had accepted her new identity, course he can be mistaken but nevertheless he cannot mistake his King for another, sure enough if he did, then he’d question his own loyalty. Kyrie bowed down and exited through the door; her presence disappears and leaves with a smile. Seru was much like Kyrie, they were both brought under the same circumstances, like Kyrie, Seru is a spiritual ambiguity, while part of Artoria’s soul is in her, part of Galahad’s soul was also in Kyrie.

“As of now I am known as Mejai Kaijura, founder of Garan no Dou, I don’t usually gamble about my name but if you must know dear wart… I believe you used to call me, Merlin.” Merlin was a famous historical name as it was the same name of the Grand Magus who assisted the Kingdom to which its pride was that of the order of the knights. Merlin has become a common name amongst children who were born with magical potential, specifically a name blessed the aristocrats.

But Mejai was the living truth behind that name, he changed it not just because his name was constantly being used but it was because it was a way to hide from his enemies.  Hence he does not stay in one place for too long but that is why he created a dimensional pocket of space, which is his office. Robin did question why can’t he just transport him instead rather than having him travel at such speeds towards Era? It would take him almost a day to reach his destination.