"Master."
Early in the morning, Jehfrit sought out Master Makarov.
"What is it, Jehfrit?" Makarov groggily opened his eyes, looking at him with confusion.
Makarov had just consumed quite a bit of alcohol and wasn't keen on being disturbed. However, when Jehfrit came to him, it was usually something important.
Jehfrit pulled a bottle of liquor from behind his back and placed it on the table, saying with a somewhat ingratiating smile, "Teach me one of the guild's super-magics, would you? Hehe."
"Huh? You want to learn Fairy Law?" Makarov was taken aback. "If you learn it, the position of guild master will be yours."
"No, I can study Fairy Law, but that's not why I'm here this time, and no, I don't want to be guild master," Jehfrit replied seriously. "Managing Natsu and the others would be too troublesome. Let Gildarts or Laxus take over. Actually, I think Erza would be best—she's the only one who can keep those unruly ones in line."
"..." Makarov sighed. "If it's not Fairy Law, then what do you want to learn?"
"There are three super-magics, right? I want to learn Fairy Sphere," Jehfrit said.
"That... I don't know it either," Makarov admitted. "That magic has been lost."
"This..."
"Maybe it's on Tenrou Island," Makarov guessed. "It's said those two magics were buried with the first master."
He continued, "By the way, we'll be heading to Tenrou Island soon for the S-Class promotion trials. I can take you there to pay respects to the first master and see if we can find any clues."
"Can I go look for books in the forbidden section of the library, then?" Jehfrit asked.
"Why do you want to study such things?" Makarov questioned. "Is this magic really that important to you? Or is there some danger involved?"
Jehfrit replied, "Precaution. A life-saving technique like that is always good to have more of!"
Jehfrit didn't mention anything about Tenrou Island.
After all, whether Fairy Tail went or not, Grimoire Heart was definitely heading to Tenrou Island.
How could they let them disturb the first master's resting place? What if she got scared—she cries easily, after all. And what if they dug up her grave?
What if they actually found Zeref?
Without Fairy Tail and Grimoire Heart clashing, what if Zeref's mindset changed?
These were all unknown crises.
Compared to the unknown,
Jehfrit preferred facing the known.
The known being—
Grimoire Heart was heading to Tenrou Island. No need to panic; by then, it'd be him + Makarov + Laxus + Gildarts, plus Natsu and the others. Tell me, how could they lose?!
With all their top-tier fighters mobilized, how could they possibly be defeated in an instant?!
Secondly, Acnologia was coming to destroy the island.
He couldn't remember the reason, but it happened after this event.
So, just run away!
Defeat Grimoire Heart, make up an excuse, and get out of there fast!
No leisurely fishing or picnicking on the island!
Take the first master with them—can't leave her alone to get beaten up or eaten up by Acnologia .
Of course, if they couldn't escape...
Then they'd have to fight.
Thus, mastering a life-saving move like Fairy Sphere was essential!
Makarov didn't fully understand what Jehfrit was thinking. He pondered.
Forbidden books weren't something to be taken lightly.
Ordinary people reading them might stray down the wrong path, given the shortcuts and bad influences contained within.
Even someone as clever as Jehfrit could become obsessed.
In short,
it required careful consideration. Without sufficient mental fortitude and firm resolve, access couldn't be granted.
After some thought, Makarov nodded. "I'll allow you to read one book."
"Alright," Jehfrit nodded, muttering, "Such a miser."
"If you take over as guild master..." Makarov started, but Jehfrit's figure disappeared before he could finish.
"Doesn't this guy use keys?" Makarov muttered, suddenly remembering something. He quickly opened the drawer, and sure enough, the key was gone.
"This guy..."
Makarov shook his head with a chuckle, lay back down, and fell asleep. Moments later, he began mumbling in his sleep.
"Jehfrit... mirrors... forbidden books... you're approaching truth, but also the abyss and danger..."
"You must... stay true to yourself..."
"Don't become... a second Zeref..."
"..." Makarov suddenly sat up, his face full of panic. "Oh no!"
Jehfrit arrived at the guild's library.
Lisanna was there cleaning.
"Jehfrit-nii? What book are you looking for?" Lisanna asked curiously.
"No, I'm going inside," Jehfrit shook his head.
"Eh? Reading forbidden books? Did the master give permission?" Lisanna was surprised.
"Of course." Jehfrit tossed the key in the air. "You're not allowed to come in."
"Tch," Lisanna scoffed. "I'm not interested in these books anyway, let alone those."
"You should read more. Be cultured, gain knowledge, and become a well-rounded girl," Jehfrit advised.
"Is that so?" Lisanna's eyes twinkled mischievously. She emphasized her next words. "Question!"
"After reading countless books, knowing all sorts of grand theories, and having differing opinions from Jehfrit-nii on many matters, yet still sticking firmly to her own views—this Mirajane."
"And the other Mirajane, who hasn't read much, prefers doing housework and tending to the garden. When faced with problems, she consults Jehfrit-nii's opinion. Though she has her own views, she knows her limits and prefers to follow Jehfrit-nii's arrangements, deeply admiring him—this Mirajane."
"Which Mirajane does Jehfrit-nii choose?"
"..." Jehfrit was silent and turned to leave.
"Afraid to answer?" Lisanna blocked Jehfrit's path, arms spread wide across the doorway.
"Fine, the second one," Jehfrit conceded helplessly.
"See?" Lisanna raised a finger, wearing an 'I-knew-it' expression. "You clearly prefer the current Mira-nee, yet you want me to become the first type of girl—are you trying to make sure I never get married?"
"These two aren't related," Jehfrit said.
"Yes, according to Jehfrit-nii's logic—" Lisanna analyzed. "For Mira-nee, it's from a dating perspective—you naturally want the other person to be more obedient and admire you."
"But Lisanna is your younger sister. So you hope your sister gains more knowledge to avoid being tricked by boys."
"Ehh..." Jehfrit raised his hands in surrender.
"Hmph." Lisanna smirked triumphantly. "By the way, I've actually been reading lately."
"Reading what?"
"Horoscopes, love compatibility readings."
"..."
"This week, for Virgo men, show more care through actions—they'll encounter small setbacks. If you comfort them during such times, it's easy to deepen the relationship," Lisanna explained.
"Why are you reading this stuff?" Jehfrit deadpanned. "Virgo men—do you even know anyone with that zodiac sign?"
Suddenly, he added, "If you want to date someone, we have to approve first!"
"Such a dummy, huh." Lisanna sighed, stepping aside with a sarcastic tone. "To a mind full of forbidden knowledge and completely uninterested in his little sister, the best thing I can do right now is not disturb you."
*Bam*
Jehfrit flicked Lisanna's forehead. "Stop pretending to be a sensitive girl."
"Hmph." Lisanna walked off, hands on hips.
Jehfrit used the key to open the door and entered the forbidden section.
As expected of forbidden books.
Their covers looked like something not suitable for those under eighteen.
"Good thing I'm eighteen," Jehfrit mused as he reached for a book.
*Make-Out Paradise*
Well, well, well, was this Jiraiya-sensei's crossover work?
Opening it, he saw it was a novel with illustrations.
"Who would've thought, old man Makarov has a pure heart—reuniting with his first love from when he was eighteen in hell, huh..."
That's right.
To Jehfrit's surprise, the forbidden section wasn't just about certain kinds of knowledge—it had *that* kind of knowledge too.
He shoved the book back onto the shelf.
He picked up another one and glanced through it.
At that moment, hurried footsteps echoed behind him.
"Jehfrit!" Makarov arrived, panting heavily.
Jehfrit calmly returned the book to the shelf.
"You can't read these books!" Makarov declared.
"I'm already eighteen," Jehfrit said nonchalantly.
"..." Makarov was momentarily speechless, then quickly added, "You'll turn into a bad kid!"
"It's just that sort of thing—Uncle Gildarts used to talk about it all the time," Jehfrit responded.
Gildarts was someone who didn't care much about personal boundaries and often did questionable things.
Like taking Laxus and Jehfrit to a cabaret.
Laxus, being of age, went in and played for a while, emerging with a whiff of perfume and a flushed face.
Meanwhile, underage Jehfrit squatted outside poking ants.
It wasn't that he couldn't go in—a simple illusion spell would suffice.
Mainly...
He was a Virgo.
"Gildarts, that guy..." Makarov gritted his teeth. Was he setting a bad example?!
But now wasn't the time to dwell on that. He spoke sternly, "In any case! You can't read them!"
"Got it," Jehfrit said casually. "I'm not interested in these outdated things anyway."
"You..." Makarov was at a loss for words.
Jehfrit bypassed this area and headed deeper into the truly forbidden section.
"Jehfrit," Miko whispered in his ear, "Would you like a book where girls are tied up?"
"No," Jehfrit replied. "Not interested."
"..." Miko crouched down, staring intently below the waist.
"What are you doing?" Jehfrit deadpanned.
"Checking if Jehfrit is telling the truth."
"..." Jehfrit rolled his eyes. "You can't tell that way. Stop doing pointless things."
"What about this?" Miko spun around, transforming into Mirajane's likeness, wearing a swimsuit.
Miko coquettishly said, "Jehfrit, wanna play volleyball with me?"
Jehfrit froze.
"It moved!" Miko immediately pointed downwards.
"..." Jehfrit gave her a sharp chop on the head, causing her antennae to wobble. He growled, "Don't disturb me!"
"Yes," Miko held her head, her expression complex—a mix of smug satisfaction and teary-eyed.
"Ancient Magic..."
"Ancient Script..."
"Ancient Barriers..."
"Alchemy: Life Edition"
"The Birth of Souls"
"The Call of God..."
"The Creation of Demons..."
Jehfrit's gaze swept over each book.
He didn't stop.
He had already read all these elsewhere.
He was searching for something different.
Fairy Tail, such a large guild, surely had books he hadn't seen yet—precious ones.
"Found it."
Jehfrit's eyes stopped moving, locking onto a book.
[Detailed Explanation of Constructing Large-Scale Teleportation Magic Circles]
He picked it up and turned around. "Master, I'll take this."
But Makarov was already asleep on the floor.
Sighing,
Jehfrit handed the book to Miko to hold, then carried Makarov out of the forbidden section. Just as he stepped out, he paused, turned back, and grabbed another book from the forbidden section: [Me and Them at Eighteen.]
"Lock the door, Miko," Jehfrit instructed.
They left the library and settled Makarov in his office to sleep.
Jehfrit returned home.
Large-scale teleportation magic.
Why was it forbidden?
Surely, it wasn't just due to its functionality.
Later, Jehfrit understood why.
Its power—simply unmatched.
The theoretical range it could cover was even larger than Anima!
Why was it forbidden? It could shrink the range, but compared to other teleportation arrays of the same range, it consumed at least three times the resources, making it highly inefficient. Moreover, it required continuously sustaining a demon as the magic circle's spirit.
Demons—those were things one shouldn't mess with.
They touched upon three absolute taboos for wizards:
Black Magic, Life Alchemy, Soul Alchemy.
Any one of them could easily lead a wizard into the abyss.
But Jehfrit still touched it. He was confident he could control his desires.
After all,
he had no real interest in pursuing the ultimate truth of magic.
Without Acnologia and Zeref, without formidable enemies, he'd rather live comfortably with the second-tier Deception Magic—even though the original story won without him, he didn't like to gamble. His luck... wasn't great.
Without these threats, spending his days fishing and teasing the guild members sounded perfect.
It wasn't that he didn't want to relax—it was that the inevitable arrival of powerful enemies wouldn't allow him to.
As long as he wasn't greedy, as long as he was willing to lie low, no desire could tempt him!
Consider this—he wielded Deception Magic but never used it for fishing!
Moreover, with his magic, gaining benefits would be too easy. He'd even read some low-quality novels where authors used his Deception Magic as material, writing strange stories where the protagonists learned his magic and did all sorts of twisted things. Later, Jehfrit tracked them down and gave them a harsh beating.
In summary, though his personality wasn't the best, he was principled and reliable.
"I plan to link it with Aza," Jehfrit said after finishing the book.
"Not a bad idea. By the way, Jehfrit, this book isn't fun," Miko put down another forbidden book.
"Why?" Jehfrit asked.
"It's too detailed."
"Isn't that a good thing?"
"But the childhood friend loses."
"Then I won't read it!" Jehfrit immediately said.
If it's detailed and the childhood friend loses, why bother reading it?