The trainees did not return even after three days. Kai spent each day training, of course, and never straying too far from the beach in case they came back. But on the night of the third day, as the stars twinkled above the massive ocean and Kai sat upon the sandy shores, he resolved himself to no longer just train on his own, or to at least train there.
Kai made good progress: he'd gotten a solid control of his magic, even the Ice Dragon Rage spell, and mastered the new spells he and Levy worked on five days ago before the training got started in earnest.
Things began to plateau on the third day, though. The amount of exercises he could do were running low. His body adjusted to the heat of the sun already and more people were starting to arrive on the beach as a vacation spot. Kai was physically worn down, but knew there were bigger depths he could reach.
So, he knew he had to get back home. But he did not want to try the traditional route of getting to Magnolia by train. Instead, he wanted to walk it back there, and would leave it up to the gods to decide what he ran into. For several hours out of the day he could train and then at night he could rest. Perhaps the multitude of environments he'd encounter would allow him to get stronger and adapt better to different situations.
Kai got a late start to the next day, wanting to give his body just a little extra rest, and could sense the progress. Something familiar ebbed in his body, a sensation he'd only ever noticed in Natsu: Dragon Force. It was still a ways off, but the progress he'd put into his body and his magic the last five days—something he hadn't done in forever—allowed him to truly dig deeper toward his own magic core, and thus tap into that ancient well of power.
He set off back toward Magnolia, gathering his things and coating everyone else's things in ice so nobody would steal it. The path back toward Magnolia surprised him with how peaceful it got the further he progressed; the summertime sun shone down on everyone, but an odd peace settled over the shoreline and surrounding villages.
Kai smiled and hoped to come back after the Grand Magic Games, possibly to celebrate their victory. His smile waned at the thought of how far he'd gotten in five days. Nice as that was, those five days were in truth seven years for their competition. There were certain wizards Kai didn't necessarily worry about. For example, despite being in the second strongest guild, an Ice-Make wizard like Lyon didn't pose much of a threat to Kai who could absorb that magic. And guilds like Twilight Ogre, who focused much less on accruing strength than accruing money, would also fall under the boot of Fairy Tail's heel.
But then there was the rest of Lamia Scale or Blue Pegasus. Again, he didn't have to worry too much about their Ice wizard, but what if they'd gotten another wizard? What if Ichiya got even stronger? Kai shouldered his bag. There was really no use in constantly thinking about what-ifs, but as he walked the lonely road, the only road he'd even known, he didn't know what else to think about.
Kai raised his head a bit after a few hours of travel and settled in for the day to begin his long session of training, which, surprisingly, was less about flaunting his incredible power and more about solemn concentration. He sat patiently beneath a slew of frozen trees—the chill giving him great deals of calm—and quieted his mind so only the roar of his magic filled him, something he was only momentarily subconscious of.
In participating in this practice, Kai managed to manifest a sort of mental image of himself mining through swathes of ice, unlocking and attaining greater depths of magic that he may use. This, in turn, allowed him to tap into that ferocious and draconic strength for longer periods of time. It was what allowed Natsu to continue getting up to fight repeatedly. IT was what, he knew, he had to use when they fought against Hades all that time ago.
And to just compete with the rest of the world, Kai would need this reserve of magic.
So, he mined and he burrowed into the ice. Outside his body, he sensed his light blue aura wafting around him, notifying him to any shifts in movement or strong magical presences that approached, just in case Fairy Tail came back and went out searching for him.
Night arrived and he transitioned out of meditation into a few lighter exercises before helping himself to some nighttime snacks and nestling in against the tree for some rest. He dreamt of ice again, and of his home in Iceberg. He woke with a smile on his face.
That calmness from the previous day, for the most part, carried over into the next one. The hairs on his arms stood and Kai cocked his head toward the west, where a faint but potentially powerful source of magic emanated.
He darted through the woods until he came to a stop behind a heavy tree and poked his head around the corner, stalking through some of the shadows before coming to a stop behind a thick brush and peered through that into a village of tiny homes in a massive clearing in the forest. In fact, most of the forest appeared to be gone.
Kai stood, surprised at the sight of the village occupants. He approached with a smile on his face, then remembered what he actually looked like to them.
However, that didn't end up really mattering all that much.
"It's Fairy Tail!" one of the Exceeds cried out.
Kai sighed and approached the Exceed village. He'd completely forgotten they were out here on Earth-land.
One of the Exceeds, a taller one, approached. She wore a tiny crown on her head and only had one wing slightly extended out. A few other smaller guards followed behind her. Kai bowed his head.
"Queen Shaggotte, I assume?"
The Exceed nodded. "It's good to see Fairy Tail after so long. We heard about the devastation of your island, but we had no idea that you'd returned."
"Or survived, for that matter," one of the other Exceed said.
"I appreciate your concern," Kai said. "And it's good to see you all doing well out here. But there seem to be fewer of you?"
"Many of us have integrated into society," Shaggotte said. "It took quite a while for that to happen. We were all scared for a while and after Fairy Tail vanished it felt as if we'd lost an ally. But a few of us bucked up the courage to go out into the world and we haven't looked back since. And I'm proud of them for it. Of course, I would rather stay here, with the heart of my people."
"Of course. How has Earth-land been for all of you, anyway?"
"Truly marvelous. The sheer amount of ether in the air is phenomenal, we're all so vibrant and alive!" Shaggotte beamed but drew a sullen expression with the rest of the Exceeds. "Well, save for some of these Dark Guilds."
"Dark Guilds?"
"We've managed to evade them for some time, but one Dark Wizard continues to lead a band against us and has encroached on our land. My scouts report they're setting up some sort of encampment nearby and we're fearing an assault."
Kai held his hand out before she could say anymore and smiled down at the Exceed Queen. "Don't worry, Your Highness. I'll take care of it."
"Oh, could you?" Shaggotte asked. "Where—where are the rest of your friends?"
"Missing, for a time, an accident occurred with some magic. They'll be back soon, but, in the meantime I'm the best you've got."
Shaggotte sighed but maintained her smile. "I suppose it's fitting that the one to save us this time should look like one of our greatest threats."
Kai allowed himself a tiny laugh. "I'll be back soon after I've wiped the floor with these guys."
He couldn't believe his luck. A small band of Dark Wizards! How great was that? Now he could test out his new spells and his new power on these chumps, and save some folks that'd helped Fairy Tail long ago!
Kai expanded his sense of magic to try and feel out anyone else. Shaggotte mentioned they were setting up an encampment close by so Kai should find them quite soon.
He burst free of the forest into the open sky and still saw nothing. So he dashed along the road toward a nearby town, sensing out for anyone nearby that may try and attack him.
Kai slid to a halt as he approached the town, placing one hand on his sword as he summoned up magic in the other. He launched an ice spell at the town and the ice phased right through it.
"Great," he muttered, and brandished his sword right on time for a massive slice to cut down the swathes of grass in front of him. Kai flipped away from the attack and slid to a halt.
Two wizards closed in on him fast from either side of him, both appearing much larger than normal humans. Kai stabbed his sword in the ground and swung his arms out, catching both before they could stop him and repelling them with his magic.
After seven years, it still felt good to do that to Dark Wizards.
"You! I can't believe my luck!"
That voice! Kai glanced up and saw, hovering in the air, was a bald but still pointy-nosed man standing atop a scythe, arms crossed and leering down at Kai.
"Erigor," Kai muttered, and summoned his sword to his hand.
"What, did those little cats send you?" Erigor asked. "This is the best you can do? I was happy knowing Fairy Tail got wiped away but knowing that one of you survived for me to kill…knowing it's you? It just brings a smile to my face!"
He leapt off the scythe and a massive gust of wind blasted Kai back. Kai managed to catch himself on the dirt as Erigor flew at him with incredible speed. Kai blocked his scythe with his own blade but Erigor kicked him away. Kai adjust in mid-air to block another attack then kicked down and took to the skies.
"Fool!" Erigor exclaimed, and the winds seemed to grasp onto Kai. "I run the skies!"
The wind flung Kai away toward the illusory town. Kai hit the ground and rolled, adjusting his grip on his sword.
"May have gotten a little ahead of myself," Kai muttered as Erigor appeared through the illusion.
"Ice Dragon Talon!"
The attack missed long and Erigor darted around Kai, who put up his blade and blocked the ensuing attack and just dodged Erigor's kick. The two spun away from one another.
"Frozen Sword Formation: Frozen First Layer!"
A single layer magic circle shot a beam at Erigor who sliced right through it and charged at Kai, who slid away and their two weapons collided once more before Erigor pulled back and unleashed a barrage of attacks for Kai to only narrowly dodge.
Kai was on his heels already and Erigor wasn't letting up in the slightest. It was all Kai could do just to weave in and out of Erigor's attacks to force him back. He had to get a hit in.
Luckily, Erigor hadn't managed to really land an attack…yet.
Kai summoned his strength and avoided Erigor's scythe and almost landed a kick but Erigor slid away from it. Kai flung his hands out.
"Ice Dragon Tundra!"
The ice on the ground locked Erigor in place just long enough for Kai to at last land an attack on him and send Erigor flying. Kai adjusted his sword in his hand.
"Frozen Sword For—"
He cut the spell off as a tornado slammed down in front of him and pursued him, Erigor laughing maniacally as Kai desperately tried to get away from it. At last, he slid to a halt and swung his frozen blade into the tornado, and the shift in temperature broke the tornado apart as Erigor appeared overhead, scythe ready to swing down and cleave Kai in two.
"Ice Dragon Glacier!"
The glacier shot up and stopped Erigor's scythe just as it was about to give Kai a wicked scar in his brain. Kai slid back and Erigor grunted, backing away from his scythe. Kai sighed, his heart thundering in his chest.
"Seems like you only just came back from the dead," Erigor said. "Or maybe it's just that I'm so much stronger than you Fairies. The days of playing with my food are over. I lost my reputation as an assassin after what happened with you and Nirvana."
Kai grit his teeth. Natsu had dealt with Erigor handily after the Seis absorbed Eisenwald into their group of Dark Guilds.
Erigor yanked on his scythe and it shattered the ice. Seven years had been quite generous to this one, clearly. It only gave Kai more pause.
Perhaps without that five days of training, Erigor would've skewered him, but Erigor wasn't much of a threat before. Nothing like they would see in the top guilds of the Grand Magic Games, anyway.
"You should've stayed dead," Erigor said, and the clouds above started to funnel.
Kai stood firm and ice started to crawl over his body. "You should've stayed away. Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Ice Dragon Takeover!"
He barely dodged out of the way of the tornado and slammed his fist into Erigor's gut, punching him through several illusory buildings and giving quick pursuit. Erigor stopped, took controls of the wind, and slammed a ball of air down on Kai, who was knocked back and flung away by the tornado.
Erigor leapt off the top of the tornado and swung his scythe down at Kai, who parried it and their punches collided in mid-air.
"Ice Dragon Roar!"
The beam hit Erigor almost point-blank and sent him flying back, but not before two cyclones of air slammed into Kai and also knocked him to the ground. Kai skid forward. Erigor grumbled and picked himself out of the rubble.
"You…" He raised his weapon. "You think you can win?"
Kai nodded. In the Takeover form, which he found he could hold onto much longer, he was equal in strength with Erigor. But Erigor had dangerous new spells and could control the very winds around him. Plus, the illusory walls weren't breaking, they were just hiding Erigor and possibly other Dark Wizards.
"Well even if you beat me, there's someone way stronger that'll make sure you're wiped off the face of the planet," Erigor said.
"There always is," Kai said. But not something to worry about now. He just had to banish Erigor and whatever this operation was to keep the Exceeds safe. "Who?"
Kai regretted even asking. A shiver ran down his spine and someone teleported between them. A black cloak descended around him, that blue hair and red magical mark on his face gave it all away. The scowl only allowed the fear to spread through Kai faster.
"No way," Kai muttered.
"Get out." Jellal Fernandes raised his hand to Kai and in a blast of concussive gold light, Kai blasted out of the town.