Gajeel walked ahead with Levy next to him. Behind them were the two visiting princesses and behind them were his blue-haired general. They walked slowly across the town. It was Levy's first time visiting the town. A light pull on his hand made him turned his head. Levy gently grabbed on his fingers. Tint of blushes appeared on her cheeks. He then grabbed her hand and held it properly. Startled her a little bit, he quickly turned his head forward as she glanced up at him. His cheeks felt a bit burning.

A swift movement right across his face made him stepped back, protectively pulled Levy behind him. Looked to his right, an arrow stuck on a nearby wooden wall. He looked around. He held tightly on Levy's hand.

A man suddenly jumped on him from the above floor. He ducked, pulled Levy away from that man, and then attacked him back. He managed to knock him out against the wall. Following that, several more men came in and attacked them.

"Don't stray. Stay close. Don't leave my side," he said to her. She nodded vigorously.

Jellal tried to protect his king and queen and the other two princesses. He threw his sword to Erza and took another sword from the man he just knocked. The red-haired princess took it and slayed her attackers. He glanced at the other princess. She seemed to manage to control her situation as well. Plus, their bodyguards were there helping them. The numbers of attackers not decreasing. They were completely outnumbered.

Gajeel pulled Levy into an alley, still managed to keep both of them from any injury. The men kept pursuing them and they managed to separate the two royals from their general.

"Gajeel!!"

A man attacked him from behind but the wife took an iron rod she found on the road and hit his head. The man was pushed backward. Gajeel turned to her, grinning widely. He then turned to that man and stamped on him immediately. Then he pulled her through a door into another small alley. He turned a corner but Levy's screams made him turned back. A man attacked her with a knife. Gajeel pulled Levy toward him, caught her in his embrace and kicked that man on his stomach. He then pushed Levy aside then ran to the man. Took the knife from him, Gajeel stabbed him in his chest. Blood splashed on his hand, he wiped it on his shirt. Took Levy by her hand, he brought them out of the compact space into another alley. Hoped that those attackers no longer found them. However, several more men came at him at once.

Jellal spotted a man up on the second floor had been firing arrows toward them. He immediately making his way up to the archer. Erza and Mirajane followed the soldier into a small dining. The attackers kept coming after them. They climbed up to the above floors. When they reached the top floor, Jellal was already hand-in-hand with the archer. Erza just kicked one man of the stairs, pushed some others on his way down. However, a few of them managed to follow them up onto the floor. Jellal hit the archer on his chest, pushed the man backward. He hit Erza and fell of the balcony. Erza, however, lost her balance and fell over the handrail.

"Erza!!!"

Jellal jumped over and grabbed the woman into his arms. He shifted their bodies over and fell on his back, and Erza on his chest.

"Damn, are you okay?" she concernedly asked as she got down from his body. He took a deep breath and held onto her hand as she pulled him back to his feet. The attackers came running at them but an arrow struck on the road between them and the couple stopped them. And then, a rain of arrows came at them at once. Jellal and Erza looked to where the arrows came. Laxus, with his arms across his chest, looked at them smilingly, with his men still firing at the attackers.

"Levy?!"

The petite woman lost from his sight. He swore she was with him like a second ago. He panicked. He looked around while still ducking from the attackers. He called out her name several times. As he turned around, a man hit him hard on his face. Broke his nose. And angered him. He held the man on his shirt and hit him on his face several times. The man fell unconscious on the road. Another man came at him with a knife. He managed to deflect the man's attacks, but there was another man came from behind him, slashed on his right arm and stabbed on his thigh. Gajeel groaned. He grabbed on the blade and pulled the man toward him. Before the man could release the knife, he grabbed him on his shirt and smashed his head on him. Let go the man onto the road, he looked at his bleeding hands. His eyes still searching for the glimpse of his wife. More men came to attack him but intercepted by his generals and guards.

"Levy?!" he called out her name again. He looked around. His men were fighting defending his life. While he just lost his wife.

Suddenly, three arrows struck him. On his right chest, left inguinal and left thigh. He turned to where the arrows came from. A woman stood on two floors above, smiled at him at an open window.

"Your Highness!" Jellal ran up to him. He saw the woman at the window. She smiled at him and disappeared.

The chaos died down as they managed to defeat the attacking party. Jellal helped the king sat on the road. Mirajane and Erza came to them.

"Gajeel?!" His vision blurred. He grinned as he saw the bluenette ran toward him, followed by someone with purple hair. "Gajeel?" He could see her worried face.

XxxxxxXxxxxx

He moved a little bit. Groaned. She quickly held his hand.

"Gajeel?" she called. He opened his eyes slowly. She sat next to him, held his hand tightly. "How do you feel? You've been sleeping one whole day. I was scared."

He felt pain all over his body. "Careful." As she helped him sat. He leaned his back against the headboard. She smiled. "I'll get you some water."

But she didn't go. He held her hand, denied her from leaving.

"Don't leave my side. I told you that, remember?" he said. She smiled, nodded lightly.

"I won't," she said. "But, even so, you'll find me back, right?"

He tilted his head slightly, glanced at her. "Yeah," he answered, short. He closed his eyes.

Levy leaned forward and rested her forehead on his shoulder. His skin felt so cool. She adjusted her head, let her cheek touched his skin. He raised his bandaged hand and touched her other cheek. Levy lightly put her hand on his. She closed her eyes. Let the coolness of his skin transferred to her cheeks.

Suddenly the door kicked opened. Made both of them jumped away from each other.

"Gajeel!!!" Natsu shouted as he entered the room.

"Don't! Gajeel-san might still be sleeping. Let him rest for a while," Wendy screamed. She stopped when she saw Gajeel already wide awake.

"What the fuck do you want?!!" Gajeel barked. His face was red and sweaty.

Levy stood a little bit far from the bed with her back toward her husband. Her face was bright red.

"What the hell, man? I left for a few days and you got ambushed. In the middle of the freaking town!!!" Natsu stood faced his brother with his hands on his hip. He smirked at the sight of the injured brother.

"Levy?" The voice made Levy turned to the door. Her blonde friend came in, followed right behind the pink-haired prince. Gajeel looked at the blonde and then to his brother.

Natsu brushed the back of his neck. "Aaa…she insisted on coming back with me," he defended himself. Gajeel crossed his arms over his chest.

"Now that you're here, I think you found something over there," Gajeel said dryly.

Natsu glanced toward the blonde princess.

"Yeah, you're right. I found something. Not really good," Natsu said.

The two brothers stared at each other for a while.

XxxxxxXxxxxx

He was about to push the door when it opened from the inside. The red-haired princess came out. She glanced at him and then at her bodyguard who was leaning against the wall behind him.

"You broke three of his ribs, I heard," he said.

"We fell from the second floor. Of course there would be some injuries," she replied.

"Careful. He's still my soldier and he still needs to serve his king," he warned.

Laxus pushed the door and disappeared behind it. Erza stood there gritted her teeth. Stare right in front of her, her bodyguard grinned widely.

"Maybe you could lose some weight," Bixlow said. The bodyguard then laughed out loud. They both walked away from the place.

Inside the room, Jellal was just closed his closet when his friend entered. Laxus pulled a stool nearby and placed it next to the bed. He just sat when Jellal held him out a glass of water.

"Still breathing?" he asked. His friend sat on the bed.

Jellal brushed on his chest. "A little bit hard. Still okay." They chuckled.

"Don't be too reckless. You still got years ahead of you. That woman can take care of herself." Laxus took a sip from his glass and then put it down on a small table behind him.

"I agree," the bluenette replied. "She did well today," he added, taking a sip from his glass.

"Yeah, and breaking your ribs too," Laxus nodded lightly. Jellal smiled bitterly.

"How's the king?"

Laxus took something out from his jacket. An arrowhead. Jellal took it from him, examined it for a few seconds. There was carving on it. He then put it on the table.

"Yeah, I saw her there," he said. Laxus raised his brows.

"Coordinator? You saw her? That fucking Coordinator?" Laxus looked very surprised. More excited than surprised.

"Yes. I think she missed on purpose." Laxus leaned back a little bit and crossed his arms over his chest. "Maybe she wasn't trying to kill her own king," Jellal added.

"Maybe the pay wasn't enough," Laxus suggested. "She never missed her shot." They fell silent. When they glanced at each other, Laxus spoke, "For them to hire that fucking woman, I could say that they are really bringing us down."

"We didn't know who else they're hiring."

"Oh, we fucked up," Laxus said, chuckling. "They find the perfect time to annihilate us. With the young king, I'd say…we're fucked up."

Jellal stare at him bitterly. He couldn't say anything. He couldn't agree, but he couldn't deny it too.

XxxxxxXxxxxx

The blonde general and the bluenette general stood next to each other. The sight that they had before their eyes was unbearable. Especially to Laxus.

"Where the hell do you think Mother would keep her precious letters? In Father's fucking study??"

The two royal brothers had been bickering all day long after the younger one disclosed about the letters he got from the woman named Zera. Maids and servants were refused to get close to them as they were throwing things and swears at each other, in the name of searching of the letters. The two generals came running when they heard the two royal brothers were fighting. When they arrived, the whole place was a mess. Books were on the floor, one of the shelves was damaged and the table was moved a bit from its original place.

Laxus trembled. His hands balled into fists, and he had been straining himself from punched them in the face and knocked them out. His friend's hand found him, loosened his fist and held his hand tightly.

"Remind me again why I'm still here," he said, half-whispered. His voice shivered.

"If you're banished, you will never receive luxuries you have now in other places."

He held his friend's hand back. Tried to calm down his fire. He took deep breaths.

"It's not working. These two are going to die today, then I'll be in peace." He almost stepped forward, but his friend pulled him back.

"In pieces actually," the bluenette stated.

Laxus lifted their intertwined hands. "Let my hand go or you'll break a few more ribs," he threatened.

"Better than losing you," the bluenette claimed.

The blonde's lips thinned, gritted his teeth. "Are you fucking with me?"

Jellal chuckled nervously. "Calm down. I was kidding. You're too stressful. I'm trying to lighten the mood."

"Aw, aren't you boys so sweet~"

They turned to their sides, greeted by Mirajane's pair of blue eyes and her wide smiles. Laxus rolled his eyes. He turned to his friend, who'd still holding his hand tightly. Understood the meaning of his gaze, Jellal released his hand from his grip.

"What are you doing here?" Laxus asked. It was then they noticed there were the queen and the other two princesses behind the white-haired.

"Let me," the princess said, stepped through them toward the bickering siblings. "Your Highness," she called, tried to get their attentions.

None of them flinched. Backs to her, they were flipping books by books, and threw it on the floor when their desired things were still not found. One of the books Gajeel threw behind him almost hit the white-haired princess, but the princess caught it. Hated to be ignored, she threw the book back toward the young king, hit the shelf right next to his face.

Both of the siblings stopped. And slowly turned around. They saw the white-haired princess stood behind them with black aura surrounding her. Her face was smiling a different kind. Sent shivers through their spines. Her blue eyes stared right into their souls, ready to rip them from their own body.

"Now listen to me." They swore that she had grew horns and tail and a pair of black wings that fully prepared to throw them out of the balcony with just one shove.

Then, she flat out changed. Into the sweet, angelic little Mirajane. She smiled brightly and pulled the two siblings while called the others to follow her. They gathered at the table, focused on the princess of the southeast. "We need all the hands we have. The more we have, the faster we find those letters. So, I'll divide us into a few groups so that we can cover more areas. Any questions?" She explained.

As no further question from them, she proceeded to divide them into smaller groups and the areas they'll cover. Erza helped her by delegating maids and servants into the groups to help searching the letters. After that, they dispersed to their assigned places.

XxxxxxXxxxxx