Chapter 9
Serana, Juvia and Gray were strolling back towards the guild hall, tired after their security job. They had been hired to guard some incredibly rare and expensive artworks on display in a town about two hours away from the Royal City museum. Being on guard in the museum from 9am until 6pm each day was tiring, as they had to be sharp-eyed the entire time. The exhibition had been on for a week, and they had just finished their last day today. By the time they had gotten out after collecting their pay from the museum curator and picking up their bags from their accommodation, they had missed the last carriage to take them home. So instead of getting the train, they had agreed to pay to hire a private horse and carriage that had dropped them off just outside the city.
It was almost 10pm when they arrived home, but it was worth the effort so they could be back in their beds in the guild hall, where they would all feel more comfortable. They made small talk until they reached the entrance and headed inside, finding the main hall reasonably empty, except for Elfman and Mira.
The siblings greeted them, welcoming them home, and Mira got them all some water and made them all a sandwich to eat while they dropped their packs in the dorms. Serana returned to the bar first, then Juvia and Gray appeared a minute later, and they all took a seat.
Talking about their job as they ate, Juvia finished first and said goodnight, intending to bathe and go to bed. Gray did the same, a bit saddened that Juvia had left him. Serana chuckled at the two of them before thanking Mira for the meal and gave Elfman a friendly pat on the shoulder, saying goodnight as she headed towards the bathroom. Juvia was soaking happily and groaned loudly, making Serana flinch in surprise as she undressed.
"What is it?" Serana asked in alarm, poking her head out from the partition to see what was wrong.
"That man drives me nuts," Juvia responded with a clipped tone and gestured with an arm towards the direction of the men's dormitory, making the water splash and land on the tiled floor.
"Who? Gray? What about him?" Serana played dumb as she hopped in the bath next to Juvia, ready to hear her tirade that was becoming familiar after spending a week with them.
"His infatuation with me is just ridiculous." Juvia groaned again and let her head loll backwards, and she stared at the ceiling.
"Isn't it nice to be so loved and appreciated, though?" Serana replied, knowing she was riling her friend up, but enjoying it nonetheless.
"Ugh, he's so obvious, though! Could he be more annoying?!"
"So, how long have you been dating each other for now?" Serana kept her tone purposely casual and calm.
"It's been about 6 months now…." Juvia answered before she realised what she had said, then when Serana heard a loud splash and looked over at Juvia to find her jaw dropped and her eyes wide. "How did you know?"
"You guys are not hiding it as well as you think," Serana said with a hearty laugh but smiled a minute later. "I also just spent a week with you guys too." Juvia nodded in understanding. "It's really nice. You both look happy."
Not able to hide it anymore, Juvia smiled contentedly. "Yeah, it's actually pretty good." Her tone was all Serana needed to know that she was happy with Gray. "What about you? Got a crush on anyone?" Juvia quickly changed the subject.
"Uhh, it's a bit of an awkward situation." Serana figured that Juvia had been honest with her, so she should do the same, but she wasn't sure where to begin.
Her interest well and truly piqued, Juvia hung her arms over the side of the bath and waited silently for Serana to speak. Serana did the same, mirroring Juvia's position and spoke.
"Well, I'm sure it goes without saying not to tell him." Serana started and waited until Juvia nodded in agreement before continuing. "I think I've got a crush on the King."
Juvia stared for a moment before realising the weight of what Serana had said and nodded, carefully hiding her reaction. She kicked her feet a little in excitement, though, causing the water to move around her in the bath, but she became serious a moment later.
"Look, I don't blame you. He's a really good person. I feel bad because I think he really misses his Fairy Tail friends from Earthland, but he still cares greatly for us even though we aren't them. To tell you the truth, I think he's a bit lonely." Juvia's voice was soft, and it showed the respect she had for their King. "Have you thought about asking him out?"
"Are you serious? I can't date the King! I'm nobody! It's never gonna happen." Serana tried to brush her off, but Juvia was resolute.
"As if he would care about your status. That's a bit of an archaic notion, anyway. He treats everyone like they matter, regardless of who they are, and I think he would be a great match for you." Juvia's insistence was surprisingly encouraging, and Serana realised that she was right; Jellal wasn't the type to judge someone, and she shouldn't have jumped to such a conclusion.
"Well, now I don't know what to do." Serana let herself slip further into the water, allowing it to reach the tips of her earlobes so she could still hear Juvia.
"I'm sure it's awkward and embarrassing, but why don't you just ask him how he feels? Maybe he likes you too?" Juvia suggested, and Serana recalled how he hugged her a few weeks ago.
"He hugged me a few weeks ago." She blurted out, with the water bubbling as she spoke.
"Did you just say that he hugged you?"
The water bubbled. "Yes."
"That narrows things down. I don't think he's a person to make physical contact with someone he doesn't care about."
"That doesn't mean he has feelings for me." Serana dismissed her, water still bubbling and muffling her speech.
"Okay, tell me exactly what happened then." Juvia faced her once more, arms over the bath side, and Serana copied her again.
"So I went to visit him at the palace, we had some tea and talked for a while, but he fell asleep on the lounge in the library. I stayed and read until he woke up and walked him to his chambers. Just before I left, he thanked me because he'd been stressed, but he felt better after seeing each other. Then he hugged me. Actually, he went to hug me but looked awkward, so I sort of half-initiated it too." Serana felt embarrassed while she spoke, but Juvia didn't make her feel silly and seemed to understand her confusion.
"That's nice. Our King has a lot on his plate, and it's good that you can help him like that. He's not exactly an open book, so I think telling you about that is a good sign that he's comfortable with you." Juvia's fair assessment made Serana feel less strange talking about this stuff, and she realised that she was much more astute than she had thought.
"He talks to me about Earthland a little bit too. I think you're right; he really seems to miss his friends. He doesn't talk about that stuff much, but it's probably because it's too hard for him. He knows he probably won't ever see them again." Her sad tone sobered Juvia's subtle excitement, and she pushed a lock of blue hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear as she nodded in agreement.
"He did tell us a little about the versions of us from Earthland after everything calmed down when he came to power, but not much other than that. It looked like he was upset." Juvia's gaze turned inward as she seemed mentally visualising the moment as she spoke of it.
"Well, maybe the next time I see him, I'll ask him if he wants to talk about them. I'm sure it'll be hard for him, but I think he needs to talk about it." Serana shrugged and wiped some water from her face, noticing her pruned skin on her fingers.
In silent agreement, both women got out of the bath, dried off, put on clean pyjamas, and then headed back to their dorm. Serana gave Juvia a hug and thanked her for their conversation and her advice before they headed off to bed.
Thoroughly exhausted by now, Serana fell asleep without much delay...
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Jellal was working in his office and reviewing the Royal Treasury's finances. Things were somewhat drained after the repairs and donations he had made after the storms, and there wasn't much in it when he came to power anyway. He had to figure out a way to replenish some of the money, or he would end up struggling to pay for the historical restoration, aside from raising taxes, which he did not want to do. Maybe there was a way to ask for donations from some wealthy people, but he wasn't sure how to organise this and put it together into a proposal. Who should he ask? How long would it take for them to pay, and what amount could he expect?
Coco and Briyana were chattering softly, helping to organise some of his papers, but Coco's abrupt shout startled him.
"That's perfect!" Coco was much louder than she realised, and she apologised to him before she turned to face him fully, looking severe. "Bri made a great suggestion about raising money for the restoration. Have a ball at the palace, and invite the rich nobility and merchants!" Coco encouraged Briyana by giving her a nudge with her elbow.
"Uh, I thought you could show them the plans for the restoration, and they could make donations of money, equipment and supplies, maybe even people to work on the project." Briyana's voice was quiet, not as confident as Coco's, but Jellal sat up straighter in his seat as she spoke.
"That's brilliant!" He stood up from his seat and walked about to find the blueprints for the project and asked Coco to go and get some copies made, as well as a small to-scale model from one of the artisans in the city so that the people could physically see what he wanted to achieve.
Now that he thought about it, he hadn't done anything to celebrate his coronation. There had been so much chaos in the cleanup after the fight with Faust and Extalia falling from the sky. This would be his first formal event as King, and it was an excellent way to assert himself among the upper echelons of Edolas' society. It would be perfect for showing the people his intention of improving their everyday lives and enriching their culture. Employing more young people had been beneficial; a source for these new creative ideas.
Before he forgot to do it, he placed his hands on Briyana's shoulders and gave her a smile. "Thank you so much."
She was a little surprised at his gesture but smiled happily. "You're welcome."
He reached their office shortly after, marching off towards the office of one of his advisors and close friends. She had been swamped surveying towns and cities over the last few months, but she had just arrived back two days after. He had tasked her with securing their people outside of the Royal City. Thus, she had taken it upon herself to visit and check up on the police facilities, as well as make sure there were adequate services for fire-fighting since there had been significant damage by fire after the fall of Extalia.
Her door was open, and she was holding a report with one hand and a cup of tea in the other. She looked up at him and placed the information and cup down, giving him a bow and gesturing to him to come inside.
"Erza, I need your help organising security for a ball I'm going to hold in the palace. I'll hold it to ask for donations for the restoration project." He informed, and she nodded, looking surprised, but pleased.
"That's an excellent idea, Your Grace. How many people do you think will be attending?" Erza's usual seriousness was helpful and made him feel at ease.
"Well, I was going to ask you for suggestions on who to invite. You know the people who would be better for the cause than I would." He sat on the opposite side of her desk, and Erza sat as well, grabbing a piece of paper and beginning to write down some ideas.
"I presume you want to invite nobility, some wealthy merchants, maybe even the mayors of some of the major cities. What about some of the other historians in Edolas? You could ask Dreyer for some suggestions." Jellal nodded and watched her write some names, some he knew personally and some he hadn't yet met but knew by reputation.
After an hour and a half of brainstorming, they had an excellent list to start with, and Jellal thanked Erza and took the list with him, going to see Dreyer. There were more than likely some historians who may not necessarily be wealthy but may still be able to assist in some way. There were a few more people that he would be able to ask to suggest some guests invite, some of his other staff, but he already had a list of around 60 people.
Once he had reached the library, he called out to Dreyer as he walked towards his office in the back of the library. Behind his desk, Dreyer looked out over his half-moon glasses and stood up to greet him with a bow. Jellal told him about his plans and what he wanted Dreyer's help for. The older man perked up and the idea and was pleased to hear about what the King had planned. They had a long discussion, similar to what he had done with Erza, about some figures in the public that would be good to invite. A few were already on the list that he and Erza had made, but there was a lot that he didn't have on the list, and after adding them, there were roughly 105 people in total. Jellal and Dreyer finished their discussion just under an hour later since it was getting late, and they parted ways after Jellal gave his thanks with a bow.
Heading back to his office, he began re-writing the lists, organising them into factions based on what reasons he was inviting them for. The factions were; nobility, expertise, wealth, and influence. The nobility was composed of those in the upper class of Edolas, presumably all of whom would also have a significant amount of money. Those in expertise were people in the fields relating to the project, historians, architects, and those who also owned businesses that could supply equipment, tools, manpower and materials. Wealth was clear. Merchants, business owners, politicians and even Dreyer had recommended some people who had money that also partook in antiques and art sales. The influence was for the public figures that were well known and could use connections and fame to bring awareness to the cause.
Compiling the lists didn't take long, and he even thought of a few extra names and added them in, bringing the total to 117. He would give the lists to Erza so that she could ensure there wouldn't be any security risks by inviting certain dodgy characters, not that he was expecting the worst. Planning such an event was going to be challenging, but he was looking forward to achieving his goal. The treasury's drained finances had been a strain on him and playing in the back of his mind for some time, but he was beginning to feel like it would be okay. He would have to figure out a number they would need to reach in donations to fund the restoration and send Briyana with messages to some of the others who had assisted in creating the project to ask for a reasonable estimate as well as his plan for the ball.
It was also possible that he could sell off some of the lavish materialistic items in the palace for a fee, and maybe he would look at having a charity auction or something in future. Due to the loss of magic, he had planned to put some money into researching other options for power sources. There had been some research into water, but it wouldn't be enough to power the Royal City. It was a viable option for some of the smaller cities and towns. Hopefully, he would be able to receive enough donations to allow them to fund the restoration, as well as put some money into research.
He wanted to avoid raising taxes as much as possible, as one of the first things he had done after coming into power was to lower taxes, as a lot of working-class people and small business owners were struggling to get by. Even then, the treasury had been drained by Faust's projects. Maybe he could hold an E-Land event that would allow the people of the Royal City to have some fun, and ticket sales could fund some of the research.
His mind was racing with ideas for the future, but it would take time for them to fully form and for the opportunity to arise for them to thrive.
Excited for the future, he wrote down as many things as possible while he was inspired…