Given the system's tendency to spout "nonsense" in its missions, Marco couldn't be sure whether this 'Lullaby' plan was something Erigor was already working on or something he would attempt in the future.
Most importantly, Marco didn't even know what 'Lullaby' was.
A demon sounded terrifying—it was best to eliminate this threat before it became a problem.
"Gramps, do you know about 'Lullaby'?"
Without hesitation, Marco went to consult Makarov.
When it came to magic-related questions, asking the old pervert always yielded surprising answers.
"Lullaby? Why do you ask that?" Makarov looked puzzled.
What did this have to do with the Eisenwald guild?
Sure enough, judging from Makarov's reaction, he clearly had some knowledge about this 'Lullaby'.
However, Marco found it a bit difficult to answer Makarov's question—it had come rather abruptly.
"Hmm? Marco, did you see that book too? The one recording the legend of 'Lullaby'?"
At that moment, Reinhardt chimed in.
While they were cleaning up the remnants of the Eisenwald guild, they had come across a book mentioning 'Lullaby', which was found in Erigor's room.
"That's right, so I got a little curious." Marco immediately nodded and took over the conversation.
"'Lullaby' is a flute. Legend says that whoever hears its melody will be cursed to death," Makarov explained slowly, his tone grave.
It was an extremely dangerous forbidden artifact.
"A curse that kills—that's black magic strictly prohibited to use" Marco said solemnly.
"Exactly. And this 'Lullaby', is actually even more sinister—an absolute taboo," Makarov agreed, his expression equally serious.
"If 'Lullaby' falls into the wrong hands, the consequences could be catastrophic. The Magic Council has been searching for it, hoping to seal it away."
Makarov understood that finding a book about 'Lullaby' in Erigor's room was not a good sign.
It meant that Dark Guilds had already set their sights on that horrifyingly dangerous artifact, intending to use it for evil deeds.
Makarov knew more about 'Lullaby' than he let on.
He was aware that it was actually a demon from The Book of Zeref, inherently wicked—there was no possibility of anyone using it for good.
For 'Lullaby', sealing it away was the only fate it deserved.
[Ding! Mission Triggered!]
[Mission Name: "Seal the Cursed Demon"]
'Lullaby' appears to be a magical flute, but its true form is a massive withered tree demon named from the book of Zeref. As one of the demons created by Zeref, Lullaby is utterly ruthless—a threat that must be eliminated!
Mission Progress: Defeat the demon "Lullaby" (Incomplete)
[Mission Reward: Random Silver Saint Cloth.]
After learning about 'Lullaby' from Makarov, Marco had triggered yet another mission.
Reading the mission details, Marco couldn't help but frown.
'This thing is a demon created by Zeref?'
Marco was somewhat familiar with the name Zeref—the legendary Dark mage who had created countless demons that wreaked havoc and tragedy across the land.
The reason Marco knew this was because of Gray.
Gray's parents and master had all died at the hands of demons created by Zeref.
Throughout the entire Ishgar continent, regardless of the country, Zeref's reputation was probably on par with that of the noseless Voldemort.
Zeref was known as 'the one whose name must not be spoken' in the Ishgar continent.
'This demon doesn't seem particularly strong. The reward is a Silver Cloth, which means the system considers it weaker than Laxus.'
Marco's reasoning was simple - changing Laxus's mindset rewarded a random Gold Cloth, while defeating this 'Lullaby' only gave a random Silver Cloth.
Clearly, Laxus was stronger than this Lullaby.
Of course, such straightforward assumptions might not be entirely accurate.
'The real problem now is how to find this thing.'
Defeating the curse demon Lullaby probably wouldn't be too difficult.
The real challenge was locating it.
For now, this quest seemed to rely on luck.
He'd just have to stay alert for any information related to 'Lullaby' and hope to encounter it.
On the way back, Marco was so preoccupied with these thoughts that he forgot to check his newly acquired mission reward.
The 'Skill Experience Book' lay quietly in his system space - a red-covered volume labeled as such.
It couldn't be opened, only to be used directly.
When used, he could choose which skill to apply it to, granting 150 proficiency points to that skill.
Marco hesitated before using it, as there were many considerations.
First, the book wasn't labeled as 'Beginner', 'Intermediate', or 'Advanced'.
Did that mean it could be used at any skill level?
If so, wouldn't using it at the beginner stage be wasteful?
From what Marco had observed, proficiency gains naturally slowed down at higher levels.
He checked his current skill options:
[Pegasus Meteor Fist·Beginner, Proficiency: 390/500] and [Bare-Handed Blade Catch·Beginner, Proficiency: 0/500].
[Supernova Burst] was an Equuleus Bronze Cloth skill and couldn't be improved.
After his battle with Erigor, Pegasus Meteor Fist had gained 10 proficiency points - an encouraging growth rate.
Combat practice proved more effective than training, and fighting strong opponents yielded faster improvements - lessons Marco had learned firsthand.
After much deliberation, Marco decided against using the book.
The current growth rate of Pegasus Meteor Fist was acceptable, making the book unnecessary for now.
As for Bare-Handed Blade Catch, he hadn't even started practicing it yet.
Without baseline data, using the book would be premature.
'Better save it for later when the situation calls for it.'
Marco wasn't in a hurry.
The item could be used anytime for immediate effect.
If special circumstances arose, he could use it on the spot!
The journey didn't take long, and soon Fairy Tail returned triumphantly to their city, Magnolia.
Without lingering at the guild, they immediately escorted the dark mages of Eisenwald to the Magic Council's local office.
Hand over the criminals and take their bounty money.
Revenge is revenge, establishing dominance is establishing dominance, but the bounty money that's due must still be collected.
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