Chapter 14: The Spark of a Greater Legacy
Arthur looked at Ur and said, "She might still be alive. If they only wanted to use her as a test subject, they could have waited. They could've faked her death and shown you a body. But since they didn't show you anything, I think they might be keeping the most talented children to turn them into soldiers."
Ur seemed shocked. Her breath caught in her throat, and her eyes widened with disbelief. "But my daughter would never join a dark guild."
Arthur nodded with calm conviction. "Normally, yes. But what if they tell her that you abandoned her? At first, she might not believe it, but what if they let her escape, and she sees you spending time with your students—laughing, training, smiling? To her, it might look like you replaced her."
Ur clenched her fists. Her lips trembled, and her voice cracked slightly. "I would never do that."
"But she doesn't know that," Arthur said firmly, locking eyes with her.
Ur closed her eyes for a moment, collecting her thoughts. Her breathing slowed, and a long silence followed. Then she opened her eyes, which now burned with fierce determination. "I'm going after Ultear. I can't leave her alone if she's really alive. As her mother, it's my duty to find her."
She turned to Arthur again, her gaze softening with concern. "Please… can you take care of Gray and Leo? Bring them to your guild. This journey will be dangerous, and I can't take them with me."
Gray and Leo immediately protested, their voices filled with emotion. "We want to go with you!"
But Ur shook her head gently, yet with finality, her tone filled with love. "If you truly want to help me, join Arthur's guild. Become stronger. And during your missions, search for clues about Ultear. If you do that, you'll be helping me more than you know."
The two boys hesitated, their hearts torn. But eventually, after looking into Ur's eyes, they slowly nodded. They understood the weight behind her words.
That evening, they shared a quiet dinner together. There were moments of silence, broken only by soft conversations and glances filled with meaning. Afterward, Ur offered Arthur a guest room to spend the night.
Once inside the room, Arthur sat on the edge of the bed. He let out a long breath as the events of the day replayed in his mind. Then, his attention turned inward—to his powers.
He hadn't fully explored his ability to open dimensional doors. Until now, he had used it cautiously, unsure of the full extent of what he could do. But tonight felt like the right time.
He activated his power—not just a small portal in his hand this time, but with deeper focus. He concentrated on imagining a world—any world—and chose to think of the Spider-Man universe. The small dimensional door in his palm began to tremble. After a moment, it revealed the world of Spider-Man.
Then, something unexpected happened.
Information surged directly into his mind. Apparently, Arthur had received a way to input custom data to form a unique identity in that world.
He thought to himself, "Why didn't this happen with the world of Fairy Tail?"
Arthur reflected for a moment and soon discovered the answer. Fairy Tail didn't have modern documents or official identity systems. But in a modern world like Spider-Man's, it wasn't possible to do anything without an identity. That's why his power gave him the option this time—it allowed him to create an identity in order to enter those kinds of worlds.
Arthur closed the portal and leaned back on the bed. "If I can choose the world, I'll have incredible freedom to plan how my power develops. Now I know that I only need a drop of blood to absorb powers… and if I visit different worlds, I can build a personalized bloodline?"
Arthur thought of Clark. "Instead of absorbing powers randomly, I could carefully plan a powerful lineage—one equal to or even greater than my brother's. I don't need to limit myself to just fire or lava. My potential is far beyond that. When I get home, I'm going to make a list of powers and bloodlines I need. After all, I'm in the DC world. If I don't grow stronger, I could die without even realizing what's going on."
He gave a slight smile, a gleam in his eyes. "I'll plan this carefully. But for now, I need to sleep."
With those thoughts, he closed his eyes and allowed the exhaustion of the day to take over.