The Devil Slayer & The Steam Prince Volume1

Chapter 9 Idol Time Prt2

Erza's POV: We got back to the guild and I had Wendy go fetch Porlyusica from the forest because Gray and I both had felt this wasn't some simple fainting and I knew seeing as the solitary mage who was friends with master was also the alter ego of Wendy's dragon mother that Wendy would have an easier time convincing her to come help. As Gray lays Seth down in the med-bay the master comes in slamming open the door and walks over to us. "Why is it whenever my newest child is around his idols he comes back in somebody's arms the master said slightly annoyed." "Master the last time was due to his medical health this time we believe it's due to how much magic he used Lucy stated calmly."
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"This stubborn old fool won't listen to reason even if it's force-fed to him says a sarcastically elder voice." I see Porlyusica shove her way past the master and walks over to Seth before she turns to face us all. "Wendy filled me in with all the details and looking at him I can see that it's Magic Deficiency Disease it isn't so bad that he will look how the thunder legion looked when they were attacked by Tempester or the old buffoon after his battle with another idiot, but he does need a few days to rest, Also I suggest he not leave the hall for a week his seizure has slowed his magic restoration so his vessel is taking longer to fully replenish said the childhood friend of our master."
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"That makes sense he said he was winded slightly when he lifted jars of pancake syrup with his magic over the weekend and his visions came true and he took on the crooks by himself and friday morning he did 6 jobs without taking a break in between I say as I look over to Porlyusica and then over to Seth's sleeping form." "Then it's decided he is to be put under house arrest and he should have plenty of jewel saved up to afford the rent of the dorms for quite a long time I'll be going now if my services are no longer needed and he will wake up in a few hours so you all don't need to crowd over him Porlyusica stated before passing me a vial, this is to help him sleep so he can fully recover just a few drops a night mixed into a liquid of his choice she said before she walked away."
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After about 3 hours I hear the squeaking of a bed so I check and sure enough Seth is awake trying to sit up on his own. "Easy does it you fool you've lost a lot of magic over the past few days and your seizure has slowed the magic regeneration for you I say as I place a hand on his and my other hand on his back helping him to sit up." "Er..Erza I'm sorry but I have a favor to ask of you he says in such a frail weak voice." "What is it Seth and don't you dare say that if you die because you're not you just used too much magic to quickly I answer him." "I need you to promise that you can keep a secret Seth said as he stretched aiming to touch his toes."
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Seth then tells me that he is gay and has feelings for Gray that's what caused him to lash out and go lava mode against Crimson Hippogryph earlier and asked me to not tell Juvia, Natsu or even Gray himself. I ask him why I shouldn't tell those people in particular. "Natsu can't be trusted with secrets he would just go and blab them to the target of the secret and Gray can't know because then I could never face him ever again and Juvia would go all crazy and call me her rival and I don't want drama in the guild when I'm still so fresh to guild life I will let my feelings known on new year's night Seth replies." "Okay Seth I understand and will tell those I trust that are allowed to be told I reply sweetly, I know you're supposed to be under house arrest and what not but how about we take a few days off as a team to get to know you more by going to akane resort, we can have it so you and Gray share a room I said with a side glance and a grin of wickedness."
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Seth's face turned scarlet like my hair and was so embarrassed and so I just chuckled at the sight. "Of course it would be separate beds I added in and he seemed to relax at this point and so he nodded and said he was okay with it." I leave Seth's side to go ask master Makarov for permission to take Seth with the team to Akane the master agreed to it, though if troubles there we are to seal Seth away otherwise he would get high strung and charge into battle again I promised master that Seth would be blocked from battling if ever trouble arises other than Natsu and Gray arguing. Once I was allowed permission I told the others and had them go pack their bags except Gray he was tasked by me to pack his bag and leave it outside his door and then go help Seth pack up Gray just nodded.
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Gray's POV: I walked into my dorm room and packed a dress shirt and slacks for the casino and my trunks for the water plus a few days of cloths then grabbed my toothbrush and zipped up my bag and left it by my door before walking down 2 doors ta Seth's room and knocked. "Yes? He called out from inside the room." "It's Gray can I come in Erza asked me to help you pack for the trip I answered." "Ye..yeah it's open show yourself in Seth replied with a slight stutter.
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I open his door and walk in and see his back and notice he has his face shoved into his closet. "Where is it that pesky outfit and where did I put my sleepwear Seth says shoving clothes on hangers to the sides and digging deeper into his closet." "How about you tell me what to look for and I can grab it for you I say from behind him." "GAH GRAY!" shrieks Seth as he jumps back like 20 feet. "Sorry to scare you but as I told you Erza gave me orders to help you get packed" I said as I look over at him. "Oh right well can you look for a dark plum colored dress shirt and midnight black dress pants once you found them can you look around for the bedtime outfit u saw me dance in Seth says."
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I nod and look around for everything he asked for. "Don't worry about swimwear and changes of regular clothes I already have those picked out and packed Seth says as he grabs bottles from under his bedside table and a tube and toothbrush from inside the bedside table drawer. "What's all that stuff for I ask him?." "Toothbrush,Toothpaste,Shampoo and Body wash Seth replies simply." "Well I managed to find everything you asked for, is there anything else we need to bring I asked?"
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"Oh shoot nearly forgot my med planner he says as he opens his bedside table and feels around for something, once he finds it he packs it away into his bag." Seth then pulls up the luggage handle and wheels it behind him holding in his other hand a book but when I asked what it was he said nervously that it's something private. I grab my bag from by my door as we walk past my room.
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"Alright listen up we are going for 5 days 4 nights we are splitting into pairs for bed assignments Natsu and Happy are in a single room Wendy and Lucy are in a double room as are Seth and Gray as well as Juvia and myself Erza spoke up loudly as she addressed us, The double rooms will have 2 beds so you don't have to worry about sharing beds and bedtime habits with your roommate Erza said plainly, Everyone except Natsu gets card keys to their room Happy will be the only one to be trusted with the key card for his and Natu's room Erza said with her signature glare. "Okay before we leave I have to write a letter to Antonio to fill him in on what's going on Seth said from behind everyone."
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"I can handle writing that letter for you Seth just get going and have fun Mira piped up walking over to us." Seth just heaves a sigh I could tell he wanted to write to Antonio himself but he let's Mira write it and so then just walks out the guild with us. Once we all reached the hotel and everyone got to their rooms Seth right away unpacked and then sat on the balcony lounge chair with a lakrama in his hands. I was interested in learning as much as I could about him especially seeing his magic in action earlier.
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"Hey Seth even though you seem like you want to be left alone I'd like to get to know you better is it okay if I ask you some questions I say as I walk over to him." "Oh...sure Gray go ahead I'm sure you like everyone else on the trip have questions aplenty Seth said as he turned his head towards me." "Well first off where are you from like what was your home before the guild I asked starting off easy." "Whitman family manor I'm the heir of the Whitman family fortune my mother was a famous card mage my father was the heir of the family wealth when he met mom Seth replied plainly."
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"How did you earn the nickname of Steam Prince I asked?" "Steam from my magics of water fire and shadow Prince because the staff at the manor used to call me their little prince Seth replied." "Can you explain to me your magic abilities I asked?" "Sure the elemental take overs are connected to my emotions the more aggressive and raging mad I am then the more likely I am to turn into the lava elemental you saw earlier and the more depressed and sad and likely to cry due to sorrow the more likely I am to turn into a water elemental, I also have shadow magic as you have seen came Seth's reply."
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"What about the pocket daggers and the potions I say with an air of curiosity." "The daggers are for close conners and for pinning enemies at a distance after all lucy has her whip so she doesn't use all her magic to quickly, The potions are something I learned due to me witnessing mom passing in her bed as a child and as well as due to my own medical health issues I wanted to help heal as many as possible from things like poison and even learned I'm able to heal celestial spirits came Seth's answer." "Wow you have all those talents and can even use dance to avoid attacks your amazingly gifted I say as I finally get a clearer image of who the newest member of our team is."
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"Oh ugh thanks Gray that's nice of you to say Seth says slightly embarrassed." "Um hey Gray ugh well thanks for carrying me to safety these past couple of times Seth says while red with embarrassment." "Sure no problem just thought I would try to be helpful now how about we hit the water and then later tonight the casino I said enthusiastically." Seth just nodded in return and so we change into our trunks and head for the beach.
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Seth's POV: I'm down at the hotels private beach with my team and yet I decide to keep myself at a distance from my room buddy who was Gray thanks to Erza's planning so as I swim in shoulder deep water I begin to feel unsure of things and yet I just take a deep breath and relax my nerves, I then dive under the water and swim back to my guildmates who stayed back a little closer to the waist deep section of the waters. As I break through the surface of the water I run my hands through my hair and just flash a cheerful grin. Yet even at the same level of water I still keep some distance between me and Gray but we all end up having a fun day at the beach.
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Eventually an argument starts between the boys and as Erza is about to stop them I put a hand to her and I walk over to them, "This is supposed to be a nice relaxing vacation for us as a team and yet I wonder how is arguing a relaxing vacation activity I say bluntly and sharpen my gaze on both boys." The guys stop fighting right away and just look absolutely terrified of me as if I took discipline lessons from Erza and so they automatically behave better and so I just walk away telling Erza that I'm going back out into the far waters and she just nods in acceptance and so I dive into the water.
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After swimming for a long time I hear my friends call my name I turn to face them and they are miming an invitation to me if I want to join in a friendly match of beach volleyball I of course nod and swim quickly over and once on dry land I hurry over and we decide to split the teams into groups of 3 and have wendy just sit in the shade of the nearby umbrella as this was going to be intense.
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Erza of course decides to serve first and it heads for Natsu who returns the ball and then Juvia who hits it to Gray and then he sends it to Lucy and it then is sent back to Natsu and after long enough the ball heads in my direction and I take note of where the girls are and the way they have their feet positioned so I launch the ball straight up and then spike it down and as I spike it I hook my spike slightly so the ball curves avoiding the girls and scoring us a point.
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Eventually it's the final round and we boys are in a slight lead and this final ball is worth 10 points the ball bounces from player to player for a long time and eventually it comes back to me so I send it upward smack it to my right and yet as it goes I quickly hook the ball back to the left throwing Juvia off and we boys end up winning we all after that head back to our respective rooms and get ready for dinner and the casino.
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As I look myself in the mirror I feel like something is missing other than my jacket that's sitting on my bed I then figure out what's missing is a pop of color up by my face so I grab my candy apple red spare glasses that have the same prescription as the soft grey ones I had on with my backup pair of glasses on and a red violet paisley pocket square in my jacket pocket I feel ready for the evening.
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As soon as I get downstairs with the boys the girls are already down there. "Wow Seth you really know how to dress well Erza stated looking my outfit over." I tell her thanks as we walk to dinner and once at the table I gently slide my jacket off and drape it over the back of my chair before I sat down and eventually after finishing our first round of drinks our food arrives and we get refills. I cut into my meal and enjoy spending time with my team Gray is nice enough to tell the rest of the team the answers I gave when he questioned me. "You really are quite an amazing wizard Seth I can tell you will be very useful on stealth parts of missions Lucy says kindly."
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I swallow down the big bite I took of my meal and then look to the celestial mage. "Thanks that is sweet of you to say now that we are all done with our main courses please feel free to look at the dessert menu everyone I say with my signature smile." I decide on having the berry souffle and Erza ends up going with the same saying it looked to good to pass up.
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Gray got apple crisp and of course Juvia being Juvia like always decides to have the same as him, Lucy ends up joining me and Erza on team souffle while Natsu goes for the crisp I then put in a drink order for us all to have hot chocolate to drink with our desserts and eventually everything comes out nice and hot. I mix the whipped cream into my hot chocolate before using my other spoon to break into the dessert in front of me, as I dig a spoonful out I blow on it to cool it some and yet Erza seems to watch me for my reaction.
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I shove the spoon into my mouth and pull it out before tossing the filling around in my mouth and as I swallow my spoon lands on the table and yet I right away grab it again and start to just dig in without slowing down. "Geez dude slow down and breath said the pink haired fire dragon on my left." I shoot him a sharp glare and just continue to enjoy the dessert, soon enough Erza and Lucy were going in on theirs as well.
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Gray scooped the ice cream on his plate and put it on top the crisp and then dug in and of course Juvia followed suit and so did Natsu eventually we finish everything and as we leave the dining hall and I slip my jacket back on I walk beside Natsu for a moment. "Yo magma breath never and I mean NEVER tell me how to eat when it's food I like especially when it comes to desserts I barked in a Erza like manner before stomping away and beating everyone to the elevators.
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I try to take one on my own but Gray my room buddy jumps in at the last second and yet as soon we get to our floor I'm first out the elevator and just run for our room and get in before him and I then lay out my pajama set and take off my jacket and shoes before grabbing my shower kit and as I head for the bathroom Gray walks in. "Hey I overheard you barking at Natsu is it something you wanna talk about Gray said plainly." ———————————————————————
"I just don't like being told how I should eat something if I find it to be delicious especially if that something is a dessert made with any of my favorite fruits or made with chocolate that's all now if you don't mind I'd like to go take a hot shower before bed I'm not really up to gambling tonight perhaps I will join you all another time after all we are spending 5 days 4 nights I reply in answer." ———————————————————————
"Oh ok then just thought I'd check on you then is all, it's a little early for bed so what are you gonna do till then Gray said." "I'm not sure yet either play my flute on the balcony or go outside and dance around till I feel ready to sleep I replied." Gray seemed to accept this as my answer and left to join the others I then slip into the bathroom and take off my clothes and step into the shower and get busy.———————————————————————
As I'm washing my hair I can't help imagine how nice it would be to live with Gray together not down the hall as guildmates but as a couple and have him wash my hair for me I start to giggle with glee at the thought but then I have a horrid thought of if I went into lava mode again in front of Gray and yet he wasn't afraid of me more he was worried for me and so he hugged me from behind and tells me that this much anger isn't a good look for me. I turn red faced at this and yet I just heard the door to the room open so I turn off the water and dry off before putting all my pajamas on, then I unlock and open the bathroom door and see Gray is back.———————————————————————
I immediately look freaked out but he tells me Erza actually scheduled our fun at the casino for tomorrow evening and so she had everyone return to their rooms for the night. I just shuffle to my bed slip under the covers and take all my meds including a few drop from the vial Porlyusica gave to help me sleep before removing my glasses and sleeping soundly through the night.