Returning from the snowy mountains to the guild, some time had already passed, and the preservation of the Ice Spirit Fruit had gone well. Recently, there weren't many alchemy experiments that needed completing either.
Everyone had been relatively well-behaved these days, and the number of complaint letters had decreased. As a support mage, Noel found this quite comforting—finally, they were learning to appreciate his hard work.
Still, Noel decided to check in at the guild. After all, the guild was always the same—either fighting, on the verge of fighting, or fighting just because someone said the wrong thing.
But as soon as he arrived at the guild's entrance, Noel was dumbfounded.
Where was the guild's door? It had vanished without a trace.
"..."
Maybe the inside was still okay. Noel tried to comfort himself. One should not judge something before seeing it fully—this was a basic rule for any alchemist.
But stepping inside only made things worse, and Noel immediately took back his earlier thoughts. He had once again underestimated the liveliness of Fairy Tail's mages.
"Ahahaha... Take my punch!" Natsu roared as he swung a left hook at Gray.
"Ice-Make: Lance!"
Gray took Natsu's punch head-on, white light gathering in his hands as countless ice lances shot forward in a scattershot attack.
Natsu dodged deftly, but the ice lances flew toward Elfman, who was currently shouting:
"A real man! A real man!"
Another person joined the brawl, making the situation even worse. Cana, meanwhile, was still hugging her barrel of alcohol, drinking in large gulps as if the chaos around her had nothing to do with her.
As more people got dragged in, the brawl only escalated.
An ice lance flew straight at Noel, but he reacted quickly, catching it in his hand. Perhaps it was thanks to Elizabeth's blessing that he didn't feel any biting cold from it at all.
It was as if it was room temperature. Normally, Gray's ice magic had invasive coldness, but the blessing was simply too powerful.
Mirajane sat calmly at the counter, though random flying cups and bowls occasionally smacked into her head, leaving a big bump if she was unlucky.
The scene was utter chaos, with nearly everyone in the guild joining the brawl.
"Stop fighting!" Noel hurriedly tried to intervene.
But it was pointless. The brawl continued as if he hadn't spoken at all. Without someone with true authority stepping in, the guild's roof might be torn off before the fighting stopped.
Suddenly, an elderly man with white hair and a short, stocky figure stepped onto the worn bar counter.
His voice carried undeniable authority:
"That's enough. Stop."
Instantly, the entire guild changed. Even those who had been brawling just seconds ago were suddenly acting concerned and polite.
Only Natsu was still spitting fire from his mouth.
"See? I'm the strongest! Ahahahaha—"
Everyone looked at Natsu, their faces unreadable. Some tried to signal him to look at the master, but Natsu, lost in the joy of victory, didn't notice.
Makarov delivered a swift punch to Natsu's head, a large bump swelling up instantly as Natsu collapsed to the floor, finally quieting down.
"Aye, I told him not to fight, aye..." Happy muttered around the fish in his mouth.
Standing on the bar, Makarov prepared to announce some matters.
"Lately, you've all been doing well. The number of complaints from the Council has decreased."
But he still pulled out a small sack of complaint letters. Opening the bag, he let them spill out, and the letters fluttered down like snowflakes.
Noel stared at the pile of complaints in front of him, thinking, Isn't this still a lot? Nothing's really changed at all...
After Makarov finished, the guild settled down considerably, with many people gathering in front of the request board, likely looking to pick up a new job.
Naturally, Noel was among them. He was also a task issuer, so he needed to check how many of his requests had been taken and how many had been completed.
"The volcano rock request has been taken."
"The ice crystal request has been completed."
"The water essence request hasn't been picked up yet... Is my reward too low?"
Noel muttered to himself, but one request on the board was different from the others. Even the paper it was written on looked more refined.
Noel vaguely remembered this request. It seemed to be a designated request, which was rare to see on the board. He wondered who the lucky mage was to receive such a rare, high-level assignment.
It couldn't be him. He was just an alchemist—who would issue a designated request specifically for him? Impossible.
Noel walked over to the counter, where Mirajane greeted him warmly.
"What brings you here today? Posting a job? Paying out rewards? Or... are you here to accept that designated request?" Mirajane asked suddenly.
Designated request? What the heck? Could it actually be for him?
Noel felt himself break into a cold sweat. He remembered a previous designated request he'd accepted where he was hired to teach alchemy for a month. The students back then had zero talent, no matter how he explained, leaving him to suffer through a painfully long month. Just thinking about it made him shiver.
"Can I... decline this one?" Noel asked hopefully.
"If you want your credibility to take a hit, I can help decline it," Mirajane replied in an official tone.
But that wasn't worth it. Noel wasn't just a mage; he was an alchemist and a businessman, and for all three roles, reputation was paramount.
"Fine, I'll take it." Noel sighed in resignation. If it was like this, he might as well get it over with quickly.
Returning to the board, Noel carefully read through the designated request.
It was a recruitment request for an alchemist and healing mage, and given it came from the Mond's Alchemy Workshop for livelihood needs, it was clear why it was directed specifically at him.
If it was just for potion-making, it was within his capabilities. If he was lucky, he could probably complete it within a few days.
The duration wasn't too long, making it acceptable, and it had been a while since he'd traveled. A short trip wouldn't hurt, especially since the destination was Crocus, the capital.
He still had some clients in the capital, and it had been a while since he visited them.
Noel checked the exact location:
The Aurelius Ducal Estate (OC) in Crocus.
Seeing that, Noel was a bit surprised. The Aurelius Duke (OC) was one of the kingdom's newly rising nobles, and failing this request would severely damage his reputation.
Noel sighed as he tore the request from the board. After registering it at the counter and making some preparations, he readied himself to depart.
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