"Waaah—!"
Suddenly, a sharp, tearful cry rang out.
Everyone looked over to see Macao clutching his chin, squatting on the ground in pain, with what looked like fresh red liquid seeping through his fingers. On the ground in front of him lay several blood-stained... iron pieces?
"Gajeel! You bastard! How many times have I told you! Don't chew on things in the Fairy Tail Guild!" Macao grimaced in pain, pointing at Gajeel, who looked either innocent or completely nonchalant, and roared.
Gajeel chewed on the iron pieces in his mouth (source unknown) and mumbled, "Whose fault is it for growing your beard so long and getting so close… I was just eating my 'breakfast'."
"What did my beard ever do to you?!" Macao stomped his foot in anger.
"Uncle Macao!" Wendy-chan's face went pale when she saw Macao bleeding. She immediately ran over, her small hands nervously clasped together. "You… you're bleeding! Does it hurt?"
"Wendy-chan…" Macao saw Wendy-chan's worried expression, and half of his anger subsided, but he was still gasping in pain.
"I… I can try!" Wendy-chan bravely extended her slightly trembling small hand, palm facing Macao's chin. She closed her eyes, concentrated, and softly chanted a spell: "O breath of the sky… please heed my call… Healing Wind!"
Buzz—!
A soft, warm, light-green glow with a fresh aura emanated from Wendy-chan's palm, sweeping over Macao's injured chin like a gentle breeze.
A miracle happened!
The bleeding wound on Macao's chin, cut by the iron piece, rapidly healed and scabbed over at a visible speed under the green light, leaving only a faint red mark!
"Huh? It doesn't hurt anymore?" Macao touched his chin in surprise, feeling no pain at all, not even any swelling! "This… what is this?"
"Wow! Wendy-chan is amazing!" Lucy cried out in delight.
"Healing magic?" Cana also looked up, gazing at Wendy-chan in surprise.
"The Sky Maiden… truly lives up to her reputation." Ezreal put down his teacup, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes.
Wendy-chan's small face was flushed red, and she shyly withdrew her hand: "I… I only know a little healing magic… it's a type of Sky Magic…"
"That's great! Wendy-chan!" Laki and Bisca surrounded her, excitedly hugging Wendy-chan. "From now on, we'll rely on you when we get hurt!"
"The Fairy Tail Guild finally has its own dedicated healer!" Alzack also said excitedly.
Carla, though still looking haughty, subtly curved her lips upward as she watched Wendy-chan being praised by everyone.
"Hmph, it's just basic healing magic." Gajeel pouted but said nothing more, continuing to chew on his "breakfast."
Macao touched his smooth chin (except for the red mark) and grinned: "Thanks, Wendy-chan! Next time, Uncle will treat you to something delicious!"
Wendy-chan nodded happily. Experiencing the value of her abilities being recognized in the Fairy Tail Guild for the first time made her small face glow with radiance.
"Hey! Lucy! Natsu! Gray! Cana! Ez!" Master Makarov's voice boomed like a bell. He stood by the railing on the second floor, his small stature exuding an undeniable authority. "Stop just playing around! There's a request!"
Upon hearing the word "request," those who had been brawling, arguing, studying cards, and practicing magic instantly fell silent, their gazes uniformly directed at the Master.
"A fruit farmer in the eastern forest needs help. He says all the apples in his orchard disappeared overnight recently! He suspects it's a monster's doing!" Makarov waved the request form in his hand. "The reward is good! Who wants to go?"
"Me! Me! I'll go!" Natsu was the first to jump up, flames dancing on his fists. "Catching the apple-stealing monster! Leave it to me and Happy!"
"Aye—! Apple thief!" Happy echoed.
"Hmph, for such a small fry, I'm enough on my own." Gajeel was not to be outdone.
"Lord Gray! Please allow Juvia to accompany you! Juvia's Water Magic can clean the orchard!" Juvia immediately seized the opportunity, her gaze fixed on Gray.
Gray: "…" (He hadn't intended to take this request.)
"Sounds interesting!" Lucy also grew interested. "Wendy-chan, Carla, want to come along and see?"
Wendy-chan's eyes lit up, and she nodded vigorously: "Mm! I want to go!"
Carla: "Hmph, since Wendy-chan wants to go…"
"Cana, together?" Ezreal looked at Cana.
Cana put away her fairy card and stretched: "Alright, perfect for trying out new cards. Where's Max?"
"He seemed to have gone to the library early this morning," Ezreal said.
"Then it's just us!" Lucy decided.
"Wait! I'm coming too!" Levy closed her magic book. "Maybe we can discover some interesting records of ancient monsters!"
"Alright! The subjugation team is formed!" Natsu excitedly announced, "Target—apple-stealing monster! Let's go!"
"Aye—!"
Natsu, Happy, Gajeel, Lucy, Wendy-chan, Carla, Gray, Juvia, Cana, Levy, and Ezreal majestically rushed out of the Fairy Tail Guild hall, leaving Master Makarov and Mira and others behind.
Makarov watched their departing backs, then looked at the door frame Natsu had crashed into and the corner of the bar Gajeel had chewed off. He sighed helplessly, rubbing his temples: "These little brats… Looks like I'll have to find someone to fix the door again today…"
Mira smiled and offered a cup of hot tea: "Master, this is Fairy Tail, after all."
Makarov took the tea, looked at the bright sunshine and bustling street outside the window, and a helpless yet doting smile appeared on his face: "Yes… noisy and chaotic, that's what home is."
In the lush fruit orchard, the red apples that should have been hanging from the branches had indeed vanished without a trace, leaving only bare branches and some messily gnawed apple cores.
"Strange… there's no trace of any monster." Natsu sniffed around like a puppy.
"There are no footprints of large monsters on the ground either." Gray observed the ground.
"Could it be a flying monster?" Lucy guessed.
"Look over there!" Wendy-chan pointed to the canopy of a large tree not far away.
Between the dense branches and leaves, many furry, brown little figures could be vaguely seen darting around nimbly. They had fluffy big tails and were happily gnawing on red apples.
"That's…" Lucy's eyes widened.
"Squirrels?!" Levy exclaimed.
"So many squirrels!" Wendy-chan also saw them clearly.
"Squeak! Squeak!" The squirrels in the tree seemed to have discovered the intruders and chirped vigilantly. Some even threw apple cores at them in defiance.
"What the heck?!" Natsu looked disappointed. "What monster! It's just a bunch of greedy squirrels!"
"A wasted trip…" Gajeel also lost interest.
"But… how could they eat so many apples overnight?" Lucy wondered.
"Look over there!" Cana pointed to the edge of the orchard, where a huge, dug-out hole was. "They must have moved all the apples into their underground nest to store them. Squirrels have a habit of storing food."
"I see…" Everyone suddenly understood.
"So what do we do now?" Gray looked at Ezreal.
Ezreal spread his hands: "We can't just wipe out all the squirrels, can we? They're just storing food."
"But the fruit farmer's request…" Lucy was a bit troubled.
"Squeak, squeak, squeak!" A slightly larger squirrel, looking like a leader, jumped down from the tree with the biggest red apple, carefully placed it at Ezreal's feet, then quickly scurried back up the tree, watching them nervously.
"It… it's giving it to us?" Wendy-chan asked in surprise.
"Probably… protection money?" Ezreal picked up the apple, a wry smile on his face.
"Pfft…" Cana couldn't help but laugh.
"Forget it, forget it," Natsu waved his hand. "Why bother with a bunch of squirrels? Happy, let's go back and eat grilled meat!"
"Aye—!"
"Looks like the request fee is out the window." Lucy sighed.
"But…" Levy's eyes sparkled as she watched the busy squirrels. "I did gather a lot of interesting information about squirrel storage behavior! I can write it in my book!"
"It wasn't a complete waste." Ezreal took a bite of the apple "tributed" by the squirrel leader. It was juicy, sweet, and delicious. "Hmm, good taste."
"Lord Gray! You should try some too!" Juvia conjured a sparkling clean apple from somewhere and eagerly offered it to Gray.
Gray: "…" (Silently accepted it.)
Wendy-chan looked at the squirrels in the tree and softly said, "They're also trying hard to live…"
Carla: "Hmph, a bunch of greedy furballs."
The group returned empty-handed, but the atmosphere was light and cheerful.
On the way back, Natsu and Gajeel started another meaningless race to see who was faster, Lucy and Wendy-chan discussed squirrel habits, Levy was engrossed in her notes, Cana and Ezreal walked leisurely behind, and Gray tried his best to ignore the chattering Juvia next to him.
As the sun set, the Fairy Tail Guild was once again filled with warm light and boisterous sounds.
"What? The apple thief was squirrels?" Macao burst out laughing after hearing their report.
"Haha, Natsu, you guys were defeated by squirrels!" Wakaba teased.
"Tch! Next time I see them, I'll just set them on fire…" Natsu grumbled indignantly.
"Natsu! Don't disrupt the ecological balance!" Erza's voice rang out at the opportune moment, carrying undeniable authority.
Natsu instantly deflated: "…Got it…"
"But Wendy-chan's healing magic is really amazing!" Laki spread the news about Macao's chin, which now only had a red mark.
"Yes! Wendy-chan is wonderful!" Bisca also praised her.
Wendy-chan's small face turned crimson from the compliments, and she hid behind Lucy.
Ezreal sat in his usual spot, holding a cup of hot tea, watching the familiar and lively scene in the Fairy Tail Guild.
Natsu and Gajeel were arm-wrestling, the table groaning under the strain.
Gray was being chased all over the room by heart-shaped water bubbles conjured by Juvia's Water Magic.
Lucy was telling Wendy-chan and Levy interesting stories about the Celestial Spirit World.
Cana continued to study her new card deck in the corner, occasionally discussing it with Max (who had just returned from the library).
Mira smiled as she refilled drinks and added dishes for everyone.
Master Makarov, on the other hand, looked at the damaged door frame and the teeth marks on the corner of the bar with a pained expression, muttering about "repair costs"… It was noisy, chaotic, and even a bit messy.
But this was the everyday life of Fairy Tail.
Full of laughter, tears, nonsensical adventures, and warm bonds.
Ezreal raised his teacup, his golden eyes reflecting all this vibrant life, a satisfied smile curving his lips…
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