Blake didn't bother with the door. He leaned on the horn.
A loud, piercing, alien sound—a deep, BLLAAAAART!—blasted through the guild hall, momentarily overpowering the sounds of the morning's brawl and Natsu's "I'M ALL FIRED UP!"
Inside, everyone froze.
"What the hell was that?" Macao asked, dropping his mug.
"Sounds like a sky-wyvern with a head cold," Wakaba muttered, lighting a cigar.
Natsu sniffed the air. "It smells... new."
"It's coming from outside!"
The guild members, curious and slightly alarmed, wanted to check out what was happening. Gray, ever the first to react, kicked the door open and stepped outside, ready for a fight. He stopped dead.
His eyes went wide. There, parked where the street should be, was a machine. It was a deep, forest dark green, shaped like an aggressive, futuristic predator. It was low, wide, and gleaming with an unholy sheen. And sitting in the driver's seat, one arm resting casually on the open window, was Blake.
"Woah... Blake!" Gray stammered, his mind struggling to process what he was seeing. "What kind of vehicle is that?! I've seen a lot of magic vehicles, but this is the first time I am seeing one like this!"
Guild members, upon listening to Gray's exclamation, started to pour out of the guild hall. The reaction was universal: stunned, open-mouthed awe.
"It's... beautiful," Erza whispered, her eyes analyzing its armored plating.
"So shiny!" Natsu yelled, his eyes turning to stars.
"Hmph. Obnoxious," Laxus muttered from the doorway, though his eyes betrayed his deep, undeniable interest.
Cana, however, didn't waste time admiring. She saw Blake, she saw the car, and she saw an opportunity. With a squeal of "Dibs!", she made a beeline for the passenger side, shoving a stunned Gray out of the way, and sat in the front seat. "This is awesome, Blake! What is it?!"
"It's my new car," Blake said, smirking at the crowd.
By this time, Gray, Erza, and Natsu had piled into the spacious back seat, climbing over each other.
"This is so cool!" Natsu yelled, bouncing on the leather. "Take us for a ride, Blake! Let's go!"
"Yeah, let's see what this beast can do!" Gray added.
Erza just sat, her arms crossed, her expression one of intense, professional curiosity.
Blake laughed. "Alright, alright. Buckle up."
He turned the ignition rune. The magical engine thrummed to life, a deep, predatory purr that vibrated in their chests. He put the car in gear and gently pressed the accelerator.
The Urus shot forward. The acceleration—0 to 80km/hr in 3 seconds—was unlike anything they had ever experienced. It wasn't the jolt of a magic-beast carriage; it was a smooth, relentless, crushing force that pinned them all to their seats. Cana and Gray screamed with delight.
As soon as the vehicle started, Natsu's face went from ecstatic to a pale, sickly green. The world was blurring. It was a carriage—a moving box. Natsu's motion sickness kicked in with a vengeance.
"Bleargh... I... I don't feel so good..." he groaned, his cheeks puffing out.
He was starting to vomit.
Blake's head snapped around, his eyes wide with panic. "Oh no, you don't, Natsu! This is a new car! It's got custom leather! I didn't wait three months just to have my car smell like vomit!"
Before Natsu could even protest, Gray, with the immediate, brutal practicality of a rival, grabbed the Dragon Slayer by the scruff of his shirt and the back of his pants. "Not in here, you idiot!"
With a grunt, Gray shoved him clean out of the car. Natsu tumbled onto the streets of Magnolia's main street, landing in a heap, groaning.
"Gray!" Erza scolded, though not very forcefully.
"What? He was gonna hurl!" Gray shot back, unapologetic.
Blake just shook his head, a grin on his face. He pressed the accelerator again. "Then they continued the drive."
He took them for a ride around Magnolia, the dark green beast turning heads on every corner. He showed them how the rune-powered windows worked, how the lacrima-radio blasted music. It was, they all agreed, the single coolest thing any of them had ever seen.
Then, once the Urus stopped at the guild hall, the rest of the guild swarmed it. At the front of the pack was Makarov, his eyes wide with a very un-master-like covetousness.
"Blake, my boy..." Makarov said, stroking the car's hood. "Where did you buy this? And where can I buy one like this?"
"You can't buy this one, Master," Blake said, leaning against the door. "This is the project I've been working on with the Heartfilia family for the past nine months. This is my custom model."
He gestured to the car. "But the company, Heartfilia-Corvus Motors, will be selling the production models—SUVs, vans, and convertibles—one month from now. This one... this one is one of a kind. I can request them for another custom if you want."
Makarov hummed, stroking his mustache. "A custom... yes... yes... but first, I'll look at the other models and then decide which one I want." His eyes glinted. "Can I try it?"
Blake tossed him the crystal key. "Be my guest."
Makarov's grin was wide and mischievous. "Macao! Wakaba! Old-timers, to me!"
The Master, who already had experience driving the old, clunky magic cars of the past, got into the car with his cronies. He turned the rune, and his eyes lit up at the engine's purr. "Oh, ho ho... this is different."
He slammed his tiny foot on the accelerator. The Urus screeched away, leaving a cloud of dust and two black tire marks in front of the guild.
"MASTER, THE BRAKE RUNE IS THE ONE ON THE LEFT!" Blake shouted after him, suddenly realizing he'd skipped that part.
They were gone for twenty minutes. When they returned, Makarov's hair was windswept, and Macao and Wakaba looked terrified but thrilled.
Makarov declared, hopping out. "Sublime! Perfect! A true S-Class vehicle!"
He handed the keys back. "Now, what other models are there?"
"Let's go to your office, Master," Blake said. "I will show you there."
As they were going, Laxus stepped in front of Blake, his hand out. "Keys."
It wasn't a request.
Blake smirked. Throws it to him, which he easily catches.
"Don't scratch it," Blake said.
"Don't tell me what to do," Laxus retorted, but he was already walking toward the Urus, a predatory grin on his face. "Thunder Legion! We're going for a ride."
Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen scrambled after him, ecstatic.
Once inside the office, Blake pulled out his design portfolio. He showed him the different types and models—the sleek, two-door convertible, the sturdy van, the all-terrain SUV.
Makarov looked at the models. Then he chose it. It was a boxy, powerful, military-grade vehicle that screamed "authority" and "I can drive over a mountain." It was a Mercedes-Benz G-Class.
"Yes," Makarov whispered, his eyes gleaming. "That one. That is a car for a Guild Master. I want it. In dark blue."
For the rest of the day, the whole guild was in a frenzy, taking Blake's car for a ride. Erza took it next, driving with terrifying, perfect precision.
Gray took it, trying (and failing) to drift around the Kardia Cathedral. Even Cana got to sit on Blake's lap and "steer."
The car came back with mud on the fenders, a few new scratches in the paint, and a strange bird feather stuck in the grille. Blake didn't care much if they damaged it. After all, what is a car in front of family?
Blake sent a message to the Heartfilia factory, putting in a custom order for Makarov. "One Mercedes-Benz G-Class. Dark Blue. Put a rush on it. Bill my personal account."
The car arrived after a week. A massive Heartfilia-Corvus transport truck rolled into Magnolia, and the Dark Blue beast was unloaded.
Makarov was looking at it in excitement, practically vibrating. It was beautiful. It was perfect. "Ho ho ho!" he cackled, holding the keys. "I'm going to drive this to Blue Pegasus and watch Bob weep with envy! I'll show that old fool Goldmine what a real guild's vehicle looks like!"
He was about to drive to the other guilds and show them to their guild masters. But nearby, the guild's two primary agents of chaos were at it again. "Blake's car is WAY cooler than this new box!" Natsu declared, pointing at the G-Class.
"Are you blind, flame-brain?" Gray shot back. "This one's a classic! It's way tougher!" They're fighting upon which car was better.
"Oh yeah?! Blake's is faster!" "This one could drive through Blake's!" One thing led to another, and Natsu, his fists igniting, took a swing.
Natsu tried to punch Gray with force! But Gray dodged it! The flaming punch, missing its target, continued its trajectory... and connected squarely with the rear passenger door of the brand-new, dark blue, never-driven G-Class.
WHUMP! The sound was sickening. A perfect, fist-sized dent appeared in the pristine metal, the blue paint bubbling and peeling from the heat. The guild fell silent.
As soon as the dent appeared, Makarov, who was just about to open the driver's door, clutched his heart. His face went pale.
Every guild member looked at Makarov with pity. It was a tragedy. He didn't even get to ride in his new car, and it already had a dent.
Instinctively, everyone moved away from Natsu and Gray, who were still fighting, completely oblivious to the crime they had just committed.
A shadow fell over the two brawlers. "YOU..." Makarov grew in size, his Titan form towering over the guild hall. "...IDIOT... BRATS!"
With two massive, building-sized hands, he scooped up the pair, threw them into the lake, and began scolding them with the fury of a god.
Then everyone started laughing. The tension broke, replaced by the guild's usual chaotic humor.
Makarov made a pity expression to Blake, shrinking down and looking mournfully at the dent. Blake just sighed and pulled out his communication lacrima. "I'll tell them to send someone to fix the dent, Master. It's fine."
Hearing that, Makarov was happy instantly. "Excellent! A small dent doesn't stop a man of my caliber!" He hopped into the driver's seat, ignoring the smoking hole in his door, and took the car for a ride, cackling as he sped out of town.
The next day, a Heartfilia worker arrived and, with a sigh of resignation (he was getting used to this guild), fixed the dent with a mix of magic and specialized tools.
After which, Makarov, his car finally pristine, began his glorious tour. He rode the car to nearby Guild Masters who were his friends—Blue Pegasus, Quatro Cerberus, and others.
He'd park the gleaming, dark blue beast right in front of their guild halls, get out, and start showing them his new car smugly.
"Ah, Bob, marvelous day, isn't it? Just taking my new magic vehicle for a spin. My S-Class mage, Blake, designed them. Must be dreadful, still having to rely on those public train schedules."
The other guild masters who listened to his yapping smugly could only grit their teeth. They wanted to punch him, but (as he was the Master of the most powerful guild and a Wizard Saint), they stopped doing so.
The era of the magical vehicle had begun, and Fairy Tail, as always, was leading the charge.