Gildarts drained his mug and thumped the oak cup on the table with a heavy thud.
"Ha—job's wrapped. You two wanted to join the guild, right? Come back with me."
He wiped the foam from his mouth, all easy cheer.
Shane was all for it; going in with a guild member beat two clueless rookies blundering in.
But Gildarts still hadn't said what joining required. Shane wanted to prepare—he believed you pay a price for what you get.
"No time like now. We leave—" Gildarts began to rise.
"Wait." Erza popped to her feet, her clear voice cutting him off.
Both men blinked at her.
She held out a hand, palm up, straight to Shane. "Money."
"…What money?" Shane lagged a beat.
"The bandits. I beat them," she said, unblinking. "My share."
Shane froze, then got it.
"Well, they were your takedowns. You should get a cut." He mourned his house fund inching farther away and dug out his pouch with a wince.
Curious, he asked, "Why the sudden cash grab? Buying something?"
Clenching the coins, Erza's tamped-down temper flared back up. Through gritted teeth: "Your conjured weapons vanish when you start a fight! I can't wait for your magic-sword project. I'm buying my own."
"R-right." Shane rubbed his nose, sheepish—so that's why she'd been glaring back in the barrier.
Their little scene was about to end when—
Thump-thump-thump—
Heavy, orderly bootfalls rolled up outside, circling the tavern fast.
"Damn!" Gildarts's face shifted. "Council Knights. That was fast!"
"What's wrong?" Shane frowned. "Aren't they here to handle cleanup? I've got questions for the dark guild. Also—what about that wrecked street—you're going to—"
Gildarts didn't let him finish. He surged up, urgent. "No time. We cannot get caught in the act."
Before the words were done, he snagged Shane by the scruff with one hand and scooped Erza like a kitten with the other, weight dropping—
BOOM!
Stone and brick powdered on contact; a neat hole yawed in the wall.
"Wait! Your 'clever plan' was… physically running for it?!" Shane yelled, hair whipping in the wind of their flight.
"Hahaha! If they don't catch us on the spot, it doesn't count! Relax—let the lazy old-timer back at the guild sweat the paperwork!"
Gildarts barreled down the street with them in tow, moving so fast he left afterimages.
"Relax he says—how?!" Shane's protest blew away behind them.
Erza, dangling on the other side, only looked back and muttered, "I… wanted to buy a sword first…"
Behind them, footsteps scrambled and the knights' furious shouts chased their heels.
…
…
A few days later—Fiore, Magnolia Station.
A long-distance magi-train rumbled in, the distinctive thrumming of magitek fading as it stopped. Doors opened; three travel-worn figures stepped out.
Magnolia—eastern Fiore, population sixty thousand—a bustling commercial city famed since ancient times for magic.
Outside, Shane drank in the scene.
Unlike the smaller town they'd stayed in, streets here were broad and clean; shops lined both sides; passersby were well dressed, easy smiles on their faces. Prosperity and peace hung in the air.
"So this is where Fairy Tail is…" he murmured. You could feel the difference in the residents' unhurried steps.
Beside him, Erza cradled a plain longsword she'd snapped up in a town en route, stroking the scabbard with obvious delight.
The look needled Shane. "Didn't we say you'd wait for a good weapon from me?"
He'd spent half the trip urging her to save the money.
A mundane blade like that wasn't even up to the practice pieces he'd left with Noel—bound for the scrap heap sooner or later.
Erza had picked up one of Shane's favorite tactics. She turned her head slightly, pretended not to hear, and kept caressing the grip—mouth quirking into a tiny smile.
Up ahead, Gildarts yawned. He'd gotten used to the pair's occasional bickering.
He rubbed his face—still foggy after the hangover.
"Which way to the guild?" Shane asked.
"The guild…" Gildarts paused and glanced around.
Then he raised a hand—straight ahead. "Mm… don't quite remember. But no problem—just head that way."
He was already striding to the mouth of the busiest street.
In the next second, the state took him.
Eyes dream-blurred, an aura of "everything get out of my way" washing off him, he ignored all obstacles and walked straight on.
"Here we go again…" Shane pinched the bridge of his nose.
The street erupted like cold water thrown into hot oil.
"It's Gildarts!!"
"The Wrecker is back!!"
"Run!!"
"Pack it up—now!"
People scattered; shopkeepers grabbed for wares. Wherever Gildarts passed, lampposts, stall corners, building trim—anything that touched his aura—popped into neat fragments.
Watching the fresh "scars" and the residents' heartbreakingly practiced evasions…
Shane's mouth twitched. At this rate, Magnolia's going to need a "Gildarts Alert & Response" drill…
With this "efficient" approach, they soon reached a tall wooden hall at the back of town.
Rugged architecture; a bold Fairy Tail emblem hung out front.
A member stepped out just then. "Yo! Gildarts, back al—"
Gildarts didn't even glance at the open doors. He kept walking—straight for the thick wall beside them.
The man blinked and waved frantically. "Wait! Gildarts! The door is over here!"
Useless.
KR-THUNK!
The guild's stout wall crumbled like paper under his Crushing Magic, a neat-edged hole opening as debris showered down.
Through the dust, Gildarts strolled into the hall without a hair out of place and bellowed, voice booming:
"I'm back!"
~~~
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