Gildarts' Magnolia Renovation Plan

"Gildarts, this was the last investigation, right?"

Eleven followed behind Gildarts, a large pack on his back and exhaustion in his steps. With Gildarts' long legs, he had to break into a jog every now and then just to keep up.

The investigation into Eleven had gone on for half a year, and frankly, he was sick of it. He didn't care that much about his origins, and since nothing else had happened in the past six months, he had asked the master to suspend the investigation. Makarov had agreed. After all, being easygoing was one of Fairy Tail's fine traditions.

"Hmm..." Gildarts barely paid Eleven any attention. He had clearly started spacing out again as he walked.

Eleven didn't mind much. After spending all this time with Gildarts, he had gained a new understanding of the man.

First, Eleven had discovered that Gildarts never carried any food in his luggage. His entire big bag was filled with pictures of scantily clad older ladies!

Eleven had been dumbfounded when he first found them, but Gildarts had said he only wanted to help those older ladies who couldn't afford clothes. Only by continuing to buy their pictures could he help those beautiful young women put food on the table.

But it would also be wrong to buy someone's pictures and then throw them away, so he could only keep them in his bag. To bring those pictures along, Gildarts didn't even have room for food.

He had told Eleven with a look of satisfaction that a true powerhouse could live on spiritual nourishment that soothed the soul alone!

In the end, Eleven had been moved to tears.

Eleven had also discovered that Gildarts was a true powerhouse who kept his mind free of distractions and wholeheartedly followed his own path. No matter what lay ahead, whenever he wanted to walk in a straight line, nothing could stand in his way. Nothing could physically stop him.

Once, Gildarts had even walked straight through a mountain, carving a tunnel as tall as a person through the mountainside.

Later, however, Eleven discovered that Gildarts seemed to be spacing out most of the time when he walked. The houses and mountains he destroyed were all damaged unintentionally.

But so what? Wasn't that proof that he had no distractions? Wasn't a true powerhouse supposed to be unconcerned with such trivialities? Eleven admired Gildarts more and more!

As Eleven gradually "Di-hua'd," the two returned to Magnolia after a long absence.

Looking at the familiar streets, Eleven stretched and took a deep breath. It was good to smell home.

Gildarts walked past him expressionlessly, clearly still spacing out.

Boom!

Gildarts walked straight into a house and came out the other side with another crash. Of course, there was no question of him using the door. It wasn't on his straight path, so the walls had to bear the burden.

Eleven followed Gildarts with shining eyes, his admiration growing. As expected of Gildarts, he didn't hesitate to destroy even Magnolia, continuing to walk his own path.

Eleven smiled when he saw the ordinary family inside holding their bowls and staring blankly at the huge holes in their walls. Now they could experience Gildarts' greatness too, right?

"You absolute super idiot!!!"

Gildarts and Eleven had barely sat down at the guild when Makarov grabbed them by the ears and began berating them. Gildarts especially: Makarov had his hands around his neck, and his beard was flying up in anger.

"Making trouble elsewhere is one thing, but don't cause trouble for the residents of Magnolia!"

"You destroyed thirteen houses in one go! What were you thinking?"

"How many times has this happened? How many times?! Do you want Magnolia to drive us out? You bastard!"

Makarov was so angry he was almost in tears, and his tongue was starting to stumble over his words. He was so tired. Just moments ago, he didn't know how many Magnolia residents had suddenly surrounded him and given him an earful of complaints.

Makarov could ignore the Magic Council's attitude, and he could laugh it off when Fairy Tail members caused trouble elsewhere. But Magnolia was different. This was their home. Being hated by their family at home was a serious problem. What would they do if they were driven out?

Makarov gripped Gildarts' neck and shook him vigorously. At the thought that the guild might be left homeless under his watch, he couldn't help bursting into tears first.

Gildarts was still a little dazed and didn't quite understand what had happened, but seeing how angry the master was, he listened obediently, pretending to be serious.

Seeing the master so angry, Erza and Cana hurried over to comfort him. "Master, please don't be so angry. Gildarts didn't mean to do it. Please calm down."

Cana thoughtfully rubbed the master's back as he bawled, trying to calm him down.

Seeing this, Eleven hurried to help. "Yeah, yeah, you can't blame Gildarts. It only happened because those houses were in his way. Master, don't be angry."

Who would have thought Makarov would cry even harder after hearing Eleven's words? Was that even something a person should say? Cana hurriedly glared at Eleven, telling him not to make things worse.

But Erza, standing nearby, suddenly let out a soft chuckle. She held one hand loosely over her artificial eye and murmured, "Hmph, so it's all the world's fault? Interesting~"

She quickly came back to her senses, however. Seeing everyone around her looking at her, her little face instantly turned bright red. She hurriedly cleared her throat, pretended nothing had happened, and quickly fled.

The others were secretly laughing at Erza, but Gildarts wasn't. He had found inspiration in what Erza and Eleven had said. Laughing heartily, he lifted the master, who was still gripping his neck, and set him on the bar nearby. "Master, I've found a solution."

Makarov stopped feeling sad when he heard that and looked at Gildarts expectantly. The guild's only S-Class mage at present was quite reliable when he got serious.

Seeing that the master had calmed down, Gildarts gave him a charming, confident smile. "It's probably impossible for me to break the habit of spacing out. It won't happen in this lifetime. But couldn't we just build a straight road with no obstacles between the town entrance and the guild? We just need to make those houses get out of my way!"

Makarov stared blankly at Gildarts for a long time, unable to speak. He couldn't understand how the man could say something so shameless with such a charming smile.

Unlike the others, who were still speechless, Eleven, Gildarts' number one fan, was the first to respond enthusiastically. "That's a great idea! That solves every problem, and we won't cause anyone trouble anymore. As expected of Gildarts."

Eleven's admiration for Gildarts had reached its peak. Just to make walking easier for himself, he was planning to remodel all of Magnolia without minding the trouble it would cause others. That was so domineering!

Hearing Eleven say that, the Fairy Tail members who had been holding their foreheads actually began to think he had a point. That was right: if they caused trouble just this once, they wouldn't have to trouble anyone again. It sounded pretty good. So everyone began voicing their support.