Returning to Town

"Oh, I see."

Eleven didn't show any surprise and quickly accepted the premise. After all, he had seen unicorns before, so having one or two dragons wasn't surprising. He even went up and patted Natsu on the shoulder to comfort him.

Makarov, who had been silent for a long time, had regained his composure. Today, he had gained a new understanding of Eleven. This kid was surprisingly calm in the face of adversity. Whether it was due to a lack of common sense or not, his composure was still commendable.

"Natsu, what are your plans right now? What are you going to do?" Makarov asked casually, feigning nonchalance.

"I'm going to find Igneel!" Natsu blurted out without thinking.

"Oh, do you know where Igneel went?" Makarov narrowed his eyes and continued to ask.

"No, I don't know... but my nose is very sensitive, if there's a smell..." Natsu suddenly became dejected again. Makarov's question made him realize that he really had no clue at all, and he was so anxious that he almost cried.

Seeing Natsu's pitiful state, Makarov revealed a sly smile, "Why don't you come to our guild first? A dragon hiding won't be found in a day or two, so having a place to stay is always good. Besides, you can get more information in the guild and more easily pinpoint your target."

After saying that, Makarov extended a hand to Natsu, a kind smile as warm as sunshine on his face.

Young and naive Natsu really didn't have a better place to go, and he felt that what the old man said made a lot of sense, so he carefully took Makarov's rough hand.

Two years ago, Eleven would have been moved to tears by the sight of this kind old man holding the hand of a helpless young boy.

But he is no longer so innocent. Now, no matter how you look at him, there is a sense that the old man is deceiving an ignorant teenager. Moreover, the chairman's mental fluctuations and the joyful feeling of getting a great deal always feel familiar.

And so, the ignorant Natsu was easily and effortlessly kidnapped by Makarov and Eleven.

On the way back to Magnolia, the three formally introduced themselves to each other. Natsu then realized that the kind-looking old man in front of him was actually the guild leader. Although he didn't quite understand what a guild was, the phrase "guild leader" sounded very impressive.

It was only now that Eleven realized Natsu was a Dragon Slayer just like Laxus. Before, he had only felt that the title sounded familiar, but because Laxus always asked him to keep it a secret, he had gradually forgotten that Laxus was also a Dragon Slayer.

Looking at the flames wrapped around Natsu's hands, he suddenly remembered that Laxus could also imbue himself with lightning.

But lightning just crackles and flashes on your body; it doesn't have the same impact as Natsu's body being on fire. It doesn't look as painful as being on fire.

(￣∠￣)ﾉ

Just as Eleven was cursing Laxus in his mind, the bushes beside the road suddenly and without warning Crush into small cubes.

A middle-aged man with red hair, rubbing his chin, walked out unsteadily, seemingly lost in thought. Behind him was a straight road that had been cleared, with Crush debris scattered all over the ground.

"Yo~ Gildarts, long time no see!" Makarov wasn't surprised at all by Gildarts's appearance. He raised a hand and greeted him with a smile.

When Gildarts heard someone calling him, he gradually came to his senses. He looked around at his surroundings in a daze before finally focusing his gaze on Eleven and Makarov.

"Hey, President, Eleven, how are you guys?" Gildarts's expression instantly returned to his signature confident smile.

"This mission took a long time, how did it go?" Makarov was still very enthusiastic towards Gildarts and took the initiative to start a conversation.

"President, you can rest assured that I can handle things well." Gildarts smiled confidently.

As they were talking, Gildarts also joined Eleven and his group, clearly intending to return to Magnolia as well.

It took Gildarts quite a while to notice the pink-haired brat following behind them. Seeing Natsu's strange attire—a bare-chested boy wearing a scarf—he couldn't help but ask what was wrong.

"President, did you pick up another brat?"

Makarov rolled his eyes at Gildarts, then slowly said, "His name is Natsu, and he's only temporarily staying at our guild."

"Oh, oh, I see." Gildarts wasn't really bothered, and he reached out and vigorously ruffled Natsu's hair, laughing, "Kid, my name is Gildarts, welcome to the guild."

"Let go! I'm not some little brat!"

Little did he know that Natsu wouldn't give him any face at all. He was so pressed down by Gildarts's big hand that he couldn't even lift his head. He was very unhappy and shook his head vigorously to shake off Gildarts's big hand. He opened his mouth and bit at that hand.

Gildarts was startled and quickly withdrew his hand, nearly Crush Natsu's tiny white teeth.

"Heh heh, this is quite a formidable little wolf cub!" Gildarts couldn't help but tease Natsu, who was baring his teeth.

"He's a dragon's child, you know," Eleven remarked from the side.

"Oh, so that's the little dragon cub. No wonder it was so fierce." Gildarts stroked his chin, showing no surprise but instead analyzing the situation quite seriously, whether he genuinely believed it or was just teasing them was unclear.

As the group chatted, they approached Magnolia. Just as they neared the town, a deafening bell rang out, followed by several large magical megaphones taking to the sky, repeatedly shouting, "Magnolia is about to switch to Gildarts Mode! All citizens, please move to the designated location immediately!"

Eleven was taken aback by the sight!

Gildarts Mode?

Gildarts is such a show-off, making a city-wide announcement just to go back to the guild. What a display! I'm not envious at all!

"Oh, that's quite a quick reaction." Makarov stroked his mustache, also showing interest in the town's reaction.

"Yes, I created a life-sensing spell. It activates automatically whenever I get close to the magic circle," Gildarts explained with a smile to the guild master.

As soon as the two finished speaking, the earth began to tremble, and then the entire Magnolia seemed to be activated, pulsating with rhythm.

The entire city was cut into countless squares, like a sophisticated machine, and began to rearrange and recombine them, even the direction of the river changed.

Soon a straight road appeared directly in front of the group.

Eleven was stunned by what he was seeing; he was truly dumbfounded, his jaw agape, and he forgot to pull it back in.

This is way too exaggerated!

Since Gildarts rarely returns to the guild, this was the first time Eleven had ever seen Magnolia's Gildarts Mode —it was truly astounding!

As expected of Gildarts, what he does is truly extraordinary!

"Wow, wow, that's amazing! The whole city is moving! Wow! That's so cool!" Natsu next to him was so excited that he could only keep shouting "Wow, wow, wow!", his eyes practically sparkling with excitement.

Walking on this straight and broad avenue, Eleven and Natsu were like country bumpkins visiting the Grand View Garden, their mouths agape as they looked up at the towering walls on both sides, watching the citizens who occasionally peeked out from the walls to look down, marveling at them repeatedly.

Gildarts walked at the front with a smile on his face, but his pace noticeably quickened, as if he wanted to distance himself from Eleven and Natsu. Those two brats had dragged down his prestige of coming home!