The Uninvited Guest

Inside the tent, it was dimly lit.

Riyao pulled Mirajane into his arms, resting his chin on her shoulder and nuzzling his nose against her neck.

"Shhhh..."

Mirajane's back stiffened, and he thrust his elbow backward without hesitation, striking Riyao's ribs squarely. The force wasn't great, but it was a clear warning.

"If you make that noise again, I'll kick you out."

Riyao groaned as his ribs were pressed against hers, but his arms tightened around her, and he buried his face in her shoulder.

"Oh, I was wrong."

Mirajane's lips twitched, but she ultimately stopped struggling and instead leaned her head against his chest, finding a more comfortable position.

The two leaned their heads together, chatting in hushed tones, gossiping about the couples in the gossip guild, with occasional muffled chuckles.

The tent next door wasn't as cozy.

Lucy, Erza, and Juvia in one tent.

Lucy lay between the two of them, her body stiff as a board, feeling a headache coming on.

Erza changed out of her armor into loose pajamas, turned sideways, and hugged Lucy tightly with both arms, using her as a pillow. One of her strong thighs was casually draped over Lucy's waist.

Lucy's breathing became shallow due to the tightness of the grip, and every time she tried to turn over, Erza would instinctively tighten her arms and push her back down.

On the other side, Juvia was turned to face Lucy, his eyes shining eerily in the dim light of the tent, staring intently at Lucy's face without blinking.

"Um, Juvia, could you please stop staring at me like that...?"

Lucy's voice grew softer and softer as Erza choked her until she could barely breathe.

"Hmm..."

Juvia remained motionless, his expression as serious as if he were carrying out a major mission, his tone firm and stubborn.

"Juvia must make sure Lucy doesn't go looking for Lord Gray."

Lucy was in tears, and I was stuck in the middle and couldn't move at all! Besides, I didn't want to go out and look for Gray either!

Wendy and Carla a tent, which was much quieter.

Wendy curled up in her sleeping bag, her voice soft, carrying a hint of barely perceptible anticipation and unease.

"Carla, where do you think Grandine is?"

With her back to Wendy, her tail tightly wrapped up, Carla muttered something without turning her head.

"Who knows where she is? Maybe she's been watching you. Go to sleep, or you'll stunt your growth."

Wendy pursed her lips and remained silent, burying her face in her sleeping bag, her breathing gradually becoming even.

The boys' tents were much more lively.

Natsu warmly invited Sting and the others to sleep together.

So Natsu, Gray, Happy, Sting, Rogue, Frosch, and Lector— the seven of them—crammed into one tent, people and cats packed together like sardines in a can.

Natsu lay on his back with his mouth wide open, snoring loudly, each snore sounding like sawing wood, making the fabric on the tent roof tremble.

His arm was across Gray's face, and one leg was draped over Sting's stomach; he slept as arrogantly as if the entire mat belonged to him.

Gray's underwear had flown off somewhere, probably kicked into the corner of the tent during one of his struggles to turn over, but he was completely unaware, hunching his neck and legs, mumbling something about "Ice-Make" in his sleep.

Sting, with a strong heart, rolled over and got used to it when Natsu's leg pressed against his stomach. He quickly fell asleep, with a little drool still on the corner of his mouth.

The three kittens also drifted off to sleep. Frosch nestled under Rogue's armpit, Lector lay on Sting's chest, Happy somehow rolled to Natsu's feet, where Natsu's toes caught the tip of his tail.

Only Rogue remained awake, his eyes wide open. He lay on his back with his arms crossed over his chest, staring blankly at the top of the tent, his eardrums bombarded by the sounds of snoring, teeth grinding, and sleep talking all around him.

"It's so noisy..."

At dawn, the sun slowly rises above the horizon.

An uninvited guest arrived quietly.

His footsteps were as light as if he were walking on cotton, without breaking a single seashell or leaving a clear trail of footprints.

The warning plants that Riyao had placed around the camp remained completely still; not even a single leaf trembled.

His immense magical power remained completely suppressed, like a bottomless pool of stagnant water, without even a ripple on its surface.

He glanced around the campsite, his gaze landing on the frozen Dream Pearl Fish beside the campfire. The fish still glowed faintly, its scales reflecting a rainbow of light beneath the ice.

He tilted his head, and a slow smile crept onto his face as he set his sights on the fish.

He crouched down, skillfully lit a campfire, set up an iron pot, pulled out some seasonings from somewhere and sprinkled them in, then threw in the remaining Dream Pearl Fish.

The ice melted quickly in the boiling water, the fish began to tumble, and the soup gradually turned a rich, milky white.

Hehehe...

After simmering for forty-nine minutes, the lid rattled from the steam, and a dreamy aroma spread out.

That sweet, fresh scent seemed to have grown legs and seeped into every tent, into every nostril, so strong it could almost pull you out of your dreams.

Natsu was the first to wake up, but he was still groggy. He sniffed twice and, as if being pulled by a fishing line, slowly raised his head.

"Hmm? Who's outside? It smells so good."

He rubbed his eyes, yawned, and stumbled out of the tent, following the scent.

In the morning light, he saw a tall figure sitting by the campfire, leisurely drinking fish soup from a bowl, while the iron pot was still bubbling.

Natsu's mind cleared slightly, his hand that was rubbing his eyes stopped, his pupils contracted sharply, and his entire face tensed instantly.

"You bastard!"

The man was startled by the sudden shout, and the soup spoon in his hand was crushed to pieces.

Everyone else was awakened by Natsu's shout.

Erza sprang out of her sleeping bag as if by reflex, instantly changing into her armor, the clanging of metal echoing through the tent.

She kicked open the tent flap and rushed out, gripping her sword tightly as she changed her armor, her sharp gaze sweeping across the center of the camp.

Lucy's ears were ringing from the shock of Erza's armor Requip. She sat up, her eyes wide open, all sleepiness gone.

"What happened? Are there enemies?"

She frantically grabbed the Celestial Spirit Key, scrambled out of the tent, nearly slipped on the sand, and after regaining her balance, the first thing she saw was a pot of boiling fish soup, and then a stranger sitting there drinking it.

"Wow, who are you? Why have you cooked all our fish!"

Riyao burst out of the tent, still half asleep. Seeing his spoils being stewed, he kicked the man without a word, hitting him squarely in the back.

Mirajane emerged sleepily from the tent, yawned deeply, rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand, and stood at the tent entrance, watching everything that was happening in the middle of the camp.

He neither stepped forward to help nor spoke up to stop them; he simply tilted his head slightly, as if watching a rather uninteresting morning farce.

Wendy and Carla peeked out of the tent and saw Riyao hitting someone. Wendy instinctively covered her mouth, her big eyes filled with surprise, while Carla rolled her eyes and muttered, "Making a scene so early in the morning."

There were too many people in Natsu's tent, so they couldn't all get out at once.

They jostled and pushed their way to the tent flap, stepping on each other's feet and pushing each other's shoulders, creating a chaotic mess.

"Make way! I need to get out first!"

You stepped on my hand!

"Who's touching me!"

The tent's support poles finally gave way, snapping at the base with a "crack," and the entire tent collapsed with a crash.

"Ah!! Gray, your clothes!"

Lucy covered her face, not wanting to see such an offensive scene, but she couldn't help but peek through her fingers, then quickly closed them again, her whole face turning bright red.

Juvia's cheeks were flushed, she held her face in her hands, blood slowly trickling from her nose, but the corners of her mouth were slightly upturned.

Gray frantically grabbed a tattered piece of tent cloth to cover his private parts, the cloth fluttering in the wind.

"Where are my clothes?!"

Happy was tucked inside, with only his tail sticking out and thrashing about, making muffled noises.

"Aye... help..."

Sting poked his head out of the hole, a tattered piece of tent fabric still on his head, blinking blankly, completely bewildered.

The entire camp was in chaos.