Just Kidding

"Ha~"

Riyao yawned loudly and deeply, his mouth wide open, tears welling in his eyes, exuding a lazy, sleepy vibe.

He raised his hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of his eyes, then stretched and yawned, raising his arm above his head, making two cracking sounds from between his bones.

As he walked, he felt like he was floating, as if he were walking on cotton, and his mind was completely blank.

Mirajane looked at him with a puzzled expression.

You've been feeling sleepy all day, is there a problem?

"Just feeling sleepy."

Before Riyao could finish speaking, his head slumped down, his eyes half-closed, and he scooted down to find a more comfortable position.

Mirajane shifted her shoulder towards him, making him feel more secure, and glanced at him sideways.

Their conversation went unnoticed by the others.

Everyone's attention was drawn to Warrod's bark-like face and the flower stands filling the room.

The room was indeed dimly lit, with densely packed flower racks blocking most of the sunlight from the window.

"Let's talk outside, it's a bit dark in here, haha."

Warrod picked up the watering can and took a sip of water.

He tilted his head back, brought the spout to his lips, and gulped down several mouthfuls. His Adam's apple bobbed, and water droplets trickled down his bark-like chin.

Lucy and Gray both complained at the same time.

"Hey, that's a kettle, not a cup."

Lucy pointed to the pot in his hand, then to her own head, gesturing for a long time, but still couldn't utter a complete sentence.

"This is plain water, don't worry."

"Is it really okay to fill the kettle with plain water?" Lucy covered her face.

"Just kidding, it's just ordinary well water, haha." Warrod laughed even louder.

Everyone was speechless; they had assumed the founder would be the composed type, but...

Lucy and Gray looked at each other, not knowing where to start.

Stepping out of the house, Warrod gestured for everyone to sit down, and they obediently did so, even Natsu.

The room was bright with sunlight, and a warm breeze carrying the scent of grass and trees blew in. Everyone sat in a circle around Warrod, like a group of children waiting to hear a story.

The courtyard was paved with bluestone, and vines climbed all around the walls. A few petals were blown up by the wind and swirled down to everyone's feet.

A few duckweeds floated in the water tank in the corner. A frog croaked once and then jumped back into the water with a splash.

Even Natsu was sitting up straight, but his eyes were still wandering around, and he seemed to have nails stuck to his bottom, unable to sit still.

Erza spoke up to ask.

"Senior Warrod, what are we required to do for this request?"

Warrod looked at them and gave them a satisfied smile.

The wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothed out, and he looked at everyone as if they were his own grandchildren.

"When I was traveling on the mainland, I came across a village that was completely frozen over. I would like to ask you to investigate and resolve this matter."

Everyone was taken aback, their smiles vanished, and the lighthearted atmosphere dissipated instantly.

Even the usually boisterous Natsu quieted down and pricked up his ears to listen to what was to come.

"Frozen? Even you can't unfreeze it?" Gray asked in surprise.

"The ice there is strange, and I'm not good at ice or fire magic," Warrod shook his head.

"I wonder where that village is?"

Erza stroked her chin, deep in thought.

"2000 kilometers to the south," Warrod casually remarked, stating the astonishing distance.

"Oh, to the south... how much?"

This completely shattered Erza's composed demeanor.

Her eyes widened, and she leaned forward involuntarily, as if she hadn't heard clearly or couldn't believe her ears.

"What? That far? Is there a train that goes there?"

Lucy opened her mouth, her face fell, and her voice was filled with Despair.

Wendy gasped quietly to herself.

Gray raised his hand and pressed his temples, looking like he had a headache, while Erza was still muttering the number to herself.

Carla rolled her eyes, flicked her tail twice, and acted as if she was used to it.

"I don't want to take the train, let's walk."

Natsu looked constipated, Happy looked at Natsu like he was a naughty child.

It's clear that the word "train" hit a nerve.

He glanced furtively at Gray, then at Lucy, and seeing that no one was supporting him, his initial momentum vanished instantly.

"Idiot," Gray said to Natsu, arms crossed.

The crowd began to discuss amongst themselves, all turning to look at Warrod.

"Maybe he's joking again, he definitely is, right!? Senior Warrod."

"Don't pretend to be a narrator and read people's minds, you scheming Riyao!" Lucy slammed her hand on the table and stood up.

Lucy slammed her hand on the table and stood up, her face flushed and her neck bulging, her finger trembling as she pointed in the direction of the Riyao.

The table shook three times from her slamming her hand, and some water in the cup spilled out.

When Riyao saw Lucy's vulnerable state, he couldn't help but burst out laughing, Mirajane laughed even louder than Riyao.

Lucy stared speechlessly at the scheming couple.

One of them was laughing so hard he was slapping his thigh, while the other was laughing so hard he kept leaning against the other; they were a perfect pair of people who loved to watch the drama unfold.

Wendy pursed her lips, her cheeks puffed out, struggling to suppress her laughter.

Her little face turned bright red, her shoulders trembled, and she twisted her hands together, desperately trying not to laugh.

The more she tried to hold it in, the more uncomfortable she felt; tears welled up in her eyes, and she was afraid she would burst out laughing the moment she opened her mouth.

Riyao seized the opportunity, slowly extended his finger, and poked her.

His poke landed squarely on her puffed-out cheek, like popping a balloon filled with laughter.

"Pfft..."

Wendy immediately broke into a laugh, then quickly suppressed it, her ears turning red.

Carla kicked Riyao, and the corners of her mouth turned up in a smile.

After kicking, she turned her head away, flicked her tail, and pretended nothing had happened, but she couldn't suppress the upturned corners of her mouth.

"Let's walk! If Lucy can't walk, I'll carry her."

Natsu patted his chest, making a loud thud.

Lucy rolled her eyes.

"Is that the problem? We don't know how long it will take to get there, and what if something unexpected happens?"

Upon hearing this, everyone looked at her in surprise.

"Hey! What do you mean by this?"

Lucy slammed her hand on the table and stood up again.

Everyone shook their heads in unison; Gray was outspoken.

"I thought you were looking for a shortcut because you were afraid of walking too tiring."

Everyone nodded in agreement, while Lucy lay on the table, not wanting to face these bastards.

She spread her arms out, buried her head in her arms, only half of her blonde hair showing, her back view filled with despair.

"Haha, Fairy Tail is still so interesting. Makarov really does a good job managing the guild."

Warrod burst into laughter.

"No, this group causes a lot of trouble, so the Magic Council often has to send the chairman to explain and offer compensation."

Lucy went straight for the kill, determined to make everyone suffer.

Everyone nervously turned their heads away, busy picking at their nails, looking at the sky, and counting ants.

Natsu looked up at the sky, Gray looked down to pick up his clothes, Happy pretended to groom his fur; none of them would meet Lucy's eyes.

Warrod was also busy tidying up the branches in his hands.

He pretended to be busier than anyone else, his head down, fiddling with a dry branch, turning it over and over, endlessly.

He'd practically polished that withered branch to a patina.

"How can even Senior Warrod be like this?" Lucy's eye twitched.

She had completely seen through it all; there wasn't a single decent person in Fairy Tail, from top to bottom.