Now That Things Have Come to This

When Makarov uttered the word "disband".

The entire manor fell silent instantly.

Everyone stopped rolling, stunned, momentarily forgetting the soreness in their bodies, as if they had been frozen in place, each holding a strange posture.

Lucy remained in a half-sitting position, her hands on the ground, her eyes wide open.

Gray lay on the ground, his mouth agape, big enough to fit a fist.

Erza had just propped herself up halfway when she froze in mid-air.

Natsu's head was still red with a large bump, and he was completely stunned.

Wendy hugged Carla tightly, her little hands clenched, and her eyes instantly reddened.

Even Riyao was stunned, his hand holding the teacup frozen in mid-air, not even noticing the tea spilling onto his hand.

He hadn't expected Makarov to come so suddenly.

"Grandpa, is that really necessary?"

Riyao frowned as he looked at Makarov, then placed his teacup on the stone table with a soft click.

His brows furrowed, and the smug smile on his face vanished completely.

The crowd finally came to their senses, and it was as if a pot had exploded in chaos.

"President, this is so sudden!"

"Didn't we defeat the Tartaros? Why are we disbanding?"

"What's wrong with the old man? Is he confused from the fall?"

"Exactly! Why disband them for no reason!"

"..."

The Fairy Tail members were in a chaotic uproar, all talking at once, mostly asking Makarov why.

Some people tried to stand up, but their legs gave way and they sat back down, ignoring the pain, and just stared at Makarov, waiting for an explanation.

"My mind is made up." Makarov shook his head.

After saying that, the old man didn't linger and turned to leave the manor.

The setting sun slanted in through the doorway, casting the old man's long shadow that stretched all the way to everyone's feet.

Riyao watched the old man's figure disappear through the door and sighed.

He didn't know how to persuade Makarov, nor could he directly discuss the future.

You can't exactly drag the old man along and say, "Hey, don't disband, we'll have to reorganize in a little over a year," that would be too absurd.

Moreover, he knew in his heart that the old man's decision was not made on a whim.

From Raven Tail to the Grimoire Heart, and then to the Tartaros, one trouble after another comes knocking.

The old man may not say it, but he must have been carrying a heavy burden in his heart for a long time.

He understood Makarov's concerns; Fairy Tail's reputation was now too great.

The Grand Magic Games Tournament championship, the breaching of the Balam Alliance, the destruction of the Tower of Heaven... and so on—any one of these events could be enough for other guilds to brag about for a lifetime. With all of them piled up on Fairy Tail, it's hard not to attract attention.

If someone were to investigate carefully, they would discover that Fairy Tail and Zeref are connected.

Riyao leaned weakly against Mirajane, looking listless, like a wilted cabbage.

Mirajane was also listless, so she put her arm around his shoulder and rested her head on top of his head. The two of them just lay there listlessly.

Everyone present was in the same state, lying or sitting haphazardly, no one spoke, and the once chaotic manor suddenly became quiet.

The three of them, Minerva, looked at each other and exchanged glances.

They felt it was inappropriate for them to be there; the guild had just disbanded and they were grieving, and the three of them, outsiders, standing there, looked incredibly awkward.

Sting stroked his chin, his eyes darting around.

He's now the guild leader of Sabertooth, but he's got the mindset of a guild leader, and he's already starting to make his own plans.

"Um... do you guys want some...?"

Before he could finish speaking, everyone in Fairy Tail turned to look at him.

Those eyes, all sharp and piercing, were like knives.

Sting fell silent instantly, his mouth agape, but he swallowed the rest of his sentence, his neck shrinking back like a turtle.

Rogue and Minerva smiled sheepishly, each grabbing one of Sting's arms and dragging him away as fast as rabbits.

"You idiot, they just disbanded, what are you trying to do?" Minerva cursed as she ran.

"I was just thinking... about recruiting more people for the guild..." Sting was being supported, his feet almost off the ground.

"Shut up!"

Minerva raised her hand and gave Sting a sharp, resounding thud on the forehead.

Sting covered his head, looking aggrieved, his eyes reddening.

What's wrong with just wanting to recruit more people for the guild?

My body aches so much.

Riyao watched the back of this clown being dragged away, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

They actually tried to poach people from their own guild! I'll give them a good beating sometime!

He shook his head, putting the matter out of his mind; he had more pressing issues to deal with right now.

Riyao withdrew his gaze and nudged Mirajane's arm.

"Mira, how about I buy that piece of land belonging to the guild later? Just in case the old man regrets it later."

He figured that if he held onto the land first, it would be easier when the guild was reorganized.

"That's a great idea. Let's open it as a tavern first."

Mirajane's eyes lit up; she thought this was a pretty good idea.

If I bring Lisanna along to be the tavern's mascot, the tavern business will definitely boom, and we'll definitely make a profit.

She's already starting to plan what drinks the tavern should sell.

Bisca, lying beside them, heard their conversation, scratched her head, and spoke up a little shyly.

"Um, it seems the guild is gone."

"Huh?!" Riyao looked at Bisca in confusion, wondering if he had misheard.

Bisca gestured with her chin toward Cana beside her.

"During the battle on the Underworld Island, your Parasol Tree entangled the Underworld Island, right? At that time, the Underworld Island's gravity disappeared for a while, and Cana's card happened to be thrown out, which seems to have blown up the guild."

Riyao and Mirajane were stunned, their mouths agape, wide enough to fit an egg.

Erza were stunned when they heard this. What? Their house was bombed?

Gray sat up straight, his face looking like he'd swallowed a fly.

Lucy pointed at Cana, opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything for a long time.

Home gone?

Riyao rushed over, grabbed Cana's shoulders, and shook her.

"You idiot, how could you even throw the cards so wide and blow up the guild!"

He shook Cana's head so hard it was like a rattle drum, and the wine jug almost fell out of her arms.

"It's not my fault! You're partly to blame too, okay? If your Parasol Tree hadn't suddenly gotten entangled in the Underworld Island, would my cards have been thrown off course?"

Cana, not to be outdone, grabbed Riyao by the collar and argued her case.

The two of them just held onto each other, shaking each other like two arguing children.

Most people present were not interested in this farce and were confused, unsure of what to do next.

The guild is gone, where will we go now?

Someone slowly stood up, brushed the dust off their clothes, and walked out with their head down.

Someone exchanged a glance with the person next to them, sighed, and followed suit.

Gradually, fewer and fewer people arrived, leaving a large empty area in Riyao's manor.

Riyao released Cana, looked at the empty manor, and remained silent for a while.

The wind blew in through the door, stirring up the dust on the ground, swirling it around, and then dissipating it.

"Since things have come to this, let's eat first. I'll buy the land belonging to the guild. Come back and visit when you have time."

He clapped his hands, trying to make his tone sound lighter, but there was still an indescribable feeling in his voice.

Gray lay on the ground, staring at Riyao with dead fish eyes, and spoke in a low voice.

"Riyao, so how did Silver and the others end up?"