The Beginning of the Dream

In X784, the sea breeze at Hargeon port carried the salty scent of the sea, mixed with the sweet aroma of coconuts from the street stalls, and rustled the palm leaves.

The warm golden sunlight spilled onto the blue satin-like sea, shattering into millions of dancing stars, and every breath was filled with relaxed comfort.

The queue at the "Sea Salt Cream" dessert shop at the alley entrance stretched out like a lazy snake.

The shop meanders from the entrance to the dock, where sea breeze cakes adorned with silver foil-like frosting waft out of the glass window, their milky aroma attracting sailors and young girls passing by to stop and admire them.

At the end of the line Riyao looked like a reed that had lost its soul; his shoulders slumped almost to the ground, and he kicked the pebbles on the ground listlessly. His lifeless appearance was completely out of place with the cheerful crowd around him.

It's all tears when I think about it. Last night, I got carried away and wore Mirajane's favorite dress, and accidentally tore it.

He still remembers Mirajane's expression at that moment, first smiling gently as he asked.

"Riyao, do you think this dress looks good?"

The next second her eyes turned as cold as ice, she grabbed a rolling pin and hit him on the head three times, giving him two black eyes.

Mirajane stood with her hands on her hips, her fingertips poking his forehead, her sweet tone laced with an undeniable threat.

Riyao's face turned pale. This shop only sells thirty servings a day, and the line is even more frantic than the mages in the guild vying for missions.

He got up before dawn, spread his demon wings and flew over, but still ended up at the tail.

As S-Class Mage of the largest dark guild on the Ishgar Continent, how can the guild that Zeref invested in not be considered a dark guild? Hehe.

Riyao decided to disregard martial ethics and secretly release his magical pressure. The people in line felt a bit tired, and the effect was outstanding. Riyao quickly moved to the front of the line.

Even so, he still felt bored, and his mind uncontrollably longed for his old cell phone. If he could watch short videos and play games, why would he be sitting here daydreaming?

Virgo held up a large black umbrella, which steadily sheltered him from the slanting sunlight.

She still had that expressionless face, but her fingertips twitched slightly, her eyes glancing at the restless crowd not far away, and her calm voice carried a hint of barely perceptible curiosity.

"Boss, it looks like there's something interesting to watch over there."

Riyao struggled to lift his head, the dark circles under his eyes resembling panda eyes smudged with ink. Mirajane said, "The reflection must be profound enough."

He wasn't allowed to use Healing Magic to get rid of his dark circles, but he stubbornly walked half a street with that disfigured look.

He yawned, tears blurring his vision, and mumbled, "What's all the commotion?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a loud shout from a young boy rang out.

"Igneel! Where are you?!"

The crowd parted instantly, and a boy with pink hair rushed out like a cannonball, his face flushed red, his eyes wide open, his hands gripping the shoulders of passersby as he looked around. His recklessness could be felt from a distance.

Upon hearing this, Riyao sighed, his head drooped again, and he continued poking at the ant hole with his finger.

"Here it comes, the plot has finally started."

He muttered to himself as he looked at the ants in the hole.

"That idiot is still looking for Igneel; he's going to get beaten up by the female fans in a minute."

He propped himself up on his knees, dusted off his pants, and moved closer to Virgo's umbrella with a mischievous grin.

"Virgo, how about I find you a new owner?"

Virgo frowned almost imperceptibly, and gripped the umbrella handle slightly tighter.

She remained expressionless, but there was a hint of barely perceptible grievance in her tone.

"Boss, is there something I didn't do well enough?"

The excitement over there had reached its climax: Natsu rushed into the crowd and bumped right into Bora striking a cool pose. Pora's cheeks scrunched up like a little bun as he muttered something disdainfully.

Who are you?!

Bora was tossing her greasy hair, preparing to introduce herself, when she turned around and found that Natsu had already disappeared. That idiot was only focused on finding the dragon and hadn't paid any attention to her at all.

Bora's fanatical female fans went wild, screaming as they chased after Natsu, pinning him to the ground and giving him a sound beating. Natsu struggled and screamed.

"Hey! What are you doing? I'm looking for Igneel!"

Bora gracefully raised her hand, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

"Let him go, everyone. He doesn't seem to mean any harm."

The female fans immediately stopped.

Bora handed over an autograph, brimming with confidence.

"Go show it off to your friends!"

Natsu swung the autograph away, and it fell to the ground with a "thud." He stuck out his tongue.

"No way!"

After saying that, he turned and ran away, which angered his female fans, who then chased after him.

Before long, Natsu was beaten black and blue and was thrown into a roadside garbage dump like a sack of potatoes. He crawled out with a banana peel on his head, cursing under his breath.

"That wretched woman! She actually hit me!"

Happy appeared out of nowhere, perched on his shoulder, and laughed while flapping his wings.

"Natsu so stupid~"

The crowd dispersed quickly. After Bora and her female fans left, a girl in a blue and white dress walked over.

"Thank you just now."

It was Lucy; the sunlight fell on her golden hair, like a layer of scattered gold.

At the alley entrance, Riyao carried the small cakes he had just bought. The box, tied with a blue ribbon, emitted the aroma of cream and sea salt. He leaned against the wall, pointed at Lucy with his chin, and raised an eyebrow at Virgo.

"What do you think? This girl is a full-time Celestial Spirit Mage, she's a perfect match for you."

Virgo squinted at Lucy for a few seconds, tapped her chin with her fingers, and gave the most objective assessment.

"He has little magic power and looks rather dim-witted. If possible, I'd still prefer to stay by the boss's side."

She wasn't wrong. Celestial Spirit's strength is closely related to its wielder. In the hands of Riyao, she could easily defeat Natsu. But if it were Lucy now, the situation would be reversed.

Riyao rolled his eyes, thinking to himself, "Virgo is honest after all." He stuffed the crystal ball into his shirt pocket, a calculating smile playing on his lips. This recording would be a good tool to "threaten" Virgo later.

To express her gratitude, Lucy said, "Let me treat you to dinner!"

Natsu's eyes lit up, and he grabbed Happy and rushed over, completely unaware of the two tails following behind them.

Riyao followed slowly behind, pretending to adjust his beach shirt while muttering to himself.

"I'm not here to watch the drama unfold; I'm here to make sure Natsu doesn't cause trouble for the guild. Yes, that's right."

Virgo followed beside him, holding an umbrella, her expressionless face clearly saying, "I don't believe you for a second."

Riyao sent Virgo back to the Celestial Spirit World and entered the restaurant.

Inside the restaurant, Natsu and Happy were engrossed in showing off. Natsu's mouth was stuffed full of seafood rice, his cheeks puffed out like a hamster's, Happy was stuffing a plate of dried fish into his mouth without even lifting his head.

Lucy placed her hands on her chest, her eyes sparkling, her voice filled with longing.

"My dream is to join a guild and become a fully-fledged mage..."

Riyao had already slipped away to sit opposite them, and casually picked up the menu and ordered a bunch of things: grilled squid, cheese lobster, cream soup, and three servings of mango pudding.

He grabbed a glistening chicken leg, took a big bite, sauce smeared on the corner of his mouth, and gave a thumbs-up while laughing.

"Little Lucy, that's so true! I applaud your dream!"

Lucy's self-introduction came to an abrupt end. She stared wide-eyed at the person who had suddenly appeared, her mouth agape in an "O" shape, pointing at him but unable to utter a word for a long time.

"Hey! Who are you? Why are you joining in so naturally?!"

"And what are you doing eating my food?!"

What's with those dark circles under your eyes? Do you think you're a panda?!

She rattled off a barrage of complaints, her cheeks puffed out like a fluffy kitten.

Riyao secretly curled the corners of his mouth. This was exactly the feeling! Having a tsukkomi (straight man) around was just too much fun! He pretended not to hear and continued to gnaw on his chicken leg, deliberately making a "crunch crunch" sound.

Natsu and Happy finally snapped out of their daze. Natsu looked up, the cheese abalone in his mouth falling onto the table with a "plop," and mumbled, "... Radiance..."

Happy dropped the dried fish from his mouth and shouted, "Riyao!"

Riyao rolled his eyes, wiped his mouth with a tissue, and tapped his finger on the table.

"Can you swallow the food in your mouth before you talk, you idiot?"

He turned to Lucy, flashed a handsome smile, and extended his hand. "Hello, Little Lucy, I'm their senior, just call me Riyao."

Although the dark circles under her eyes were a bit unsightly, Lucy was still momentarily stunned by her bright, sparkling eyes.

Natsu swallowed the food in his mouth, his lips greasy, and leaned closer to Riyao, asking curiously, "Riyao! What are you doing here?"

Happy, clutching another dried fish, wagged his tail. He was just a kitten and had no interest in their conversation.

Riyao blinked his panda eyes, picked up a piece of cheesecake, took a bite, and mumbled, "Um, of course I came... to buy little cakes for Mira..."

Lucy glanced at the man who appeared to be handsome, instinctively rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and scoffed, "Is buying small cakes such a normal thing?"

She felt that the name "Mira" sounded familiar.

Natsu's arms were covered by his short sleeves, Happy's backpack concealed his back, and Riyao's chest was also completely hidden by his clothes. The two of them and the cat managed to conceal their Fairy Tail crests.

Just then, the waiter came over with a pile of food, the plates stacked up like a small mountain.

Lucy's eyes widened even more, and her voice trembled.

"This isn't from our area, is it? We didn't order... right?"

Riyao raised his hand like a well-behaved student, tilted his head, and shouted in a childish tone.

"Meow! Just a little meow!"

Lucy couldn't hold back her rant any longer. She jumped up, pointed at Riyao, and roared.

"What the heck?! Why are you ordering food so familiarly?! My wallet?!"

The surrounding customers all looked over; Lucy's face turned bright red, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Riyao, Natsu, and Happy completely ignored her, continuing to show off their food: Natsu shoveled the food from his plate into his mouth, Happy flew to the chandelier with dried fish to eat, Riyao gnawed on a lobster, his lips smeared with sauce, looking completely satisfied.

When it came time to pay, Lucy was pale, clutching her wallet tightly. The cashier was pulling on her money, but she wouldn't let go, as if they were in a tug-of-war.

"Why did this happen..." Her voice trembled with sobs, and tears finally streamed down her face.