Natsu's Memories

After saying that, the group each found a place on the floor to lie down.

The room quickly fell silent.

Lucy wanted to say something more to ease her nervousness.

But when she turned her head, she found that Jiang Bai, Gray, and even Natsu and Happy had all closed their eyes.

A few seconds later, rhythmic snoring could even be heard coming from Natsu's side.

Lucy was completely stunned.

Wow, so fast!

How incredibly thick-skinned are these people?!

Although the sight of those villagers turning into demons had indeed frightened her, the thought of Jiang Bai, this extraordinary monster, being in the room inexplicably calmed Lucy down.

With him around, I feel like I don't have to be afraid even if the sky falls down.

Feeling reassured, Lucy quickly drifted off to sleep.

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, everyone woke up one after another.

When they stepped out of the room, they found the villagers already waiting respectfully outside, having prepared a sumptuous breakfast.

Their attitude was even more respectful than towards their own father.

It wasn't until after breakfast, as the villagers bowed deeply in farewell and saw him off, that Jiang Bai stretched and let out a heartfelt sigh.

"Wow, the people in this village are so polite!"

Hearing this, Lucy, who was walking behind, couldn't help but mentally rant. "Isn't it because I was scared by your 'fatherly education' yesterday?!"

Outside the village lies an endless primeval forest.

Because of the legend of "Demon Island," no one has set foot here for many years. The trees grow so tall that they block out the sun, and the air is filled with a wild and untamed atmosphere.

"As expected of S-Class Mission, it feels completely different!"

Natsu sensed the dangerous aura, but instead of being afraid, he became excited, his fists bursting into flames.

"I'm about to get fired up!"

Jiang Bai glanced at him and casually said, "Are you that excited? I've done it with you when you were little."

These words seemed to trigger a switch that Natsu had to dredge up some painful memories.

He immediately recalled his childhood, when he excitedly followed Jiang Bai on S-Class Missions, only to find that he was either on a vehicle or on his way to get on one the entire time.

When he finally arrived at his destination, before he could even strike a cool pose, the monster was instantly killed by Jiang Bai, and then he was dragged back by transportation.

That wasn't a mission, that was torture!

Natsu snapped out of his painful memories, pointed at Jiang Bai, and said with a serious expression, "Jiang Bai! This time you're not allowed to take them all down by yourself. I'm going to help too!"

Jiang Bai waved his hand dismissively, "Okay, okay."

Lucy felt a chill run down her spine as she looked at the increasingly eerie surroundings. She leaned closer to Jiang Bai and whispered, "Hey, Jiang Bai, are S-Class Missions really that dangerous?"

Jiang Bai thought for a moment, "Well, it's alright, it'll all be over in a minute."

Lucy's lips twitched.

That's for you, isn't it?

"I mean, what about considering Natsu's strength?"

Natsu also looked over curiously, wanting to hear Jiang Bai's evaluation of him.

Jiang Bai glanced at Natsu: "Then it depends on Natsu."

"Why?" Lucy asked, puzzled.

"Natsu's flames are flames of emotion; the higher his emotions and the stronger his fighting spirit, the more powerful the flames become."

Jiang Bai provided a professional explanation.

"Theoretically speaking, when his emotions reach their peak, he does indeed possess S-Class, or even surpass S-Class, strength."

"Huh? This Natsu?"

Lucy gasped in disbelief as she looked the single-celled organism up and down, hands on its hips, looking smug.

"Haha, that's right!"

Upon hearing Jiang Bai's affirmation, Natsu instantly became arrogant.

"This year, I will definitely become S-Class Mage!"

No, it's me!

Gray, standing nearby, immediately retorted with a cold expression.

Just as Natsu and Gray started their usual bickering again, a sharp "squeak" suddenly came from the bushes nearby.

The next second, a huge creature suddenly leaped out of the forest!

It was a giant rat, three meters tall, covered in stiff white fur, with blood-red eyes staring intently at them. It opened its mouth full of fangs and pounced on the group!

"Oh! A mouse!"

Lucy screamed in fright and instinctively hid behind Jiang Bai.

This one is way too big! It's ridiculously big!

Just as the giant rat was about to pounce on the group, Jiang Bai, who had been lazily lounging around, suddenly sharpened his gaze.

"Roll!"

A word devoid of any emotion escaped his lips.

The voice wasn't loud, but it seemed to possess a certain magical power that made words come true.

The enormous, menacing rat froze instantly, as if a pause button had been pressed, leaving it suspended in mid-air!

Upon landing, its body began to tremble violently, and its blood-red eyes were instantly filled with boundless fear.

It stared at Jiang Bai in utter terror, as if it had seen something a thousand times more terrifying than death.

It slowly, inch by inch, retreated backward, its movements stiff and comical.

Only after retreating to a safe distance did it suddenly turn its head, let out a shrill scream, and scramble away into the depths of the jungle, disappearing instantly.

The whole process was so fast that it was impossible to react.

"Wow... that's amazing!"

Lucy stared in the direction the giant rat had disappeared, stammering, "He... he only said one word."

"Hey, that's Jiang Bai's Spiritual Pressure."

Happy flew to Lucy's head and explained in a tone that seemed completely unsurprised.

After listening, Lucy looked at Jiang Bai's calm and collected back and felt an indescribable sense of relief and peace of mind.

She felt that it was wonderful to be able to join Fairy Tail and become Jiang Bai's comrade!

Not only her, but even Natsu and Gray beside her looked at Jiang Bai with awe.

They nodded in unison, each thinking to themselves: Thank goodness they're on our side.

I can't even imagine how miserable it would be to stand on the opposite side of Jiang Bai.

"Look! There seems to be a building up ahead!"

Lucy, with her sharp eyes, pointed to the end of the jungle ahead and shouted loudly.

The group quickened their pace, passed through the last dense thicket of bushes, and suddenly the view opened up before them.

A huge, ancient building, bearing the marks of time, suddenly appeared before them.

Most of its structure is embedded in the mountain, as if it had grown out of the rock.

Filled with curiosity, the group entered the building that resembled a temple.

The interior space was exceptionally vast, and the high dome appeared unfathomable in the dim light.