Fairy Tail in Another World

The Fairy Tail guild's banquet is in full swing.

Lisanna was surrounded by a group of old friends, beaming from ear to ear.

Meanwhile, Natsu was excitedly gesturing and boasting to Macao, Wakaba, and the others about his adventures in another world.

"... Then we discovered that you all turned into Magic Crystals! Like, huge pieces, the kind that hang in the sky!"

Macao and the others were stunned, their faces filled with disbelief.

They had no memory of this event; in their minds, everything went black, and when they opened their eyes again, they were back at the guild entrance.

"Really, Natsu?"

"Of course it's true!" Natsu patted his chest to assure him.

Just then, a tall figure swayed over; it was Gildarts, who was still in the guild and hadn't left.

"Oh? What's all the commotion about?"

Jiang Bai, holding a glass of juice, leaned lazily against the bar. His eyes lit up when he saw Gildarts.

He jokingly said with a smile, "Hey, old man, you're getting old too. You didn't even know you could turn into Magic Crystal?"

"I think you should just stay in the guild and retire instead of going out anymore."

Gildarts, exasperated, retorted, "You brat, who are you calling old!"

"That brat Jiang Bai wasn't wrong this time," Makarov said slowly, taking a sip of his drink behind the bar.

"Gildarts, if you're willing to stay in the guild, I'll gladly give you the position of guild leader."

"Hey! Hey!" Gildarts waved his hands repeatedly.

"I'm still young, and I still plan to continue my unfinished 100-Year Quest. Besides, you're in such good health, you can work for at least another twenty years!"

"You bunch of brats, can't you let this old man get some rest?" Makarov complained irritably.

"Speaking of which," Macao changed the subject.

"Besides fighting wars with kingdoms, what other fun things happened to you in that world?"

"Well..." Natsu scratched his head, unsure where to begin.

"I have a record of this."

Jiang Bai snapped his fingers, pulled a palm-sized magical artifact from his pocket, and tossed it into the air.

A light screen instantly unfolded, projecting a clear image onto the wall.

"Hehe, I took some videos using magical items while I was in Edolas."

The scene begins with Gray, dressed in many layers of clothing, appearing shy and bashful.

"Pfft--Haha!"

After a three-second silence, the entire guild erupted in deafening laughter.

"What?!" Macao pointed at the screen, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

"In that world, Macao is such a gentleman?!"

In the scene, Macao from another world is politely greeting a lady.

"I'm a gentleman now," Macao muttered, but his voice sounded utterly unconvincing amidst the noise.

"Look! Cana is refusing to drink?!"

In the video, Cana of Edolas gracefully pushes away her wine glass.

"What's the point of life then?" Cana, from the guild, hugged the wine barrel and took a big gulp.

"Mirajane is still the same gentle person, hasn't changed at all," a new member remarked.

"No," an old man next to him patted him on the shoulder.

"That's because you joined the guild a bit late; you don't know what Mirajane was like before."

The scene shifts to Natsu, dressed in a racing suit, confidently driving a cool race car at high speed on the track.

"Wow! So handsome!"

"As expected of me!" Natsu himself proudly put his hands on his hips.

Lucy asked, "Jiang Bai, when was this filmed? I didn't know about it."

"Then don't worry about it!"

The next second, when Natsu from Edolas got out of the car, he instantly transformed from a handsome racer into a trembling coward.

"Haha! Coward!" Gray pointed at Natsu, laughing the loudest.

He still vividly remembered how enthusiastically Natsu had mocked him just moments before.

"What did you say! Exhibitionist! Want to fight?!" Natsu instantly bristled.

Unsurprisingly, the two started fighting again.

The video continued playing.

Mirajane watched for a while, then suddenly asked curiously, "Where's Xiao Bai? Isn't there Xiao Bai in that world?"

"Of course!" Happy flew up from above Natsu's head and answered eagerly.

"Jiang Bai was the strongest in that world too!"

"As expected of Jiang Bai."

"Indeed, that's true in every world."

The guild members nodded in agreement, completely believing it.

Just then, someone with a loud, curious voice suddenly shouted:

"So, in that other world, Jiang Bai also had two lovers, Mirajane and Erza?"

This question instantly silenced the entire guild.

All eyes turned to Happy, awaiting its answer.

No, that's not it.

Happy shook his little paws and, with a gossipy look on his face, dropped a bombshell.

"Jiang Bai in that world didn't have a girlfriend, but Mira and Erza both liked him."

"Furthermore, based on our observations, Jiang Bai from that world probably also likes them, but they've never confirmed their relationship."

These words immediately caused an uproar in the guild.

"Isn't this a jerk?"

"Yeah, what's the point of keeping them hanging on like that!"

"No, no, no, it's also possible that this person is too indecisive and can't make up their mind."

"Scumbag!"

"He's a total jerk!"

Listening to the guild members' merciless criticism of his counterpart, Jiang Bai was not angry at all. Instead, he cleared his throat and spoke with a smug look on his face.

"Doesn't this just demonstrate my devotion and decisiveness?"

Mirajane and Erza rolled their eyes at him simultaneously, inwardly complaining in unison.

Having two girlfriends, how dare you call yourself devoted and decisive?

The other members of the guild also cast disdainful glances at Jiang Bai.

The banquet on the first floor of the guild had long since descended into chaos and debauchery.

Meanwhile, on the relatively quiet second floor, Panther Lily, who had just officially joined Fairy Tail, was leaning on the railing with Gajeel, watching the carnival below that resembled a disaster scene.

Panther Lily looked down at Natsu and Gray wrestling, then at Cana drinking heavily from a barrel of sake, and couldn't help but sigh.

"What a lively guild!"

"Well," Gajeel leaned against the railing, chewing on a piece of iron plate he'd somehow acquired.

"It's definitely better than the guild I joined before."

Gajeel remembered the former Phantom Lord.

That guild was all about cold, impersonal quests and endless brawls.

But here... although there's still arguing and fighting, it feels completely different.

"Speaking of which," Panther Lily suddenly changed the subject, looking at Gajeel beside him,

"I've heard that you're not very popular in this guild."

Gajeel's action of gnawing on the iron plate suddenly stopped.

His expression froze for a moment.

Unwelcome?

That's perfectly normal.

He hadn't forgotten that he was the one who smashed Fairy Tail guild to pieces back then.

Although I am now a member of the guild thanks to the old man Makarov for taking me in despite past grievances, that estrangement cannot be easily eliminated with just one or two battles.

Most people in the guild still looked at him with wariness and distance.

Not to mention...

In Gajeel's mind, the serious face of Chairman Makarov and the top-secret mission known only to the two of them flashed by.

--As a double agent sent by Fairy Tail, he infiltrates "Raven Tail" once again.

That dark guild founded by the old man's own son, Ivan Dreyar.

Until that cancer is completely eradicated, this mission is under the highest level of secrecy.

He had to maintain his aloof, unsociable, and even somewhat annoying image within the guild to lull potential future enemies into a false sense of security.

These are hardships I can't explain to anyone.

Even the partner I've chosen right in front of me.

Gajeel had no words to express his suffering. Facing Panther Lily's pure and curious eyes, he remained silent for a long time before finally managing to squeeze out a dry, unspoken sentence.

"There's a reason for that."