Two Years Later

The banquet began soon after.

The entire guild hall was filled with singing and dancing, creating a lively atmosphere, with many people using their magic to add to the fun.

Just as Jiang Bai was holding a glass of juice and eating meat with gusto, a figure suddenly sat down next to him.

Mirajane didn't speak, but simply stared at him quietly with her beautiful eyes.

Jiang Bai immediately felt sweat pouring down his back. He put down the grilled meat in his hand and tried to explain incoherently.

"Ah, Mira, this time, that thing..."

He really didn't know how to start the conversation.

After all, they eliminated it themselves.

In terms of sheer destructive power, Mirajane is undoubtedly superior.

But when it comes to willpower and overall balance, Erza is still the best.

It was that slight difference in willpower that allowed Erza to ultimately prevail.

"Hmph! I'm not blaming you, what are you afraid of?" Mirajane interrupted him.

"Oh my, our Mira is just so understanding."

Jiang Bai immediately used the pole to climb up, a relieved smile on his face.

Although she only chatted with Jiang Bai for a couple of minutes, Mirajane's deep-seated resentment at defeat dissipated considerably. After all, half of her reasons for wanting to become stronger were because of the man in front of her.

"You don't need to tell me." She pouted and turned her head away.

Just then, Erza also came over with a large plate of strawberry cake and naturally sat down on the other side of Jiang Bai.

"What, little punk girl, you're not going to lose confidence just because of one failure, are you?"

Erza ate her cake while speaking in her characteristically sharp-tongued but kind-hearted way, though her eyes couldn't hide her concern for her rival and ally.

"Tch, I don't need you, armored woman, to worry about me," Mirajane retorted immediately. "Next year, I'll definitely be the one promoted to S-Class."

After saying that, she suddenly turned her head and looked at Jiang Bai with a slight smile.

"Speaking of which, Jiang Bai, didn't I perform better this time?"

The smile was sweet, but Jiang Bai clearly felt a small hand quietly placed on his waist and pinch it hard.

"I'm curious too," Erza's voice came from the other side.

Then Jiang Bai felt a heavy foot clad in armor on the back of his foot.

Cold sweat instantly trickled down Jiang Bai's forehead.

Just a second before this chaotic scene was about to erupt.

"Boom--!"

A figure fell from the sky like a meteorite, crashing heavily onto the table in front of the three people, sending wood chips and food flying.

"Damn ice block man! Behold my Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu scrambled to his feet from the rubble and charged toward Gray, who was not far away.

Immediately afterwards, the entire guild inexplicably erupted into a brawl.

Erza didn't have time to be her disciplinary committee chairperson this time either. She and Mirajane were facing off across the Jiang Bai, their gazes clashing fiercely in the air.

Jiang Bai, taking advantage of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, quietly slipped out of his seat and escaped this place of trouble.

Time flies, and two years have passed in the blink of an eye. It is now the year X783.

The Fairy Tail guild was as noisy as ever.

In X782, Mirajane passed the S-Class promotion exam without any doubt, becoming the guild's second female S-Class Mage after Erza.

As for the examiner that year, it was still that unfortunate man who had been captured by Makarov to work as a laborer— Jiang Bai.

That afternoon, the guild's doors were pushed open, and Jiang Bai and Erza walked in one after the other.

Mirajane, who was drinking at the bar, spotted them immediately.

She put down her cup, crossed her arms, and a familiar, slightly teasing smile appeared on her lips.

"Hey, isn't this our 'Infinity' sir?"

Mirajane's voice wasn't loud, but it was just loud enough for the two people who walked in to hear, "Just got back from a mission and couldn't wait to go on a date with this armored woman?"

Jiang Bai didn't retort as usual. He just waved wearily and walked straight to his own sofa in the corner, where he sat down without saying a word.

Erza, also looking serious, silently walked to the bar and ordered a glass of water.

Jiang Bai sighed and replied, "It wasn't a date; we just happened to be passing by and did something."

"Oh? What is it?" Mirajane's curiosity was piqued.

"It's nothing," Jiang Bai leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes. "Just wiped out a foolish dark guild."

Mirajane's smile slowly faded.

She keenly sensed that something was off about the two of them today.

Normally, even if Jiang Bai was lazy, he would always respond to his own teasing with a few words.

Erza should also be in high spirits after completing the mission.

But now, an indescribable somberness and gloom shrouded both of them.

The feeling wasn't like the relief of just completing a mission, but more like the exhaustion of returning from some hell.

Mirajane didn't ask any further questions, but simply watched them silently.

It wasn't until late at night, when the guild members had gradually dispersed, that she found Makarov, who was preparing to go upstairs to rest.

"President," Mirajane stopped him, "Can I ask you something?"

"Oh? It's Mira. What's up?" Makarov, somewhat surprised.

Mirajane hesitated for a moment before asking, "Why... why does Jiang Bai hate the Dark Guild so much? He and Erza seemed very strange when they came back today."

Makarov's smile vanished, replaced by a heavy expression of reminiscence.

He sighed and led Mirajane to the office.

"Besides me, only they and the others in the guild know about this."

Makarov's voice turned low.

He told Mirajane a long-buried story, a story about childhood, home, and blood and tears.

It's about a dark sorcerer known as the "Tower of Heaven," about a group of children enslaved by a dark guild, and about a desperate rebellion.

Makarov told her that Jiang Bai and Erza's hometown was destroyed by the Dark Guild.

(Does the Tower of Heaven count as a dark guild?)

Together they carried the corpses of their hometown, struggled in despair, and finally escaped with their lives.

That experience left an indelible scar on their hearts, forging a deep-seated hatred for the Dark Guild, especially for those scoundrels who trafficked people and enslaved children.

After hearing all this, Mirajane fell completely silent.

She finally understood why Jiang Bai would flash with such chilling coldness every time the Dark Guild was mentioned.

She finally understood why there was a profound bond between Jiang Bai and Erza that transcended the boundaries of companionship and romance, a bond that no one else could break through.

Because they were in hell, the only reliance they had on each other, their backs to each other.

Mirajane felt a sharp, piercing pain in her heart.

That wasn't jealousy, but a deep sense of heartache.

She walked out of the office, looked at the cold moon outside the window, and unconsciously clenched her fists.

It turns out that beneath his lazy and carefree exterior lay such a heavy past.

Mirajane's eyes became more resolute than ever before.

"Jiang Bai..."

She murmured the name softly.

"Since this is your pain, from now on, I will help you share it."

"I will personally destroy all the darkness that causes you pain."