(Heartfelt thanks to 'Wufeng Haotian', 'Na Bangbangtang', 'Xianyu Laike', 'You Bi Ji Yue', 'Yuedu Pi Qingchun', 'Invincible Origin', 'Heiyan★Yu', 'World's End Ballad', and 'Dongfang Wansui' for their rewards!)
"By the way."
At that moment, Makarov suddenly changed the subject.
"Speaking of S-Class Mages, that thing this year should be coming up soon, right?"
"That thing?" Noah froze slightly.
"That thing?" Erza and Gildarts were also stunned for a moment, but then they seemed to remember something and suddenly understood.
"So another year has passed." Erza sighed.
"Time really flies."
"S-Class Mage, huh?" Gildarts sounded somewhat nostalgic.
"I haven't been at the guild for a long time either. If the Guild Master hadn't brought it up, I might have forgotten."
It was not just Erza and Gildarts. Even Mira and Lisanna, who were working behind the bar, seemed to realize what Makarov meant by that thing.
"This year's is coming up soon too." Mira smiled as gently as ever.
"Natsu and Gray should be very happy, right?"
"And Elf has apparently been looking forward to it as well." Lisanna said with a smile.
"Besides, our guild has recruited many capable newcomers this year. It'll definitely be lively."
Seeing that Erza, Gildarts, Mira, and even Lisanna understood Makarov's meaning, Noah grew curious.
"What exactly is that thing?"
As soon as he said that, Makarov, Erza, Gildarts, Mira, Lisanna, and the others all froze before finally realizing something.
"Come to think of it, Noah left the guild for quite a while after obtaining Gildarts' Crush Magic years ago." Erza reminded them.
"In order to fully control Crush Magic, Noah trained outside for four years. Then he went to Tenrou Island and received the First Master's guidance for another two years. He only returned recently, and it hasn't even been half a year yet."