Happy returned to the guild in tears, feeling terribly wronged. Of course, by then, he knew he had not actually been cut off.
After he told everyone what had happened, he received no comfort at all. Instead, Natsu gave him a thorough round of mockery.
Furious, Happy unleashed a barrage of Cat Punches on Natsu. Only then did Natsu hurriedly apologize and swear that he would beat Ifrit up badly.
However, he still could not get out.
That left both Natsu and Gajeel on edge.
Natsu was not worried about everyone's safety. He trusted Laxus, and he trusted Ifrit even more—especially since Happy had been toyed with but ultimately not hurt. That proved Ifrit still had boundaries. He only played pranks. Though his standards had dropped far lower than usual, he would not harm his companions.
What had Natsu on edge was Laxus. He did not want to see Laxus keep going down the wrong path. Besides, during this whole festival, he was the only one stuck watching his companions fight while he could do nothing. For someone as impatient as him, that was unbearable.
Gajeel, meanwhile, was worried about the petrified people, especially Levy. Because of his guilt, he paid more attention to Levy. He did not have those kinds of feelings for her yet, but it was a sign—at the very least, compared to Erza, Mira, Lucy, Cana, and the others, Levy carried more weight in his heart.
He did not know Ifrit or Laxus well, nor did he trust them that much.
Just then.
The information on the barrier updated—
Elfman vs. Fried
"Not good!"
The moment they saw the update, both Makarov and Natsu were startled and could not help worrying.
Fried was no easy opponent!
East side of town.
Gray and Mirajane, who were running