Happy: It Looks Like There's Something Between Them

"That's the person Makarov thinks highly of."

"A candidate for the next guild master."

"Deception magic, deceiving the five senses, killing without a sound. What a truly terrifying magic."

"He looks a bit different from other kids."

"That's why he's suited for that position."

"Leaving his gentleness for his family and his coldness for his enemies—he seems to draw that line much clearer than Makarov."

"Still, I feel like someone like that must have some darkness in his heart."

"Makarov will be able to handle it."

In the distance, many guild masters whispered among themselves.

"Ifrit, when did you get here?" Natsu asked.

"Just arrived."

Ifrit walked over to the others, leaned his cane against his leg, and pulled two cards from his hands. With a gentle flick of his wrist, two milk teas appeared.

"Please have these, ladies. They're still warm."

"Thank you," Lucy and Erza accepted them.

"Where's mine?" Natsu said.

"Forgot."

"You bastard!" Natsu flared up at once.

"Alright, alright, you can drink mine."

Lucy didn't want Natsu to start a fight with Ifrit in front of so many guild masters—or more accurately, to make a fool of himself being played round and round by Ifrit. So she hurriedly hugged Natsu's arm and handed over the milk tea she had already taken two sips from.

"Hmph, idiot Ifrit." With a dissatisfied expression, Natsu bit down on the straw, which still had a trace of glistening liquid on it. It was too late when Lucy tried to take it back, and her face instantly turned red the moment she saw him take a big gulp.

Click. Ifrit moved extremely fast and snapped a photo.

"Hey, hey, what are you taking pictures of?!" Lucy panicked, her voice cracking slightly.

"It's sweet, you know," Ifrit teased with a deadpan expression.

"What are you talking about..." Lucy quickly let go of her hold and moved far away from Natsu.

Ifrit smiled. "I meant the milk tea."

"Yeah, it's sweet!" Natsu grinned, baring his large front teeth.

Covering her mouth with a cat paw, Happy made a comical expression and said with a trilled tongue, "There's something between them~"

"Ugh..." Lucy let out a soft moan, covering her face with both hands. Through the gaps in her fingers, one could see that her face was as red as an apple.

"We shouldn't just toss this thing around." Erza picked up the flute.

"Huh?" She let out a puzzled sound, wondering why she didn't sense any terrifyingly deterrent magic power.

"Where is it, Ifrit?" Makarov looked at Ifrit.

Ifrit took out Lullaby and handed it to Makarov. "Guild Master, it's right here."

Seeing the flute, Erza frowned and asked, "If that's the case, why didn't you take it out earlier?"

Ifrit said, "If I'd taken it out earlier, there wouldn't have been a reason to fight. A dark guild like Eisenwald is better off wiped out completely."

If Ifrit had handed over the flute the moment he got it...

Then Fairy Tail would have lost the legitimate justification to fight Eisenwald, meaning it would at best be "crushing the evil guild's plot" rather than "annihilating a dark guild in the middle of executing an evil plan."

"Besides, it's a rare opportunity for everyone to have a chance—a chance to fight an entire dark guild. That combat experience is very precious," Ifrit added.

Erza didn't pursue the matter further, clearly agreeing with what Ifrit had said.

"Wait, you bastard, just when did you switch it?!" Gray yelled.

"Right at the beginning," Ifrit said.

Gray froze for a moment, remembering that the very beginning was...

On the train when they set out!

At that time, Natsu had been left behind by them, and later they learned he had a fight with Kageyama. Ifrit had been on that train the whole time!

So the flute had been swapped right from the start!

Which meant!

There hadn't actually been any threat at all!

No wonder this guy had been so completely calm the entire day!

"You guys..." Gray wanted to get angry but had no reason to, since what Ifrit had just said made total sense. Helplessly, he said, "Even though this situation was handled well, it still makes me want to beat the crap out of you!"

"Don't even think about it. You were running around using magic all over the underground passage and almost gave me a cold."

"You're still talking!" Hearing that, Gray couldn't take it. "Isn't that all your fault?!"

"Sorry, sorry. Let's take this as an apology." Ifrit pulled out a card, flicked it with his finger, and it turned into two tickets.

"What's this?" Curiously, Gray reached out and took one.

"Natsu." Ifrit handed one to Natsu as well.

"Alex's Machine Exhibition!!!" the two of them shouted in unison.

They made identical motions—pinching the tickets in their right hands, holding both hands against their chests, leaning their upper bodies forward, and widening their eyes so that they radiated four-pointed-star laser-like light, while their butts wagged back and forth behind them like a puppy's tail.

"What on earth is that?" Lucy couldn't understand how there could be something that Natsu liked to such a degree.

"It's an exhibition of some interesting machines," Ifrit explained with a smile, then looked at Natsu and Gray. "Let's all go check it out together when the time comes."

"Ifrit, you're amazing! You even managed to buy tickets like these! I used to only be able to see them in magazines!" Natsu gave him a thumbs-up.

Ifrit smiled faintly.

Buying these three tickets was his limit; he had used some connections among the nobility and spent quite a bit of money, too.

But being able to experience an interesting machine exhibition made it all worth it!

"Hmph, I forgive you," Gray said proudly.

Ifrit looked at Lucy and apologized sincerely. "Sorry, Lucy. These tickets were bought before you joined the guild."

"It's fine. I'm not really that interested in machines and stuff," Lucy waved a hand.

"What about me? I want to go too!" Happy asked in a hurry.

"You're a cat. You probably don't need a ticket," Ifrit replied.

"That's great!" Happy grew excited as well, continuously repeating in his mouth, "Machine exhibition! Machine exhibition!"

"Happy!" Natsu called out.

"Aye!" Happy answered.

With perfect coordination, the man and the cat struck robot poses, moving with stiff limbs while imitating robot sounds from their mouths, "Robot—I am a robot—"

"Hahaha." Seeing the man and the cat clowning around, everyone burst out laughing.

"Alright," Makarov said. "Kids, you've fought all day and you're tired. Go find an inn and get some rest."

"Yes, Guild Master." Erza's face showed signs of exhaustion. Just her traveling today—using the magic four-wheeled vehicle to race across several cities—had already consumed a massive amount of her magic power.

Lucy's body swayed as well. Her magic power had bottomed out long ago, and now that she was completely relaxed, all the fatigue instantly exploded forth!

"Lucy, are you alright?!" Playing the robot, Natsu happened to walk right up beside Lucy. Seeing her body sway, he reacted with cat-like reflexes, grabbed her arm in a flash, and steadied her.

"Lucy has used up a lot of magic power. Natsu, if you still have the energy, carry her down the mountain on your back," Ifrit said with a smile.

"Eh, eh, eh? No, no need—" Lucy hurriedly said, her face flushing red.

"Natsu, do you not even have the strength to walk anymore?" Ifrit provoked him.

"No way!" Natsu took the bait on the spot, directly hoisting Lucy onto his back and locking her springy legs with arms like iron tongs.

"Ugh..." The blush on Lucy's face had barely faded before it crept right back up. Feeling the amused gazes of the guild masters, she practically wanted to die of embarrassment, but lacking the strength to fight back against Natsu, she could only bury her head in his scarf and say softly, "Idiot."

"Youth is truly wonderful." Ifrit pulled out his camera and went click.

"You're only a year older than Natsu, you know," Gray eyed him sideways.

Swish, swish, swish.

The bald, fat crossdresser wearing little angel wings pinched his legs together and used strange little mincing steps to arrive right in front of Ifrit almost instantly, speaking in a voice so sweet it was sickening. "Does little Ifrit want a girlfriend, too? Our guild has plenty of them!"