Lucy

Lucy had a favorable impression of Fairy Tail, but it was pieced together from various newspaper reports—nothing more than a maiden's wishful, beautiful fantasy.

In reality, less than ten minutes after being invited into the guild by Mira, the lofty image Fairy Tail held in the girl's heart shattered into pieces from sheer shock.

A pervert who stripped in the blink of an eye.

A cat that could not only fly but also talk.

A girl chugging straight from a half-man-tall barrel of booze.

A frivolous pretty boy with his arms around two women, oozing womanizer vibes.

A muscle-bound man with spiky hair shouting "Manly!" at the top of his lungs.

A cherry-haired reckless creature with no sense of boundaries who immediately asked if she was strong.

Lucy could actually accept all these oddities—after all, it was a magic guild, so having some weirdos was normal, and they were friendly to her.

But... why did they suddenly start fighting?!

A chair slammed heavily into the wall and splintered apart on impact, the force behind it terrifying the blonde girl Lucy, who was hiding under a table, trembling.

In just a few minutes, the guild hall had been ravaged into a mess, littered with broken tables and chairs and fallen mages, as if a terrible storm had swept through.

How could people start a fight over someone saying "What are you looking at?" and another replying "Looking at you, so what?"—and then have it instantly spread to the entire hall?

Were you all born brawlers or something...

Lucy's rose-tinted glasses shattered completely, her fantasy crushed.

This was nothing like the "Fairy Tail" she had imagined—it was worlds apart.

Mira looked at the blonde girl curled up by the table leg and kindly reassured her, "Don't be scared, Lucy. They're always like this. It'll be over soon."

Lucy let out a dry laugh, not knowing how to respond.

But then she noticed that the only table still intact in the entire hall was the one above her head, and the three people sitting around it—Mira included—were among the few in the hall not joining the brawl.

Only after Mira repeatedly promised nothing would happen did the blonde girl cautiously crawl out from under the table.

Sitting beside Mira, Lucy got a clear look at the other two.

One was a spirited girl with crimson hair, clad in knight's armor, lost in thought and seemingly unaware of the chaos around her.

The other was a handsome white-haired boy, slumped over the table, yawning endlessly, completely indifferent to his companions' heated fight.

"Not what you imagined in reality, is it, Miss Lucy Heartfilia?"

Called out by her name, Lucy looked at the white-haired boy in surprise, then thought of something and reached for the key pouch at her waist. "Could you be Mr. Noah! My father told me to thank you again on his behalf."

"Just call me Noah."

Waving his hand, Noah propped his chin up. "Forget the thanks. I just mentioned it offhand anyway. What Mr. Jude did had nothing to do with me."

Lucy wanted to say more, but a figure suddenly slammed onto the table.

Though seeing stars from Elfman's fist, Natsu was still full of energy and even had the nerve to invite the newly met blonde girl. "Lucy, wanna join in? Fighting is our guild's tradition!"

What kind of weird tradition is that!!

Lucy clearly wanted to refuse, but a sudden chill made her shut her mouth.

Sensing the ripple of aura from the red-haired girl, Noah and Mira exchanged knowing, gleeful smiles.

Poor Natsu—you've awakened Titania!

Erza, who had been lost in thought, finally snapped back to reality. Hearing the sounds of fighting around her, a trace of anger appeared on her face.

"You lot... that's enough!"

Her voice wasn't loud, but strangely, every single person in the guild heard it, and every single one of them wore an expression of fear.

To the guild members, Erza's authority was no less than that of the master, Makarov himself!

Natsu, closest to Erza, was already covered in nervous sweat. If his legs weren't trembling so badly they wouldn't obey him, he'd probably be on his knees sliding over in apology.

"E-Erza, let me explain..."

"Explain what?!"

Erza furrowed her brow and swept her gaze across the hall. No one dared meet her eyes wherever she looked, her domineering demeanor on full display.

Noticing Lucy, Erza held back from going on a rampage and instead addressed everyone. "Thirty seconds. If the guild isn't back to normal... your fate will be the same as Natsu's!"

At those words, Natsu sensed disaster, but it was too late—Erza's sheathed sword had already struck him on the head.

Watching Natsu roll off the table like a limp rag, the hall's occupants sprang into action like they'd been injected with adrenaline: picking up debris, cleaning the floor, hauling new tables and chairs from the storeroom, and some exhibitionist even tossing Natsu out with the trash...

The whole process was seamless, with clear division of labor, almost pleasing to watch—efficiency was the name of the game.

Half a minute later, the entire first floor of the guild hall was spotless, leaving Lucy dumbfounded. Just how many times had they fought for these people to be this practiced...

Noah yawned again. "Lucy, do you still want to join our guild now?"

After what just happened, Noah figured this young lady would have lost interest. Sure, Jude had treated her poorly before, but she'd still been well-fed and well-cared for in life, never exposed to violence.

But Lucy didn't even think before giving a firm answer. "I've decided! I'm joining!"

Starting a fight at the drop of a hat—most people really couldn't handle that kind of scene, but Lucy happened to be one of the few exceptions.

Locked up at home by her father since childhood, Lucy had always longed to reach out to the outside world, but back then her relationship with her father was terrible, and she could only satisfy her fantasies about the world beyond by reading what was in the newspapers.

Gradually, a magic guild called "Fairy Tail" came into Lucy's view.

Although the newspaper articles about them were always tied to the word "destruction," they never held back on praising their strength and adventurous spirit.

Lucy also yearned to go on adventures like Fairy Tail; she didn't want to be a caged songbird—she wanted to fly freely.

To that end, Lucy had even prepared to run away from home. She wanted to go join that Fairy Tail and start her own adventure-filled life.

But who would have thought that her father, who had always cared only about money, would suddenly turn back into the man he was before her mother died, apologizing to Lucy for everything he had done to her over the years, with Rena by his side.

Overnight, the father-daughter relationship eased.

Jude, who had once hated magic, not only didn't oppose Lucy using it, but even agreed with Rena when he heard she wanted to join Fairy Tail.

Staring at the pink Fairy Mark on the back of her right hand, Lucy suddenly felt dazed. The experiences of this period made her wonder if she was even in a dream.

If it was a dream, then she hoped it would go on forever.

Somehow, drowsiness surged over her, and Lucy fell asleep slumped over the table.

The entire guild hall was a mess of people lying around in all directions, including Erza and Mira—everyone had eerily fallen into slumber.

Except for Noah.

Such a powerful sleep magic. An enemy?

Watching the Mysterious Black-Robed Figure push open the guild's front door, carrying five magic staves on his back—someone he had seen once before—

Noah slowly stood up and put on the Blast Gauntlets.