The Youngest S-Class Mage

The doors of the Fairy Tail guildhall burst open.

"We're back!"

At that shout, the entire guild erupted into cheers.

Everyone turned to look at the group walking in. At the front was Lu Chongwei, wrapped in a few bandages but looking full of energy.

"Lu Chongwei! How did it go? What was the result?"

Wakaba was the first to rush over, his pipe nearly slipping from his hand.

Macao came over too, looking eager. "Did you pass? Did you?"

Before Lu Chongwei could answer, Makarov, following behind, jumped onto the bar, cleared his throat, and announced in a booming voice, his face glowing with pride:

"Listen up, you brats!"

"This year's S-Class Mage Promotion Trial winner is—Lu Chongwei!!!"

"And he's also the youngest S-Class Mage in the history of our guild!"

Silence.

The guild fell quiet for a second.

Then—

"Boom!!!"

The cheering nearly lifted the roof.

"That's amazing, Lu Chongwei!"

"I knew you could do it, kid!"

"An S-Class Mage at thirteen! That's a record-breaker!"

Everyone crowded around and tossed Lu Chongwei high into the air, their faces beaming with joy.

Erza stood outside the crowd, watching Lu Chongwei surrounded by everyone. Even her usually stern face softened into a warm smile.

"Congratulations, Lu Chongwei."

She stepped forward and spoke sincerely.

"You're really strong. But I won't fall behind, either. Next year, I'm going for S-Class!"

"Haha, I'm sure you can do it, Erza."

Lu Chongwei smiled back.

Just then—

"Cana, where's Laxus? I don't see him."

Macao looked around, asking curiously.

Cana was chugging from a barrel of booze. At the question, she wiped the drink from the corner of her mouth and pointed upstairs.

"He went to bandage his wounds as soon as he got back. Then he said he was too tired and went straight home to sleep."

Cana sighed, her expression complicated.

"But he didn't seem as gloomy as before, even though he lost. Maybe he and the master made up?"

Everyone looked relieved to hear that.

"All right, all right! Today's a good day!"

Makarov raised a huge mug of beer and shouted from atop the bar.

"To celebrate Lu Chongwei's promotion to S-Class! Let the party begin!!!"

"Yeah!!!"

Music rang out, barrels were opened, and food was brought to the tables.

The guild was instantly filled with laughter and cheer.

With his mouth stuffed full of meat, Natsu stared at Lu Chongwei with shining eyes and shouted through his food:

"Lu Chongwei! Now that you're S-Class, fight me!"

"If I beat you, an S-Class Mage, then I'll be S-Class too!"

Without a second thought, the boy ignited flames in his hands and charged over with a wild yell.

"Fire Dragon's... Iron Fist!!!"

Lu Chongwei was holding a piece of cake, ready to eat. Seeing Natsu charging at him, he sighed helplessly.

"You idiot, that makes no sense at all."

Lu Chongwei didn't even get up. He simply swung a fist.

"Thud!"

A dull thump rang out.

Natsu spun through the air three and a half times like a fly that had been swatted away, then slammed face-first into the floor.

"Urgh..."

Natsu's butt stuck up in the air, his head buried in the hole. He twitched twice, then went still.

"Hahahaha! Natsu got taken out in one hit again!"

"How many times has that happened today?"

"Before he was S-Class or after, it always ends the same way!"

Laughter burst through the guild, filling it with a joyful atmosphere.

Amid all the revelry—

A figure in a beret with a round belly was hiding in a corner, a paintbrush in hand as he quickly worked on a canvas.

It was Reedus.

He was using his drawing magic to capture this precious moment.

In the painting, Makarov was raising his mug in celebration, Natsu had his head stuck in the floor, Gray was laughing with his shirt off, and Erza was eating cake elegantly...

Everyone's expressions looked vivid and lifelike.

Lu Chongwei spotted Reedus at work and immediately came over.

"Hey, Reedus, make me look cool!"

Lu Chongwei pointed at the version of himself on the canvas, eating cake, and complained.

"At least capture the aura of an S-Class powerhouse!"

"Me too! Me too!"

Gildarts appeared out of nowhere, slung an arm around Lu Chongwei's neck, and struck what he thought was his most charming pose for Reedus.

"Put me in, too! Make sure to show off how impressive I look as his master!"

"Quit crowding me, old man!"

"Watch your manners, brat! Show some respect for your master!"

The two jostled in front of the canvas, pulling faces at each other and competing to see who looked cooler, making everyone around them burst into laughter.

Reedus smiled helplessly, but his paintbrush kept moving.

The setting sun shone through the window and across the canvas, preserving that moment forever.

It was a memory belonging to Fairy Tail—the warmest, rowdiest, and most wonderful of all.