Three New Members

Now that the misunderstanding had been cleared up, the rest followed naturally.

"Then, in my capacity as the third-generation master of Fairy Tail, I hereby approve your joining!"

Makarov swept out a hand and brought out the guild stamp.

"Come on, come on! Pick a color and a spot you like!"

Lisanna rushed forward first.

"I want red! Put it on my left shoulder!"

"Smack!"

Makarov stamped her in one swift motion.

Lisanna looked at the red Fairy Tail Emblem on her shoulder and spun around happily, showing it off to Lu Chongwei.

"Big brother! Look! I'm a Mage of Fairy Tail now, too!"

"It suits you," Lu Chongwei said with a smile, patting her head.

Next was Elfman.

The big man was so nervous that his hands trembled. He stammered:

"I-I want black... O-on my neck..."

After the stamp was applied, he touched his neck and grinned foolishly, as if he'd gained boundless strength.

Last was Mirajane.

She walked up to Makarov and glanced at her demonic right hand. Then she took a deep breath, her gaze resolute.

"I want black, on my left thigh."

As the stamp came down, the three wandering children finally found a home of their own.

"All right! Now that everyone's been stamped, we're one big family!"

Makarov leaped onto a table and raised his mug.

"Listen up, you lot! To celebrate our new members joining us, let the feast begin!!!"

"Wooooo!!!"

Their cheers rang through the heavens.

Next came Fairy Tail's traditional round of self-introductions.

Standing on a table, Lisanna wasn't the least bit shy. She smiled sweetly and bowed to everyone.

"Hello, everyone! My name's Lisanna! I hope we'll all get along!"

Her adorable appearance instantly won the hearts of the guild's men.

"Oh! She's so cute!"

"She's an angel!"

"If anyone dares pick on Lisanna, they'll have to answer to me!"

When it was Elfman's turn, the mood took a sudden turn.

He stood there at a loss, facing dozens of pairs of eyes. His face turned beet red, and he opened and closed his mouth for ages without managing to get a word out.

"I... My name is... Um..."

Kind laughter rose from the crowd.

Elfman grew even more flustered and looked to Lu Chongwei for help.

Lu Chongwei sat by the bar, raised his mug, and called to him:

"Stand tall, Elfman!"

"Now that you've joined Fairy Tail, you're a man!"

"A man speaks up!"

Those three words—"a man"—seemed to flip a switch inside Elfman.

He took a deep breath, straightened his back, squeezed his eyes shut, and shouted:

"I'm Elfman! I'm a man!!!"

"Yeah!!!"

The guild erupted in cheers.

"Now that's more like it!"

Mirajane simply gave her name, but her composure and confidence made her seem like a completely different person from the timid girl who'd first walked through the door.

The feast reached its height.

Empty barrels piled up, and food flew everywhere.

"Hey, Lu Chongwei!"

Cana came staggering over, carrying a barrel of booze bigger than her head. She thumped it down in front of Lu Chongwei.

"I hear you can really drink. Come on! If I can't get you drunk today, I don't deserve to call myself Cana!"

Macao and Wakaba followed close behind, both eager to stir up trouble.

"Go get him, Cana! Show that S-Class Mage what you've got!"

"Don't back down, Lu Chongwei!"

Lu Chongwei looked at the barrel in front of him and smiled helplessly.

"You want to compete with me at drinking? You're still a hundred years too early."

Without another word, he grabbed the barrel and gulped down its contents.

Thanks to his far greater-than-normal physique, the alcohol was no different from water to him.

Ten minutes later.

"Ugh..."

Cana's eyes spun, and she slid straight under the table.

Macao and Wakaba hadn't fared any better. They were already sprawled on the floor, babbling nonsense.

"Pathetic. Not one of you can put up a fight."

Lu Chongwei wiped his mouth, looking completely at ease.

Just then, two figures closed in from either side.

"Now's our chance! He's had too much to drink!"

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

"Ice Make: Ice Spear!"

Natsu and Gray, those sworn rivals, had somehow managed to coordinate for once. They wanted to take advantage of Lu Chongwei's "drunkenness" and get revenge with a sneak attack.

But—

Lu Chongwei didn't even turn his head. He reached out with both hands at once.

"Smack! Smack!"

Two sharp cracks rang out.

His left hand caught Natsu's fist without a hitch, while the Ice Spear in Gray's right hand was crushed between two of Lu Chongwei's fingers.

"Ambushing people is a bad habit, boys."

Lu Chongwei turned around, smiling kindly.

"If you've got that much energy, then let's spar."

"Thud! Thud!"

After two heavy thumps, two more holes appeared in the floor, with Natsu and Gray neatly planted inside them, their butts sticking up in the air.

"Ha ha ha ha!"

The guild was filled with joyful laughter.

Mirajane sat in a corner, holding a glass of juice as she quietly watched the chaotic yet heartwarming scene.

She watched Lu Chongwei chat and laugh among the crowd, Lisanna surrounded by everyone's affection, and Elfman working hard to learn how to strike a "manly" pose from a few of the older men.

Before she knew it, the corners of her mouth had lifted.

There was no fear here, no exclusion—only laughter and freedom.

Mirajane lowered her head and gazed at the black emblem on her thigh, gently tracing it with her fingers.

"Fairy Tail..."

She silently repeated the name in her heart.

A sense of belonging unlike anything she'd ever felt before welled up inside her.

She raised her head and looked at everything before her with a determined gaze.

"I have to get stronger."

"I'll learn to control this power, so no one has to worry anymore."

"And then..."

Her gaze fell on the figure pulling Natsu out of the floor.

"I'll protect this home and everyone in it."