Deep Into the Forest, Maybe I'm Not the One Surrounded?

Before night fell, Ed prepared to set out for the forest again. Before leaving, he specifically told the mayor, "Although the Magic Council's main force definitely won't make it in time, they still need to know about this. Maybe there are squads carrying out missions nearby that can come provide temporary support."

"Alright, alright. Is there anything else I can do?" The mayor was sweating profusely. Although Ed had repeatedly said he could handle both the beast tide and the dark guild, the man simply could not sit still and do nothing, given the responsibilities and conscience that came with being mayor.

"How about this?" Ed thought for a moment, then took out a kunai and handed it to the mayor. "Does the town have signal flares or fireworks? Put this near the town entrance, then send people out to patrol and keep watch. The moment you find any sign of a beast tide attack, fire the signal. I'll come back."

"Alright, I understand." The mayor took the kunai and dashed outside. He suddenly stopped, turned around, and gave Ed a deep bow. "We're counting on you..." Then he hurried away.

"That turned out pretty tragic." Ed smiled, but his expression immediately changed. With a serious face, he headed out of town. "First, I need to confirm the number of Dark Guild members. I can't let any slip through the net."

Accompanied by a distinctive Flash, Ed appeared at the edge of the forest once more. "Three visits in one day. Guess this counts as my three visits to the thatched cottage. Hopefully, they'll show me some respect." Without pausing, Ed headed straight into the depths of the forest, searching for traces of the Dark Guild members.

"They should be to the west." Ed checked his bearings, pulled a kunai from his ninja tool pouch, and threw it westward.

Golden flashes continued to flicker as Ed's figure gradually penetrated deeper into the forest.

Night had fallen completely by the time Ed reached the depths of the forest. Looking at the monotonous scenery around him, he said with a headache, "Tch, I don't think I've mastered any tracking abilities yet. How am I supposed to find them... Hm? Wait, it sounds like there's something over there..." Ed seemed to hear something.

Ed bent his knees, crouched down, and sprang upward with force, leaping directly onto the tallest tree nearby. Standing on an outstretched branch, he looked ahead and saw faint teal and purple glows in the distance, along with the muffled sounds of explosions.

"Found them, didn't I?" Ed placed a hand over his chest. "For some reason, my blood's pumping. Maybe I'm the type who gets a kick out of fighting too." He calmed the urge in his heart and began to sneak over carefully but swiftly.

A few minutes later, Ed reached the edge of the battlefield. Using the trees for cover, he looked inside. Aside from the two standard villains who looked very good at playing cards that he had seen during the day, there were more than a dozen others dressed similarly. They had surrounded a massive wolf and were launching attack after attack.

"This must be the Wolf King. Pretty handsome, actually." Ed looked at the encircled Wolf King. It looked imposing, perhaps two or three meters tall. Ice crystals and frigid winds wrapped around its body like ribbons. Its fur was primarily ice-blue and white, and its eyes emitted a deep blue glow.

"Humans! What exactly are you trying to do?!" The Wolf King roared. With that roar, freezing air swept through the surroundings alongside howling winds, making the entire battlefield feel like the Arctic in the middle of a typhoon.

"Shut up! You're just a beast, yet you dare resist Smile Coffin? If you keep resisting, I can't guarantee what'll happen to those wolf cubs over there." A tall figure wielding a purple greatsword pointed to one side as he spoke without restraint.

"As expected of our guild master, Lord Shuka, the Assassination Star! To think you came up with the idea of kidnapping the Wolf King's cubs to threaten him. You really were born rotten to the core! How shameless!" Of the two men Ed had seen that morning, the thinner one spoke with what seemed like admiration.

"If you don't know how to talk, then don't talk!" Shuka grabbed the skinny man by the throat and said viciously.

"So Shuka is their leader. Looks like everyone's here too. They even took hostages... Pah... wolfages. Disgusting." Following the direction Shuka had pointed, Ed saw three little wolf cubs tied up nearby. They looked no different from three baby huskies, equally adorably dazed. To be honest, Ed really wanted to raise one, but when he thought of his debts, he gave up on the idea.

"Still, this Wolf King seems capable of communicating, and he looks pretty strong too. I'll see if I can turn him into an ally. After all, the enemy of my enemy is my friend." Having made up his mind, Ed directly pulled out a Flying Thunder God Kunai and threw it in front of the three wolf cubs.

With a flash of golden light, Ed appeared in front of the three cubs. In an instant, everyone's attention focused on him.

"Who the hell are you?!" "You bastard, get away from those wolf cubs!" "Try anything, and I'll kill you!" Listening to the dark wizards shouting around him, Ed raised his right hand and used his pinky to dig at his ear. Looking at them like idiots, he said, "Can't you see the emblem on the back of my hand? I'm a wizard from Fairy Tail, here to deal with you scumbags who are trying to destroy a town by creating a beast tide!"

"Fairy Tail? That light guild?" "I heard their guild master is one of the Ten Wizard Saints!" "Really? I don't believe it." "Shut up, Big Head! I've seen that emblem before. He really is a wizard from Fairy Tail!" The people around him fell into a commotion after hearing Ed's words.

"Quiet! Calm down, all of you!!" Shuka shouted. Once everyone had quieted down, he said to Ed, "You light guild trash actually dared to show up right in front of us. There are sixteen of us, while you're alone. You were stupid enough to let yourself be surrounded. Once we deal with you, our plan can still succeed. I really don't know why you came out here."

"No, first, I've already informed the Magic Council." After digging his ear, Ed started picking his nose, looking utterly relaxed. He blew on his finger, then opened his mouth again.

"Second, not to brag, but I'm pretty strong. Who's going to deal with whom is still up in the air, and besides..."

Ed reached both hands into his ninja tool pouch and began pulling out kunai. "Most importantly! I'm not the one surrounded by you. You're the ones already surrounded by me! Surrender now, you trash!" With that, Ed held three kunai in each hand, tensed his arms slightly, and hurled the kunai at the dark wizards around him!