Ironclad Rule and Disdain

After Guild Master Makarov finished announcing the resounding "ironclad rule," the entire guild hall fell silent for a second before erupting into thunderous, sustained applause and cheers.

"OOOOOH—! The master is wise!"

"Great! Now we can finally relax!"

"This is the greatest rule of the century!"

Every member, except Zoro himself, offered their most enthusiastic, heartfelt support for the birth of this new ironclad rule.

The variety of reactions was especially amusing at that moment.

Lucy Heartfilia was so moved that tears filled her eyes. She clasped her hands together as though thanking the gods. To her, this rule was nothing less than a lifeline that had rescued her from endless worry and potential compensation payments.

Gray and the newly awakened Natsu threw their arms around each other's shoulders without reservation, pointing at Zoro and laughing gleefully at his misfortune. At last, they had found something they could openly mock this monster of a man over without any guilt. "Hey, moss-head with no sense of direction!" "Hahaha! Guess you'll need someone to hold your hand whenever you go out from now on!"

Erza let out a long breath of relief. Even her serious face showed a rare, relaxed smile. She felt that this rule was absolutely necessary; it had practically eliminated the guild's greatest source of instability for the future.

Cana, meanwhile, heartily patted Zoro on the shoulder and generously comforted him. "It's fine, Zoro! Don't take the master's words to heart! Wherever you want to go drinking in the future, I'll lead the way! I guarantee you won't get lost!"

Amid this sea of joy, Roronoa Zoro, the sole designated target of the "ironclad rule," reacted with nothing but pride and disdain.

Faced with this rule that had clearly been tailor-made for him, carrying a certain humiliating quality, he merely clicked his tongue coldly, folded his arms across his chest, and narrowed his eyes.

"What a pointless rule," he said quietly. His voice was not loud, yet it clearly cut through the surrounding laughter. "How many times do I have to say it? The roads in this city are too complicated, and everywhere looks the same. What does that have to do with me?"

He paused, raised his head, and declared confidently in an experienced, unquestionable tone, "If I were at sea, I could tell directions apart."

His words immediately caught the interest of Jet, the guild's speed specialist, as well as his partner Troy.

"Really, Mr. Zoro?" Jet asked curiously. "The sea stretches as far as the eye can see, and there aren't any signposts! How do you tell which way is which?"

Zoro glanced at him as though he were an idiot. "Obviously, you judge by the positions of the stars and the sun in the sky. That's the foundation of navigation, isn't it?"

He had no idea how utterly shocking his common-sense answer sounded to people in this world. The paths traced by the stars in Earth Land were completely different from those in his original world.

Levy quickly wrote in her little notebook nearby: "New discovery: Mr. Zoro possesses unique navigational abilities based on an unknown star chart. Danger level: extremely high. Note: He must never be allowed to sail alone."

No matter how fiercely Zoro himself denied it, Fairy Tail Guild's First Ironclad Rule was forcibly established amid an atmosphere of immense merriment—and passed unanimously.