The Two Titans of Fairy Tail's Drinking Scene and a "Manly" Promise

The greatest aftereffect of the "lost swordsman incident" was not the "guild iron rule" that Zoro himself scorned, but the fact that it had invisibly and completely dismantled the last trace of distance between him and the guild members.

When a man as powerful as a god or demon was proven to have such a down-to-earth, even "fatal," weakness, the intimidating sense of distance around him vanished completely. In its place came the genuine feeling of being "companions"—people who could tease him freely and trust him with their backs.

And so, Zoro's daily life in the guild officially began amid this entirely new atmosphere.

His life became extremely regular, even monotonous to the extreme—sleeping until he woke naturally, finding someone to drink with, then finding a sunny corner in the guild's backyard to continue sleeping. Occasionally, Natsu's never-ending challenges would wake him up, only for Zoro to dismiss him with, "Too weak. Not interested"...

Among all this, his drinking friendship with Cana Alberona warmed, fermented, and ultimately became a brand-new, fearsome sight within the guild at an astonishing speed.

"Come on, Zoro! Try this! Northern Icefield Inferno! One sip feels like a fire-breathing yeti is dancing in your throat!"

"Oh? Sounds good."

At the guild bar, this was practically a daily exchange. Cana laid out every kind of rare, potent liquor she had collected from across the world—drinks that could knock an ordinary burly man flat with a single cup—as though presenting treasures before Zoro. And Zoro always handled them calmly with a drinking capacity as bottomless as an abyss.

The two often drank from dawn until dusk, from ale to rum, then on to all kinds of strange magical brews. They competed in drinking without needing any words; a glance or the motion of raising a cup was enough for them to understand each other.

After Cana calmly downed three barrels of Dwarf Flame without changing expression, Zoro answered by drinking five. When Zoro drained an entire bottle of the powerful Eastern liquor known as Demon Slayer in one go, Cana would immediately pick up another bottle and drink against him without yielding.

They were so in sync, so evenly matched.

In the end, this long-running "King of Drinks Tournament" concluded in a draw, with both of them half-drunk, arms around each other's shoulders, singing off-key pirate shanties that nobody could understand.

From then on, the title of "Fairy Tail's Two Drinking Titans" spread far and wide, becoming a legend the guild members never tired of discussing. Some even secretly opened betting pools on who would collapse first next time.

Aside from drinking, Zoro's inhuman physical prowess also caught the attention of another "admirer."

"Zoro! You really are a true man!"

Elfman Strauss, the burly man who constantly talked about being a "man," developed an utterly sincere and intense admiration for Zoro after witnessing him casually drink ten-odd burly challengers under the table.

He sought Zoro out again, his eyes blazing with a roaring fire that belonged to a man, and requested another match.

"Zoro! I was careless during our last arm-wrestling match! This time, let's compete again in the way of true men!"

Zoro was in the middle of enjoying his drink. Hearing that, he glanced at him. "How?"

"Strength!" Elfman pointed toward the guild's backyard, where an enormous, irregularly oval black boulder more than three meters in diameter lay silently on the ground.

"See that Trial Stone?" Elfman explained. "The master put triple gravity magic on it. It weighs as much as a small mountain! Only the strongest man in the guild can move it! Let's see who can lift it!"

At last, a trace of interest appeared in Zoro's eyes.

The two went to the backyard, and guild members immediately gathered around to watch.

Elfman went first. He took a deep breath, and the muscles across his body instantly swelled as magic power began to surge. "Take Over: Beast Arm!" His arms were immediately covered in hard black carapace, and his strength increased dramatically.

"Haaah! That's what it means to be a man!"

He let out a beast-like roar and exerted every ounce of strength in his body. Veins bulged across his neck and arms like coiling dragons. Under his brute force, the enormous Trial Stone gave off a heavy grinding sound and was lifted from the ground with extreme difficulty, trembling... only a few centimeters.

In less than five seconds, Elfman ran out of strength and released it. With a thunderous crash, the boulder slammed back onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Huff... huff... Well, Zoro? This is... the strength of a man!" Though Elfman had failed, his face was still full of pride.

However, that pride froze the very next second.

Zoro stepped forward without even warming up. He merely extended his right hand, spread his fingers, and easily gripped the edge of the massive stone.

Then, before everyone's dropped jaws, he only applied the slightest force with his arm.

The mountain-heavy boulder that Elfman had barely managed to move with all his strength was lifted effortlessly by Zoro with one hand, raised high above his head.

To show just how easy it was, he even tossed the boulder upward like an apple before catching it steadily.

"Yeah, it's got a bit of weight to it." He gave a calm assessment, then casually threw the boulder back where it had been, as if he were tossing an ordinary rock.

The entire place fell silent.

Elfman stared dumbfoundedly at Zoro, then at the utterly unmoved boulder. In that moment, his worldview regarding what it meant to be a "man" suffered an unprecedented, violent impact.

After a long while, he finally found his voice again. In a trembling tone filled with boundless reverence, he said, "Zo... Zoro... you... you are... the ultimate man!"

Zoro looked at Elfman's deeply shaken yet utterly sincere expression and felt that although this white-haired big guy was a little noisy, he was not unpleasant. He patted the shoulder that was still trembling from overexertion. "Your strength isn't bad. Your resolve is just lacking."

Rarely, he added a few more words. "True strength isn't just about lifting a stone. It's about being able to unleash power beyond even your own imagination when you decide to protect something."

Elfman nodded, half-understanding.

"How about this?" Zoro looked at the longing in his eyes and made a promise. "When you can truly lift that stone with your own strength, I'll have a proper fight with you. No tricks."

That promise was like the strongest stimulant, instantly injected into Elfman's soul!

"Really?! As a man, it's a promise!" he shouted excitedly.

From that day on, the backyard of the Fairy Tail guild gained a unique sight—Elfman challenging the Trial Stone like a madman every day, constantly muttering, "For the promise between men." His enthusiasm for training even infected Natsu nearby, and the two began holding all kinds of bizarre "contests of strength."