Close the Door, Release Hughes

Hughes reached out and took it, glancing at Makarov with a puzzled look; in the Kingdom of Fiore, people tend to entrust high-level tasks to well-known and powerful guilds.

Fairy Tail is quite powerful, but its current popularity is not high, limited only to Magnolia Town and a few nearby towns. According to Gildarts, there are only a handful of S-Class Mission on the second floor.

Where did this old man get this high-level quest that requires him to team up with Laxus?

Hughes opened the folded task assignment sheet in his hand and looked down at it with a hint of curiosity.

A few breaths later, Hughes's expression suddenly turned serious.

This is a mission assignment that only he can accept, and the mission level is as high as S-Class.

He was tasked with accompanying Laxus to Thunder Valley and protecting him as Laxus absorbed the Thunder Valley.

"Old man, is that what you think of me?" Hughes said sternly, placing the mission request form in front of them and pointing to the last line of the form.

[Quest client: Makarov, quest fee: 7 million J.]

Hughes loved money, but he didn't take any kind of money.

Although he hadn't been a member of Fairy Tail Fairy Tail long, the guild's relaxed and cheerful atmosphere and Makarov's selfless help had already made Hughes feel like he was at home.

If the old man needs his help, he can simply say so.

Moreover, he's helping Laxus. Don't be fooled by how he often belittles Laxus; they're just good friends.

Why is the old man giving him this task assignment form now? Does he see him as a money-grubber?

What Hughes found even more infuriating was that Laxus was sitting right next to Makarov, completely indifferent to Makarov's actions.

Does this bastard also think he's the kind of person who only works for money?

Hughes grew increasingly angry, his face swelling with rage. "No, I can't keep this bottled up inside!"

Suddenly, Hughes ' fingers, which were resting on the mission request form, clenched into a fist, and he swung his arm, the wind from his punch whistling.

"Bang!"

Laxus was preoccupied with how Hughes would thank Laxus, completely unaware that Hughes would suddenly attack, and was knocked to the ground by a punch from Hughes.

Laxus lay on the ground, his mind blank, his innocent eyes blinking before he erupted in fury.

"Hughes, are you fucking crazy? I gave you money, why are you beating me up?" Laxus suddenly stood up and roared.

"Sizzle~ Sizzle!"

Wisps of golden lightning rolled across his body, and a deep rumble of thunder suddenly echoed in the hall, "Today, I'm going to teach you a lesson you won't forget!"

"Come on, let's see if I don't beat you to a pulp." Hughes, still furious, straightened up, twisted his wrist, and the two men locked eyes, their gazes sharp and intense, sparks flying between them.

Seeing that something was amiss, Makarov quickly stood up, his body, which was even shorter Lisanna's, suddenly growing larger. "Both of you sit down for me! Hughes, let me finish what I have to say!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

Hughes and Laxus, who had been subdued by force, exchanged glances and sat back down in their original seats, both looking sullen.

Mira, who had run out of the kitchen, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing this. She gestured for Lisanna and Elfman to clear the dishes, while she obediently sat down next to Hughes, her eyes fixed on Hughes.

Yes, she needs to keep a close eye on Hughes.

Makarov coughed twice and pointed to the mission assignment sheet on the table. "Hughes, don't get the wrong idea. Laxus and Laxus are really here to give you some benefits."

Hughes rolled his eyes and said sarcastically, "I didn't see any benefits, but the humiliation is clearly written down!"

"Don't interrupt, let me finish," Makarov said irritably.

This time, he not only took 7 million J from his treasury and gave it to Hughes, but also risked going to the Magic Council court.

It's all for the purpose of improving Hughes's strength, even if the process might be a bit tortuous...

This kid dares to make sarcastic remarks to him now. Makarov wants to see how Hughes will handle things after he explains himself.

After Makarov's half-hour explanation, Hughes's expression changed rapidly, going from anger to confusion to shock, and finally to complete surprise.

This old man is no good; he's a complete scoundrel who secretly plotted something behind his back, something that caused a huge uproar!

It turns out that after this period of secluded cultivation, Laxus's mental cultivation has improved considerably. In Makarov's evaluation test, Laxus is now fully capable of accumulating magic power to break through the bottleneck.

However, the process of accumulating magic power little by little on his own was too long, which was simply a waste of Laxus's time and energy, and an insult to his magical talent.

Considering that Laxus's Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic has the property of becoming stronger by absorbing lightning, the two discussed it and unanimously decided to use the massive lightning power from the outside world to accelerate the process of accumulating magic power.

The grandfather and grandson searched for information for a long time before finally focusing on Thunder Valley.

Thunder Valley is located between the Kingdom of Fiore and the Kingdom of Bosco, and is an unclaimed land; due to its terrain, the valley is constantly filled with lightning, and the thunder is so fierce that ordinary people cannot approach it.

For Laxus, Lightning Dragon Slayer Mage, this was an absolute paradise.

Laxus had originally planned to travel to Thunder Valley alone in the next couple of days, but Makarov stopped him.

According to information he obtained through special channels, a few days ago a mage accidentally discovered the whereabouts of Cher Ezel, the Tartaros Dojigiri, in Thunder Valley.

In the past, Makarov might not have taken it seriously, but during his recent search for information about demons and gods in the guild library, he found a magic book containing information about the Tartaros.

This grimoire was co-authored by the First guild master Mavis, and Warrod. It tells the Tartaros, also known as "Zeref's Bookshelf," a guild founded by the demons of the Book of Zeref.

Makarov had never been in contact with the people of the Dark Guild, only hearing that they hid in cloaks Tartaros -round.

Now, based on the information he found, Makarov found it hard not to associate this group with the demons of the Book of Zeref.

It's obvious that these demons are hiding so well; they definitely have ill intentions!

In his moment of worry and distress, Hughes's image flashed through Makarov's mind. This kid's strength is becoming increasingly outrageous; he could definitely be sent to investigate the true nature of these demons.

After a brief internal struggle, Makarov decided to "eat the fish two ways."

If they can't uncover the intentions of the Tartaros, then let Hughes eliminate Dojigiri Ezel, and then expose the Tartaros, which is hiding in the shadows, to the light of day.

Making everyone wary of the Tartaros is the best Makarov can do right now.

As for uniting all guilds to defeat the Tartaros, Makarov didn't even consider it.

Through Yajima, he knew all too well the Magic Council's fear of Tartaros; those bastards definitely knew Tartaros's true identity.

At this point, Makarov swore a few times in front of Hughes and the others before continuing.