"Everyone! Work is resuming today!"
"Even though it's a temporary reception, everyone should work enthusiastically!"
Mira announced with a warm, encouraging smile from behind the makeshift counter.
The Magic Council's ruling had come down, and Fairy Tail was finally allowed to resume normal operations.
"Awooo!"
"We have work! We have work!"
Upon hearing that they could work, everyone in the Guild rushed to the request board like mad, starting to pick their quests.
"What's with this? Usually, they're all just drinking and looking so idle."
Lucy couldn't help but complain at their behavior. She had been in the Guild for some time now, and usually, the request board would be full of quests, but no one would take them. Every day they came to the Guild, it was just drinking, drinking, and more drinking.
Mira chuckled, "Hahahaha! It's been a long time since they've worked, so they're all out of money!"
She knew everyone in the Guild very well. They were the type to enjoy themselves as long as they had some money, only going to work when they were almost broke. Without work for this long, their savings had long since been spent, and no one enjoyed being penniless.
"Qi Yan, are there any S-Class Quests?"
Qi Yan also hurried to Mira, asking. He had just checked the request board and saw that all the quests were below S-Class. He wasn't interested in those.
Mira shook her head, "S-Class Quests might take a few more days. Because of what happened before, the Guild distributed all the quests to other guilds. Now that we've just regained the qualification to take quests, even if there were S-Class Quests, we'd have to wait a while."
"If you want to do a quest, there are actually a few high-paying subjugation quests here."
High-level subjugation quests paid almost as much as S-Class Quests. Completing three or four of them would roughly equal the reward of one S-Class Quest.
"No, then forget it. I'll wait a bit longer!"
He was very interested in money, but even more interested in S-Class Quests. No matter how high the reward for a subjugation quest, in his system, it would only count as an A-Class Quest, granting only one lottery chance.
So, if he could wait, he would. He didn't want an S-Class Quest to appear while he was doing an A-Class Quest, only for Laxus or Mystogan to take it. He would regret it deeply.
Qi Yan waved his hand, then found a spot to sit and drink.
"Why is Qi Yan so fixated on S-Class Quests? Is it just because S-Class Quests pay well?"
Lucy was a little curious.
"No one really knows. Maybe he just really likes doing S-Class Quests."
Mira also didn't understand, but she could see that Qi Yan's attitude towards S-Class Quests was completely different from his attitude towards other quests.
As Qi Yan was drinking, a very unexpected figure sat down opposite him.
"Let's talk!"
The newcomer wore golden leopard print clothing, had golden hair, headphones on his ears, and an expression that screamed 'I'm the strongest in the world.' It was none other than Laxus, one of Fairy Tail's S-Class Mages.
"Hmm?"
Qi Yan hadn't expected Laxus to speak to him. He had been at Fairy Tail for almost a year and had met Laxus a few times, but they had never spoken.
On one hand, Laxus had his own clique and rarely interacted with other members of the Guild. On the other hand, Qi Yan found Laxus's disdainful attitude towards everyone somewhat off-putting, so he naturally wouldn't initiate a conversation.
"What is it?"
"Qi Yan, what do you think of the current Fairy Tail Guild?"
"Well... it's great! The Master takes good care of me, and everyone in the Guild is very united..."
Laxus interrupted Qi Yan, saying, "No! That's not what I'm talking about. What I'm saying is that this Guild is too weak!"
"Too weak? Aren't we currently the strongest Mage Guild in Fiore?"
"Strongest is strongest, but it's only a false 'strongest' held up by a few individuals. Qi Yan, look at this Guild. Besides a few S-Class Mages, what are these other rotten fish and shrimp?"
"Look at them. They have no real power themselves, yet they enjoy the name of Fairy Tail, the strongest Guild. How can such individuals be worthy of being in the Fairy Tail Guild?"
"The 'strongest' I envision isn't these mere weaklings. The 'strongest' I want is a Guild where every single person is a strong among the strong. Only then can it truly be called the strongest Guild."
"Qi Yan, join me. Let's work together to change this Guild. If we join forces, we can create the strongest Guild in Fiore, no, the entire Ishgar continent, even the whole world! The strongest Guild in history, surpassing all others!"
"As for those weaklings, they will all be kicked out of the Guild."
Suddenly!
Bang!!
Crash!!
A nearby table was shattered, and a voice full of anger rang out, "Try saying that again!"
This voice immediately drew the attention of those around them. Everyone's gaze focused on them. The speaker was Erza, who was now glaring at Laxus, her hands clenched into fists, her face full of fury.
"Erza, so you were here too! It's even better that you're here. Let's make it clear now: our Guild doesn't need weaklings."
"Erza?!"
Lucy had never seen Erza so angry before. While Erza could be intimidating when serious, after spending time with her, one would know her personality was actually very gentle and kind.
Happy exclaimed, "Laxus is back?"
Gray looked at Laxus with clear displeasure, "That jerk, he's already acting arrogant the moment he returns."
"Do you know why Phantom Lord looked down on us? The fundamental reason is that there's too much trash in the Fairy Tail Guild!"
"The old man is soft-hearted. Any cat or dog that comes to join the Guild, the old man won't refuse. This has led to more and more weaklings in the Guild, more and more."
"They make no contributions, yet they enjoy the most preferential resources, and even a simple quest becomes a burden, tarnishing the Guild's reputation."
"You tell me, what right do such individuals have to join Fairy Tail?"
"Laxus, you bastard!"
Natsu couldn't help but charge forward, throwing a punch at Laxus's face.
Sizzle!
Laxus's body turned into golden lightning, instantly teleporting behind Natsu.
"Laxus, I'm going to fight you! You heartless bastard!"
"Hahahahaha, you can't even catch me, so what right do you have to fight me?"
Laxus finished speaking and ignored Natsu, turning his gaze to Qi Yan instead: "Qi Yan, will you join me to create the strongest Guild in history, or will you continue to play house with these weaklings? Tell me your answer."