Magnolia Town.
Ryoma walked unhurriedly behind Natsu and Happy, his hands in his pockets.
Leading the way was Lucy, who was filled with both anticipation and apprehension—two completely opposite emotions.
"It's just ahead!" Natsu excitedly pointed to a rather imposing building in the distance.
"That's our guild!"
Lucy looked up to see a three-story stone building standing before her.
A huge signboard hung above the entrance, carved with the symbol of Fairy Tail—a small fairy with outstretched wings.
She gazed up at the guild's emblem, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
"It looks... quite nice." She said, clearly relieved.
Ryoma's lips twitched, but he said nothing.
Nice? This building needed major repairs at least twice a year, and that was without counting the daily costs of replacing doors and windows.
He followed from behind, a hint of a smile on his face, anticipating the show. "Don't get too happy too soon. There's a big surprise coming up."
"Eh? What do you mean?" Lucy turned back, puzzled.
Ryoma just smiled without speaking, making a "please" gesture.
But Natsu couldn't wait any longer. He strode to the guild's main door and raised his foot.
Ryoma silently took half a step back, pulling Lucy, who was still frozen in place, with him.
The next second.
Bang!
The heavy wooden door was kicked open, emitting a deafening crash. The door slammed against the wall, making the entire doorframe tremble.
"I'm back!" Natsu shouted loudly, his voice echoing through the guild hall.
Lucy instantly froze. She stared at Natsu with wide eyes, her mouth agape enough to fit an egg.
"W-wait! What did you just do?! You broke the door!"
"Huh?" Natsu turned to look at her, a look of course on his face. "Isn't this normal?"
"What part of this is normal?!" Lucy finally unfroze and let out a desperate scream.
"Do normal people kick down their own front door when they come home?!"
"Aye! That's Natsu's style." Happy spun in the air, his tone full of pride.
Ryoma patted imaginary dust off himself and said helplessly to Lucy, "I told you there'd be a surprise. And by the way, this door was just replaced last week."
With Natsu's entrance, the previously noisy guild hall fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
Dozens of gazes simultaneously turned towards the doorway.
Lucy nervously clutched Ryoma's sleeve, peeking half her head out from behind the doorframe.
"Oh, Natsu's back."
"Welcome back, you're as boisterous as ever!"
Everyone's reaction was surprisingly calm, greeting him. They had long since grown accustomed to this kind of thing.
Lucy's worldview was once again shattered. "H-how can these people be so calm?!"
"Welcome to Fairy Tail." Ryoma patted her shoulder, a hint of teasing in his voice.
"This place might not be quite like... any normal place you can imagine."
Natsu had already strode into the guild, looking around. "Huh? Where's that jerk?"
"Who are you looking for, Natsu?" An orange-haired girl peeked out from behind the bar, asking with a smile.
"That liar who said Igneel was on Hargeon!" Natsu said indignantly, "He made me run all that way for nothing!"
"Oh, you mean Krov."
The girl pointed to a table in the corner. "He's over there."
Lucy followed her gaze and saw a man with particularly protruding front teeth huddled in the corner, trembling, clearly anticipating his fate.
"Found you!" Natsu's eyes blazed with fury, and he charged at the man.
"W-wait a minute, Natsu! I can explain!" Krov stood up in a panic, waving his hands wildly. "I heard that news from someone else too!"
"Enough talk! Take my Iron Fist!" Natsu's right fist mercilessly slammed forward.
"Ahhh—!"
Accompanied by a scream, Krov turned into a meteor, knocking over three tables and five chairs, finally hanging on the wall like a painting.
Lucy's jaw was about to dislocate. "In-in the guild... they just start fighting so casually?!"
Ryoma ignored her shock, instead skillfully navigating through the hall to his exclusive "VIP viewing area".
An excellent spot far from the main battlefield, with an open view and pillars for cover.
As soon as he leaned back, a cold voice rang out.
"Ah! I heard Natsu's back."
A black-haired man, who had somehow already stripped off his shirt, and was wearing only his underwear, radiated a chilling aura.
Lucy's scream rang out again. "C-clothes?! Why is he only wearing underwear?!"
"Huh?"
Gray looked down at himself. "I don't know when I took it off. Whatever, it doesn't matter."
"We need to settle things from last time, Natsu!"
Saying this, he walked into the area where Natsu was brawling.
"Let's fight to the finish!"
"Gray, you jerk!"
Natsu nimbly dodged the attack, and with a backhand, delivered an Iron Fist.
"Put on some clothes first!"
"Always making a racket in broad daylight, you're not children anymore." A tall, burly white-haired man appeared.
"Men should solve things with their fists." Saying this, Elfman joined the fray.
Then, he was instantly knocked out by a punch from both Natsu and Gray, flying straight out.
"Oh my! So noisy!"
Beside Ryoma's "VIP viewing area," a handsome man with short orange hair was surrounded by two beautiful girls. He held a wine glass, watching everything with interest.
Loke was a Celestial Spirit Mage of Fairy Tail, though in reality, he was an exiled Celestial Spirit.
He was handsome and a top contender in the "Boyfriend Ranking" in Sorcerer magazine.
The brawl instantly escalated, and the entire guild hall descended into chaos. Tables and chairs were overturned, wine glasses shattered, and other guild members scattered.
Lucy was dumbfounded. "W-what exactly is going on?! Is this really a Mage guild?!"
"Seriously, what the heck is wrong with this place? There isn't a single normal person."
"Oh! You're new." Mirajane, wearing a red dress, appeared before Lucy at the bar.
"Mi-Mirajane?!" Lucy instantly became excited. "Oh my god! I actually saw her in person."
Mirajane was beautiful, with fair skin and a great figure. She was very popular as a model for Sorcerer magazine.
Lucy asked, "Th-that... can't you stop them over there?"
"This is a daily occurrence, just let them be..."
Suddenly, Elfman came flying towards Mirajane.
Just as he was about to hit her, a silent stream of water appeared out of nowhere, like a soft yet resilient hand, deftly coiling in the air. It changed Elfman's flight path, making him graze the bar and crash heavily onto an open space on the other side.
Everything happened in a flash. Almost no one noticed this detail except Ryoma and Mirajane, who seemed to sense something.
"...and, it's quite enjoyable."
Mirajane continued to smile at Lucy as if nothing had happened.
Just then, Loke suddenly appeared beside Lucy, kneeling on one knee, and holding a rose.
"Beautiful lady, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Loke. This flower cannot compare to your beauty, but please accept my heart."
Lucy was flustered by the sudden confession. "Eh? W-what is this situation?"
"Loke's at it again." Mirajane shook her head helplessly. "He's like this with every new girl who comes in."
"Please go out with me."
Loke said passionately, "I will protect you with my life."
"Wait! I just got here!" Lucy waved her hands frantically.
Ryoma leaned against a pillar, quietly enjoying this daily farce. He had grown accustomed to this life, finding moments of peace and amusement amidst the chaos.
However, today's weapons seemed particularly indiscriminate.
First, a wine glass flew past his ear, which he dodged by tilting his head.
Next, a broken table leg, which he tripped with his foot, changing its direction to smash into an empty spot.
Then another wine bottle suddenly flew over.
"Watch out!"
He instinctively reached out and caught the wine bottle, but this action was seen by Natsu, who was in the middle of fighting.
"Ryoma! You want to fight too?"
Natsu shouted excitedly, "Come on!"
"I don't..."
Before Ryoma could finish his sentence, a fireball flew towards him.
He sighed helplessly, raising his hand to release a stream of water, extinguishing the flames.
"I'm telling you, Natsu, I have no intention of joining the fight."
"Huh? You've already made a move and you say you have no intention?" Gray also noticed what was happening.
"In that case, come on, all of you!"
Ice-Make: Ice Lance!
Several ice spears shot towards Ryoma, forcing him to defend himself again.
"Honestly..." Ryoma shook his head. "I just wanted to quietly watch the show."
Ryoma sighed inwardly.
Viewing time was over.
But since he was drawn into it, he was no longer polite. He clenched his hands, and the surrounding temperature instantly dropped.
Frost Breath!
A blast of cold air swept out, freezing Natsu's flames and simultaneously forming a thin layer of ice beneath Gray's feet, causing him to lose his balance.
"Wow! Ryoma's getting serious!"
Elfman shouted excitedly, "Man!"