Gaal looked at the monsters on the mission list and read the description. "They're all pretty good," he thought.
"Each of these monsters has its own characteristics and can be freely combined," the description continued. "Speaking of which, how's Machamp's take over coming along?"
Elfman spoke up, "I've already managed to perform a full-body take over. Previously, I used Machamp's full-body take overin a battle against Primeape and earned its recognition."
Gaal nodded. "That's pretty good," he replied.
Turning to Cana, he asked, "How far have you trained your card magic?"
Cana snorted dismissively and said, "You're just like Ur, turning into a teacher, asking about this and that."
After a moment's thought, Cana sighed, "It's still the same. That sealing technique doesn't seem to be that powerful. I can only seal ordinary fire. If I tried to seal that Dark Guild guy's black flames from last time, I'd probably get burned to death."
Gaal replied, "That was a specially made sealing card. I'll teach you and Sho later. But it's quite hard to learn since some of the sealing formations used date back to ancient times and are rather tricky."
Cana, with a look of despair, exclaimed, "Ah, so hard to learn… How can I master it? But even if it's difficult, I have to learn! Teach me when we get back!"
Gaal smiled and said, "Come on, I believe in you."
Cana giggled, her face lighting up with confidence.
The wait for the train's departure was extremely dull. Cana turned away, walked over to the bookshelf in the train's corner, and pulled out a few Mage magazines, handing one to each person.
"Let's check out what big events have been happening lately in the Magical World!" she announced.
Gaal's lips twitched into a smile as he remarked, "Even if something happens, it doesn't seem to concern us."
"No…" he hesitated before adding, "we can't really say there isn't any connection."
He smacked his lips and pointed to the first page of the Mage magazine in his hand, saying, "It still concerns you. Your father, Gildarts, destroyed two mountains during a mission!"
With a snap, Cana slammed the magazine shut and snatched it from his hand. "Don't read that one, it's boring!" she declared, placing it on the table. Then she opened another magazine she had in hand, and her eyes lit up.
"Hey! A handsome youth combo from the Blue Pegasus?! Wow, so many handsome guys! Ah, what, there's already a scandal at such a young age; clearly, they aren't all upstanding people. But they are indeed very handsome!"
Gaal stroked his chin and mused, "They are indeed handsome, but compared to me there's still a gap."
Cana looked up in astonishment, "Huh?"
Lisanna and Elfman crowded over to look at the magazine. "Hey! It does seem like Gaal is the more handsome one," they agreed.
Elfman nodded, "That Hibiki Lates is really attractive, but he still falls short of big brother Gaal."
Cana widened her eyes and scolded, "Are your eyes even working? Look at him…" She then turned to Gaal and whispered, "This guy…"
After a moment of inspection, she admitted, "Indeed... it feels like you're the handsome one. But why didn't I notice that before?"
Gaal chuckled and reached for the magazine in front of Elfman. "Because with my abilities, I don't need to appear in those magazines to gain fame." He shook the magazine, displaying the Ishgar Continent Mage Rankings, and said, "I should be featured here." Then he flipped to the first page…
Lisanna, Elfman, and Cana leaned in curiously only to be met with dismay.
Cana muttered, "Is this thing even real? The one ranked number one turns out to be that fat old man from the Magic Council we saw last time. If he were truly first, then how did Hades manage to escape? And... the Chair of the Magic Council? Does he hold such a high position? This is definitely a cover-up!"
Flipping to the second page, Cana's eyes fell on Gildarts, and she nodded in satisfaction, "Now that's more like it!"
The three of them continued to flip through the pages, exclaiming, "The Guild Master's ranking is so high! Is that Ichiya, the Blue Pegasus guy? Why are all the members of the guild such handsome lads? Ichiya looks like this… Where's Gaal? I knew Gaal was just bragging, after over a dozen pages we still haven't seen him!"
"Ah! Here he is!" one of them cried.
"Big brother Gaal! 'Scholar' Gaal, your magic… so many spells, yet not a single page is devoted to them!" another protested.
"What, this isn't even complete? Isn't Gaal supposed to be proficient in card magic? How come it isn't mentioned? How dare you! Do you look down on card magic?!" a frustrated voice shouted.
"I'm going to complain about this crappy magazine!!!" they all ranted.
The train chugged steadily along while the trio's bickering continued unabated.
––––
One week later.
In the deep western forest of the Fiore Kingdom, a little boy with cherry-pink hair, dressed in ragged clothes and bare-chested while clutching a wooden stick, wandered listlessly.
"Mmm—Ig---Neel— Igneel—" he mumbled repeatedly. "Ah, damn it! Where on earth is this place?"
A roar suddenly echoed beside the little boy.
Natsu turned his head to see a slobbering black bear and heard it say nonchalantly, "Hey! You rascal, have you seen Igneel?"
However, in response to Natsu's call came a low, longing growl. The slobbering bear charged on all fours toward him.
Before Natsu could fully react, he muttered, "Huh? What's with all the excitement?"
Seeing the bear coming straight at him, still drooling, Natsu raised his hand to roll up his sleeve, only to realize he wasn't wearing a top, so he could only lift his arm and glare at the bear. "Damn it! Are you looking for a fight?!" he shouted.
The black bear did not answer and had already reached him, opening its bloodstained maw to bite.
Natsu grinned as flames ignited on his fist and fixed his gaze on the bear.
Instinctively, the bear recoiled a little at the sight of the fire, yet it couldn't stop its charge.
Natsu leapt into the air with his burning fist and slammed it down hard, "Fire Dragon's… Iron Fist!"
Boom!!!
The collision of these two mismatched opponents ended in an unexpected twist. The black bear, pummelled repeatedly by Natsu's blows, simply collapsed with its head hitting the ground into a huge crater that emanated an enticing aroma of meat. Natsu raised his fist triumphantly, "For real, it still wanted to eat me."
Staring at the bear on the ground, Natsu's appetite suddenly returned, though he had only ever seen Igneel being roasted whole and had no idea how to prepare it.
While he was mulling over his cooking dilemma, Natsu spotted an old man emerging from the nearby bushes, and his face brightened with excitement.
"Ah! Old man, do you know how to cook this black bear deliciously?!" Natsu asked eagerly.
Makarov shook his head, "No."
Then he eyed the boy, "Judging by your looks… are you an orphan?"
Immediately, Natsu shook his head, "Not at all. My father is Igneel; have you heard of him?"
Makarov pondered for a moment and admitted, "No, is he a really powerful Mage?"
He recalled that the magic he'd witnessed—Dragon Slayer Magic—was reminiscent of Laxus's power.
"Did Igneel teach you that?" Makarov wondered. "Could he be a hermit like Ur?"
Scratching his head, Natsu asked, "A Mage?"
Makarov replied, "I'm not sure, but Igneel is a giant Dragon, you know!"
The old man mused that someone of his age should have seen a giant dragon at least once.
Feeling sorry for the boy, Makarov thought, "Maybe I can share some of the roasted bear with him?"
A hint of surprise crossed Makarov's face as he repeated, "A Dragon?"
He wondered if the orphan might be suffering from delusions, but then felt a touch of pity for the child. "Truly pitiful… maybe I should bring him back to the Guild?" he considered.
Natsu nodded eagerly, "Yeah! A Dragon, a truly mighty and powerful Dragon! By the way, old man, you haven't told me if you know how to roast this black bear."
"I'll give you half once it's done," Natsu promised, pounding his chest for emphasis.
Seeing Natsu so earnest, Makarov's heart softened. "Roasting this bear is quite troublesome. Why don't you come with me? I'll take you to a place where there's plenty of delicious food."
A look of genuine delight spread across Natsu's face as he asked, "Really?"
But then his expression soured with conflict. "But I still need to find Igneel," he admitted.
Makarov waved his hand dismissively, "Once we get to the Guild, there'll be plenty of people to help you search."
Stars practically danced in Natsu's eyes. "Really?!" he exclaimed.
Makarov cleared his throat and said in a solemn tone, "Really."
Not having to exchange meteorites for money and instead bringing back a child who can perform Dragon Slayer Magic was a far better bargain.
What are petty fines compared to that? Let Gildarts worry about it, after all, it's one step closer to strengthening the Guild!
Makarov was quite pleased with his plan as his gaze softened with affection toward Natsu.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, illuminating the departing silhouettes of the old man and the boy.
"By the way, I don't even know your name," Makarov remarked kindly.
"My name is Natsu. Natsu Dragneel," the boy replied. "And you, old man?"
"I'm Makarov. I'm the Guild Master of Fairy Tail," the old man introduced.
"Eh—! What's Fairy Tail? Can the Guild Master eat it?!" Natsu blurted out in a mix of confusion and mischief.
…
…
It all sounded like foolishness. Makarov suddenly felt a bad premonition. Perhaps this kid would be even more troublesome than the others, wouldn't he?