"Gajeel, are you okay?"
Levy had just disembarked from the ship when she spotted Gajeel—who now sported sword slashes on both his front and back—and asked with concern.
"I'm fine!"
Gajeel recalled the events that had just unfolded.
After being launched into the sky by Natsu's punch, he had been sent flying straight toward Mihawk...
At the time, Gajeel had panicked, afraid he might accidentally kill Mihawk on impact—but once airborne, there was no way to hit the brakes.
Then Mihawk used his blade to prove Gajeel's worry was entirely unnecessary.
That guy's strength... was terrifying.
As a matter of fact, Mihawk's first slash did hit him. But when he realized how unnaturally tough Gajeel's body was, he adjusted his power for the second strike—only to be intercepted by Erza, who launched him skyward with one swing.
Yup. That's just how Fairy Tail saves people.
In short, within just a few seconds, Gajeel had taken a smooth little combo from Natsu, Mihawk, and Erza.
The last person to tank that kind of beatdown was none other than Master Makarov.
Gajeel only survived because his body was tougher than iron.
That's it. Nothing more.
"Geh-heh~ Whatever, there's no time to dwell on it."
"As a Marine, I must now arrest the vile... uh... Fire Dragon's crew."
Gajeel had initially planned to arrest Eden too...
But when he recalled the power gap between them, he wisely corrected himself mid-sentence.
And true to his word, he climbed out of the sea and charged straight toward Baratie without hesitation.
"Gajeel, get a grip already!"
Even with Levy wrapping her arms tightly around his waist, she couldn't stop him.
"Bastard, Gajeel!"
"Damn you, Natsu!"
Thus, the moment he entered the restaurant, Gajeel and Natsu started brawling.
"Stop! Not in here! Take it outside!"
"This is my restaurant!"
The scene made the Baratie staff and Zeff frown deeply.
"Weren't you two supposed to be on the same side?"
Nami raised an eyebrow at the brawl. They were fighting like mortal enemies.
"Comrades are meant to be punched!"
Gajeel and Natsu said in unison.
Comrades?
If you can't beat them to death, then beat them within an inch of it!
The two had been at each other's throats for ages, and today was the perfect excuse for a legally sanctioned beatdown.
"What kind of comrades are you people?!"
"Is everyone in Fairy Tail like this?!"
"Is it too late to quit now?"
Nami's expression twitched as she spoke, exhaustion in her voice.
Somewhere nearby, Lucy—who had been MIA—gave Nami a virtual thumbs up.
"No, no. Just those few are like that."
"The rest of us in Fairy Tail are... probably, maybe, hopefully, relatively normal."
Levy bowed apologetically toward Nami, trying to smooth things over.
"Hic~"
Meanwhile, one of Fairy Tail's 'normal' members—Cana—was drunk out of her mind and snoring away on a Navy warship.
"Give me a solid answer, not a bunch of vague guesses!"
Nami cried, tears streaming down her face.
"Iron Dragon... Fire Dragon..."
As Gajeel and Natsu began to power up, preparing to release their signature roars—
—A massive shockwave erupted from the duel between Mihawk and Zoro not far away. The entire Baratie trembled violently from the aftershock.
"Ughh—"
Gajeel and Natsu collapsed almost simultaneously.
"I'm gonna puke..."
"I'm dying... So dizzy..."
Both of them knelt on the floor, utterly wrecked.
"Wait, Gajeel gets seasick too?"
Nami's eyes widened in surprise.
"Yup," Levy said with a smile. "Just like Natsu and Eden, Gajeel is also a Dragon Slayer."
"Dragon Slayer?"
It was Nami's first time hearing the term.
"They specialize in magic meant to slay dragons. Mages trained to fight dragons head-on."
Levy explained it plainly.
"Ah..."
Nami finally understood why Eden and the others were so insanely strong.
A whole group of people trained to battle dragons. No wonder.
Wait... this world has that many dragons?!
Before she could finish her thoughts, Levy was already at Gajeel's side, tying him up with a rope and smiling menacingly.
"Gajeel, if you don't behave... you won't be a good boy~"
"...."
Nami paused, watching the scene unfold.
She whispered to herself, "Don't tell me... this seemingly gentle girl is also nuts?!"
"Oh, right! Nami," Levy said suddenly. "Erza and Brother Eden asked me to collect all the pirates you've taken down recently. Once we tally their bounties, we'll send your reward."
She pointed at the pile nearby. "This one's Captain Kuro of the Black Cat Pirates—bounty sixteen million Berries. His first mate Jango is nine million. Officers Buchi and Siam are seven million each. That totals thirty-nine million."
Nami handed the entire Black Cat crew over without hesitation.
"Got it," Levy nodded, instructing the Marine soldiers to load them onto the warship.
"Any more?"
"Hmm..."
Nami thought for a moment.
"Add Krieg's crew too."
At that moment, Juvia—who had disappeared earlier—returned, riding a stream of water, dragging Krieg, Gin, Pearl, and the rest of their unconscious crew behind her.
"Krieg the 'Admiral'—bounty seventeen million. Gin the 'Demon Man'—twelve million. Along with the rest of the officers, that's a total of forty-three million."
The Marines quickly tallied the numbers.
"Forty-three million, plus thirty-nine million... That's eighty-two million total," Nami calculated, eyes sparkling with money symbols. "Just eighteen million more, and I'll hit one hundred!"
"Yeah, almost there."
Beside her, Buggy nodded repeatedly.
"So Buggy..." Nami grinned. "Where do you think we can get that last eighteen million?"
"Hmm?"
Buggy froze.
"Wait... don't tell me..."
"You haven't forgotten, have you, Buggy?" Nami's tone dropped several degrees below zero. "I clearly remember that your bounty rose quite a bit while you were hanging around us."
"Eh?"
Buggy's face went pale.
Crap. This round's target... is me?!
Buggy: "So we really weren't comrades after all?!"
Meanwhile, on the ruins of Krieg's flagship near Baratie...
"I take it back—you are a worthy swordsman."
Mihawk, finally moved by Zoro's determination, acknowledged him and made a solemn promise:
"I will await you on the throne of the strongest. Try to surpass me, Roronoa Zoro."
He then turned to Erza.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Erza Scarlet."
Boom.
Just then, Eden—who had intended to prevent Mihawk and Erza from fighting—retracted his power and returned to Baratie.
Apparently, he had decided not to interfere.
"Oh?"
"So you finally understand the heart of a swordsman?"
"Then I must thank Zoro."
Seeing Eden stand down, Mihawk grinned slightly. Now, he could enjoy a proper duel between two swordsmen.
"You misunderstand," Eden said.
"I meant... once you and Erza finish..."
"Would you mind fighting me next?"
Eden queued up.
"So would I."
"And me too."
Following Eden were Natsu and Gajeel.
"Huh?"
Mihawk's pupils contracted.
Crap. I've become an EXP pinata.
~# Every 20 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter