With the blackmail firmly in Noah's hands, Laxus had been far more obedient lately. Though still as proud and defiant as ever, his attitude toward Makarov had noticeably improved.
"You did a great job, Noah."
In the guildmaster's office, Makarov watched the magic projection Noah had sent him—with a grin stretching to his ears.
The footage was, of course, the glorious moment where Laxus, Fairy Tail's pride and thunder, had begged for help.
Though Noah had promised not to leak the video unless Laxus broke the rules, Makarov *was* the guildmaster… and his grandfather. Viewing it hardly counted as "leaking."
The old man laughed heartily. Ever since expelling his wayward son Ivan, he hadn't seen his grandson show such *human* emotion—not anger, not arrogance, but embarrassment—in years.
The more he looked at Noah, the more he liked the boy. For reasons he couldn't quite explain, Makarov felt a strange sense of familiarity and deep trust in him.
"Noah," he chuckled, "you're not seriously planning to make one hundred copies of that video, are you?"
"It's hard to say," Noah replied with a shrug. "Maybe if he gets on my nerves."
To Noah, Laxus had been crossing the line for far too long.
For all his strength, the lightning mage looked down on weaker companions and dreamed of "rebuilding" Fairy Tail into a guild of only the strong—purging those he deemed unworthy and crowning himself master.
He had argued endlessly with Makarov about it. The old man, unable to discipline his grown grandson anymore, could only reject those ideas in exhaustion.
Noah feared that if left unchecked, Laxus might one day try to seize the guild by force under the illusion of "making it stronger."
"Well," Makarov said with a sigh, "he may be stubborn, but Laxus still loves Fairy Tail. He won't ever do something that truly harms the guild."
"Maybe," Noah admitted, shrugging again. "But it doesn't hurt if he has a little… reminder of who's in charge."
---
Makarov smiled faintly, then shuffled through his drawer and pulled out a thick stack of papers. "Speaking of reminders… Noah, come help me with something."
The moment Noah spotted the papers, his instincts screamed **danger**.
"Ah—sorry, I just remembered I left some cheese warming up in the dorm!"
And he bolted.
Makarov blinked in surprise as his student literally vanished out the door. "What's wrong with helping an old man write a few apology letters? It's only—" He counted the sheets. "—a dozen this time…"
---
Noah exhaled in relief once he reached the first-floor lobby and saw no sign of pursuit.
Really? The guildmaster asking *him*, the famous slacker, to help with apology letters? The man must be senile.
"Noah! There you are!"
Only one voice could shout that loud with such enthusiasm.
Noah turned to see Natsu waving wildly, Happy perched on his shoulder. "We've been waiting forever! Let's have Cheese duel with Happy! The winner'll be *Fairy Tail's Strongest Cat!*"
"Oh dear," Mira said as she passed by carrying wine crates. "Looks like another troublesome match waiting to happen."
Noah ignored Natsu's declaration entirely. "Sorry, my cat's retired from combat. She specializes only in being adorable."
"What? Boring!" Natsu groaned, collapsing onto a table. "I trained my Haki so hard, but there's no one to fight!"
When his eyes caught sight of Lucy chatting happily with Levy nearby, they lit up mischievously.
"Got it! Lucy! Levy! I'll help you train so you can learn Haki faster!"
Levy laughed awkwardly. "Ahaha… actually, I've been busy reorganizing the town library since it expanded. Maybe I'll start later…"
Lucy, on the other hand, didn't even bother with an excuse. "No way. Not again."
"What? We're teammates!" Natsu sulked, glaring at her with wounded puppy eyes.
Lucy only thought sourly to herself that if not for Happy's innocent charm, she might've refused to join Natsu's team ages ago.
Ever since teaming up with him, she hadn't earned a single jewel. If anything, she *owed* money thanks to repair costs from his brawls. Still, she loved the thrill of each adventure—and secretly, Fairy Tail's chaos made her happy.
Just as she sighed, Natsu's face suddenly lit with remembrance.
"Wait! Did we forget about… a commission?"
"Eh?" Happy blinked. "Love?"
Lucy frowned. "What are you talking about? All our recent jobs are finished—and we already paid back the damages."
"No, no—this one's from *years* ago!" Natsu smacked his fist into his palm. "Back before you joined. There was this village… a group of invisible people asked me to fight some evil scientist guy or something."
Lucy stared, bewildered. "Invisible people? Evil scientist?"
Mira, overhearing, couldn't help chuckling softly. "It must've been one of his old wild stories. Even Happy was just a kitten back then; there's no way he remembers that."
But Natsu looked deadly serious now, fists shaking. "…Silent Town. That was the name! I promised to help them, and I—" He slammed both hands on the table. "—I totally forgot!"
The words barely left his mouth when a familiar chime echoed in Noah's head.
---
[Local Prayer Request]
**Due to the influence of "Invisibility" magic, Natsu Dragneel has forgotten the promise he made to the residents of "Silent Town." Please help him fulfill it and save the invisible townspeople.**
**Reward: Flame Devour**
**Time Limit: 24 hours.**
---
Noah blinked. *So it was Natsu's request again.*
Not the full Dragon Slayer ability, unfortunately—but close. A Flame Devouring power. Still, not bad. Maybe if he kept accepting Natsu's "requests," he could eventually piece together the entire Fire Dragon Slayer magic himself.
He turned to Natsu. "Well, if you finally remembered, no use moping about it. Go back to that Silent Town—see if there's still a chance to make amends."
He stood, stretching lazily. "Don't worry. I'll come with you."
Natsu looked up, eyes burning with renewed resolve. "Thanks, Noah. We have to hurry!"
The fire mage sprinted off toward the gate, fire in his step and excitement in his grin—while Noah sighed, following more slowly behind.
*Looks like my next job's chosen for me again.*
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