**Chapter 1 — Homecoming**
**(First-Person / Fairy Tail Style)**
Three months.
That's how long it's been since I last saw Magnolia… since I last saw *them*.
The huge gates of Fairy Tail stood in front of me, silently judging me like I was the one who broke them last week. *Spoiler: it was Natsu.*
I push the doors open—
**Silence.**
You could hear a pin drop.
Then—
"YUUUTAAA!!! IT'S YUTA! HE'S BACK!!!"
"HE SURVIVED!"
"PAY UP! I SAID HE WOULDN'T DIE!"
"WELCOME BACK, YOU BASTARD!"
*Ahh… home.*
Everyone rushed me like a stampede of hyperactive magical bulls. I slipped through the chaos and headed for the counter — my safe zone — where a certain snow-white beauty stood.
Mirajane Strauss.
The demon who smiles like an angel.
She looked up, that warm teasing smile blooming.
"Well, well… look who finally remembered he belongs to this guild."
She crossed her arms. "You're rarely seen here these days."
I handed over the mission report and shrugged, trying to look cool.
"It's nothing."
**Internal Thought:**
(*Those two idiots — Natsu and Gray — are a pain in my ass. That's why I take long missions. If not for them, I'd stay the whole year just to see Mira and Erza's faces every day.*)
(*Well, thank god I have their photos with me… I'd die without them.*)
Before I embarrass myself by smiling like an idiot, I turn slightly and glance toward the bar.
There he is.
The man. The myth.
The alcoholic legend.
Master Makarov sat on his tall stool, a tiny giant drinking from a bottle twice his size. His face was red like someone painted "DRUNK" on it in bold letters.
I sighed. "Did the Master start drinking again?"
Mira let out a sweet but tired laugh.
"Yes. And he won't listen to anyone. Sometimes the Master is more childish than Natsu."
Makarov's head snapped toward us.
"I HEAR THAT—"
*Thud.*
He face-planted the counter, snoring like a dying frog.
I stared. "…I'm going upstairs. Second floor."
Special privilege — only S-Class mages allowed.
Mira nodded. "Welcome back, Yuta. Get some rest, okay?"
That smile… I could fight a dragon for that smile.
I gave a short wave and headed up the stairs…
Just as the doors BURST open behind me—
"WE'RE BACK!!!"
"Aye!!!"
Natsu Dragneel — pink idiot number one — ran in like a storm, Happy flying behind him as usual.
And behind them… a blonde girl stepped shyly inside the chaos for the first time.
So… Lucy Heartfilia has finally arrived.
*Looks like peace ended the moment I came back…*
**—To Be Continued**