— — — — — —
"Hm, I don't actually have that many magic armors," Erza said thoughtfully. "A little over a hundred sets, maybe. Compared to Kazuma's collection, that's nothing."
"But I've got a lot of regular clothes too," she added, tapping her chin. "Honestly, I've lost count. Fashion trends change so fast. I collect a whole batch one season, and by the next, the style's completely different."
She sighed. "At this point, I don't even know how many I've bought anymore."
Although Erza was almost always seen in armor, she secretly loved cute outfits of all kinds. She'd gathered quite a collection—maid dresses, catgirl costumes, bunny suits—you name it. Most of her hard-earned money went straight into her wardrobe.
She was definitely a wifey material.
"Oh, right. Lucy," Erza said suddenly, glancing back. "Those keys you carry—you're a Celestial Spirit mage, right? How many do you have so far?"
That reminded her—Kazuma collected keys too. The last time she sold him one from a mission, he already had an entire chest full.
Men will always be just big kids.
"Um… I—I have quite a few too," Lucy stammered.
Good thing she was sitting in the back. Her cheeks were burning. Why did this topic have to come up? Kazuma had a vault overflowing with treasures. Erza owned over a hundred sets of magical armor. And her?
Six keys. Most of them inherited from her mom.
Lucy shrank a little, feeling the sting of poverty deep in her soul. "So this is what it feels like to hang out with the rich."
It hurt. It really hurt.
---
While Kazuma, Erza, and Lucy were cheerfully heading back to the Fairy Tail guild, somewhere else, the Guild masters' meeting was not going as planned.
Makarov had been expecting a quiet, uneventful conference. Then he saw who walked in from the Magic Council delegation—and suddenly, every nerve in his body went on high alert.
"Why do I feel like that guy's here specifically for me?" he thought, sweating. "I didn't do anything today! I didn't even start a fight with another guild master this week!"
But his hopes were short-lived. The Council's lead representative cleared his throat and began to read from a report.
"Ahem. According to the latest intelligence, the dark guild known as Eisenwald has hijacked a train station."
"They also slaughtered a large number of guards—"
BANG!
Makarov slammed both hands on the table, leaping to his feet. "Outrageous! Unforgivable! We, Fairy Tail, will take the lead in eliminating this menace! Leave it to me!"
He turned to leave immediately. He'd caught the quick, meaningful glance the Councilman had thrown his way earlier—and his gut told him this had something to do with his guild.
"Haha! Makarov's trying to leave," said Goldmine, the grinning master of the Quatro Cerberus Guild.
"Goldmine, you senile old dog," Makarov growled under his breath. "Keep this up and I'll definitely get you back later."
The two were old drinking buddies, which made the teasing even more merciless. If you can't mess with your friends, who can you mess with?
"I wouldn't be surprised," said Bob, the flamboyant master of Blue Pegasus, tossing his long hair dramatically. "Probably another one of Makarov's kids causing trouble again."
Makarov rubbed his temples. 'Great. Even Bob's joined in. Once upon a time, that man was a charming young gentleman… now he's just a glitter-covered midlife crisis.'
"I can't hear you, I can't hear you—blah blah blah," Makarov muttered, pretending not to listen. 'If I just play dumb, maybe they'll move on.'
As long as the Council didn't call him by name, he planned to keep quiet and pretend nothing happened.
"Master Makarov," the Council member said smoothly, "no need to rush off. We know about Fairy Tail being proactive—but don't you think this time you went a bit too far?"
"What do you mean, 'too far'?" Makarov asked carefully.
"The Eisenwald Guild—over a hundred mages—all wiped out. Not one survivor."
Makarov froze. "A-all of them? Who did that?!" Then he immediately realized how stupid that question was.
There weren't that many in his guild who could do something like that. Laxus was still on assignment. Mystogan wouldn't go on a rampage like this. Erza had discipline; she wouldn't massacre an entire guild.
That left one possible culprit.
Kazuma. It had to be him.
"Makarov, your guild really is full of monsters," Goldmine said with a laugh. "First that Kazuma—he already destroyed a dark guild single-handedly—and now this!"
"And it wasn't just any dark guild," Bob added. "Eisenwald was an assassination guild, and their ace, Erigor, is a strong mage. Whoever did this must've been terrifyingly strong."
The other guild masters looked genuinely impressed. A hundred mages wiped out?
"Master Makarov," said the Council member sharply, "let's not play dumb. You must know who's responsible. According to eyewitness accounts, it was your guild's 'Tyrant,' Kazuma Fujita, and the 'Titania,' Erza Scarlet."
"There was also a blonde girl with them—unknown identity, but she's also one of yours."
The man's smile turned cold. "You expect me to believe your people did all that without your permission? What's next—should we assume you've lost control of your own guild?"
Makarov's face twitched. "Ahaha… well, about that… I really had no idea. Tell you what—let me go back, and I'll give them a good scolding. Promise."
"Wipe that grin off your face," the Councilman snapped. "Over a hundred dead mages is not a laughing matter. I suggest you cooperate—honesty will earn leniency, but resistance will only make things worse. Now—tell us. Where are the bodies?"
The room fell silent.
Because that was the weirdest part. The Council had already sent investigators to the scene. No corpses, no blood, no magical residue—nothing.
Yet the train station had been completely surrounded at the time, and only three people—Kazuma, Erza, and Lucy—had walked out alive.
It was as if Eisenwald had simply vanished into thin air.
.
.
.