The total bounty amount settled for the entire Eisenwald guild was 11 million J.
Among them, the guild leader Erigor alone was worth 8.5 million J, while all the remaining small fry combined only amounted to 2.5 million J.
The bounty amount is also set based on reputation.
First, you have to make yourself known before they can assign a bounty to you—just like the pirate bounties in another world.
On the same ship, the more famous ones get higher bounties.
But for dark mages from dark guilds, having a high bounty isn't necessarily a good thing.
If you lack the strength but are worth a lot, you're an easy target for bounty hunters.
Some battle-hardened mages make a living off this.
Where there are bounties, there will naturally be bounty hunters who hunt for them.
"11 million J—that's a decent split for everyone!"
Hearing the amount announced by Master Makarov, the guild members erupted in excitement.
A few of the older guys immediately ordered extra drinks and plates of meat, treating themselves to a feast.
Watching the scene unfold—drinking, eating and dividing the spoils—Marco couldn't help but think they really did resemble a bandit hideout.
"Erigor was defeated by Marco, so he should get a bigger share!" Macao raised his hand and brought up Marco.
Erigor alone was worth 8.5 million J and as the one who defeated him head-on, Marco logically deserved a larger portion.
The suggestion was met with unanimous agreement.
When it came to money, these guys didn't mince words—no one objected to giving Marco more.
"No need. It's not like I was the only one capable of beating him. Everyone just let me take him because I'm younger. We acted together as a guild, contributed together—everyone's effort counts equally!" Marco immediately stepped forward, speaking with righteous conviction.
Though his face was still youthful, his mindset was remarkably mature.
"..."
Laxus, watching from the side, twitched his lips.
Even if he would have refused too, he could never bring himself to say something like that.
"Well said! Everyone in the guild pitched in and contributed, so the reward should be split equally! Every member gets their fair share!"
Master Makarov slammed the table, making the decision official.
His face was lit with a smile, clearly pleased with the outcome.
"Oooohhhh!!!"
The guild erupted in cheers and rowdy shouts.
Truth be told, after the split, the amount each person received wasn't much—at least not by mage standards.
But they were happy, they were excited and they were going to throw a party!
This was Fairy Tail—no scheming, no hidden motives, just treating each other like family, free from selfish interests, always brimming with joy when together.
After the lively victory celebration, everyone gradually dispersed, leaving the guild hall in complete disarray.
Airo, along with the new staff member and Laki, began cleaning up, with Marco pitching in to help.
"Marco, you really don't have to stay and help me..."
Laki, her face slightly flushed, spoke softly as she tidied up the tables beside Marco.
She tried to persuade him to go rest early.
"Huh?" Marco blinked, giving her a puzzled look.
"But... I've always helped Airo and the others before..."
Seeing Laki's reddened face and sensing she might have misunderstood something, Marco hesitated for a moment before finally telling the truth.
"Ugh..." As soon as Marco spoke those words, Laki's face turned even redder.
She heated up rapidly like a boiling kettle, steam practically rising from her body.
"Pfft—"
Airo, who was wiping a table nearby with a cloth, couldn't hold back her laughter.
No wonder Laki always acted so strangely whenever Marco stayed behind to help—it was all a misunderstanding.
"Ahem, well, Airo, I think I'll head back for today." Marco cleared his throat and decisively bid farewell to Airo.
To be honest, he felt a bit awkward too—he'd never even considered this possibility.
Was Laki really that precocious? And it wasn't just precociousness—the girl seemed a bit narcissistic too.
She actually thought Marco stayed behind to help because of her.
That was something Marco genuinely hadn't expected.
What's more, she'd just assumed it without ever asking or investigating.
If she'd just asked around, she would've known Marco always did this.
"Ahem, of course I knew that! I just thought... after working so hard to defeat Erigor, you should go rest early, Marco."
After overheating and her brain short-circuiting for a moment, Laki finally snapped back to reality and hurriedly tried to explain.
"Laki, Marco's already left."
But the response came from Airo who's wearing a teasing grin.
Laki looked around blankly—Marco was nowhere to be seen in the guild hall.
"Ugh..."
She covered her face as she was really embarrassed at the moment.
*****
The next morning, Laki ran into Marco at the guild again.
"Good morning, Laki."
Marco greeted her warmly, his face wearing the same bright, sunny smile as always—as if yesterday's incident had never happen.
His smile had a way of making people relax unconsciously.
"G-good morning, Marco." Laki stammered out a reply.
Clearly, she couldn't brush off yesterday's events as easily as Marco had.
"Hmm? What happened? Why's Laki acting so strange?"
Across from Marco, Cana—who had been carefully organizing her tarot cards—frowned slightly and asked in confusion.
"Who knows? You should ask her, not me." Marco answered with a laugh, then reached out and drew a tarot card.
The card depicted a sweet-faced, cheerful child riding a horse as it leaped over a gray wall.
The child wore a daisy wreath and a long red feather, holding a red flag aloft, with a radiant sun shining in the background.
"Seems like something good will happen today?" Marco raised an eyebrow as he asked Cana.
"That's right. Everything will go smoothly." Cana nodded seriously in response.
Little White lay beside her, drowsily nodding off.
"Thanks for the good omen." Marco smiled as he returned the card to her.
After testing his luck day after day, he'd practically memorized the meaning of every card.
Just as Marco stood up to look for suitable missions, a voice at the entrance caught his attention.
"Come in, don't be afraid."
Makarov walked in, followed by three children.
At the forefront was a girl draped in a cloak, followed by two younger children, presumably her younger brother and sister.
PS: do you think Pegasus meteor fist could one shot acnologia if its powered by cosmo?
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