After gaining fame across the Fiore Kingdom—and even the entire continent of Ishgar—under the moniker 'Star Rose God', Marco quickly realized the downsides of celebrity status.
His peaceful, cozy daily life seemed to have vanished for good.
"Sorry, no interviews." Marco politely declined the journalist who had come to interview him.
"Are you really not considering it?! Mr. Marco! We can offer more money!"
The rejected journalist was frantic, unwilling to leave just like that.
If he could secure this exclusive interview opportunity, his status at the newspaper he was working would undoubtedly skyrocket!
"How much?" Marco asked curiously.
"Uh—"
The journalist was momentarily stunned, then his expression immediately turned to ecstasy.
He raised one finger and declared resolutely.
"One million J, plus another million J!"
After saying this, the journalist looked at Marco with hopeful eyes.
They weren't afraid of Marco asking for more money—they were afraid he wouldn't want money at all!
"Oh, sorry, still no."
Losing interest, Marco spoke again.
Two million J for one interview—honestly, that wasn't a small sum, but Marco still chose to refuse.
Simply because he wasn't short on money.
"..."
The journalist, who had just been led on, froze on the spot.
He had doubled the offer, yet Marco still refused?!
"We can add even more!"
The journalist chased after Marco all the way to the Fairy Tail guild hall, only to be stopped at the entrance by Gray and Natsu as he was forced to watch Marco entered the guild.
"Do you have a quest to commission?"
Gray, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts, asked sternly, stretching out his arms to block the journalist's path.
"Uh—yes!"
The journalist paused, then had a sudden idea.
"What quest?"
Natsu, standing beside Gray, widened his eyes.
If there was a quest, then the two of them really couldn't stop him from entering.
"I want to commission someone to interview Mr. Marco for me!" The journalist shouted.
This bold move completely stunned Gray and Natsu, and the two of them dumbly let him into the guild hall.
"Alright, so that's how you want to play?" Marco was utterly speechless.
He stared at the journalist, waiting to see what kind of trick he would pull next by submitting a quest.
He was curious to see what new tactics would emerge.
Lately, he had been turning down interviews from all sorts of journalists, but this one was the most persistent—even resorting to commissioning a quest.
"Sir, how may I assist you?"
Airo greeted the now-sweating journalist with a professional smile, warmly leading him to the quest registration desk.
"I'd like to submit a quest. The objective is to interview Mr. Marco Dreyar of the Fairy Tail guild according to my requirements. The reward is 3.5 million J!"
After a moment of nervousness, the journalist decided to go all-in, staking everything he had.
"Are you certain?"
Airo's mouth fell open slightly, and she couldn't help but inhale sharply.
She looked at the journalist and repeatedly confirmed the quest details and reward.
"Absolutely!" The journalist nodded firmly.
He knew this approach wasn't ideal—it had a bit of a coercive undertone.
He was essentially using money to encourage other Fairy Tail members to persuade Marco on his behalf, indirectly pressuring him.
Other journalists might have thought of this method, but he was truly the first to actually go through with it.
"Understood. Please wait a moment." Airo smiled as he completed filling out the request form.
After collecting a processing fee that made the reporter wince in pain, Airo posted the request on the guild's mission board.
With a reward of 3.5 million J and no restrictions on who could accept it—even rookie Mages could take on this job directly.
Once the quest was posted, the reporter began to anticipate eagerly.
After all, 3.5 million J was enough to live comfortably for at least two or three years.
With so many Mages in Fairy Tail, he didn't believe no one would be tempted!
However, reality always delivers the harshest blows.
After posting such an odd quest, far from causing the expected sensation, it didn't even make a ripple.
Everyone just glanced at it and moved on.
"How could this be..."
The reporter was dumbfounded, finding it hard to believe.
"Why not? What kind of guild do you think Fairy Tail is? Why do you think we're the top guild in Fiore? You should've done your research before coming here."
Looking at the stunned reporter, Airo chuckled as she spoke.
Using emotional manipulation to force Marco into an interview and then pocketing the money meant for him—that wasn't something the members of Fairy Tail would do.
Such actions would earn them scorn and the guilt alone would make the money feel tainted.
"..."
The reporter was speechless.
Watching the cheerful, laughing members of Fairy Tail, he felt like he'd gained a whole new understanding of the guild.
Maybe he could write about something else instead?
Marco observed the reporter, thinking this might serve as a lesson for him.
Truth be told, Marco hadn't completely avoided interviews these past few days.
He had agreed to one with Mage Weekly—but that was solely to promote Detective Holmes and the interview barely touched on his 'defeat of Jose Porla'.
That was precisely why other reporters were still scrambling for exclusive interviews.
But Marco truly had no intention of elaborating on that matter—not because he didn't want to, but because he couldn't.
He wasn't about to help Jose clear his name.
For now, it was best to let the rumors run their course.
Detective Holmes could also ride the wave of attention—the last interview had worked wonders.
Once it was revealed that the author of Detective Holmes was none other than the newly famous 'Star Rose God', the yet-to-be-released novel immediately caused a massive stir.
There was no helping it—as the hottest topic of the moment, Marco had that kind of pull, devouring the spotlight with ease.
And the hype around Detective Holmes circled back to the 'Star Rose God' with everyone curious about what kind of story this young, famous mage could produce.
Of course, there were plenty of haters—that was inevitable.
If the work turned out to be subpar, the backlash from the hype would be immediate and Marco's reputation would plummet into infamy.
But neither Marco nor Mage Weekly were worried about that.
They had full confidence in the story.
The certainty of its future success was reassuring.
"Guess I'll take a job and lay low for a while." Marco scanned the quest board, picking out a mission.
With Detective Holmes about to be released, it was safe to assume that even more reporters would swarm Fairy Tail in the coming days, turning the guild into a lively spectacle.
Marco had no interest in dealing with them, so he decided to take on a job.
Improving his strength through missions was the real priority.
After careful consideration, he settled on a mission that promised plenty of action—a bandit extermination quest.
A group of outlaws holed up in the woods, though that was just a side task.
The main objective was slaying a monster lurking in the area.
That was the real prize.
"This village. With monsters and bandits right next door, yet it still stands strong—there must be something special about it."
Marco held the quest form, staring at the address in confusion.
The village that had submitted the quest wasn't far from either the bandit hideout or the mountain where the monsters roamed.
"Guess I'll check it out first."
With that thought, Marco went to Airo to complete the quest acceptance procedures.
He didn't bother with the reporter again and set off immediately.
Walking through the streets of Magnolia, Marco felt at ease.
After the initial excitement had passed, the citizens of Magnolia had returned to their usual attitudes towards him.
Mostly, it was because they were already very familiar with him.
Though they had been surprised at first, they quickly adjusted.
As Marco walked, he greeted acquaintances along the way and soon arrived at the station.
He had deliberately chosen a distant mission this time—one located in a very remote area—to avoid drawing too much attention.
Just as Marco boarded the departing train, a group from Phantom Lord mages arrived.
Gajeel, stepping off the train, narrowly missed him.
But luck was on his side.
The moment he got off, he overheard the station staff talking about Marco, who had just left.
"Marco! That guy left Magnolia?!"
Gajeel, no longer caring about his discomfort, rushed over to the two chatting staff members.
His fierce expression startled them.
"Who are you kid? Why are you asking about Marco?"
Though taken aback by the spiky-faced young man, the two staff members remained wary.
Still, they were only slightly on guard.
After all, there had been too many people inquiring about Marco lately—mostly reporters.
If not for Gajeel's appearance and his young age, they would've assumed he was another journalist.
"I—" Gajeel faltered at the question.
He couldn't exactly say he was here for revenge, could he?
But then it struck him—why not?
He wanted to make a scene!
He wanted everyone to know!
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