"What do you mean by this Jude?"
When the southern nobles gathered together at last they discovered something was wrong Jude had no intention of organizing the hunt at all and simply left them all hanging there.
"Count Delph I ask you to be patient just wait for my arrangements."
Jude's expression was calm as he gestured for Count Delph who had come to question him not to be anxious.
"Jude mind your status What qualifications do you have to put on airs in front of us What do you think you are?"
Jude's attitude made this Count Delph very dissatisfied so he pointed directly at Jude's nose and cursed him without any courtesy.
And the other nobles around them all looked as if they were watching a good show and did not think Count Delph's actions were inappropriate.
Or rather this Count Delph was exactly the one they had pushed out to express their dissatisfaction this attitude was their shared stance.
"In your eyes I may indeed be nothing."
Jude narrowed his eyes the smile on his face disappearing as expected these nobles had no intention of speaking with him as equals and simply did not take him seriously these local tyrants were used to acting like emperors in their own lands
"You know that well so stop playing tricks If your broken railway company still wants to continue then obediently cooperate with us."
Count Delph continued speaking leaving not a shred of face likely believing that Jude did not deserve their courtesy at all.
"Of course I am willing to cooperate with you but the other major shareholder of our company may not be willing."
Jude spoke slowly he had now confirmed that it was indeed impossible to open the southern market relying solely on his own strength
Moreover the situation here might be worse than he had imagined If he charged in alone he might well be devoured by these southern local tyrants without even scraps left.
Unlike the central and northern regions these southern nobles were clearly far more unreasonable and their methods were likely even more shameless.
Without roots without strength rushing in recklessly would be like a sheep entering a tiger's mouth.
At this very moment Jude felt especially fortunate He was fortunate that he had connected himself to Fairy Tail.
No matter how overbearing these southern nobles were could they possibly be more overbearing than Fairy Tail?
To put it bluntly if these nobles destroyed a city the price they would have to pay would certainly be far greater than that paid by members of Fairy Tail they might even be stripped of their titles entirely If the matter became too big the Kingdom of Fiore would still have to step in and manage it.
No matter how independent these nobles were they were ultimately still part of the Kingdom of Fiore they would have to give the royal family an explanation.
Of course this was Jude's view If Morn were to hear it he would certainly shout This is slander He is slandering me
Comparing their Fairy Tail with these nobles who oppressed others was somewhat insulting to Fairy Tail.
No matter what they would not bully ordinary people and would even help the poor at least when facing families in difficulty Morn himself generally did not charge any fees.
Could these nobles do the same It was possible but unlikely.
"The other major shareholder Who is it Is that your backing?"
Jude's attitude made Count Delph sense something was off Although Jude kept saying cooperate this fellow clearly looked unconvinced and what gave him confidence was obviously this so called major shareholder.
"I said do not be anxious Count Delph He will arrive soon."
Jude's expression showed a smile again soon Morn would make his entrance and give these southern nobles a show of force.
"."
Jude's attitude made Count Delph feel uneasy.
Mainly because Jude appeared calm and unruffled as if certain that the person arriving could truly suppress them.
Count Delph returned to Duke Savalu's side.
"What did he say?"
Duke Savalu asked with a composed expression.
"He is waiting for someone saying it is a major shareholder who can suppress us."
Count Delph answered with a serious face.
"Heh!"
Duke Savalu let out a sneer dismissing the claim with disdain He wanted to see what kind of person Jude could bring to suppress them Could it be that he had directly called someone from the royal family?
"Then we will wait."
Duke Savalu gestured for Delph not to urge him further Since Jude was so confident they would wait for that so called major shareholder.
"Caw!"
From the sky above came hoarse cries one after another.
"He is here!"
Jude looked up This was a specially arranged entrance He could wait here for these nobles but he naturally could not make Moen wait with him so Moen had a special appearance ceremony which would also serve to intimidate these nobles.
The hoarse cries of crows echoed one after another in the sky A black mass like a thundercloud appeared in the distant sky moving toward the mountaintop where the meeting was being held.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"
As the thundercloud approached violent winds arose blowing so fiercely that the nobles seated at the open air banquet all changed expressions and around them many mages stepped forward each using their methods to block the effects of the wind.
"Caw!"
Amid the gale the thundercloud descended and the nobles could see what it was a flock of crows absurdly large crows The fierce wind just now had been caused by the beating of their wings.
"They are magical beasts!"
"Protect the Duke!"
Upon seeing these crows the mages hired by the nobles grew tense These nearly one hundred giant crows did not look easy to deal with mainly because they had never seen such magical beasts before.
"Jude Is this the person you were waiting for What are you trying to do?"
Count Delph loudly questioned Jude already somewhat nervous.
None of them had expected that Jude's methods would be so wild Did he intend to wipe them all out at the very first meeting?
This was no longer a question of wild methods What kind of lawless maniac was this If he truly wiped out all of them even if the royal family were pleased they would never let Jude go
"Do not misunderstand everyone these are merely the pets of our major shareholder."
Jude remained very calm He had already witnessed Morn's methods These giant crows truly were nothing.
"Caw!"
A crow shrieked.
Jude looked toward the wary mages.
"I advise you to behave yourselves In case you anger these crows that would not be good After all their master has not yet arrived so it is difficult to restrain them Should they sense a threat."
Looking at the nobles and mages Jude's tone carried a hint of schadenfreude Just these crows alone had already made the nobles nervous When they faced Morn would they still dare to be as arrogant as before He hoped they would dare.
"Jude You have gone too far!"
Duke Savalu angrily rebuked with an ugly expression The mockery in Jude's tone was obvious to anyone He felt humiliated Jude a mere upstart dared to mock him here
"My apologies Duke Savalu I was merely offering a kind reminder."
Jude bowed in apology but the smile on his face did not resemble one apologizing at all He too was borrowing another's power to flaunt authority which made Duke Savalu grit his teeth.
"Kill these crows!"
Duke Savalu could no longer endure it and directly issued the order.
They were merely magical beasts Did this Jude truly think they could not deal with them The mages they had hired at great expense were not for show.
"."
The scene fell silent The few mages protecting Duke Savalu looked at one another somewhat awkwardly then glanced at Duke Savalu.
"What is the matter Do you not even have this ability?"
Seeing this Duke Savalu nearly fumed with anger.
He had supported these mages for so long and now when the time came for them to be used this was how they repaid him?
"Your Grace these crows are not the issue but the person behind them is Striking the dog still requires looking at the owner."
One slightly older mage could not hold back and reminded him Of course in truth they also lacked confidence facing these crows but the person behind them was clearly more frightening This was someone who could control nearly a hundred crow magical beasts.
"Is this some kind of beast taming magic?"
One mage muttered He truly had never seen such a style.
Others used Take Over magic to absorb the power of beasts into their own bodies and use it Goodness this beast taming style directly controlled magical beasts.
"Is it very powerful?"
The older mage's words made Duke Savalu calm down slightly If it was a very powerful mage then caution was indeed required.
Although they nobles were a privileged class it was clear that mages were an even more special privileged class especially powerful mages For mages status was proportional to strength The stronger one was the more privileges one could possess.
"It is hard to say how strong but being able to control these magical beasts the strength certainly will not be weak I fear it may be from some great guild."
The older mage had served as a retainer in the House of Juleronor for many years and was familiar with Duke Savalu He explained seriously.
"."
Duke Savalu fell silent but he was still unwilling He felt it was humiliating to have been stepped on by Jude this upstart.
"He is here There is a person over there!"
Just as Duke Savalu was thinking about how to regain his dignity, the mages beside him cried out in alarm one after another.
"That is… the Rose Star! Moen Dreyar!"
Duke Savalu only heard the mages beside him exclaim in shock, clearly having already recognized the identity of that mage.
Looking at the mage seated upon an aerial throne pulled by crows, Duke Savalu could not help swallowing; of course he had heard the name "Rose Star" Moen Dreyar, and the force represented behind that name—
"Is Fairy Tail actually going to interfere in this matter?"
Duke Savalu found it hard to believe. In his impression, Fairy Tail had never interfered in this kind of "mundane business"; they only carried out their own commissions.
"Gaa!!!"
Amid the cawing of the crows, Moen's "throne" landed steadily. Although this kind of entrance, more than a dozen crows pulling a "throne" was rather ostentatious, it truly was not as comfortable as sitting inside a covered "airplane"; this way he had to constantly use magic power to block the wind and debris.
"Mr. Moen, please take your seat."
After Moen landed, Jude came over and immediately invited Moen to be seated.
"Alright, thank you for your hard work."
Moen nodded. He glanced at those nobles and noticed that the looks in their eyes toward him were all filled with shock and confusion.
Clearly, his appearance here had caught them completely off guard; after all, what he represented behind him was Fairy Tail.
Of course, even if Moen had come only representing himself, these nobles would still have to treat him cautiously; after all, Moen's current reputation was very great.
Moen had successively cooperated with Makarov and Laxus to defeat Jose Porla. Once, you could still say it was luck or being carried; winning twice together with different people could not possibly both be luck and being carried, right?
"Everyone, why are you all standing? Let's sit together."
Moen walked into the banquet area with a smile on his face, making people feel as if bathed in a spring breeze. He waved his hand, signaling everyone to sit down together.
"."
Seeing this scene, the nobles were each at a loss and all turned in unison to look at their backbone, Duke Savalu.
"Unexpectedly, Fairy Tail is also interested in this business."
Under everyone's gaze, Duke Savalu spoke with a gloomy face. No matter how great Moen's reputation was, in the end he was only a junior, just thirteen or fourteen years old, still a child. Being frightened by a child was something Duke Savalu felt he could not afford to lose face over.
For him, the most important thing now was to probe whether Moen had come representing himself, or truly representing Fairy Tail. For them, the meaning of the two was completely different.
"Mr. Jude is a friend of our Fairy Tail. What he intends to do is strongly supported by the Kingdom's policy and is also something that benefits the nation and the people. As the number one Mage Guild in the Kingdom of Fiore, it is naturally our duty for Fairy Tail to contribute a share of effort!"
Looking at the dark-faced Duke Savalu, Moen spoke with a smile, yet the meaning revealed in his words was not polite at all, very distinctly expressing his stance and purpose in coming.
"I believe that regarding this matter, everyone will certainly cooperate, right? If you do not cooperate, then you are opposing the Kingdom and opposing our Fairy Tail."
Moen continued speaking, his words becoming increasingly impolite, firmly occupying the moral high ground while carrying the banner of the Kingdom's policy; he was extremely overbearing and did not give the slightest face.
Right from the start he began defining the nature of things: whoever did not cooperate would be resisting the Kingdom's policy and would be an enemy of Fairy Tail.
"."
Everyone fell into silence. Quite a few people had already begun to retreat; resisting the Kingdom's policy was not such a big matter, but becoming an enemy of Fairy Tail was something that had to be carefully considered.
Just that one point alone was enough to make them back down, if people from Fairy Tail ran to their territories to cause destruction, what could they do? Could they really arrest them and pass judgment on them?
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