— — — — — —
After sitting around the guild for a bit, Kazuma picked up a few small jobs and handed them off to the shadow soldiers. With that done, he decided to head home and check in.
"Juvia, I'm back."
He opened the door and called out, but there was no response. He looked around. No Juvia in sight.
"Guess she's not home."
Kazuma dropped onto the sofa, not particularly surprised. Mages spent most of their time out on jobs anyway. They were rarely at home, sometimes even less than they were at the guild.
His eyes fell on a newspaper lying on the table. He casually picked it up and flipped through it.
"Hmm… Harvest Festival is about to start."
Reading the report, Kazuma noted that the annual Harvest Festival was approaching. Every year at this time, Fairy Tail held its traditional Fantasia Parade.
Everyone in the guild participated, showing off their magic to create dazzling, beautiful scenes. It was one of the defining highlights of the season.
"Harvest Festival… how much longer can Laxus keep that nasty temper of his in check?"
Kazuma suddenly thought of Laxus. At this point in time, Laxus should already be preparing to seize the position of guild master.
Now was probably no different.
Laxus's dissatisfaction with the guild and with Makarov hadn't come out of nowhere. The seeds had been planted many years ago because of Makarov himself. What was happening now was simply those long-simmering issues finally erupting.
Over the next while, Kazuma skimmed through newspapers from the past few days, gathering information. One thing in particular caught his attention.
"Dark guilds have been way more active lately. The clashes with legal guilds are getting fiercer too. At this rate, it won't be long before a guild alliance forms to wipe them out."
He filed the thought away, then continued reading. Time slipped by like that until evening fell.
Knock, knock, knock!
"Coming."
Hearing the knock, Kazuma walked over, a little puzzled. Who would be knocking this late at night? It shouldn't be Juvia. She had a key.
He opened the door, and the first thing he saw was three smiles.
"Mira, Erza, and Lucy? What brings you here so late?"
Standing outside with things in their hands were the three of them.
"It's nothing serious," Mira said, lifting the ingredients she was carrying. "We just thought we'd invite you to have sukiyaki together. You haven't eaten yet, right?"
"Not yet. I was planning to go out and buy something."
Kazuma stepped aside to let them in. Once inside, Mira headed straight for the kitchen without hesitation.
Erza plopped down on the sofa like she owned the place. The only one who seemed a bit reserved was Lucy. It was her first time here, so she looked slightly nervous.
"Um… should I change my shoes?" Lucy asked.
"We're all friends here. No need to fuss," Kazuma replied lazily. "I'm not going to play host properly anyway. If you're thirsty, pour yourself some water. If you want snacks, go dig through the cabinets. You might find something."
He sat down on the sofa as he spoke, showing zero intention of entertaining his guests. "If you've got nothing to do, you can help Mira out."
"Uh… okay."
For a moment, Lucy had the strange feeling that she wasn't here as a guest at all, but as Kazuma's maid.
You're the host. Why aren't you helping? Shouldn't I be the one sitting around waiting to eat?
...
Before long, Mira and Lucy came out carrying the finished sukiyaki and bowls of rice.
"Kazuma…" Erza looked at him meaningfully.
"Got it."
Kazuma pulled several bottles of alcohol out of his Treasury. How could a gathering be complete without drinking? By tradition, they had to drink properly.
One bottle per person. Straight from the bottle later.
"To celebrate Erza coming back safe and sound, and to celebrate Kazuma getting even stronger, cheers."
Mira poured herself only a small glass. She was thinking that this time, just a little would be enough. She absolutely could not get drunk again.
The last time she drank too much, her behavior afterward had been far too embarrassing.
"To celebrate the Magic Council about to be disbanded, and to celebrate the first step of my grand plan for domination, cheers."
Kazuma drank straight from the bottle. Ever since his physical condition had improved, alcohol felt no different from water. Even the magic power contained in the liquor was naturally broken down by his own energy.
Getting drunk had become a luxury he could no longer enjoy.
"To a beautiful tomorrow, and to Fairy Tail, cheers!"
Erza stood up, holding her bottle boldly, and downed it in one go. The alcohol hit instantly, and a flush spread across her face.
"Lucy, you're up," Erza said, swaying slightly as she looked at her.
Lucy stared at the bottle in her hands, then at Erza. She had to toast too? Her alcohol tolerance wasn't that good.
Besides, you've already said everything there is to say. What am I supposed to say now?
"Lucy, don't dawdle," Erza urged. "Cheers!"
Erza's expression darkened slightly. Once she was drunk, her personality turned downright bossy. She always had to drag everyone into drinking with her.
"Cheers, cheers, cheers."
Mira smiled sweetly, tapping her chopsticks lightly against the bowls and plates. She even managed to tap out a little rhythm.
"This drink doesn't have a high proof. It's basically juice," Kazuma said, giving Lucy a reassuring look. "Relax and drink."
"Then… I'm going for it!"
Lucy sniffed the bottle. There really wasn't much of an alcohol smell. Thinking about how easily Kazuma and Erza had downed whole bottles, she figured it really might be like juice.
She lifted the bottle and, summoning all her courage, chugged nearly half of it in one go.
The very next second, a faint breeze passed by, the alcohol hit her head, and Lucy was instantly drunk.
"Waaah, you lied to me! You said there was no alcohol, you said it was a drink! Waaah…"
Once drunk, Lucy turned clingy and loved to act spoiled. She grabbed Kazuma's hand as she complained.
"It is low proof," Kazuma said with an innocent face. "No one ever marked the percentage. Low proof doesn't mean zero. You just misunderstood."
"And for me, it really is like juice."
"Kazuma, you're so mean," Mira said, flashing a mischievous smile. Lucy looked kind of adorable like this. She reached out and poked Lucy's cheek.
"Waaah, Mira's bullying me too! Kazuma, help me!"
Lucy clung to Kazuma's arm, whining.
Erza grabbed another bottle and started gulping it down.
"Cheers! I'm drinking till I'm satisfied!"
She drank while swaying, then looked from Kazuma to Mira.
"Mira, come drink with me."
"What's the fun of using a little bowl? Let's drink straight from the bottle."
As she spoke, Erza leaned over and nearly shoved the bottle into Mira's face.
"Erza, you're drunk," Mira said with a gentle smile.
"Tch, forget it. If you're scared, I'll just drink with Kazuma instead."
Erza turned to leave, but after only one step, Mira grabbed her.
"I'm not scared. I just don't want to drink that much."
Mira suddenly felt indignant. Being called scared by Erza felt like losing to her, and that really rubbed her the wrong way.
"Excuses," Erza said. "If you're brave, then cheers. You drink one bottle, I drink one bottle. Let's see who drops first."
"Cheers, cheers, cheers."
Lucy, copying what Mira had done earlier, started tapping her chopsticks on the bowls again, wearing an eager, trouble-loving grin.
"Fine! Let's do it!"
Mira estimated that she should be okay after one bottle. Erza, on the other hand, probably wouldn't handle it so well.
But she overestimated herself and seriously underestimated the alcohol Kazuma had brought out. One bottle later, her face flushed red, and she was completely drunk.
"Three lightweights," Kazuma thought as he looked at the three drunk girls, shaking his head. "One bottle and they're done, and they still wanted to drink with me."
---
Meanwhile...
Somewhere far away, unknown to anyone, two mysterious beings were speaking.
"Igneel, did you feel it?" Grandeeney said. "The aura of a dragon. Powerful, violent, like it wants to destroy everything."
"That isn't the Black Dragon Acnologia," Igneel replied calmly from within his cave. "It's something else. Something created by humans."
"It has nothing to do with us."
"Igneel, I know it's human," Grandeeney said. "I also know he's from the guild where your child is."
"He's strong. Maybe we could work with him to deal with Acnologia."
Grandeeney wanted to unite every possible force. After all, they shared the same enemy: the Black Dragon.
"Do not interfere with humans!"
"I couldn't interfere even if I wanted to," Grandeeney sighed. "All right, all right, I won't say more. I'll leave."
"I hope we meet again at the Dragon King Festival, Igneel."
The light faded away. Igneel lay back down, gazing into the distance, his thoughts unreadable.
---
The next morning
News about the Magic Council exploded across the land.
Pressure mounted instantly. Both the guilds below and the kingdoms above were bearing down on the Council.
Left with no choice, the Magic Council abandoned its original plan to drag things out. They announced the immediate dissolution of the current members and the formation of a new Magic Council, claiming it was to ensure such mistakes would never happen again.
With Makarov leveraging his vast network of connections, it was no surprise that he was nominated as a candidate for the new Council.
.
.
.