Chapter 12: A New Foundation
Everyone in the guild stared at Ren and Elfman in disbelief.
The air was thick with tension. Makarov was still halfway out of his chair, his face a mask of thunder. Mira's hands were clasped at her chest, her eyes wide and full of tears, having just read the S-Class update.
Ren also paused when he saw everyone, his gaze sweeping over the tear-tracks on Mira's face. "Oh! Everyone's here."
"Ren?! Elfman?! You're okay?" Mira's voice cracked with sheer, unadulterated relief as she rushed forward.
"Okay? What's okay?" Ren was genuinely confused by the intense reception.
Makarov finally spoke, his voice tight with a mixture of fury and terror. "It's good that you're okay! Fortunately, you didn't go on that quest. That quest has already been reclassified as an S-Class Quest. I was really worried you'd impulsively go and do it. It was right to abandon the quest."
There was a heavy silence.
Ren blinked. "Abandon the quest? Abandon which quest?"
"What else could it be but the Phantom Bandit Gang quest you accepted!" Makarov snapped.
"Oh, that," Ren said, as if discussing the weather. "We completed that quest."
"What did you say?!!!"
The entire guild was startled by this, looking at Ren in utter disbelief.
Mira turned to Elfman, her eyes wide and searching. "Elfman... is that...?"
Elfman, who looked like he had seen a ghost and hadn't fully processed the last twenty-four hours, just nodded stiffly.
Makarov stared at Ren with wide eyes, his jaw dropping. "You... you really completed it? You defeated Camille, the King of Assassins?"
Ren nodded, "Yeah! That guy was quite troublesome, a bit difficult to deal with."
"..."
Elfman didn't speak, but he grumbled inwardly: Yeah! He was quite difficult, it only took about three minutes to deal with him!
"You... how could you be so reckless?" Makarov finally roared, his composure breaking. "That was an S-Class Quest! And that was the famous King of Assassins, Camille! You could have been killed!"
Ren spread his hands, his expression calm. "What could I do? The quest was already accepted, I couldn't just abandon it. Besides, they were trying to kill my client, I couldn't just stand by and do nothing. That would damage Fairy Tail's reputation."
"EXTRA! EXTRA!"
Just then, a newsboy selling newspapers ran past the guild's entrance, waving the latest edition of the Weekly Sorcerer.
"THE NOTORIOUS PHANTOM BANDIT GANG HAS BEEN FULLY APPREHENDED!"
"IDENTITY OF THE LEADER IS SHOCKING! KING OF ASSASSINS, CAMILLE, DEFEATED BY NEW FAIRY TAIL MAGE!"
Wakaba quickly ran out and bought a copy. He unfolded it for everyone to see. The front page featured a grainy, long-distance magical photograph of the destroyed mayor's estate—a massive crater where the mansion used to be. A second, smaller photo showed Ren and Elfman leaving the scene.
"He... he really completed it!!"
"Ren, a newcomer who just joined the guild, actually completed an S-Class Quest! That's incredible!"
"Yeah! No wonder he could defeat Natsu. This guy's strength is monstrous!"
Seeing the reports in the newspaper, the guild members exclaimed in surprise. They finally believed that Ren had truly completed the S-Class Quest.
Makarov took a deep, shuddering breath, his anger evaporating and being replaced by stunned disbelief. He looked at Elfman. "Report the quest process. Now."
Elfman, now the center of attention, gulped and stood up straight. "A 'man's' report! Right!"
"We got there, and the Rune Knights were everywhere! They told us the quest was S-Class and the target was Camille, the 'King of Assassins'!"
"And then?!" Natsu demanded, leaning in.
"And then... Ren told me to stay back. To protect the client," Elfman said, his voice dropping. "He said... he would handle them."
"Alone?!" Gray shouted. "Against thirteen mages?"
"It wasn't a fight, Gray... it was..." Elfman visibly shuddered, the memory fresh. "Ren... he transformed. It wasn't Beast Soul. It was something else. He became... cold. His clothes changed... he had a white helmet fragment and green, empty eyes."
The guild listened in rapt silence as Elfman described the one-sided battle. He described how Ren vanished, moving faster than Jet. He described how the bandits' explosion magic did nothing against his skin.
"And then," Elfman said, his voice barely a whisper, "he just... pointed his finger. A green blast of light. He... he took out four of them in one shot. The others... he just... cut them down. One by one. They couldn't even touch him."
"He alone," Elfman finished, "defeated all thirteen members of the Phantom Bandit Gang, including Camille. It was... a true 'man's' victory."
The guild was silent, processing the report. Ren hadn't just completed an S-Class quest. He had massacred it.
Makarov sighed, a long, weary sound. He looked at Ren. "Let it pass this time, but don't be so reckless again! Do you understand me, brat?"
"Understood!" Ren said with a smile. "By the way, Master, I've even completed an S-Class Quest. Can I go to the second floor now?"
His goal wasn't just to prove himself. It was to get access to the high-reward quests. He needed more pulls on the gacha. The thrill of getting Ulquiorra had faded, replaced by the hunger for more power.
"Oh yeah!" Macao said. "Ren completed an S-Class Quest, so he should be able to go to the second floor." The other members murmured in agreement.
"No!" Makarov shouted, slamming his hand down.
"An S-Class Quest is an S-Class Quest, and the second floor is the second floor! To go to the second floor, you must become an S-Class Mage. These are the guild rules!"
Makarov glared at Ren. This stubborn kid dared to take an S-Class Quest right after joining. If he let this brat go to the second floor now, who knows what he might do? He might even take on a 100-year quest!
He also had to cut off the idea of others wanting to reach the second floor by completing S-Class Quests. If everyone started doing that, he wouldn't be able to handle the worry.
"Sigh! Alright!" Ren said, visibly disappointed. He had really wanted that S-Class access for his system. "Master, how do I become an S-Class Mage?"
Makarov replied: "To become an S-Class Mage, you must wait for the S-Class Mage promotion exam at the end of the year. Only by passing the S-Class exam can you be promoted to an S-Class Mage."
Ren's eyes widened. "End of the year?! It's only the beginning of the year now! Doesn't that mean I have to wait another half a year?!"
"Exactly!" Makarov said, a grim satisfaction on his face. 'You kid,' he thought, 'you'd better honestly go do other quests.'
Soon, the guild returned to its usual lively state, with many people eagerly discussing Ren's completion of the S-Class Quest. They were looking at him with new eyes—a mixture of awe and fear.
Ren, now holding his 6,000,000 Jewel reward in a new satchel, ordered a table full of dishes. He had lived a hard life for half a month since transmigrating, but now that he had money, he wanted to make up for all of it.
During his meal, many people in the guild came to invite him to form a fixed team, impressed by his power.
But he politely declined each one, saying he temporarily wanted to act alone. Teaming up had its advantages, primarily safety. But Ren didn't need safety; he needed efficiency. His goal was to become an S-Class Mage. Once he became S-Class, he could take S-Class Quests freely, and that meant more 10-pulls from his system. He needed to get stronger, fast. Insufficient strength would be a hindrance, and he couldn't let anyone slow him down.
Ren called out: "Mira! Another beer!"
"Coming!"
Mira quickly brought a glass of beer and placed it on Ren's table, her smile warmer than usual.
"Ren, thank you so much this time," she said softly. She had heard from Elfman that Ren had not only done all the work but had also insisted on giving Elfman a 1,000,000 J share of the reward.
Ren blinked, looking up from his chicken leg. "Thank me? Why? I should be thanking you. Thanks to you for having Elfman accompany me. If Elfman hadn't protected the client on this quest, I might have completed the quest and had no one to pay the reward."
Hearing Ren say this, Mira developed a lot more goodwill towards him. He was strong, humble, and generous. "If you ever need my help with anything in the future, just say so."
At this moment, Ren remembered something. He had money, but he was still technically homeless. He had been sleeping in the forest and, more recently, in a cheap inn that he could no longer afford.
"Hmm, I actually do have something I'd like your help with."
"What is it?"
Ren put down his beer. "I want to buy a house."
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