After a few peaceful days, Raizel and his two companions set off on another mission.
Guild commissions generally came in two forms: one where clients approached the Council, which then assigned tasks based on strength and proximity, and the other through direct requests.
Ever since Duke Grant specifically requested Raizel for a mission last time, Raizel had inexplicably received more direct commissions.
However, the content of these tasks was clearly stated in the request forms—unlike Duke Grant's request for Raizel to attend his son's birthday party, which many couldn't afford.
Duke Grant's case was essentially driving up market prices, likely to prevent Raizel from being overwhelmed by such frivolous requests.
One advantage of requesting Raizel was that, unlike other members of Fairy Tail, Raizel carried out subjugation missions as far from towns as possible and avoided causing unnecessary destruction.
This made him quite popular among many clients.
Among the regular mission-takers in Fairy Tail, Gray and Lyon were already showing signs of becoming demolition experts.
Macao was just as chaotic, and Gildarts was even worse.
Under the influence of Raizel and Ultear, Erza sometimes went overboard with destruction, but overall, it was still manageable—especially since Ultear could use the Arc of Time to restore things.
"All these commissions are specifically for you. Is it really okay for us to share the rewards like this?" Erza asked, pulling her enormous suitcase.
"It's fine. Even though they're requesting me, unless it's a mission like Kevin's, I usually plan to let you handle things most of the time. Besides, working as a team is more fun. I'd have no motivation to do missions alone," Raizel replied with a yawn.
"This mission is strange. According to the quest form, it's about a monster resembling a giant crocodile in the swamp. But if it's just a giant crocodile, there's no need for a special commission, right?"
Ultear, who hadn't joined their conversation earlier, took out the request form as they approached their destination to confirm the address and details.
"As long as the address is correct, we can ask the client for specifics."
...
"I'm the village chief and the client for this commission. Behind our village, there's a large swamp and forest. Over the past two months, many people who went there have gone missing. Some claimed to have seen a huge monster, but they only glimpsed it from afar and were too terrified to describe it clearly. That's why we specifically sought help from a guild."
"Shouldn't a task like this be assigned to any guild nearby? Why specifically request me?"
"That swamp and forest are crucial to the ecosystem of the surrounding villages. While driving away or killing the monster is important, we can't afford to damage the wetlands and woods. We heard that someone in your team knows time magic and can restore any damage."
'Was this Duke Grant's doing, or has Ultear already started gaining fame?' Raizel raised an eyebrow, noting that this area seemed to fall under Duke Grant's jurisdiction.
"I see. Understood, we'll be careful," Raizel nodded.
"Were there originally any monsters or animals inhabiting that swamp?"
"Aside from fish and small animals, there are only small crocodiles about two to three meters long, along with some snakes and pythons, but they're all quite small and pose no threat to humans," the village chief shook his head.
....
The three arrived at the marshland behind the village.
Raizel flew up into the sky and took a quick glance around.
After landing back, Raizel said to Ultear and Erza.
"It's indeed vast. Though called a marsh, it also has rivers and forests—it could practically be called a river basin."
"Then it's too large to risk going deep inside. We can't determine where it's hiding," Ultear pinched her chin in thought.
Raizel, who hadn't been the one to record the earlier conversation, asked.
"Where were the sighting locations?"
Erza handed the map to Raizel, which had five marked locations. "From the map, these five spots indeed have sparse vegetation. Most villagers from the surrounding areas enter through these points, so the likelihood of sightings is higher."
"But looking at the map, there are more than five spots, and they're quite far apart," Raizel glanced at the map briefly.
"The main thing is to lure it out, since we can't damage this place."
"Luring it out shouldn't be too difficult. The village chief mentioned this only started happening in the last two months. Perhaps it's due to a lack of food that it's attacking humans. The chief also said the crocodiles and snakes originally living here are quite small. If it's particularly large, food scarcity is a real possibility."
"Let's go back and ask the chief for a few larger herbivores and borrow some unused small boats."
Raizel obtained three goats from the chief and tied each to the riverbank.
The three of them each guarded one location.
...
After two days of waiting, the giant crocodile finally appeared at Ultear's post near the river.
Raizel and Erza, upon receiving Ultear's Fairy Tail emblem signal flare, immediately flew to her location.
"Ice Make: Ice Net."
Then, using Arc of Time, she grew shrubs and other obstacles from seeds to restrain the giant crocodile.
By the time Raizel arrived, Ultear was struggling to restrict the giant crocodile's movements.
After finishing its meal, the crocodile showed no intention of fighting further, merely shaking its head as it tried to return.
Raizel used his Take Over to become UlforceVeedramon and leaped in front of it.
He first charged up a punch with his right hand and slammed it into the crocodile's head, then used both of his hands to flip it over, intending to drag it ashore.
Ultear used Ice Make to create an ice chain, binding it and pulling as well.
As Raizel dragged it, the giant crocodile struggled continuously.
Just as Raizel thought about turning around to punch it again—
"Black Wing Armor: Moon Flash."
Erza, having changed into her Black Wing Armor, arrived from above and sliced the giant crocodile open.
"Alright, it's dead."
Only then did Raizel have time to examine the giant crocodile.
After estimating, he noted it was about 15-16 meters long—far longer than the Purussaurus he knew of.
Its skull and jawbone were thick and heavy, and its back was covered in spiked, hard armor.
Raizel tested it and found the hardness quite impressive; attacking from above wouldn't be very effective.
The most effective method, like Erza's, was to strike its belly.
"Raizel," Erza landed, sheathing her sword.
She looked at the carcass with a calculating gleam in her eye.
"Did the Chief say what to do with the body?"
"He just wants it gone," Raizel said. "Why?"
"I tested it with Benizakura," Erza tapped the dorsal scales. "This armor is incredibly light but resistant. It would make excellent material for a new set of lightweight armor. And the bones... they would make a nice collectible."
Raizel blinked. "You want to collect the bones?"
"I rented a room in Fairy Hills just for my collection," Erza admitted, looking slightly embarrassed. "It seems like a waste to leave such a specimen."
"Fine by me," Raizel laughed.
"I'll go ask the village chief. It shouldn't be a problem. If not, we can just buy it."
Raizel negotiated with the village chief, who also held no fondness for this giant crocodile that had eaten nearby villagers, and told Raizel to handle it as he pleased.
"The village chief agreed. Let's skin it for the leather armor. We can keep the bones too. Properly processed, they'd make a nice collectible."
After the village chief and others left, the three of them worked together to skin the crocodile.
They used Ice Make ice blades, which were quite handy.
In the end, Erza took both the leather armor and the bones.
She planned to keep the bones as a collectible—she had already rented another room in the girls' dormitory to display her collection, and this set of bones would become one of them, though it still needed special treatment.
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