Chapter 53

Thank you very much to 'Ice·Moon Shadow', 'Great Qin Wang Jian', 'Little H's House', 'Night Moon Chen Yu', 'Dying Scream', 'Frostbound Thunder Dragon', '2D is My Home', 'Wuguan for Whom to Be Lost', 'Tiyin', 'Mikulove', and 'Rabbit of 703' for your generous donations!

Magnolia, 'Fairy Tail'...

Pushing open the guild's large doors, Mira, Elfman, and Lisanna walked in from outside, greeting their guildmates inside.

"Good morning, everyone!"

"Good morning!" The adults in the guild casually greeted back, then continued their conversations and play.

"You're a bit late today," Erza said, sitting at a wooden table, eating a strawberry cake, and speaking in a bored tone.

"Usually, you would have already been here by now."

"It's all because of Elfman," Mira said, her expression showing a bit of dissatisfaction as she glared at Elfman.

"If Elfman hadn't spilled the breakfast, we would have been here much earlier."

"Ugh." Elfman lowered his head, looking like he had been bullied despite his large size.

"I just wanted to eat breakfast quickly."

"Fortunately, it was just breakfast. We could eat it quickly," Lisanna said, tilting her head and smiling cutely.

"But if it weren't for Mira-nee seeing that time was running out and cooking herself, it would have been even later if I had done it."

"Mira cooking?" Erza looked surprised.

"Mira can cook?"

"Are you looking for a fight? You hard-headed woman!" Mira sneered.

"I've been looking for a chance to teach you a lesson. Today, I'll beat you down!"

"I'll make you cry!" Erza glared back, not to be outdone.

"I've tolerated you for too long. Today, I'll definitely teach you a lesson!"

With that, the two immediately stood up, their heads almost touching, making Lisanna sigh and comment.

"What do you mean you haven't found a chance and have tolerated her for a long time? Don't you fight every day?"

"Every day?" Cana rubbed her temples and looked in their direction.

"It's the same over there..."

As Cana spoke, a 'clattering' sound followed.

"You stepped on me! Squinty eyes!"

"You blocked my way! Droopy eyes!"

Saying this, Natsu and Gray's heads collided, glaring at each other, ready to fight, just like Mira and Erza.

"Can't you guys grow up a bit?" Cana said irritably.

"Arguing and fighting every day makes you seem immature. It's time to mature, like Noah..."

Cana's voice trailed off as she mentioned the last name, and her voice disappeared.

"Noah..."

Natsu and Gray, who had been ready to fight, both fell silent, their expressions darkening.

The tense atmosphere around Mira and Erza also dissipated, and they both turned away, no longer speaking.

"Big Brother Noah..." Lisanna's expression became slightly downcast, and she forced a smile.

"I almost forgot that Big Brother Noah isn't in the guild. I was just thinking about waking him up..."

No one responded.

Everyone was silent, making the atmosphere around them somewhat heavy.

"That guy," Mira said, biting her lip, her tone slightly resentful.

"Deciding things on his own without considering how we feel."

"Mira-nee, don't blame Big Brother Noah," Lisanna said, trying to cheer up, and hugged Mira's arm.

"After all, Big Brother Noah is just nearby. We can visit him anytime."

"That's true..." Erza asked.

"Does anyone know where Noah went to train?"

"He said he was going to a nearby mountain yesterday," Gray said casually, taking off his clothes.

"But he didn't specify which mountain."

"Doesn't that mean we can't find him?" Mira frowned, looking towards the bar, and shouted.

"Master, do you know where Noah is?!"

"Who knows!" Makarov, who was drinking at the bar, said indifferently.

"He'll come back when he's supposed to. Until then, let's just wait..."

Before Makarov could finish, something interrupted him.

"Boom————!"

A deafening sound suddenly echoed through the sky of Magnolia, reverberating throughout the 'Fairy Tail' guild.

"Ah————!" Many of the girls in the guild screamed, and the others let out gasps of shock.

"What's happening?" Mira, Lisanna, and Erza stood up quickly.

"What's going on?"

"This magic..." Makarov, who had been drinking leisurely at the bar, stood up, his lazy expression turning serious as he ran outside.

Seeing Makarov run out, Mira and the others exchanged glances and followed him.

...

"Huff... huff... huff... huff..."

Almost everyone in 'Fairy Tail' ran out of the guild, following Makarov down the street.

After passing through two main streets and many tall buildings, the 'Fairy Tail' members, led by Makarov, gradually left Magnolia.

After some time, the view ahead gradually opened up, and the buildings around them decreased.

The 'Fairy Tail' members reached the countryside and continued running forward.

"Hmm?" Makarov, who had been running at the front despite his age, was not out of breath. Seeing a figure ahead, he paused.

"Gildarts?"

"Oh?" Gildarts turned around, his eyes widening when he saw Makarov leading the entire 'Fairy Tail'.

"Why are you all here?"

"Such a big commotion, how could we not come?" Mira replied bluntly.

"By the way, what happened?"

"What happened...?" Gildarts sighed and stepped aside.

"Why don't you see for yourselves?"

As Gildarts stepped aside, the 'Fairy Tail' members turned their attention to the front.

"Snap..."

A sound of something falling to the ground was heard.

But no one paid attention to what had fallen.

Everyone, including Makarov, was stunned, their faces full of shock.

Because in front of them, there was a pile of rubble.

Of course, just a pile of rubble wouldn't have caused such a reaction.

The problem was that, if they hadn't forgotten, the place where the pile of rubble was should have been a mountain.

Now...

The mountain was gone!

No!

It wasn't that the mountain was gone!

It was that the mountain had been shattered!

The pile of rubble was the mountain!

"What... what happened?" Lisanna asked, dumbfounded.

"Where's the mountain?"

No one answered Lisanna's question.

Clearly, everyone was still in shock.

"Cough... cough... cough..."

At that moment, a slight coughing sound was heard.

From the top of the pile of rubble, a hand emerged, pushing away the rubble covering it, and a head appeared, coughing continuously.

"Damn... it's really hard to control..."

Seeing the person who emerged from the top of the pile of rubble, everyone was stunned.

"Noah?"

"Uh..." Noah looked down at the stunned faces of the people below, his expression becoming awkward.

"I... I didn't mean to..."

For a moment, no one could speak.