https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-18-The-Women-of-the-Guild-Are-Tigers/12809317/
Chapter 17: Queen of the Fairies
Chapter 17: Queen of the Fairies
By noon, the guild hall was even noisier than it had been the day before.
The main reason was that Natsu had just returned from a mission, and Gray hadn't left yet.
The two of them, standing about ten meters apart, suddenly locked eyes and started bickering for no apparent reason.
Natsu shouted insults like "saggy-eyes" and "ice-bastard," while Gray retorted with "cross-eyed" and "flame-idiot."
Within no more than ten seconds, they were face to face, and then they started fighting.
Unlike Macao and Wakaba, who knew how to hold back, Natsu and Gray quickly escalated the fight. A chair leg flew out and hit Elfman in the back.
"Man up!" Elfman roared, swinging his fists and joining the fray, but he was quickly sent flying by a punch from both Natsu and Gray.
Elfman's flight knocked over Cana's table, and the bottle she threw in retaliation hit a handsome man on the head.
The handsome man, who had been chatting with two beautiful women, didn't show any anger. Instead, he politely let go of the women and said, "Please excuse me for a moment. I'll just join in."
He winked at them before leaving, and the women screamed in excitement, cheering him on.
The guild hall became even more chaotic as one member after another was drawn into the fight. Even Laxus, who was drawing, Nab, who was looking at the mission board, and Levy's team couldn't escape the chaos.
Mira, as always, watched the commotion with a smile from behind the counter.
Laki, who was already in the mix, wasn't one to back down from a fight.
Rod decisively placed the food he was about to deliver on the counter and stayed by the intoxicated Master's side. It felt safer there.
He watched the various 'battlefields' in the guild hall with intense focus, not to enjoy the show, but to avoid the random flying objects that could come his way at any moment.
Having been a member of Fairy Tail for two days, Rod had learned that survival in the guild meant knowing how to protect yourself.
As the situation escalated and the brawl threatened to turn into a magical battle, Rod decided it was time to wake up the Master and stop the chaos. This seemed to be a routine procedure.
However, before he could act, the guild doors burst open, and the bright midday sun illuminated a slender figure.
As Rod's eyes adjusted to the light, the figure walked in steadily.
A head of vibrant red hair, a face that betrayed no emotion, black thigh-high boots paired with a blue mini-skirt that accentuated her beautiful legs, but...
She was also wearing a full set of metal armor, including shoulder guards, arm guards, and gauntlets.
If she had a sword in her hand and armor on her skirt, she would have looked like a female knight.
But in her hand was a three-meter-long rope, and as she walked in, it became clear that the rope was attached to a flat cart.
The cart was piled high with luggage, a mountain of suitcases that towered over her.
She must be a formidable person, Rod concluded in his mind.
Then he noticed her vibrant red hair and remembered what Mira had mentioned the day before—Erza!
As Erza pulled her luggage into the guild, the noisy hall fell silent.
The people who had been fighting froze, as if someone had pressed a pause button, even those who still had a grip on others' collars or hair.
Mira, however, smiled brightly. "Welcome back, Erza!"
"Ah, I'm back," Erza responded politely, then turned to the others, her expression immediately turning serious.
Everyone fell silent, and only a few brave souls ventured to speak. "Erza... Miss, how was your mission?"
He even added a respectful honorific.
"Don't try to get away with it. I heard you caused quite a bit of trouble again!"
"Let's set that aside for now. Bickslow, stop dancing on the table! Nab, stop loitering in front of the mission board and take a job! Wakaba, watch your ash! Cana..."
Erza immediately started pointing out the misbehavior of the guild's troublemakers and trouble-uncles, and those who had broken furniture were harshly reprimanded.
None of the people she singled out dared to argue back.
Especially Natsu and Gray, who had been fighting fiercely just moments ago, were now arm in arm, acting like the best of friends.
Erza nodded in satisfaction. "It's good to see you getting along, but Gray, your clothes."
"Huh? When did that happen?" Gray fumbled to find his pants and put them on.
But Erza wasn't done yet. "Master, shouldn't you rein them in a bit? They're getting drunk in broad daylight again."
"What's the problem..." Makarov seemed a bit out of it, even belching from the alcohol.
Rod suddenly realized that the guild hall had returned to its usual state. The people who had been brawling moments ago were now drinking and chatting normally.
Natsu and Gray sat across from each other, still glaring at each other with mutual defiance, but the moment Erza's gaze swept over them, they would immediately clink glasses and laugh loudly.
She was like a vice principal.
Erza's gaze then fell on Rod, but fortunately, it was friendly. "New face. Are you a new member, or a resident of Magnolia?"
"Hello, my name is Rod. I joined the guild two days ago. I heard about your notorious reputation from Mira, and it's quite impressive."
"Reputation... notorious reputation..." Erza seemed to be hit by something, looking shocked at Mira.
She knew Mira liked to gossip, but she didn't know Mira would spread bad words behind people's backs.
"That's not it, Rod's common language is a bit off..." Mira looked a bit troubled, realizing she had caused a misunderstanding.
She explained how Rod had learned the language and added, "Anyway, Rod is still learning his magic and common language, so he's temporarily working as a waiter at the guild."
"I see, I'm Erza." Erza was quite friendly to new members. "Since you're part of the guild, you're family. If you have any problems, come to me, and I'll do my best to help you!"
When she said "best," Erza clenched her fist, her tone and expression very serious.
"Ah... thank you." Rod wasn't sure whether to be happy or not.
Good news: he was now 'family' with the main character, Erza.
Bad news: Erza had just dealt with a large group of 'family,' and from the look of it, it wasn't the first time.
Erza stayed in the guild for a while, had a drink, and then left with her luggage, saying she had been out too long and needed to clean her room and sort out her loot.
Rod curiously asked Mira what Erza's mission was.
But Mira said the details were confidential, only that it involved helping a remote border town deal with a troublesome criminal gang.
"Erza took out dozens of criminals in one go," Mira smiled. "What do you think? Our 'Fairy Queen' is pretty cool, right?"
Rod nodded. "Yeah... she's really cool."
To be fair, Erza was incredibly powerful, and her personality... so far, she seemed to be one of the few serious people in the guild.
And her appearance was no less than Mira's. Rod guessed she must be the object of many people's admiration.
But... he didn't dare to have any wild thoughts.
Because Mira had told him about Erza's glorious battle records:
Like beating Natsu so badly that Happy couldn't recognize him, nearly burying the naked Gray, and leaving Loki with just a breath of life...
Rod suddenly felt that the term "notorious reputation" he used earlier wasn't entirely wrong.
"Rach? What's that?"
Mira noticed that after Rach saw Erza off, she returned carrying a gift box taller than herself.
"It's a specialty that Erza brought back for me."
Rach happily placed the red gift box down with a thud, and it sounded pretty heavy.
(End of Chapter)
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