Chapter 730: Six S-Class Mages
Chapter 730: Six S-Class Mages
It wasn't until after Erza had knocked Natsu out that Lucy, who had forgotten about the matter, finally arrived late.
"Oh my, is it over already?"
She opened her mouth, a hint of helplessness flashing across her face. Preoccupied with writing a letter to her mother, she had forgotten about Natsu's challenge to Erza.
Wendy, sitting on Feng Ye's neck, was slightly surprised to see Lucy approaching and waved to her. "Big sister Lucy."
"Good morning, Wendy."
Lucy was a little taken aback but quickly smiled and greeted Wendy warmly. She also waved to Feng Ye. "Good morning, Feng Ye."
"Morning."
Feng Ye offered a slight smile.
Lucy curiously observed Wendy and Feng Ye, asking, "What are you two...?"
Feng Ye closed his eyes slightly, his body quietly dissipating into a beam of light before reappearing about a foot behind him.
Wendy slid off his neck and was caught in his arms before he set her down on the ground.
"Wendy is just too adorable."
Feng Ye reached out and ruffled Wendy's head affectionately, a soft laugh escaping his lips.
Lucy blinked, watching Feng Ye's actions. As clever as she was, she quickly guessed what had happened—Wendy, blocked by the crowd, had been anxiously waving her arms and jumping up and down to get a better view. Lucy couldn't help but let out a peal of laughter.
"Who won?"
After her brief laughter, she looked inside and saw that Natsu was being helped up while Mira handed Erza a towel.
"Erza won," Wendy replied. "Natsu still needs a bit more work."
"Figures," Lucy said, not too surprised. Given how fearful Natsu usually was of Erza, it wasn't hard to guess that he typically lost to her.
A moment later, everyone returned to the guild.
Feng Ye didn't go upstairs but instead casually sat down by the counter on the first floor, sipping a glass of juice and listening to the idle chatter of the gathered girls—Levy, Mira, Erza, Lucy, Wendy, and Lisanna. Naturally, this attracted the envy of many male mages, who could only sigh quietly to themselves.
Not only were the girls of the guild fond of Feng Ye, but the male mages also held him in high regard, with no thoughts of challenging or provoking him.
You must be joking!
The mountain not far from Magnolia still bore the mark of being sliced in half!
On the second floor of the guild, Laxus stuck half his body out, a cigar dangling from his mouth as he looked down at Natsu. He sneered, "Well, well, if it isn't Natsu, back again after another thorough beating from Erza, I see."
"Laxus!"
Hearing Laxus's voice, Natsu's spirits seemed to lift, and he jumped up, looking at the second floor. "Come and fight me!"
Laxus made a derisive sound. "You just lost to Erza, didn't you? If you can't even beat her, what makes you think you can take me on?"
Erza set down her cup and stood up, a cold gaze fixed on Laxus.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means I'm the strongest!" Laxus asserted. "Aside from Feng Ye, I'm the most powerful S-Class mage! And mark my words, I will defeat him one day. The title of the guild's strongest will be mine!"
A brief silence fell over the guild at these words.
Lucy, sitting by the counter on the first floor, opened her mouth and then looked at Feng Ye sitting across from her. "Um... Feng Ye..."
Feng Ye remained calm and unbothered, a slight smile playing on his lips. "No one is born the strongest. We all start from a position of weakness and work our way up through hard work and rigorous training. That's how I became who I am today. Ambition is a natural part of human nature.
"Hmph..."
Erza, having heard Feng Ye's words, exhaled and sat back down. She picked up her teacup, too lazy to pay any mind to Laxus, and said, "Pointless quarrel."
She had no interest in the dispute over who was the strongest. Natsu's challenge was something she merely accepted, and whether or not she wanted to settle things with Laxus now held no interest for her.
Those things didn't matter.
Erza turned to Feng Ye, her eyes softening as she asked, "Do you have time to go watch a play with me today?"
"Sure," Feng Ye agreed with a casual smile.
On the other side, Natsu was still angrily clenching his fists at Laxus on the second floor, shouting, "You jerk! Come down here!"
"You come up here," Laxus retorted disdainfully.
Natsu's patience wore thin, and he charged towards the second floor, yelling, "You wait there for me!"
Boom!!
Suddenly, Master Makarov intervened, his fist enlarging as he knocked Natsu to the ground at the foot of the stairs leading to the second floor. "You're not ready for the second floor yet, Natsu," he stated.
Laxus watched this unfold, snorted, and then sat back in his chair on the second floor, leisurely sipping his tea and paying no further attention to the group below.
"..."
Lucy watched this exchange with a hint of surprise.
After a moment of hesitation, she turned to Mira, her curiosity getting the better of her. "Miss Mira, does not being allowed upstairs mean...?"
Mira smiled gently and explained, "It's still too early for you, Lucy. The second floor is for S-class missions and above, only accessible to S-class mages in the guild. So only S-class mages can go upstairs."
Lucy's eyes widened, and a spark of excitement shone in them as she exclaimed, "S-class?!"
Mira nodded, her smile warm and inviting. "Yes, there are only six S-class mages in the guild at the moment."
Lucy's gaze turned thoughtful as she glanced cautiously at Feng Ye beside her and asked,
"Six?"
"Yup, there's Feng Ye, Laxus, Gildarts, Mistgun, Erza, and me." Mira proudly listed the guild's S-class mages.
Lucy counted them off on her fingers and frowned in confusion. "But that's only five people."
Wendy, sitting nearby, piped up with a cute smile. "There's also Mira!"
"Eh? Miss Mira too?!"
Lucy turned to Mira, astonished, never having expected the gentle-natured woman to be an S-class mage.
Mira nodded, her smile gentle. "Yes, me too."
"Miss Mira is also such a powerful mage," Lucy marveled, a hint of awe in her voice.
Mira's smile was soft and warm as she replied, "That was a long time ago. Lucy, would you like some more juice?"
"Yes, please," Lucy replied, still a little dazed.
(End of Chapter)
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