Noon on the second day.
Edward walked out of the secret realm.
With the red Fairy Tail emblem on his face, he arrived at the guild feeling incredibly embarrassed amidst the pointing and whispering of passersby!
He had fallen into a deep sleep yesterday afternoon before it even got dark!
Surely they wouldn’t have started drinking by noon, would they!
Edward had actually planned to come in the morning.
However, he was worried that the master would still be hungover…
well.
Can’t just pass the blame.
The truth was, he was too excited after capturing the Onix yesterday.
He stayed hyped all night and didn’t drift off into a hazy sleep until dawn, which caused him to oversleep.
Clang, clatter!
Edward didn’t know if anyone was drinking inside, but judging by the noise, it was undoubtedly rowdy in there.
He just didn’t know if it was the kids, the adults, or both making a ruckus together.
Hoo—hoo—
He took a few deep breaths.
Edward steeled himself mentally before finally attempting to push open the gate for the first time.
However, the next second.
Everything went blurry before his eyes!
Then, with a ‘bang’, he felt the door slam heavily into his head!
It didn’t hurt much!
But he felt a bit dazed…
And then, with his frail body, he was knocked over.
While stunned, he saw a swarm of people rush out.
If he hadn’t reacted quickly and scrambled backward on his hands and feet, a tragic trampling incident would have occurred!
“What are you doing?! What is this about?!”
“Did that alliance attack earlier than expected?!”
Edward watched this group of fierce-looking people with a terrified expression.
The first to rush out were two cute-looking girls.
One had scarlet hair and wore armor; it was Erza, without a doubt.
The other had white hair like Lisanna, but hers was longer and tied into a high ponytail with a large purple-black butterfly bow.
Compared to Lisanna, who still looked like a child, she looked significantly more mature.
Mirajane.
Like Lisanna, these two sisters didn’t have much screen time in the original work, and even less in the commentary, but because they were beautiful, Edward had some impression of them.
“Heh!”
“Men.”
Subsequently, Edward also saw the cherry-haired Natsu and the black-haired Gray.
As well as the two resident uncles—the fire user and the smoke user, those two bros…
Where were this bunch of people—who were so different in gender, age, and even interests—rushing off to in such a hurry?
“Ah! Edward, you’re here!”
Edward was still wondering.
When he heard Lisanna’s voice filled with joy.
He just turned his head.
A fragrant breeze hit his nose.
A damsel threw herself into his arms.
Edward’s head was pulled directly into Lisanna’s embrace!
Pity, it was ten years too early.
“Huh? Edward?”
“Is this him?!”
“Didn’t they say he was eaten by a magical beast?”
“I heard he was snatched by human traffickers!”
Edward:…
Edward was completely unfazed.
Listening to everyone’s chatter, he quickly reached a conclusion—they were actually going to save him…
Edward was speechless, but he couldn’t deny that he was slightly touched.
“Tch! I thought it was something serious. Just for this brat? Lisanna is just too naive.”
“What’s wrong with caring about a companion?”
“Huh? Did I say there was anything wrong? You tin-can woman! Are you picking a fight?!”
“What?! You exhibitionist, do you want to get beaten up again?!”
“Oh?! That sounds wrong no matter how I listen to it! Why does it sound like I’ve been beaten by you before?”
“Isn’t that right?”
“Go to hell!”
“You’re the one who’s going to die!”
Edward:…
Seeing Edward staring blankly at the two girls brawling, Lisanna felt that if this continued, it wouldn’t be good.
So she hurriedly took Edward’s hand and walked into the guild.
“Don’t mind them, they’re always like this. Come on, I guess you’re looking for the master, right?”
“Yeah…”
Edward nodded blankly.
Then he was led away like a puppet.
“For real! Why is your emblem printed on your face!”
“Yeah, yeah, don’t you care about other people’s stares?”
“Instead of roasting someone else’s face, you should put your clothes on first.”
Seeing is believing.
Edward silently glanced at the guy’s little bird and sighed in his heart.
How are you shameless enough to ask if others care about people’s stares?
“Ah! When did that happen!”
“Hahahaha, Gray is an idiot~”
“What? You idiot with the upturned eyes, how dare you mock me!”
“So what if I mock you, you droopy-eyed jerk!”
Edward:…
“Don’t mind them, they’re always like this. Come on, the master is right there.”
“Oh…”
He nodded woodenly.
In just a few short minutes, Edward had fallen into an abnormal state of “whatever.”
Until.
“Yo! You’re here! Qiao, Qiao, Qiao-gill!”
Edward:…
You’re the gill!
Your whole family is a gill!
“It’s Edward!”
Lisanna corrected him, puffing out her cheeks.
“Oh, oh, cough, sorry, I’m getting old and a bit forgetful.”
I don’t think you’re forgetful; you just blacked out from drinking!
“Um…”
“Um…”
The old man and the young boy spoke at the same time, then stopped at the same time, then yielded to each other, and finally…
“You go first.”
“Alright.”
Fairy Tail’s master, Makarov, stopped with the pleasantries and said directly.
“I’m sorry about yesterday, forcing you to join the guild. I don’t know what your plans are now.”
“Don’t worry, we’ve never had a rule about forced membership, and there are no fees for leaving.”
“Of course, there’s no initiation fee either.”
Constantly talking about money, do I look that poor?
Edward looked down and examined himself.
Tattered clothes and pants, and his shirt was washed out to a pale color…
Well.
It’s a penniless kind of poor.
“I want to join…”
Edward said softly.
If he had any hesitation before coming, the incident at the door just now had completely shattered that hesitation!
Oh.
It wasn’t because of the two beautiful girls fighting, although Ancestor Lu was right, it really was a sight to behold.
But what moved him was everyone’s genuine concern for him.
“Is that so? Then welcome! I’m very happy you’re joining this big family! However…”
“However…”
Once again, they spoke in unison!
“It’s your turn this time.”
Makarov looked at the child kindly.
When he wasn’t drunk, he really was a very good guardian.
“But I want to get the emblem printed somewhere else.”
Edward didn’t hesitate to make his small request.
“Uh, of course! We’ll change it for you right away.”
Makarov was embarrassed.
“Then what did you want to say?”
Edward asked.
“I wanted to ask, how much do you know about the Mage profession, how much do you know about the Fairy Tail guild, and… have you learned any magic?”
“Of course, it doesn’t matter if you know absolutely nothing. You can stay here and get a feel for it. If you really feel it’s not a good fit, you can completely find another path, and your companions will support you.”
“Yeah…”
Edward nodded.
This really was a good place.
Not because of how powerful it was as a Mage guild.
Nor because of the infrastructure or the benefits here.
And certainly not because the people here were so like-minded to him.
But.
From the moment he entered the door.
No, from the moment he met Lisanna, he could feel two words surrounding him thickly.
Sincerity!
This was an ultimate move.
What could Edward do?
He could only surrender.
“I know magic.”
Edward said.
“Oh? What kind?”
Makarov didn’t stand on ceremony at all.
But since Edward joined the guild, he was his child, and there was no need to stand on ceremony with his own child.
Besides, as one of the top ten powerhouses on this continent.
What kind of strange magic hadn’t he seen?
Covet?
It didn’t exist.
“It’s Holder-type and Summoning-type.”
Edward pulled a Poké Ball, shrunk to the size of a billiard ball, out of his pocket.
Just as he expected.
Captured Pokémon could be brought out of the secret realm.