Somewhere by a forest lake stood a uniquely shaped green crystal building.
This was the headquarters of the Fiore Kingdom's Magic Council.
The interior structure of the building was quite unique, composed of several huge rock palms.
Standing on each palm was a Magic Council member.
From the returning Magic Council investigation team, they had learned the general sequence of events on Demon Ruins Island.
"Never thought that Fairy Tail, which only knew how to cause destruction and trouble, would actually perform such a righteous deed this time."
"Ha, putting aside the process, they completely destroyed a tourist island built with kingdom investment!"
"Compared to civilians being slaughtered and the situation deteriorating into something far more dangerous, that bit of destruction is nothing."
"According to the investigation team's on-site survey, if the Eighteen Demon Gods had been allowed to restore to their perfect state, we wouldn't need to worry about a single island—but the safety of the entire nation!"
"Regardless, Chase and Mirajane really helped us deal with a major problem."
"Then regarding the Guiltina continent kingdom town incident, should we still press on Fairy Tail?"
This question was thrown, and the entire hall immediately fell into silence.
All eyes turned to the man standing on the central platform, sporting two large patches of goat-like beard.
Beside Speaker Crawford Seam, an ultra-ancient document floated. His gaze lowered as he pondered for several seconds, then slowly spoke:
"Looking at it this way, those guys aren't completely useless after all. Let's temporarily shelve this matter. Yesterday's proposed issue is hereby voided."
"Call Makarov over tomorrow. I need to know the details of what happened on Demon Ruins Island."
Yesterday's proposed issue referred to "if Fairy Tail causes another disaster, order their guild to disband."
Since even the Speaker had spoken thus, the other members who harbored long-standing grudges against Fairy Tail naturally said no more and silently nodded.
Among them, Councilman Jellal's eyes flickered slightly. He thought to himself:
'Chase Lin Edgarhall... Heh, sounds like quite an interesting fellow.'
'I wonder whether the Council's decision will prove to be a good thing or a bad thing for you?'
'Erza...'
Sky-blue short hair, with a very conspicuous red pattern on his right eye.
That's right—he was Jellal Fernandes's Thought Projection lurking within the Magic Council!
Early the next morning, having received the summons, Makarov wore a worried expression as he boarded a magically powered vehicle heading to the Magic Council's Magnolia branch.
Unaware of the news from the ruins island, he thought the Council was calling him to account for the destroyed town. His expression was as dignified as a warrior facing certain death.
No sooner had he left than the day's newest newspaper was delivered to Magnolia.
Its content was impressive about the Demon Ruins Island incident!
Because such a major event had occurred in the middle of things, the "Hero and Demon" themed collaboration between Weekly Sorcerer Magazine and the Kingdom was immediately scrapped.
As the only organization present at the time with access to on-site photos, Weekly Sorcerer Magazine naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity.
The editor rewrote the prepared theme draft overnight, laid out the layout, and rushed to publish the report on the entire incident today.
And so, the image of Chase single-handedly blocking the huge Demon God to protect the magical boat appeared prominently in the most conspicuous position of the newspaper!
At the largest tavern in southwest Magnolia.
"Hey! Have you all seen this? That Fairy Tail's Chase actually saved every tourist on the entire island!"
The man clutched a crumpled newspaper in his hand, his expression was extremely shocked.
From the black chicken foot crest on his right arm, one could recognize him as the strongest mage of Black Pheasant Foot!
Here's what happened: after being kicked flying by Chase's Rock Giant Soldier earlier, this hot-headed young man was super upset. He had been lurking in Magnolia, constantly gathering information on Chase, trying to get even.
But before he could exact revenge, he encountered this report about Chase.
"Oh, we saw it. So what?"
To his surprise, the people in the tavern—including the owner and staff—all appeared very calm.
"That Chase! The Chase who takes pleasure in destruction—actually did something good?!" The man was utterly bewildered.
"Little brother, judging by your outfit, you must be from out of town, right?" someone asked.
"Yeah, I am. But wait—aren't you locals deeply affected by Chase's havoc? Aren't you surprised?"
Seeing his fuss reaction, the tavern owner walked over slowly with a keg of beer, smiling as he poured him a glass.
"That's exactly why we say you're an outsider, little brother. Chase doing something like this? We've seen each other long ago."
"Let me tell you something, and you'll understand. Last year, that drunk magic beast suddenly went berserk and ran here to steal liquor. Chase heard the commotion, stepped in, and took down all the beasts before the army even arrived."
"Sure, the damage from the fight far exceeded the value of just handing over the tavern's liquor to the beasts... but..."
At this point, the tavern owner waved toward a corner.
There, a young boy with a childish face called out "Daddy!" and dashed into his arms.
The owner lovingly patted the boy's head, gratitude showing on his face. "This kid survived safely from the beast's claws."
Hearing this, Black Pheasant Foot's strongest mage was momentarily stunned.
"Little brother, let me put it this way: with that guy Chase around, when it's safe, it's most dangerous; when it's dangerous, it's safest."
A customer at another table added with a laugh, "So just remember to stay far away from him when things are calm."
This vivid metaphor drew identification from others in the tavern, who burst into laughter.
RUMBLE.
A sudden earth-shaking sound from outside the street interrupted the lively atmosphere.
Everyone's smiles instantly freeze.
They were all too familiar with this damn noise.
"Damn it! That bastard Chase! He's letting Rock Giant Soldier run through town again, isn't he?!"
"Seriously! Would it kill him to show some restraint? I can't take this anymore—come on, let's go out and give him a piece of our minds!"
"Let's go! I just thought of some new insults. This time I'm definitely going to tear him a new one!"
And so, a crowd rushed to the doorway and began cursing loudly at the passing Rock Giant Soldier.
This time, with a third-person perspective, the Black Pheasant Foot mage could finally see clearly.
Those residents hurling the nastiest insults had faces brimming with joyful and reassuring smiles!
So this was...
The true way Fairy Tail's S-Class mage Chase got along with the residents of this city?
"I really still have a long way to go before I can be called a major guild's S-Class mage..."
Black Pheasant Foot's mage sighed heavily, raised the beer before him, and drained it in one gulp.
He no longer ran to interfere like last time. Instead, he lowered his head and silently walked out of the tavern, disappearing at the end of the street
***
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