At the mention of this, Lucy sighed, her face full of dismay.
Because they ultimately failed to complete the commission's objective of "destroying the books," she and Natsu naturally didn't receive a single jewel.
"But! Mr. Chase, although we didn't get any reward and ran into some strange guys yelling 'Lullaby' on the way back, I got to see a super successful novel and obtain a Golden Twelve Zodiac key!"
Lucy's dejection vanished in an instant, a happy smile blooming on her face. "All in all, it was a great commission!"
"Ran into some strange guys, huh? That's just how it is teaming up with Natsu and Happy." Chase nodded, speaking seriously.
Lullaby—meaning a lullaby—was a flute that, when played, could harvest human souls. Its true form was a demon from Zeref's books.
"Mr. Chase, that makes so much sense!" Lucy, having been thoroughly duped, raised both hands in strong agreement.
Seeing the respect on her face, Chase smiled. "We're all guild companions. No need to be so formal with me."
"I'm a few years older than you. Just call me 'Bro' like Natsu and Gray do."
This sudden warmth caught Lucy off guard. After a moment's pause, she nodded emphatically. "Yes! Mr. Chase—ah, I mean, Bro Chase!"
Then she muttered quietly to herself: Although... Natsu and Gray just called him by his name, right...
"Speaking of which, Bro Chase is seriously amazing! Even defeating a huge monster from ancient times!" Lucy's face shone with admiration.
"I see. So you're looking forward to fights like that, just like Natsu and Gray? Alright then, next time there's a similar commission, I'll bring you along too."
"No! What part of me looked like I was looking forward to that?!"
Seeing Chase's serious expression, nothing like joking, Lucy hurriedly stood her ground. "Bro Chase, please never, ever bring me along for something like that!"
Fight a monster whose mere stomp could make an entire island tremble?
She didn't have nearly enough lives to throw away!
Just then, Natsu suddenly popped up from behind, having finished his daily brawl.
"I'm fired up! Hey Lucy! Let's take on an S-Class commission next time!"
Lucy's fur stood on end at this sudden, earth-shattering declaration. She whipped around and let loose at Natsu. "Fired up my ass! Can you actually listen to what I just said?!"
"I did listen. You said to bring you along." Natsu nodded very confidently.
"So you only heard the last three words!!!"
Lucy pressed her hand to her forehead in despair, utterly collapsed as she heaved a heavy sigh.
Just as she was about to have a proper discussion with the brain-cell-deficient Natsu, a disdainful sneer suddenly came from the second floor of the guild.
"Who knows if the old man's gone senile, recruiting all these weak, useless pieces of trash."
Following the voice, everyone saw a man with spiky short hair, wearing a sweater jacket, his face full of arrogance, leaning against the balcony railing, looking down contemptuously at the crowd below.
Recognizing him, the guild members who had just finished their "exercise" instantly fell silent.
"Yo, Laxus. So you're in the guild too."
Chase stepped forward, shielding Lucy, and looked up at the man on the second floor with an expressionless face.
"Laxus?" Lucy stole a timid glance.
This guy, who seemed super dangerous, felt completely different from the others in the guild.
"He's like Chase and that 'monster' Erza mentioned yesterday—an S-Class mage of the guild, and one of the strongest candidates."
Happy flew down from the air, educating Lucy on who he was.
"St-strongest candidate?!" Lucy was startled by the title.
On the second floor, Laxus withdrew his contemptuous gaze, his eyes meeting Chase's. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly in excitement.
"Chase. I specifically finished my commission early and came back because I heard you were returning."
"Is that so? As recyclable trash, that kind of behavior unexpectedly suits your personality." Chase smiled.
"What did you say?!" Laxus's expression instantly darkened.
"You called Lucy trash. So you, with the same hair color as her, are also a type of trash, aren't you?"
Chase wasn't the least bit intimidated by the other's aura, remaining as calm and composed as ever.
Although Laxus would eventually realize the importance of "family" and become the most reliable and trustworthy man in Fairy Tail...
To be honest, at this rebellious stage, he really was asking for a beating!
Hearing this, Lucy, hiding behind Chase, felt her mouth twitch: Why did she have a strange feeling of being offended?
"Heh. You're still as insufferable as you were a year ago!"
"There's plenty of debate outside about who's actually the strongest mage in Fairy Tail, you or me... but..."
Laxus straightened up, arrogantly spreading his arms. "No matter who it is, the title of strongest can only belong to me—Laxus Dreyar!"
BOOM!
The instant the words left his mouth, thunder roared and lightning ravaged the area.
Terrifying magical power erupted like a volcano, pressing down on everyone else in the
guild—including Natsu and Gray—making it hard for them to breathe!
"Come on, Chase! The fight we couldn't finish last time—let's settle it today!"
Bathed in lightning, Laxus's battle intent surged as he defiantly crooked his finger at Chase.
"Can't wait to get beaten down, Laxus?"
Chase smiled calmly, a card flickering with light between his fingertips.
An equally terrifying surge of magical power burst forth from within him, violently colliding with Laxus's.
The resulting storm was howled through the confined guild, sending tables and chairs flying.
Dark Magician Girl summoned her magical staff, a magic array slowly rotating beneath her feet as she positioned herself beside Chase.
As a card monster, she unconditionally followed Chase.
"W-wait! S-Class versus S-Class?!"
Even the Fairy Tail members, accustomed to big scenes, were terrified by this tense and oppressive atmosphere.
They couldn't even imagine how terrible a full-power clash between Chase and Laxus would be!
"U-um..."
Though rookie Lucy was trembling with fear, since this had ultimately started because of her (even though it wasn't her fault), she still mustered her courage, ready to step forward and stop Chase and Laxus.
However, just as she stepped up to take responsibility, Mira suddenly pulled her back from behind.
As she stood there bewildered, another terrifying surge of magical power exploded forth.
Following it, a dark purple magic array appeared within the storm of aura.
Cana and the others looked up and were instantly shocked into a cold sweat by the long-unseen sight before them, their faces filled with disbelief.
Mira...no!
That was Demon Mirajane, having taken in Satan Soul?!
"Laxus. This is the guild. Could you please exercise some restraint?" Mira's gaze was cold as she stared at Laxus.
Laxus's eyes widened, shock written all over his arrogant face.
A familiar feeling from the past surged within him.
After a few seconds of silence, he came to his senses. Snorting coldly, he withdrew his magic.
"Chase, you too." Mira glanced back.
Chase shrugged, and the card in his hand dissolved into specks of light.
At the same time, Dark Magician Girl also disarms her attack stance.
"With meddlesome people around, that's enough for today. Chase, someday I'll show you who the real strongest in this guild is!"
Leaving behind this harsh threat, Laxus transformed into a bolt of lightning and vanished from the spot.
"I'll be looking forward to it, Laxus."
Chase glanced up at the second-floor balcony, still crackling with residual arcs.
The "Thunder Palace" incident was the key turning point where Laxus would go from rebellious to mature, so actually, he had no intention of fighting Laxus right now.
He had stepped forward simply to stand up for Lucy.
As for the protagonist of this forced conflict—Lucy, seeing Mira's demon form for the first time—she was now too scared to speak.
That super gentle Mira-nee...
Was actually this terrifying!!!