When the song ended, Mira stood up and gave a slight bow to everyone.
Cheers immediately erupted. Countless people wildly waved light sticks that seemed to have appeared from nowhere, clamoring for an encore.
Just as Lucy and the others were still intoxicated in Mira's gentle, beautiful voice, the guild's lights flickered again.
The curtain opened. Gajeel, in a white suit, had taken Mira's place. He sat with his legs crossed, looking very arrogant and wild.
"You bastards are in luck. This is my original song — its name: 'Graffiti Riot'!"
With that, without giving anyone time to react, Gajeel started playing the electric guitar in his arms and began to sing.
"Colorful, colorful!"
"This melody of love ~ is made of hard steel metal ~ Oh yeah~"
The stiff, grating beat combined with his rough, low-quality voice inflicted heavy mental pollution on everyone below.
If Mira's singing was a heavenly voice that could soothe the soul, then Gajeel's was a demon's whisper from hell — no, a demon's screech!
"What kind of crappy song is that?! It's terrible! Get the hell off the stage!"
"Nobody wants to hear that crap. You don't think wearing a white suit and black sunglasses makes you look good, do you? Morning dog barks sound better than you!"
"Get off! Get off!!"
Feeling their ears violently violated, everyone couldn't help but curse, completely ignoring the "newcomer's" face. They threw rotten eggs, smelly socks, and slippers at Gajeel.
"A real man! This music has a strong heavy metal flavor!"
"Keep it up, Gajeel! You can do it!"
"Not bad at all — as a backdrop to Mira."
A few gave him encouragement, cheering him on.
But aside from Juvia, who genuinely cheered for Gajeel, they were mostly just enjoying the chaos.
"Metal craze ~ sha la la ~ thanks, bro, for the mop ~"
Gajeel's skin in this regard was incredibly thick. He was loving it, singing even more wildly.
"He seamlessly transitioned into thank-yous during the performance—"
Even though she was completely disheveled and her head was buzzing, the dedicated Lucy still complained. "Should I say he actually has musical talent?"
"By the way, throwing a mop means they want you to get off the stage!"
Natsu, sitting nearby, couldn't take it anymore. He covered his ears and shouted, "Shut up, you bastard! I've never heard such a terrible song!!"
THUD~!
Just as he finished, the demon's screeching stopped. An electric guitar flew through the air and hit Natsu in the face with precision.
"Wha—?!"
Gajeel's mouth was full of messy keys. He glared furiously.
He didn't care what others said. But the Fire Dragon? No way!
Natsu, annoyed, jumped up to kick Gajeel off the stage.
Gajeel had the same idea. The two, who had been getting on each other's nerves, both leaped into the air and kicked each other hard.
"You wanna fight, bastard?!"
"I'm in the middle of 'Graffiti Riot'! What does a simple-minded idiot know?!"
"The old man who collects trash in town sings better than you!"
Amid the shouting, Natsu and Gajeel predictably started brawling.
"Hey, can you two grow up a little?" Gray set down his drink and stood up.
In his sudden movement, his elbow accidentally hit a nearby plate.
THUD.
The strawberry cake on it fell to the ground.
"Huh?" Erza stared at the deformed strawberry cake.
She reached out toward the still-salvageable cake, trembling. Then, the next second, a wooden clogs sole mercilessly stomped down, grinding the cake to dust.
"A real man! Stop fighting!"
Elfman stepped forward, completely unaware that his death was imminent.
"SO ANNOYING!!"
Erza, transformed into a demon, punched him flying over ten meters, collateral-damaging countless onlookers.
This was completely fried. The hot-blooded Fairy Tail members, unwilling to suffer such undeserved disaster, immediately conjured magic circles and attacked their usual "enemies."
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM! CRASH, CRASH, CRASH!
And so, the rare relaxing concert devolved into a crowd-pleasing multi-person brawl. Tables, chairs, pots, and pans flew everywhere. The scene was complete chaos.
"A completely unsurprising development..."
"Aye~!"
Lucy and Happy hid behind the counter, arms around their knees, far from the chaotic battle circle.
The guild newbie who used to be constantly dragged into fights was now an experienced "veteran"!
"Hahaha, lively! Let me add some momentum for you~!"
Hearing the voice, Lucy looked up and saw Chase, Dark Magician Girl, Elusive Elf Swordsman, and others standing on the center stage with a full set of rock instruments.
"W-Wait, Chase! Playing that song at a time like this will cause big trouble!"
Lucy gasped, instinctively recalling the performance from that night.
That passionate music had even affected her uncontrollably, giving her the illusion that she could defeat any enemy.
If these hot-blooded, trouble-loving guys heard it, what would happen?!
"Don't worry, Lucy. With the master here, it definitely won't get too out of hand," Happy said quietly.
"That's true..."
Lucy nodded belatedly. Then, thinking Happy's voice sounded strange, she loo
ked sideways — and immediately made a meme.
At some point, the damn cat who was supposed to be hiding with her behind the counter had sneaked much farther away. He was now standing by the hall window, ready to flee at any moment!
"Your words and actions don't match at all! How can you tell me not to worry?!"
To be safe, Lucy decisively abandoned her current position, ran over, and hugged Happy tightly to her chest.
If she was going to die, she was taking this disloyal damn cat with her!
As she ran, Chase and the card monsters in full costume had already started playing their symphony.
Deng deng deng deng deng, deng deng deng deng deng!
The moment the intro appeared, it swept through the entire guild like a storm, pounding the nerves of the brawling Fairy Tail members.
Everyone was drawn in by the passionate rhythm. Their blood boiled. It felt as if they had awakened some indescribable resonance, their power pouring out.
"S-Such magical music! My magic power has expanded to its limit!"
"An unprecedented feeling! Is this the power of music?!"
"A real man! As expected of Chase, even the things he plays have such strong manliness!"
"Hey! Come at me all at once! I'll take ten of you!!"
Even Makarov, whom Lucy had high hopes for, raised both arms and shouted, "Ooooh! I'm fired up!!"
"NOOOO, Master! Calm down!!" Lucy was so scared she almost jumped out of her skin.
"Ara. I suddenly have this urge to fight too~"
"No! Why did even Mira-nee activate Satan Soul?!"
"Ahahaha! Take this, Chase! I'm terrifyingly strong right now!"
"Natsu, stop— wait, Chase is— no—"
Lucy's eyes darted around. Then she thought: The most troublesome one, Natsu, would be quickly taken care of. So she immediately cheered, "Go get him, Natsu!"
"Aye~ Lucy is pretty sinister too." Happy's head barely emerged from the deep valley.
BOOM!!
To Fairy Tail's most classic background music, everyone fought. Explosions echoed through the entire street.
The newly completed guild hall, personified, seemed to be hopping in place, lying by the lake and trembling.
The huge commotion drew many Magnolia residents to stop and watch.
Discussing what Fairy Tail was up to now, they didn't notice the figure standing behind them — a blond man in a coat, wearing spiked earphones, his expression dark to the extreme...
In the guild hall.
Makarov was the first to calm down. Sensing that something was off about Chase's music, he stopped the riot.
The new guild hall thus escaped disaster, avoiding the tragic fate of being sent back to the furnace for rebuilding immediately after completion.
Even so, the members were still immersed in the special state they had felt earlier, begging Chase to play again and solemnly promising not to fight anymore.
Natsu, the "quick-defeat" Dragon Slayer who had been knocked out in one punch, lay on the ground with a happy expression. That's more like it! This is the atmosphere a guild should have!
Chase happily agreed. He also provided the sheet music and invited Mira to accompany him.
Although there was an element of teasing, as Makarov had noticed, the BGM just now wasn't just a rehearsal for the magical parade.
Having encountered Vidaldus of the Three Crows and witnessed music magic firsthand, Chase had asked the Dark Magician about the principles of such magic.
He wasn't skilled yet, but judging by the actual results, adding magic power could indeed be inspiring as a secondary effect.
If he could delve deeper and develop stronger effects, maybe one day he could really carry a speaker and lead the Fairy Tail members into team fights!
After all, there would be many large-scale battles in the future.
Of course, this was just Chase's preliminary idea — something to ponder in his spare time.
For now, the priority was still improving his own strength.
And at this stage, there was a chance to get card drops from someone right in front of him!
While starting to play rock music without magic with Mira, Chase's gaze pierced through the guild, looking out at the street outside.
Laxus, back in Magnolia, should be ready to start the civil war by now, right?
Finally...
He could beat up this annoying, rebellious brat!
When the song ended, everyone was still full of passion, clamoring for "a billion more."
Chase didn't indulge them this time. He returned the card monsters to the deck and walked off the stage.
The troublemakers were aggrieved, but no one dared to force Chase to continue — doing so would only result in a beating, like Natsu.
Dark Magician Girl seized this precious opportunity to stay. She affectionately held Mira's arm, wanting her to show her around the new guild hall.
Mira had no reason to refuse. She smiled and agreed.
The two beautiful girls left the hall hand in hand.
"Hey, Gray, you probably don't know yet, but your teacher Ur came to the guild looking for you yesterday."
Chase sat down across from Gray.
"Ur? She's back?" Gray looked a bit surprised.
Even though they had talked about it on Galuna Island, he hadn't expected it to happen so soon.
Hearing about Ur, Lucy, Erza, Happy, and Natsu all curiously gathered around.
Erza, in particular, who hadn't experienced the Deliora incident, was very interested in Gray's teacher.
Chase cleared his throat and briefly explained what had happened yesterday.
"Nani? Ur is now Sabertooth's master?!" Gray's eyes went wide in disbelief.
"Sabertooth? Hmm... that name sounds familiar... where have I heard it before?" Natsu tilted his head, frowning in deep thought.
With his simple mind, he had completely forgotten about Sabertooth.
"It's the guild that hooked up with Phantom Lord and tried to attack us!" Lucy was speechless at his forgetfulness.
"Oh! The muscle-bound uncle that the master knocked out with one punch!" Natsu clapped his hands in sudden realization.
Lucy: "The way you remember people is very rude..."
"According to the Council's investigation, it seemed to be Jiemon's personal behavior. Even Sabertooth's own members didn't know about it."
Erza propped her chin on her hand, thinking. "Since Chase and the master recommend it, that guild must be quite a good place."
"Decided! Let's go visit!" Natsu, ever surprising, stood up and headed for the door.
Truly a man of action...
Lucy grabbed his scarf. "There's no need to be so rushed! We just got back!"
"Idiot. Ur just took over Sabertooth. She definitely has a lot to do. Going now would just be bothering her."
Gray, the one who wanted to see Ur the most, was very calm. He explained while also taking the chance to insult Natsu.
"Perverted ice guy! What did you say?!" Natsu turned back, eyes wide.
"Calling you an idiot." Gray didn't back down at all.
Disagreeing with every word, the two immediately went forehead-to-forehead.
Chase suddenly had the urge to open their skulls to see if there were one positive and one negative magnet inside.
"Sit down. Haven't you caused enough trouble?" Erxa took a tactical sip of tea.
Natsu and Gray instantly calmed down, quickly returning to their seats, hands flat on the table, backs straight like perfect students.
"But, Erza, you and Mira were going at it pretty hard too..." Happy muttered.
"Hm?" Erza's eyes turned fierce.
"Aye~ Natsu! Gray! You two are disgraceful!" Happy immediately switched targets.
"What a fence-sitter!" Lucy seized the chance to complain.
Taking advantage of the opening, Chase stole the fried chicken leg from in front of her. While eating, he said, "Before that, Gray, settle Ur's dinner bill for me."
"Nani? Why should I pay for Ur's dinner?"
"That's MY chicken leg!!"
Ignoring Lucy's wail, Chase sucked his fingers and looked at Gray. "Because she said that when you were little, you ran around naked to the neighbor's house and—"
"How much? I'll pay!" Gray, face red with embarrassment, quickly interrupted.
If Natsu heard about that, he'd be ruined in future arguments!
Under the table, Juvia squirmed restlessly, also very anxious.
Hurry up and say it, Mr. Chase!
I really want to know Gray-sama's childhood stories, ahhh!
While the group chatted, Gajeel, approached by Jet and Droy, followed Shadow Gear to Magnolia's park.
***
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