Trembling as she hid inside the magically warmed glass of the clock, Lucy watched the others enthusiastically discussing work outside in the blizzard and found it utterly baffling.
'Tomorrow is the cherry blossom festival, for god's sake!'
'And these people are still entirely focused on work!'
"I really want to finish this mission quickly! I still need to prepare for tomorrow's cherry blossom viewing!"
Wendy, also wrapped snugly in a small blanket beside her, said with eager anticipation, "Yes, the cherry blossoms in Magnolia are said to be especially beautiful!"
Lucy exclaimed excitedly, her eyes sparkling, "Right? And I heard that in Magnolia, the cherry blossom petals turn rainbow-colored at night! That's when they become absolutely breathtaking!"
Wendy immediately began imagining it, a dreamy look crossing her face. "Rainbow-colored cherry blossoms... they sound so beautiful!"
Lucy was clearly overjoyed and couldn't stop chattering:
"Everyone sitting romantically under the cherry blossom trees, admiring them all day long, eating homemade bento and snacks... When I get home today, I'm going to put on a beautiful outfit and ask Cancer to style my hair in a new way! I should probably go to bed early tonight too, and also, also..."
The air inside the clock seemed to grow even warmer with their excitement.
But as Wendy listened to Lucy's lengthy monologue, she suddenly thought of something and exclaimed in surprise:
"Eh? Wait, did Lucy-san participate in last year's cherry blossom viewing party?"
Lucy froze for a moment mid-sentence.
She blinked, then scratched her head sheepishly. "Oh right... I forgot I've been in the guild for less than a year! I've never actually been to a cherry blossom viewing before. I got so excited I started having delusions based on rumors, ahahaha!"
Wendy giggled while shaking her head, her eyes still sparkling with anticipation. "I'm really looking forward to it too... viewing cherry blossoms with everyone..."
"Exactly! Since it's our first time, we should definitely make the most of it!"
Outside the clock, Natsu, who was walking ahead and kicking through the snowdrifts, muttered quietly in confusion.
"What's so special about cherry blossoms anyway? Can't everyone just see them this season wherever?"
Ankh chuckled, his breath pluming in the freezing air, and explained, "It's the combination of the ceremony, the flowers, the festive atmosphere, and the delicious food—that's what makes it so appealing to girls. It's an experience."
Erza played the straight man, nodding seriously beside him as if Ankh had just delivered profound tactical wisdom.
Gray smirked and taunted, "Give it up, Natsu. With your hot-headed, battle-crazy brain, you'll never understand these refined things."
Though Gray didn't fully get the romantic appeal either, that certainly didn't stop him from teasing Natsu.
Sure enough, Natsu—who had actually been pondering Ankh's words thoughtfully—immediately flared up upon hearing this and started fighting with Gray, sending snow flying everywhere.
After a while, having searched many places on the mountain without finding their target, the strongest team continued forward.
The two girls, one tall and one short, were chatting cheerfully inside the clock when Horologium suddenly announced in a muffled voice.
"Time's up... take care now! She says."
Poof—
Amid a wisp of blue smoke, the clock Celestial Spirit vanished abruptly.
The two blanket-wrapped girls plopped down unceremoniously into the deep snow, immediately huddling together again as the biting wind hit them.
"So cold!!" they shrieked in unison.
Ankh put away the client's picture and pointed toward the steep mountaintop ahead.
"Perfect timing—we found our mission target. Let's move quickly before we freeze."
Everyone looked up. There, stubbornly growing on the sheer, snowy cliff face, were vibrant green herbs, surviving as if defying nature itself.
Natsu punched his palm, his fists igniting, and charged ahead.
He shouted, "Then let's finish this quick! We need to get back and prepare for the cherry blossom viewing!"
"Aye!" Happy cheered.
Natsu and Happy dashed up the mountain slope at lightning speed, leaving Ankh standing there speechless.
'Weren't you just saying cherry blossom viewing was boring?'
Soon after, Natsu's voice echoed down from the mountaintop.
"Hey! Found it!"
Lucy sighed helplessly, shivering in her blanket. "They're really fast..."
Carla shrugged her small shoulders and complained, "Their movement is exactly like wild beasts."
Gray mimicked someone's tone, teasingly recalling their recent battles.
"Well... speed is a good thing, you know."
"Let's catch up too!" Erza commanded.
The team quickly scaled the slope and reached the mountaintop, where Natsu had indeed found the herbs—but now an intimidating, large creature stood before him, blocking the prize.
It was a monster the size of four or five Natsus, with twin membranous wings and thick bipedal legs.
Its body was covered in tough, gray-white scales resembling those of an impure dragon breed.
This was the Blizzard Beast, also known as the Snow White Beast—a ferocious apex monster inhabiting Mount Hakobe.
'Hmm...' Ankh observed.
'Judging by its terrifying appearance, it was hard to believe this monster was actually herbivorous, and that its absolute favorite food happened to be the very herbs it was now guarding.'
Happy fluttered his wings worriedly, hovering behind Natsu. "Looks like he wants to keep all the herbs for himself, Natsu!"
Natsu unconcernedly summoned bright flames to his hands, grinning fiercely. "Doesn't matter. Anyone who gets in the way of our mission is getting knocked out!"
Gray also became interested, shaping his hands to use Ice-Make Magic.
He smirked. "How fortunate! The scales of the Snow White Beast can fetch a very high price on the market!"
Erza instantly glowed with magical light, donning her Thunder Emperor Armor.
She cautioned them, "Be careful. The Snow White Beast has formidable combat prowess and physical strength."
Ankh flexed his wrists, gravity magic humming around him, and said to Wendy and Lucy behind him.
"You two go gather the herbs while it's distracted. We'll handle this monster."
"Alright!" Wendy nodded.
"Let's go!" Lucy agreed, staying low.
The four fighters rushed forward simultaneously, their dazzling magical radiance—fire, ice, lightning, and dark gravity—standing out vividly against the bright white snowy mountain.
Flames and ice, lightning and gravity spells exploded in a chaotic, deafening combination.
The Snow White Beast roared, dodging through the air using its powerful physique and wings, occasionally sweeping its massive tail in counterattacks.
Lucy and Wendy nervously crawled through the snow, navigating the active combat zone, and began rapidly collecting the green herbs from the cliff edge.
The scene quickly grew increasingly chaotic.
"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame!" Natsu launched a massive fireball.
However, the Snow White Beast deflected it with a powerful flap of its wing.
The redirected fireball hurtled toward the cliff edge, nearly setting fire to Lucy's raised backside as she bent over to pluck a plant.
"Eek!" Lucy yelped, diving into the snow.
"Ice-Make: Lance!" Gray hurled a barrage of ice blades at the beast.
But the monster swiftly kicked Gray down to the ground, causing his aim to jerk.
The razor-sharp ice blades shot past, almost slicing off Lucy's scalp as she tried to stand up.
"Watch it!" Lucy screamed.
Erza activated her Thunder Emperor Armor's special ability to summon a massive bolt of lightning.
"Strike!"
But the agile monster evaded it with a sudden drop.
The redirected lightning bolt struck the ground... and arced directly into Natsu and Gray, who got thoroughly electrocuted until they were twitching and crispy.
'This perfectly explained why the strongest team caused so much collateral damage...' Ankh sighed internally.
Each member possessed exaggerated combat power, but when combined without coordination, the surrounding area—and their allies—inevitably suffered...
The long-suffering Lucy finally grabbed a large handful of the precious herbs.
She stood up and excitedly shouted, "I've got it!"
However, the response she received was a shadow blocking out the sun.
The Snow White Beast's massive, scaly body had been knocked backward and was now slowly descending from the sky—right toward her.
"Huh?!"
Ankh swiftly intervened, raising his hand to restrain the falling beast with intense gravity control, pinning it mid-air.
Seizing the opening, the rest of the team violently poured their ultimate attacks onto it, finally defeating the magical beast with a resounding crash.
Except... the shockwave of their combined attacks hit the cliffside.
Lucy suffered misfortune once again as she was blown backward!
Moreover, the ground beneath everyone began to tremble.
They all began losing their balance, tumbling down the mountain in a chaotic heap of limbs.
The snowy mountain slope, seemingly unable to withstand the sheer magical pressure of the earlier battle, collapsed.
It triggered a massive avalanche that cascaded down the mountain face like crashing ocean waves, swallowing everything in its path.
As they were swept away by the roaring snow, Ankh couldn't help but ponder as he spun head over heels.
'Why do avalanches always occur whenever I visit this mountain?'
'Could it be that Mount Hakobe's terrain is just inherently unstable...'
No one answered Ankh's internal question.
Echoing across the vast, collapsing snowfield, besides the deafening rumble of the avalanche, was only Lucy's utterly miserable cries for help...
"SOMEONE SAVE MEEEEEE!"
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