— — — — — —
"What's Gildarts Mode?"
Wendy turned her head to look at Kazuma, asking with clear confusion. The fact that the town could actually transform was fascinating to her.
"It means exactly what it sounds like," Kazuma explained. "Back in the day, the strongest man in our guild was named Gildarts, the Ace of Fairy Tail. He uses a super magic called Crush."
"When he first arrived in this town, he hadn't fully mastered his power yet. On top of that, his natural magic reserves were ridiculously huge."
"So whenever he spaced out even a little, he'd unconsciously trigger his ability and cause large-scale destruction. To stop that from happening, the town was rebuilt with something called Gildarts Mode. But these days it's not really a problem anymore."
"Over the years, Gildarts has gained better and better control over his power. Under normal circumstances—"
While Kazuma was still talking, Gildarts himself walked over from the distance, head lowered as if deep in thought. He didn't notice the wall in front of him at all.
He walked straight ahead. Before he could touch it, the wall shattered on its own, and he casually passed right through the opening.
"Kazuma-niisan, what were you about to say?"
Wendy stared up at him with her bright, watery eyes and asked in an innocent, adorable tone.
"N-Nothing," Kazuma said, shaking his head. "Come on, let's head back to the guild. I'll deal with Gildarts first, then I'll take you to see Porlyusica."
Honestly, he'd just learned the hard way that he'd given his guildmates way too much credit. All of Fairy Tail, no exceptions. "Idiot" would've been a compliment for them now.
"So Porlyusica is the one who knows about Grandeeney? I feel she is someone easy to get along with," Wendy said eagerly.
She was even more excited now. She was one step closer to finding Grandeeney. Clenching her small fists, she silently cheered herself on.
In the blink of an eye, everyone had returned to the guild hall.
"Gildarts! Long time no see! Let's fight!" Natsu shouted as he charged forward.
"Hm?"
Gildarts finally snapped out of his thoughts. Seeing Natsu rushing at him, he smiled, casually raised a hand, and sent him flying straight into the ceiling.
"Hahaha! Natsu, you really haven't changed," Gildarts laughed. "But I can't play with you this time."
"There sure are a lot of unfamiliar faces around here," he added, looking around. "Hey, where's the old man? I don't see him."
Scratching his head, Gildarts scanned the guild once more.
"Gildarts… the strongest man Fairy Tail had…"
Lucy swallowed nervously as she looked at him. Compared to Gildarts, who was stronger now, him or Kazuma?
"The old man's out. He's got some business to take care of," Laxus replied.
"…That hair and those headphones. Laxus, huh?" Gildarts said after a closer look. "You've gotten a lot stronger. You've really grown into a man."
He studied Laxus with a thoughtful expression. He'd been gone for years, and now that he was back, everyone had changed so much.
"Gildarts, long time no see," Mirajane said as she stepped forward with a smile.
"Yeah, long time no—" Gildarts paused, tilting his head. "Uh… miss, who are you?"
He looked at her with genuine confusion. "You new?"
"I'm Mirajane," she said calmly.
"Mira… wait, Mira? The little demon Mira?" Gildarts stared at her in disbelief. "No way… talk about a complete transformation!"
That delinquent girl from back then had really become this gentle now?
"Gildarts, did you complete the Century Quest this time?" Erza asked.
"No. I failed," he replied. "Actually, there's something I need to talk to the old man about. When's he coming back?"
"He won't be coming back for a while," Kazuma said as he walked in with Wendy, having overheard the conversation. "If you've got something to say, you can tell me."
"Hey there, Gildarts."
"Oh, hey! Hahaha," Gildarts replied.
Then he leaned over and whispered to Mira, "Who's this? Why don't I remember him at all? The guild's changed way too fast!"
"I joined last year," Kazuma said. "You were still out on a job back then, so it's normal you don't know me."
"Oh! Haha, that explains it," Gildarts said, instantly relieved. "I was wondering why you looked so unfamiliar."
Then his brain caught up.
"Wait a second! You said the old man won't be back, and I can talk to you instead… don't tell me you're the acting guild master?!"
Gildarts stared at Kazuma in disbelief, then turned to look at Laxus, Erza, Mirajane, and the others.
Out of all people, the old man didn't pick any of them. He picked this guy? What exactly was so special about him?
"Not acting," Kazuma said calmly. "I'm officially the guild master now. The old man joined the Magic Council as a councilor."
"…What?! Are you serious?!"
Gildarts' jaw dropped. He looked around the guild, and everyone nodded in unison.
"I wasn't even gone that long," Gildarts muttered. "How did things change this much?!"
In that moment, he truly felt how overwhelming the changes were.
But as the saying goes, "Time waits for no one."
.
.
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