September 6th, X782.
Second day after joining Fairy Tail.
The bustling central street of Magnolia.
Noah deeply regretted turning around and accepting Natsu's team invitation.
"Help me! Natsu! Noah!"
The little blue cat's eyes were teary as he stumbled and crawled, chased by the "fierce beast" behind him.
Facing Happy's plea, Natsu was nowhere to be found, and Noah watched with cold eyes, because the fierce beast in Happy's eyes was actually a large, somewhat goofy dog.
The dog wanted to play with Happy, but the cat was clearly scared by the dog's size.
It wasn't until the cat and dog had run around Noah's feet about twenty times, with Happy panting heavily and the large dog still full of energy, that Noah reluctantly spoke up.
"Happy, use your cute little brain. You can fly."
"Oh, right!"
With Noah's reminder, Happy finally remembered his Aera, emerging from his panicked state of being chased by the dog.
A pair of small wings spread from his back, flapping hard to lift the panting Happy off the ground, before he wobbled and landed on Noah's shoulder.
Panting with his tongue out, Happy unceremoniously lay down, gradually melting into a cat-shaped puddle hanging from Noah's shoulder.
Noah poked the little cat's head, then looked down at the lively large dog at his feet, which was excitedly standing on its hind legs.
The large dog's ears were triangular, with thick, dense fur divided into two layers—an outer grey-black layer and an inner white layer—and a pair of ice-blue eyes that showed a clear lack of intelligence.
"Nika, be good. I'll take you home."
Noah grabbed the dog named Nika. Although Nika kept shaking his head and his forty-plus pound body twisted, he couldn't escape Noah's firm grip.
Wearing a collar was the fate a pet dog had to accept.
Noah took out a small bag of dried meat and broke it into two pieces, one for Happy and one for Nika. This was given by the client, who said it was her dogs' favorite snack and might help in finding her two beloved pets.
After Noah's verification, it was completely useless, though Happy did get a bit of a treat.
Looking at Nika who had finally calmed down, Noah's expression was helpless, because Nika meant there was also a Shoka, and Natsu had gone to chase that dog.
This was the "good job" Natsu had spoken of.
Help the client find her two lost beloved dogs, "Shoka" and "Nika," for a reward of 30,000 Jewels.
Noah was a bit disappointed with this job because it was too mundane.
Half of the jobs accepted by Mage Guilds actually came from ordinary people. Of course, with Fairy Tail's current fame, there was no shortage of wealthy merchants posting jobs there.
Jobs requiring combat, such as monster extermination or bandit subjugation, accounted for less than a third of the guild's total jobs. They were not only quite dangerous but also didn't necessarily offer high rewards.
For a job like the one Noah was currently on, just finding two ordinary pet dogs could net a reward of 30,000 Jewels. Split among two people and one cat, this reward was already very high compared to similar pet-finding jobs.
"Happy, if you're rested enough, fly up and look for Natsu."
"Aye!"
Happy flew up but immediately landed again, his little cat face showing undisguised embarrassment. Before Noah could ask, he heard a clattering sound approaching rapidly.
Following the source of the sound, Noah immediately understood the origin of Happy's embarrassment.
He saw a large dog of the same breed, slightly bigger than Nika, panting as it darted through the crowd.
The pink-haired boy chasing him, however, didn't have the dog's agile physique and had knocked over many vendor stalls along the way; that clattering sound came from this.
Just catching a dog, was it really necessary to be like this? Noah now highly doubted whether the 30,000 Jewels reward would be enough for the damages.
"Happy! Noah! Quick, help me stop Shoka!" Natsu's eyes lit up when he saw his companions.
But Noah pretended not to know Natsu, holding the cat in one hand and leading the dog in the other, planning to slip away like a passerby.
However, the dog named Shoka had been chased by Natsu around Magnolia for two full laps and was exhausted. Upon seeing Nika , he instinctively stopped at Noah's feet.
Natsu took the opportunity to pounce and capture the tired dog, then turned to Noah and gave him a thumbs-up.
"Good job, Noah!"
"It's not going to be good at all... Natsu."
Noah grumbled, as the vendors who had suffered losses due to Natsu's reckless collisions had surrounded the two, clamoring for compensation.
Although Noah really wanted to say he didn't know Natsu, the guild emblem on his arm had already exposed the fact that he and Natsu were together, so denying it was useless.
While Noah could easily escape with his physical prowess, he imagined the vendors' complaint letters would reach Makarov's hands soon.
For his first job, Noah hoped to resolve it peacefully.
After communicating with the vendors, Noah roughly calculated the amount of compensation needed: a total of 30,000 Jewels, not a single Jewel more or less.
Well, that was a wasted effort.
Now Noah finally understood why Natsu and Happy could be so hungry at home that they had no strength. With Natsu's reckless behavior, it was a miracle if a job didn't result in a loss.
Looking at the simple-minded, hot-blooded, pink-haired idiot, Noah knew his pockets were cleaner than Happy's face, and he reluctantly paid the money out of his own pocket.
Just as Noah was pulling out his money, a calm yet authoritative voice sounded.
"Natsu, you've caused trouble again."
Hearing this voice, Natsu's body trembled uncontrollably, which greatly surprised Noah.
Who could this powerful person be, capable of making even the thick-skinned Natsu feel fear?
The two dogs at Noah's feet cowered on the ground, as if sensing a fearful aura, choosing to lie down in submission despite their usual vivacity.
The surrounding onlookers and the demanding vendors parted to either side, just to clear a path for the newcomer.
A figure slowly and steadily entered Noah's line of sight.
It was a heroic young woman with a strong leadership presence.
Her upper body was clad in armor bearing the Fairy Tail emblem, a blue skirt covered her lower body, and she wore metal greaves on both legs.
Her scarlet hair fell to her waist, and her brown eyes held a sharp, commanding gaze.
"Erza."
The same demeanor, the same appearance, the same imposing presence. Noah finally saw a parallel world counterpart of someone he knew in Earth Land, and subconsciously called out that name.
The young woman, who was heading straight for Natsu, heard the young man next to Natsu call out her name and couldn't help but stop and look at him; he was someone she didn't recognize.
"You know me?"
"Of course, I'm a newcomer who joined the guild yesterday. I've heard everyone mention you."
Noah revealed the guild emblem on his arm, extended his right hand to her, and continued, "My name is Noah."
The young woman's tone softened considerably upon seeing his guild emblem. She grasped his hand. "Welcome to Fairy Tail. I am Erza Scarlet."
Noah silently repeated Erza's name. Scarlet... only the surname is different, then.
In the world of Edolas, the commander of the Second Royal Army of the Human Kingdom was named Erza Knightwalker. She was Erza's counterpart and had a very good relationship with the Fairy Tail of that world.
He hadn't expected the Erza of Earth Land to be a member of Fairy Tail.
A wonderful coincidence.
He just wondered if this world's Erza was also skilled in weapon combat?
Noah's gaze shifted downward, fixed on Erza's sword.