"Jude! You've gone too far!"
Duke Savalu's face darkened with anger as he rebuked Jude.
The mockery in Jude's voice was unmistakable to anyone listening.
He felt humiliated—how dare this upstart ridicule him?!
"My apologies, Duke Savalu. I was merely offering a friendly reminder."
Jude bowed in apology, but the smirk on his face made it clear he wasn't sincere.
The man was clearly riding on someone else's coattails, and it grated on the Duke's nerves.
"Kill these crows!"
Duke Savalu had had enough.
He gave the order outright.
Just a bunch of magical beasts—did Jude really think they couldn't handle them?
The mages they had hired at great expense weren't just for show!
"..."
The scene fell into an awkward silence.
The mages surrounding Duke Savalu exchanged uneasy glances before hesitantly turning to him.
"What's the matter?! Are you telling me you can't even handle this?!"
Seeing this, the Duke nearly exploded in fury.
He had kept these mages on his payroll for so long, and this was how they repaid him when he needed them?!
"Your Grace, the crows aren't the issue—it's the person behind them. Even when beating a dog, one must consider its master..."
One of the older mages couldn't hold back and spoke up.
Though, truthfully, they weren't confident about dealing with the crows either.
But the person controlling them was far more intimidating—anyone capable of commanding nearly a hundred magical beasts was no joke.
"Is this some kind of beast-taming magic?" Another mage muttered under his breath.
He had never seen anything like this before.
Most magic involved absorbing the power of beasts into oneself, but this?
Directly controlling magical beasts was something else entirely.
"Is he really that strong?"
The older mage's words made Duke Savalu pause.
If this was a powerful mage, then caution was indeed warranted.
While nobles were a privileged class, mages—especially the strong ones—were in a league of their own.
A mage's status was directly proportional to their strength; the more powerful they were, the more privileges they commanded.
"It's hard to say exactly how strong, but anyone capable of controlling these beasts is certainly no weakling. We should be wary—he might be from a major guild..."
The older mage, who had served as a retainer in the Savalu household for years, explained seriously.
"..."
Duke Savalu fell silent, but resentment still burned in his chest.
He couldn't stand the humiliation of being shown up by an upstart like Jude.
"He's here! There's someone approaching!"
Just as the Duke was contemplating how to salvage his pride, the mages around him suddenly exclaimed in alarm.
"That's... the Star Rose God—Marco Dreyar!"
Duke Savalu only heard the gasps of the mages beside him, clearly recognizing the identity of that mage.
Watching the mage seated on the airborne throne pulled by crows, Duke Savalu couldn't help but swallow hard.
He had, of course, heard of the name "Star Rose God" Marco Dreyar and the power it represented.
"Fairy Tail is actually getting involved in this matter?"
Duke Savalu found it hard to believe.
In his impression, Fairy Tail had never meddled in such "worldly business" before—they only took on their own commissions.
"Caw!!!"
Amid the crows' screeches, Marco's landed steadily.
Although the spectacle of a dozen crows pulling a 'throne' was quite baffling, it was far less comfortable than sitting in a covered 'aircraft'.
This way, he had to constantly use magic to block the wind and debris.
"Marco-san, please take your seat."
After Marco landed, Jude approached and immediately invited him to join the gathering.
"Alright, thank you for your efforts."
Marco nodded, scanning the nobles with a glance.
He noticed their gazes were filled with shock and confusion.
Clearly, his presence here was unexpected for them, especially since he represented Fairy Tail.
Of course, even if Marco had come solely on his own behalf, these nobles would still have to tread carefully—his reputation alone carried significant weight now.
Marco had successively worked with Makarov and Laxus to defeat Jose Porla.
One victory could be dismissed as luck or riding on coattails, but winning twice with different people? That couldn't all be attributed to luck or chance.
"Everyone, why are you all standing? Let's sit together."
Marco walked into the banquet area with a smile that felt like a warm spring breeze, waving his hand to signal everyone to take their seats.
"..."
Witnessing this, the nobles were momentarily at a loss, their eyes collectively turning to their pillar of support—Duke Savalu.
"I never expected Fairy Tail to take an interest in this business."
Under the collective gaze, Duke Savalu spoke with a darkened expression.
No matter how renowned Marco was, he was still just a kid.
Being intimidated by a child was a humiliation Duke Savalu couldn't afford.
For him, the most pressing matter was to determine whether Marco was here on his own behalf or truly representing Fairy Tail.
The implications were entirely different.
"Mr. Jude is a friend of Fairy Tail. His endeavors are strongly supported by the kingdom's policies and benefit both the nation and its people. As the top Magic Guild in the Kingdom of Fiore, Fairy Tail naturally has a duty to contribute!"
Facing Duke Savalu's grim expression, Marco spoke with a smile, but his words carried no courtesy—clearly stating his stance and purpose.
"I believe everyone here will cooperate, won't they? Anyone who doesn't would be opposing the kingdom—and opposing Fairy Tail."
Marco continued, his tone growing increasingly unyielding.
He firmly held the moral high ground, waving the banner of the kingdom's policies, making his arrogance unmistakable.
Right from the start, he began labeling—anyone who didn't cooperate would be resisting the kingdom's policies and thus an enemy of Fairy Tail.
"..."
The crowd fell into silence, with many reconsidering their stance.
Resisting the kingdom's policies was one thing, but becoming an enemy of Fairy Tail was something they had to think twice about.
That alone was enough to make them hesitate.
If members of Fairy Tail came to their territories and caused trouble, what could they do?
Could they really arrest and sentence them?
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