"Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Quatro Cerberus, Lamia Scale, Mermaid Heel. Good. Are there no other guilds registering?"
Looking at the five magic guilds that had submitted their registration forms, Marco nodded, then proceeded to ask the other guild masters.
No one else stood up, so the final list of participants was confirmed.
These five well-known guilds in the Fiore Kingdom would compete.
Of course, "Fairy Tail," "Blue Pegasus," and "Quatro Cerberus" needed no introduction.
Erza, Hibiki and Bacchus—three young S-Class Mages—stood representing their respective guild masters.
From "Lamia Scale," there was Jura Neekis, nicknamed "Iron Rock."
Among the five, he was the only one in his thirties, while the others were all young.
On the other side, the representative of "Mermaid Heel" was also a young girl—with long, straight black hair, dressed in a white uniform, a long sword at her waist, and a serious, unsmiling expression.
The most notable feature of the "Mermaid Heel" guild was probably that it was an all-female guild, with every Mage being a woman.
This unique rule gave them a distinct appeal, attracting a number of skilled female Mages to the guild.
It felt like an unconventional approach.
Marco looked at the girl.
She appeared to be around seventeen or eighteen, probably around the same age as him and Erza.
At that youthful stage, it was hard to pinpoint her exact ages.
'What was her name again? Kagura?'
Marco thought about the relevant information.
She seemed to be a prodigy Mage from "Mermaid Heel," exceptionally powerful despite her young age.
Noticing Marco's gaze, Kagura Mikazuchi also looked at him with a hint of confusion in her eyes—though, more than that, there was respect.
Even though Marco wasn't much older than her, they seemed like they were from two different worlds.
Marco smiled and nodded at Kagura in a friendly gesture, then stopped looking at her and continued with the proceedings.
"Alright, let's begin the voting. Each person has only one vote."
The election method was simple: it still relied on everyone's votes, with the candidate receiving the most votes winning—straightforward, blunt, and clear.
Of course, to ensure fairness and distribute benefits, Marco had imposed some restrictions on candidacy, giving smaller guilds the best possible chance.
For example, a guild couldn't host consecutively.
If you hosted last time, you couldn't run in the next election; you had to skip one round.
This was actually a form of self-restraint, as "Fairy Tail" was the most likely to be chosen repeatedly and the only one capable of hosting every year.
Naturally, everyone was fully in favor of this condition, praising Marco and Fairy Tail for their broad-mindedness and consideration for the bigger picture—truly worthy of being the No. 1 guild in the Fiore Kingdom.
Makarov was beaming with joy from all the compliments.
Marco had brought him immense pride.
This was the beauty of having a good grandson—a feeling far more satisfying than basking in the spotlight himself.
The old man smugly glanced at his two old friends, as if asking, 'Aren't you jealous? Do you have a grandson like this?'
Goldmine and Bob chose to ignore Makarov.
The voting results were quickly announced, and the final outcome was unsurprising—Fairy Tail was elected by an overwhelming majority.
Their vote count exceeded the combined votes of the other four guilds, a testament to everyone's recognition of Fairy Tail's strength.
Currently, Fairy Tail was indisputably the No. 1 Magic Guild in the Fiore Kingdom, with no guild capable of challenging its position.
Without the constant opposition of Phantom Lord and without Jose Porla, only the elderly Obaba Babasama occasionally voiced dissent.
She believed her guild, Lamia Scale, also possessed formidable strength and might contend for the No. 1 spot.
Unfortunately, it was merely empty bravado.
When it came to an actual battle for supremacy, they dared not act, especially since Phantom Lord had been utterly defeated—a guild that once had a Ten Wizard Saint among its ranks.
"Then, the first National S-Class Exam Tournament will be hosted by Fairy Tail, with the event taking place in the city of Magnolia."
Marco announced the results, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
The next step was to observe the outcomes, as Fairy Tail and Magnolia once again took the lead, testing the waters for everyone else.
After finalizing the event schedule, the meeting concluded.
Everyone was quite pleased, as the ultimate goal had been achieved.
With the establishment of the "Tournament Organizing Committee," all became members and were integrated into the circle of the "National S-Class Exam Tournament."
They no longer had to envy the "Joint S-Class Promotion" exclusive to the iron triangle of Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, and Quatro Cerberus.
...
"Erza? What are you looking at?"
After the meeting ended, Marco descended from the stage and returned to Fairy Tail's area.
There, he noticed Erza continuously gazing around as if searching for someone.
Marco followed Erza's line of sight toward the direction of Mermaid Heel, though it wasn't necessarily someone from that guild—there were quite a few guilds in that area.
"I think I saw someone I know."
Erza turned back to face Marco, her expression filled with confusion, panic, and uncertainty, as if she had reverted to the broken little girl who first arrived at Fairy Tail.
"Someone you know?"
Marco was momentarily stunned, somewhat surprised.
Although Erza had never spoken of her past, Marco could guess that it was filled with many stories and events.
This made Marco glance again toward Mermaid Heel's direction.
So... was Erza's past connected to Mermaid Heel?
[Ding! Task triggered!]
[Task Name: "Tower of Heaven"]
Task Content:
Erza's past lies in the mysterious Tower of Heaven, a place of sin that has buried countless lives.
To open Erza's heart and heal her scars, the Tower of Heaven must be destroyed, shattering the nightmare in her heart! Destroying the Tower of Heaven is not only saving Erza but also saving the world!
Task Progress: Destroy the Tower of Heaven (Incomplete)
[Task Reward: Random Gold Cloth.]
The system task popped up, and its contents made Marco frown.
'What's all this vague talk about the 'Tower of Heaven'? It's impossible to pinpoint the target with such scarce useful information. All we know is that Erza's past is connected to the 'Tower of Heaven,' and that place is utterly malevolent.'
"Are they from Mermaid Heel? Should we go check it out?"
Marco set the mission aside for a moment and turned to ask Erza.
At the same time, he thought to himself.
'Could Mermaid Heel possibly be connected to the Tower of Heaven? That shouldn't be right. I've never heard any negative rumors about this guild.'
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