After reaching Magnolia at dawn, Astro and Loke said their goodbyes. Astro trudged back to his rented room, finally ready to collapse into sleep… and didn't wake until afternoon.
After a shower and a quick bite, he got ready and headed toward the guild hall. On the way, he noticed how alive Magnolia was. Merchants shouted over each other to sell their wares, kids darted between legs, and townsfolk haggled fiercely over prices. After traveling for three years, Astro could safely say Magnolia was one of the liveliest yet most peaceful towns he'd seen—probably thanks to Fairy Tail.
No dark mages dared make trouble here. From their perspective, it was like a mafia boss lived in town (the wizard saint Makarov), surrounded by an army of highly skilled enforcers: the Fairy Tail mages.
Lost in thought, Astro finally reached the guild hall. He braced for the usual chaos, but—
Silence. Absolute silence.
Everyone froze, heads mechanically turning toward the door. When they saw him, they all sighed in relief, then snapped into stiff, straight-backed posture.
What are they doing now? Astro blinked. Some kind of roleplay? Are they pretending to be obedient students? And… Why is the Master acting like one too?
He then noticed Mira waved at him telling him to sit at the bar table like nothing was unusual.
'Thankfully there is someone normal in the guild.', Astro thought as he made his way to the bar.
"Congrats on your first job! Loke already told us—you did awesome!" she said, clapping her hands.
Astro scratched his cheek. "Ah… it wasn't that hard. Sky magic made it pretty easy to heal the comatose people, honestly."
Makarov, perched on the bar like a tiny mountain, nodded slowly. "Still… even if it's easy, a wizard should be proud of themselves. Celebrate a little… though maybe not right now." He shivered, then trailed off awkwardly.
Astro raised an eyebrow. "Uh… is there a Council inspection or something?"
Makarov's expression dropped. "Worse."
"Uh… the King of Fiore visiting?"
"Nope," Makarov muttered, sinking back into his model-student pose, which honestly looked ridiculous on him.
"Max and Laki just got back a few moments ago," Mira said, a small giggle in her voice. "And… it looks like they saw Erza on her way back returning to the guild too.. So, yeah… everybody's on their absolute best behavior."
"Erza?" Astro muttered under his breath, the name tugging at some faint memory. It sounded familiar… and then it clicked. Wait—that's one of the main protagonists of the Fairy Tail series!
He hadn't actually watched Fairy Tail himself, but back when he was stuck in the hospital, he'd binge-watched all sorts of anime and movies to pass the time. Occasionally, he'd skim descriptions online or check out posts about Fairy Tail just to see what it was about.
Mira gave a bit more description about Erza seeing that he wanted to know more, with Mira's word, Astro's mind pieced a few things together. Erza is one of the guild's three S-Class mages… the strongest female wizard in Fairy Tail. Strict, disciplined, basically knightly, and if anyone breaks the rules… Well, they'll regret it.
Astro nodded slowly. "So… she's basically the real master of the guild."
He glanced sideways at Makarov, who was puffing his chest out and clearing his throat, clearly trying to reassert his "Master of the Guild" image for the newbie. But before he could get a chance, a loud sound came from the guild door..
Then, the guild doors slammed open with a force that made the room feel smaller, and a monstrous shadow stretched across the hall.
Makarov instantly snapped back into his "good student" posture, stiff and alert, as if trying to make himself invisible.
Astro, on the other hand, couldn't hide his curiosity when he finally saw her.. Well… she looks exactly like the posters I saw online.
The sight was striking: vibrant red hair cascading over shining metal armor, a skirt flowing just enough to allow movement, and an aura that made the whole hall feel smaller. She walked in like the world itself had to step aside, her presence commanding attention with each step.
"You lot!" Erza's voice cut through the hall, sharp and commanding, making everyone freeze. And let's be honest, they didn't even need her glare—her presence alone was enough.
"I've heard about all the mess-ups you've been making," she continued, narrowing her eyes. "One of you managed to destroy three buildings during a simple escort mission!" Her gaze snapped toward Natsu.
Astro looked at Natsu, only to see Natsu trying to hide behind Happy's small body, and Happy was trembling just as much as Natsu was.
"And another one of you," Erza's voice rose, "ran naked through the town chasing a criminal!" She scanned the room, searching for Gray. Not seeing him only seemed to make her angrier.
"And you, Loke," she snapped, her eyes drilling into Loke in a corner, "I heard you seduced the mayor's daughter in some other town last week! The whole town is still in uproar"
Loke immediately flinched and tried to shrink into himself, clearly not regretting the seducing but regretting his choice to not leave earlier.
Astro couldn't help but watch, sipping his drink with quiet amusement. Every guild member—no exceptions, not even Master Makarov—was getting put firmly in their place. It was satisfying to see these arrogant, overconfident wizards humbled for once.
No, there were some exceptions, Astro did notice that Mira was the only one that remained completely unbothered. Erza didn't scold her—just gave her a simple nod as a greeting as she passed, which Mira returned with a warm smile.
Even Loke, the guild's notorious playboy, looked genuinely scared. And that was saying something, considering how fearless he usually was in front of women. Despite her beauty, Erza had this… intimidating aura that kept everyone in line.
"I don't think I've seen you around before. Are you a new member?"
Astro noticed that Erza had finally finished her scolding session on Master, and now her attention was on him.
"Yeah… I just joined recently. I'm Astro Blackmist," he said, keeping his tone polite but relaxed.
"I'm Erza Scarlet," she replied, giving a small nod. "You can call me Erza, like everyone else does."
"Then you can call me Astro too," he added with a polite smile.
She gave him a quick once-over, assessing him from head to toe. "So… how's Fairy Tail treating you so far?"
Astro blinked, a little surprised. She sounded casual—so different from how she'd scolded the others.
"It's been pretty great," he said after a moment, thinking it through. "The food and drinks here are amazing. The guild's full of life, and everyone… well, they're definitely interesting." He chuckled lightly. "
Astro didn't bother offering any fake, overly polite praise. He didn't think Erza was the type to appreciate hollow compliments anyway.
He noticed something else too—Erza could be incredibly strict when the situation called for it, but also fair and approachable when she wanted. That was why, even though the guild members clearly feared her, they still respected her authority—and didn't actually dislike her.
"Enough of this, Erza!" Natsu finally snapped, storming forward.
"Fight me—now!" His declaration echoed through the guild hall, full of fire and bravado, even though just a minute ago he'd been shaking under her glare.
The guild members exchanged looks—some worried for Natsu, others nodding like this was exactly what they expected. Astro even noticed someone sliding a few coins to another guildmate. Ah… a bet on how long Natsu lasts. Astro looked speechless at how unserious the guild was.
Astro looked back at Natsu. He'd suspected it before, but now it was obvious—Natsu was your typical shonen protagonist: thinks about fighting and food all day, forgets lessons the moment he's been scolded, and never stops charging headfirst into trouble.
Astro glanced between Natsu and Erza, guessing that Erza would not back down or make some excuse.
"Fine," she said, voice firm. "I'll take you on, Natsu—meet me at—"
"Wait!" Makarov's tiny voice cut through the tension.
"What now, Master?" Natsu snapped, irritation flaring.
"Erza's traveled far. Let her rest a bit," Makarov said, puffing his chest like it was the most serious decision in the world. "Why don't you spar with Astro instead? Loke said that he's very strong, and I want to see for myself." He glanced at Astro meaningfully.
Natsu's eyes blazed even brighter, not even a bit disappointed that he could not fight Erza. . "Perfect! Windbag, you said you use Devil Slayer magic, right? Let's see which is stronger—dragons or devils!"
Astro froze for a moment, staring at Makarov. Really, Master? Is this because I questioned your authority as a guild master before, his expression clearly screamed it. Makarov, apparently oblivious, whistled and looked the other way.
"Alright, that's settled," Erza said loudly, taking on her usual commanding tone. "I'll be the referee for this battle."
The guild erupted in cheers. Everyone was practically vibrating with excitement at the idea of watching a showdown . Astro even noticed a boldly dressed girl that he saw before gulping down a whole barrel of wine, stood up and started collecting bets..
Astro groaned, covering his face with his right hand.
'Yeah… I should've just stayed home and rested all day. Or went to the library the moment I arrived here.' But despite the sigh, he wasn't worried.
He lowered his hand, his eyes glowing purple. He stooped in front of Narsu. Standing at 190 cm, he towered over Natsu, his height alone making him look imposing. Still, he decided to give Natsu a polite warning:
"Just because you're younger than me doesn't mean I'll go easy on you. You can step aside if you–."
Natsu, unsurprisingly , completely ignored the last half of the sentence." Bring it on! I'm all fired up!"