"Queen of the Fairies... no, I mean, Fairy Queen. Her reputation's no joke."
Watching Erza absolutely dominate Natsu in the guild hall, Kira nodded to himself, impressed. Not bad at all. That armor I crafted is holding up perfectly. Look at that color, that shine, those curves, those lines—ah! It's flawless!
Gray muttered under his breath, "What's this guy getting all smug about?"
Lucy crouched down next to Happy and whispered, "Is it just me, or is Kira giving Erza some weird looks?"
Happy, being the relatively 'innocent' cat he was, thought for a moment before raising a paw. "Maybe it's because he bet on Erza winning at Cana's betting pool!"
"What?!" Lucy's jaw dropped. "That guy swore he never gets involved in stuff like that!"
Happy grinned. "Oh, you'll see Kira's face pop up anywhere there's money to be made in the guild!"
"You bet too, didn't you, Happy?" Lucy asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Yup! I wagered a fish on Erza winning!" Happy declared confidently, clearly not betting on Natsu's chances.
Lucy groaned. "Wow, you're brutal, you heartless cat!"
"Deep down, I want Natsu to win," Happy admitted, "but Erza's just a little stronger!"
"Natsu's no slouch either!" Lucy shot back. "He took down the entire Iron Forest guild single-handedly!"
"If it was Erza, she could've done it too. She's the strongest woman in the guild, after all!"
The fight had been going for 30 minutes now, and still no clear winner between Natsu and Erza. But everyone could tell Natsu was on his last legs—he was panting heavily, while Erza? She'd barely broken a sweat. And that was probably just from the heat Natsu was kicking up around them.
Gray's ice magic hadn't even fazed the two locked in their showdown.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!" Natsu bellowed.
"Flame Empress, Blazing Ring!" Erza countered, spinning forward with her fiery sword, slicing through the roar and knocking Natsu flat on his back before he could react.
"You've really gotten stronger, Natsu," Erza said, looking down at him as he struggled to get up. She let out a deep breath, then switched back to her usual armor.
Makarov chuckled and raised his voice. "The match is over! The winner is Erza!"
The guild erupted. "Woo! Erza won!"
"She's unstoppable!"
"Yes! Erza's victory means I won! Pay up, people!"
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"Damn it!" someone groaned. "Natsu was tougher than I thought. Shouldn't have bet on him lasting only 20 minutes!"
The guild buzzed with the thrill of winning bets and the agony of losing them. Even Happy scampered off to Cana to claim his two-fish prize. In the midst of it all, Lucy was the first to rush over to Natsu, who was still sprawled out, dazed with stars circling his head.
"Natsu, you okay?" she asked, helping him up.
Natsu, half-conscious and clearly frustrated, mumbled, "I'm... fine."
As the fight wrapped up, Cana quietly tallied her betting pool. Since the bets were on how long Natsu could last against Erza, she'd made a tidy profit as the house.
"Not bad, not bad. This'll cover my drinks for—"
Before she could finish, a sneaky hand swiped the money from her grasp. "Nice, nice. You're one step closer to paying off your debt!" Kira said, grinning as he walked away, counting the cash.
"You jerk! Give me back my money!" Cana shouted.
Kira didn't even turn around. "My money now. Oh, look at this—might cover, what, one percent of what you owe?"
"You greedy bastard! At least leave me enough for today's drinks!" Cana pleaded.
"Once it's in my hands, it's not going anywhere," Kira said with a smirk. "Besides, you should cut back on the drinking. Alcohol dulls the senses—doesn't help you get stronger, you know."
"Total nonsense!" Cana snapped. "The master and Gildarts love their booze!"
Kira paused. "Uh... yeah, well, they're so strong they make others feel numb."
Cana had no comeback for that.
"Later!" Kira called, waving the cash as he planned his next spending spree. But when he turned around, he nearly bumped into a giant humanoid toad, its slimy green face inches from his own.
Anyone else would've jumped back in shock, but Kira just blinked, his mind oddly clear. Huh. Since when do toads wear clothes and walk like people?
The toad clapped its webbed hands and spoke in a croaky voice. "Nobody move! I'm a messenger from the Magic Council!"
"The Magic Council?"
"A messenger?!"
"Why's the Council here?"
"And why's a toad talking?!"
After the thrill of Natsu vs. Erza and Kira's betting profits, the Council showing up was the last thing anyone expected on such a great day. Even Makarov was caught off guard. Kira, though, had a hunch but played dumb, as usual.
The toad messenger continued, "Due to the recent Iron Forest incident, involving property damage, possession of dark magic artifacts, and ten other charges, Kira Hoplight, you're under arrest!"
"WHAT?!" the guild chorused.
So it's about that. But why me? Kira thought. In the original story, Erza took the fall for this. Why's it me now? Wait... did it mention dark magic artifacts? Is this about Lullaby being in my possession?
That bastard Kageyama must've snitched!
"Ugh, so they found out," Kira muttered. "Knew those Iron Forest losers would spill."
"Kira, what's going on?" Makarov asked, his mind flashing to the Lullaby incident from a few days ago. Did Kira not turn it over to the Council? He cursed himself for being too drunk to follow up at the time.
Kira waved it off. "No worries, Master. I'll go with them, clear things up, and be back in no time."
Erza stepped forward, her voice firm. "I was the leader of the Fairy Tail team during the Iron Forest mission. If anyone's getting arrested, it should be me."
The toad shook its head. "Sorry, but the Council's decision is final. Kira Hoplight is the one we're taking. This involves Lullaby, and our intel confirms he's the one hiding it, not you."
Erza shot Kira a look, saying nothing, but her eyes screamed, I told you not to keep Lullaby. Happy now?
Kira caught her meaning and raised an eyebrow, his own look replying, You're the leader. Wanna take the blame instead?
But Erza misread him, thinking he meant, Don't worry, I've got this. It's just a formality—I'll talk to them and be back by tomorrow.
So she nodded to the toad. "Fine. Take him."
Kira blinked. "Huh?!"
Seeing no resistance, the toad messenger relaxed. Even though it represented the Council, which no guild dared defy, this was Fairy Tail—the most chaotic, rule-breaking guild outside the dark ones. They could've made things messy.
Luckily, Natsu, the guild's biggest troublemaker, was still out cold from Erza's beatdown. Otherwise, he'd probably be charging to Kira's rescue, especially since he was the one who wrecked the train station in the first place.
Just to be safe, Makarov turned Natsu into a fire salamander and kept him contained in the guild hall, with everyone keeping an eye on him.