By the time the Magic Train pulled into Magnolia Station, the last rays of the setting sun had gradually merged with the night.
The tavern-like building was brightly lit.
This time of day was when Fairy Tail was most active; most members, no matter what they had been busy with all day, would choose to return to the guild to rest, chat and drink with friends, and perhaps brag about their day's experiences.
The lively atmosphere penetrated the heavy wooden doors and reached the ears of the two returning individuals.
Cana eagerly pushed open the door, her gaze directly locking onto Wakaba and Macao, who were having a drinking contest, and she seamlessly joined the tasting.
Wakaba, having learned from his good friend that Noah was looking for Magic items, greeted him with a pipe in his mouth. "Noah, any luck? Cana didn't trick you, did she?"
"You old smoker! What do you take me for?!"
Cana rolled her eyes at Wakaba, then turned excitedly to Macao to share the day's events.
Upon hearing that Noah, without using Magic or Magic items, had single-handedly taken out a squad of Black Magic Cult elites using only hand-to-hand combat skills, Macao and Wakaba's mouths dropped open in surprise.
They weren't incapable of defeating Black Magic Cult elites in a one-on-one fight, but doing it with only hand-to-hand combat skills was entirely beyond them.
Was this newcomer another monster?
Macao couldn't help but think of the guild's four "new generation" S-Class Mages who had recently emerged; each of them was exceptionally talented, making a resounding name for themselves in the Magic World with their respective strengths.
Perhaps it wouldn't be long before this kid named Noah would shine brightly, and maybe next year, he would pass the guild's S-Class assessment and ultimately be promoted to an S-Class Mage.
He subtly glanced at Cana, who was having a drinking contest with Wakaba, and Macao sighed for her in his heart.
She had participated in several S-Class assessments, only to repeatedly become a stepping stone for others.
Macao had originally thought Cana had a good chance of passing the assessment next year, but now it seemed the young girl would be disappointed again.
Macao also didn't know why Cana was so persistent in becoming an S-Class Mage at such a young age.
Noah walked through the hall and sat down at the bar.
He hadn't eaten much all afternoon, and now he needed to replenish his energy.
"Noah, welcome back. Would you like something to drink or eat?"
Mirajane smiled, propping her face with her hand.
Gray, who had been forcibly dragged to work behind the counter, was stunned by Mirajane's rapid change of expression.
Just moments ago, she had devilishly told him, "If you don't work hard, you'll die," yet upon seeing Noah, she suddenly became so gentle.
Does Noah know you change expressions so quickly?
Faced with such blatant preferential treatment, Gray decided to tell Mirajane through his actions that if you provoke me... you've just kicked a cotton ball!
"I'm going to deliver drinks."
Leaving that remark, Gray picked up a tray and left the bar.
He definitely wasn't backing down because he couldn't beat Mirajane; he was simply respecting women and not bickering with a young girl like her.
Meanwhile, Noah's gaze was still wandering over the guild menu. "Mira, could I get a... uh, what is this 'Flame Combo'?"
The "Flame Combo" section of the menu didn't have a dish illustration, but rather Natsu's portrait, which made Noah very curious.
Mirajane explained, "That's Natsu's exclusive combo; it's a combination of fire and meat."
"Isn't that just barbecue? How did it become a special combo?"
Noah still didn't understand.
He had treated Natsu and Happy to a high-class barbecue once, and Natsu hadn't shown any strangeness other than being able to eat a lot.
"You're mistaken; the 'fire' in the Flame Combo isn't for grilling meat; it's Natsu's food."
"Natsu, you see, is a Fire Dragon Slayer who can eat flames."
Mirajane's words startled Noah.
That guy is actually a Dragon Slayer!
He is the absolute bane of Dorma Anim!
As one of the many Lost Magic types, those who master Dragon Slayer Magic are rare; he hadn't expected the seemingly boisterous Natsu to actually be a Dragon Slayer.
Fire Dragon Slayer... so the Fire Resistance obtained from Natsu's Wish request was a copy of the physical enhancement brought by this Magic.
If he were to receive another Wish order from Natsu in the future, would the reward be the ability to "devour flames"? Or perhaps even further, directly copy and learn Fire Dragon Slayer Magic?
No longer dwelling on it, Noah casually ordered a plate of spaghetti with meat sauce.
However, when the dish arrived, Noah looked at the "meat sauce spaghetti" in the bowl, where the large chunks of meat were twice as numerous as the noodles, and he didn't know what to say.
Such obvious preferential treatment—would it really not cause others to have opinions?
"Oh, and Noah, the temporary library partitioned off in the warehouse is complete, and Levy and the others have organized the books on the shelves. You can read to your heart's content now."
Noah nodded, almost forgetting that he hadn't yet paid the reward for cleaning the warehouse.
Since it was Noah's request, he could entrust the reward to Mirajane, the waitress, for her to distribute it to his companions who cleaned the warehouse.
He hadn't expected the waitress to have so much to do.
After devouring his food like a whirlwind, Noah headed towards the temporary library.
The library was very simple; bookshelves, tables, and chairs were already in the warehouse.
It was completed by using four wooden boards that reached the ceiling to create a partition and adding a small door.
Pushing open the door to the temporary library, a small old man sitting at a table appeared in Noah's line of sight.
"Good evening, Master."
Makarov took off his reading glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ah, it's Noah. Did you buy a handy Magic item?"
"Yes, a pair of Magic gloves."
Noah didn't elaborate, simply pulling a book from the shelf and sitting down at the table next to Makarov's.
Noah noticed a hint of melancholy in Makarov's expression; was it because of the book in his hand?
Sensing Noah's gaze, Makarov directly pushed the book in his hand towards the young man.
It was a book with a yellowed cover, bearing a large guild emblem.
Noah looked at the large characters on the book's cover—"Fairy Tail Chronicles."
So it was the guild's historical record; that indeed held significant meaning, especially for an elderly person.
Would the record of Lumen Histoire be among them?
This thought was immediately dismissed by Noah.
"Infinite Magic Power," even in the Magic-rich Earth Land, would undoubtedly attract bloodshed once it appeared, so it certainly wouldn't be explicitly recorded in the guild's chronicles.
Noah noticed some drafts on Makarov's table.
"Master, are you perhaps compiling new content to add to the Chronicles?"
Makarov nodded and picked up a draft, asking Noah to take a look.
Noah took the draft; the content was about the guild's new generation of S-Class Mages in recent years.
In X778, Laxus Dreyar passed the assessment and became an S-Class Mage at only seventeen years old.
In X780, Erza Scarlet became the youngest S-Class Mage in Fairy Tail's history at the age of fifteen.
In X781, Mirajane Strauss passed the S-Class assessment at only sixteen years old.
In X782, this year, twenty-year-old Mystogan became an S-Class Mage.
Of these four, Noah had already met Mirajane and Erza; he wondered what the other two were like.
He looked up at Makarov, whose face was filled with pride, almost as if he had "Come and praise me, your Master!" written all over it.
Noah's mouth twitched.
So this old man just wanted someone to show off to, huh... But it had to be said, Noah was indeed surprised by the content of this draft.
Among these four new generation powerhouses, except for Laxus, who was six years older than Noah, the other three were all similar in age to Noah, yet they were already representatives of the Mage Guild's strongest combatants.
However, with Wish Magic, Noah believed he would quickly catch up to them in terms of combat power.
"By the way, Master, can I take books back to my dorm to read?"
"Yes, but please be careful with them. These books were basically all written by my teacher, and they are all unique, one-of-a-kind copies."