The banquet began shortly after, and the guild hall was filled with singing and dancing—a truly rowdy and joyful scene. Many used their magic for performances. In this regard, Chu Yan's Tremor-Tremor Fruit ability was quite useless; he couldn't compete with Natsu breathing fire. If he performed an earthquake, people would run for their lives rather than cheer.
As Chu Yan sat enjoying his ale and meat, watching the festivities, he felt someone sit down beside him. Turning his head, he saw Mirajane glaring at him with a murderous gaze.
Chu Yan, breaking into a cold sweat, gave a forced smile. "Um... Mirajane..." She had failed the S-Class trial because of him, after all. Even though he had tried to be fair and used roughly the same amount of force on everyone, the outcome was set.
While Erza's offensive power was respectable, her focus was more on defense. Mirajane's Satan Soul offered explosive attack power and decent defense. Unfortunately, against Chu Yan, all their attacks were equally futile. The Tremor-Tremor Fruit was the perfect embodiment of "the strongest offense is the best defense."
Because of that tiny margin in defensive focus, Erza was the one who ultimately passed.
Mirajane sat next to him in silence. Usually, Chu Yan would have enjoyed her company, but now he felt so guilty he didn't dare move. He was just about to use one of the "strongest escape arts"—the bathroom break—to slip away.
Thud!
Before Chu Yan could stand up, someone sat down on his other side. It was the star of the night, Erza. These were the two girls in the guild he found hardest to handle; both were incredibly strong-willed.
The moment Erza sat down, sparks flew between her and Mirajane, right in front of Chu Yan's face.
"Erza, don't get cocky. You won this time, but I'll be S-Class by next year. And Chu Yan, tell her—my attacks are way more powerful than Erza's, right?"
Mirajane smiled at Chu Yan, but then he felt a small hand rest on his waist. The threat was unmistakable: Watch what you say.
"Hmm, I'm curious too." Erza's expression remained stoic as she ate a piece of delicious strawberry cake, but Chu Yan felt his toe being stepped on firmly. If he said Mirajane was stronger, his toe was doomed; if he said Erza, his waist was history. If he said they were equal, there was a 50% chance they'd both get him.
Just as Chu Yan was sweating bullets, a body flew through the air and smashed their table to pieces.
"Ah! My cake!..." The once-mighty Erza suddenly looked like she was about to burst into tears.
It was Wakaba who had crashed into the table. He stood up, shaking with rage, and shouted at Macao, "Macao, you bastard, how dare you throw me!" He then lunged back into the fray.
In an instant, for no apparent reason, a massive brawl erupted. The banquet had officially devolved into a full-scale guild melee.
The next morning, a fully recovered Natsu burst into the guild hall, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Where's Chu Yan?! Chu Yan! Don't hide! Fight me!"
Wham! Makarov's giant hand came down from above, flattening Natsu into the floor.
"KO!!!" Happy commented mercilessly.
"Shut up! You noisy brat!" Makarov barked.
"Master! Is Chu Yan not here?" Natsu asked from the floor. Erza, Mirajane, and Gray all perked up their ears. They had arrived early but hadn't seen a sign of him.
Makarov sighed. "Chu Yan has left."
"Left again?! Didn't he tell you he wanted a month-long vacation? I was planning to fight him every single day for a month! I'm all fired up!"
Happy added, "I think Natsu just wants to lose for a month straight."
"Where did he go?"
Makarov replied, "I don't know exactly, but I know he went to train! This isn't the first time. He's often away from the guild, but none of you noticed. Every time he finishes a mission, he disappears for a while."
"Then he comes back to see if there are any suitable jobs. He might look like he's slacking off, but over the last three years, he's spent at least half his time training, rain or shine."
"What?! Impossible!" The group was shocked. They couldn't imagine how he squeezed that much training time into his busy schedule.
Makarov narrowed his eyes. "You think he got this strong by drinking in the guild all day?! Because his magic is a Super Magic of absolute destruction, he has to find the most remote places to practice. I remember when I first met that kid; he had been training alone in a dangerous forest for half a month."
"I have to force missions on him just to get him to relax a bit. But he easily clears even Ten-Year Quests. He's truly a remarkable fellow."
"In that fight yesterday, he probably didn't even finish his warm-up. Every time he returns, he gets stronger. He's climbing higher and higher. It wouldn't surprise me if he becomes the World's Strongest Wizard one day."
"He didn't even finish his warm-up...?"
"The World's Strongest Wizard..."
Hearing those words from Makarov sent a shiver down their spines. They were all the same age, yet while they were fighting for the title of "Strongest in Fairy Tail," Chu Yan was aiming for the strongest in the world.
They suddenly felt as if they had been left far behind. For several of them with high competitive spirits, it felt like a cold slap from reality.
Why was Chu Yan so strong? His talent was superior, and his effort was tenfold theirs. In a world like this, it would be unnatural if he didn't win.
Boom! Natsu smashed his fist into a table. "Chu Yan... you bastard~!!!" He yelled at the top of his lungs and ran out of the guild.