This table was gathered with beauties: Mirajane's dashing style, Lucy's cuteness, Levy's liveliness, Cana's boldness, Lisanna's sweetness, Bisca's heroic spirit, and Juvia's... resentment. Plus the stunning beauty of that blonde woman, the whole table looked like it had a filter on.
This table instantly attracted the gaze of all the men in the guild.
The men who were pretending to look at the request board all turned their heads in unison. Those drinking forgot to put down their glasses; those chatting forgot what they were talking about. The entire hall went silent for a moment.
A newly joined member whispered to the person next to him.
"Hey, who is that beautiful woman with long golden hair? She's so pretty, I haven't seen her in the guild before."
The person next to him twitched the corner of his mouth and replied with a complicated expression.
"Uh... that's Riyao..."
"Riyao? That Healing Mage? Isn't he a man?"
"He likes to use Transformation Magic to cross-dress..."
The new member froze for three seconds, then sighed with regret.
"Damn it, he already has Mirajane, otherwise I could have tried to pursue Riyao."
The man next to him silently stood up, carried his glass, and moved to another table, staying as far away from this guy as possible.
On the other side, Jet, Droy, Alzack, and Max gathered at a table. The four men sat together, and the atmosphere was very subtle.
Alzack fidgeted, rubbing his hands, his face as red as a boiled shrimp, his voice as quiet as a mosquito's buzz.
"I wonder if she'll be able to recognize Bisca's chocolate this year..."
Jet clenched his fists, his face full of determination, as if he had made a major decision.
"I must get to eat Levy's chocolate this year! I've already prepared a return gift!"
Droy clenched his fist as well, and in unison with Jet, they said.
"I must get to eat Levy's chocolate this year!"
The two looked at each other, instantly turning from comrades into rivals, with sparks flying in their eyes.
Max took the opportunity to pull a small notebook out of his pocket, opened it, and started selling.
"Do you want to buy some small gifts to give back in return? I have various styles of necklaces, bracelets, and hair accessories here. Valentine's Day special, buy two get one free!"
Jet and Droy both rolled their eyes.
"You don't even miss a sales opportunity on Valentine's Day?"
Max spread his hands, feeling justified.
"It's business, it's not shameful."
Gajeel sat in the corner chewing on an iron block, making a crunching sound. Watching this group of idiots worrying about Valentine's Day, he snorted coldly, his face full of disdain.
Natsu leaned over, curiously staring at the iron block in Gajeel's hand. He reached out to take a piece, put it in his mouth, and tried to take a bite.
Then his whole face scrunched up, and he tossed the iron block away in disgust.
"Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey! What kind of stuff is this! It's hard and tastes terrible!"
Gajeel slanted a glance at him.
"Idiot."
"You're the idiot! You iron-head!"
Gray sat nearby, watching Natsu and Gajeel interact. Previously, he was the only target of Natsu's provocations, but now there was Gajeel, and for some reason, he felt a bit empty inside.
Gray: "..."
Ur was laughing so hard on the side that she was slapping the table.
At this moment, Riyao pulled out a few photos and waved them in front of Juvia.
"Come, come, Juvia, those bath photos of Gray I promised you. See which one you like."
Juvia's eyes instantly widened, as if she had seen some rare treasure.
( / ω ＼ )
She took the photos with trembling hands, her face turning crimson, steam billowing from the top of her head. She looked like an overloaded steam engine.
The photos showed Gray just after a bath, water droplets sliding down his muscle lines, surrounded by mist; the composition was perfect.
She hugged the photos tightly to her chest, afraid they would be snatched away by others, the blush on her face spreading all the way to her ears.
"That, that... Juvia wants them all!"
Gray passed by, accidentally caught a glimpse of the photos, froze, and then let out a scream.
"Riyao! When did you take these!? Hand them over!"
Riyao calmly handed Juvia a new set.
"Don't rush, don't rush, there are even more angles."
Gray rushed over to grab them, but Riyao nimbly dodged, moving as elegantly as if dancing.
Ur had approached at some point, leaned over to take a look at the photos, and then burst into laughter.
"Not bad shots! Huh, does Gray know? Hahaha... Let me tell you, Gray was so funny when he was little."
Gray's face instantly turned pale.
"Ur! Don't tell them!"
Ur wasn't about to listen. She picked up her wine glass, found a comfortable position to sit, and looked like she was reminiscing.
"Do you know, when Gray was a child, he was terrified of cold water, and I always had to coax him for a long time before he would go in. Once, he accidentally slipped and ran around outside the house with his bare butt, crying and looking for me..."
"Ur!!" Gray wished he could crawl into a crack in the ground.
Riyao's eyes lit up. He pulled out the Crystal Ball and started recording, aiming it at Ur, smiling like a cunning merchant.
"Continue, continue, Ur, don't stop."
As Ur recounted Gray's embarrassing childhood stories, a few more people gathered around, and the crowd grew larger and larger.
Lisanna covered her mouth to laugh, Levy took out a small notebook to record, Lucy listened with great interest, and even Erza put down her strawberry cake and leaned over.
"Gray even used to wet the bed when he was little," Ur said, getting more and more excited.
"That was a long time ago!" Gray covered his face in despair.
The topic quickly spread from Gray's embarrassing stories, eventually evolving into a gossip session.
Lisanna covered her mouth and whispered a revelation.
"Natsu almost roasted Happy's egg when he was little. He thought it was a dragon egg and wanted to use fire to heat it up to see if it would hatch."
Natsu jumped up.
"That was an accident! How was I supposed to know!"
Happy hugged his own tail, shivering.
"Natsu is so scary..."
Mirajane smiled and began to expose her younger brother's shortcomings.
"Elfman was very shy when he was little and didn't dare to talk to girls."
Everyone thought about Elfman's current appearance compared to his shy self back then, and everyone laughed out loud.
Riyao leaned back in his chair, crossed his legs, popped a blueberry-grape into his mouth, and spoke slowly.
"Hey, before you guys came, Cana was even shyer. When she first came to the guild, her voice was as quiet as a mosquito's, and she would blush at the drop of a hat."
Cana's face instantly turned bright red. She almost crushed the tarot cards in her hand, stood up abruptly, and pointed at Riyao.
"Hey! Riyao, shut up!"
( ▼ ヘ ▼ # )
Riyao raised his hands in surrender, but the smile on his lips couldn't be suppressed.
"Alright, alright, I won't say anything. But Cana, you really were back then..."
"Try saying one more word!" Cana grabbed a beer barrel and was about to smash it over.
Riyao quickly hid behind Mirajane, poking his head out to make a face.
Mirajane shook her head helplessly, but the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up.
Laughter rose and fell in the guild hall, and the tense atmosphere of Valentine's Day dissipated for the most part amidst the gossip.
Riyao looked at the lively scene in front of him and quietly leaned closer to Mirajane. When no one was paying attention, he gently squeezed Mirajane's fingers.
Mirajane tilted her head slightly and gave him a gentle smile.
This was Fairy Tail's Valentine's Day: noisy, chaotic, but everyone was enjoying it.
Meanwhile, Erza was in the kitchen trying to make chocolate...