Chapter 367: Participating Members, Confirmed
"Just us is enough! Or rather, just me is enough!" Natsu stepped forward confidently and proclaimed.
"Don't talk nonsense. Gramps and the others formed an alliance for the sake of the future," Laxus said, patting Natsu on the shoulder.
Seeing that it was Laxus speaking, Natsu didn't utter a word in protest, though he still looked a bit indignant.
"Wait, that's not right... Hold on, the enemy only has five people, right?! To actually need an Allied Force, just who exactly are these people?" Lucy said with a panicked expression.
If just five people could become one of the greatest powers among the Dark Guilds, Lucy couldn't even begin to imagine how terrifying they must be.
"Gramps, the two guilds forming the Allied Force with us both have history with Fairy Tail, right?" Laxus asked Makarov.
"That is indeed the case. We have quite a bit of history with their Guild Masters and members. Because of that, the Allied Force we form will be able to coordinate much better." Makarov nodded, then turned to Noah and said, "Noah, the other Guild Masters accepted your previous speculation. Coupled with the fact that we need to avoid being targeted individually, we decided to form this Allied Force."
"Speculation? What speculation?" Erza asked.
"The speculation that the leader of the Oración Seis is the former Chief of the Bureau of Magical Development, Brain." Makarov thought for a moment before deciding to speak it out loud.
The moment his voice fell, a massive chill suddenly swept through the entire guild hall.
With Ultear at the epicenter, the floor around her instantly froze over. The guild members standing near her couldn't help but shiver involuntarily.
"Calm down, don't get too worked up." Noah stepped forward and placed a steadying hand on Ultear's shoulder.
Ultear took several deep breaths, finally managing to suppress the raging emotions in her heart.
"I didn't tell you before because I wasn't entirely sure if the information was true. Of course, I'm still not certain even now; it's merely a speculation. The reason I warned Gramps ahead of time is that when dealing with Dark Guilds, it's always better to prepare for the worst," Noah explained to Ultear.
"I understand. It's just that I've been looking for that bastard for so long without a single trace. Hearing news about him so suddenly... I lost control of myself for a second." Ultear shook her head, reassuring the crowd who was looking at her with concern.
Seeing her emotions stabilize, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Those who knew the inside story naturally wouldn't judge Ultear. Even those who didn't know the specifics could easily deduce from her reaction that she harbored a deep, personal grudge against this 'Brain', so they tactfully kept quiet.
"Master, I will be participating in this subjugation operation as well," Ultear said firmly to Makarov.
Makarov nodded. When he had voiced Noah's speculation, he naturally hadn't forgotten to factor in the bad blood between Ultear and Brain. It was an absolute given that Ultear would demand to join the fight.
"Master, I want to join the subjugation operation too," Sorano chimed in from the side.
Makarov was taken aback for a moment before nodding as well. He recalled that Sorano also had a dark history involving Brain, so it wasn't surprising that she wanted in on this.
"Besides the two of them, we need to send others to join as well. After all, just two people are far too few. To guarantee the success of this mission, we need to send more members," Makarov addressed the crowd.
"I'll go," Noah told Makarov.
After all, since Ultear and Sorano were going, how could he sit out? Moreover, he had spent a tremendous amount of effort setting up traps specifically to force the enemy to show themselves. Now that the Oración Seis, which likely included Brain, had finally surfaced, there was no way he was going to miss it.
"If we're going, then I'm going too! Perfect timing for me to beat 'em all up!" Natsu told Makarov with fiery excitement.
"Since the enemy might be the one responsible for separating my master and her daughter, I naturally have to go and help exact revenge," Gray told Makarov.
Hearing Gray say this, a warm smile couldn't help but form on Ultear's face. Her junior brother wanting to avenge their master and herself naturally made her very happy.
"Since the three of them are going, as a member of the same team, I naturally must go too. Not to mention, if the enemy is Ultear's sworn foe, I have all the more reason to be there," Erza declared to Makarov.
With four people from her team volunteering to go, Lucy was in a full-blown panic: "Don't tell me I have to go too?"
"We're in the same team, so of course you're going!" Natsu told Lucy with complete seriousness.
"Aye! I'll be going with Natsu too," Happy added from the side.
"Ahhh..." Lucy let out a pained groan. Happy's words offered her zero comfort, but she didn't utter a word of refusal. Since her comrades were going into danger, she wasn't about to abandon them.
"Eight people, huh..." Makarov couldn't help but nod in approval when he tallied up the applicants for the Allied Force.
None of these members were weak; in fact, some were exceptionally powerful. Even if they had to take on the Oración Seis all by themselves, they would likely be fine, so he felt deeply reassured. Nearby, Mirajane and Laxus had originally wanted to apply as well, but seeing so many heavy hitters step up—and seeing Makarov clearly approve—they decided to sit this one out in silence.
"Then the participants for the Allied Force are decided. Eight people in total. Everyone, go and prepare. I'll pass the specific gathering location and other details to Noah," Makarov instructed everyone.
The group nodded and dispersed. Since they were heading out to subjugate a Dark Guild as formidable as the Oración Seis, they naturally needed to make serious preparations.
Noah, meanwhile, walked up to Makarov.
"With you on this subjugation mission, I feel much more at ease. However, you still need to be careful; don't let your guard down," Makarov warned gently.
"I know, Gramps," Noah replied.
"The gathering location this time is one of Master Bob's villas, situated right next to the Worth Woodsea. The meeting time is noon tomorrow," Makarov stated, passing on the rendezvous details.
"Alright then, I'll go get ready as well."
"Go on," Makarov dismissed him.
Noah left the area and immediately went to find Wendy and the others nearby.
"Wendy, have you girls visited Grandpa Roubaul recently?"
"We did! We just went to play at Grandpa Roubaul's place a little while ago," Wendy said excitedly.
"It just so happens that we all have guild business to take care of soon. How about I take you girls to stay at Grandpa Roubaul's place for a bit? He actually mentioned to me that he misses you," Noah suggested.
"Okay!" Wendy agreed without a second thought. Yukino and Meredy beside her also nodded eagerly; Grandpa Roubaul was incredibly kind to them, and they adored him.
Carla felt that something was slightly off, but she didn't overthink it since there was nothing inherently wrong with Noah's reasoning.
"Mira, I'll leave Wendy and the girls in your care. Pack up your things, and I'll teleport you straight there," Noah told Mirajane.
"Got it!" Wendy and the girls happily ran home to grab their things. They had bought quite a few items at the Harvest Festival that they had been saving to gift to Grandpa Roubaul.
"I remember Grandpa Roubaul's location is right next to the Worth Woodsea. Is there some sort of problem with having them go to his place right now?" Mirajane walked over and asked quietly.
"Well... just take good care of Wendy, the girls, and Grandpa Roubaul." Noah hesitated for a moment, ultimately choosing not to reveal the actual reason.
"Alright then. Just tell me when you're able to." Mirajane didn't press the issue. She knew Noah well enough to know that if he could tell her, he would have done so immediately; his silence proved there was a valid reason keeping him tight-lipped.
"Make sure to spend plenty of time with Wendy, the girls, and Grandpa Roubaul while you're there," Noah told Mirajane earnestly.
"I know. Even if you didn't say it, I would still keep them good company." Mirajane rolled her eyes at him affectionately before turning to pack her own belongings.
Once Wendy and the girls returned, Noah directly teleported Mirajane, Wendy, and the rest to the clearing outside of Roubaul's home.
"Grandpa Roubaul, we came to play!" Meredy shouted happily toward the house.
"Good, good, good!" Roubaul's joyous laughter echoed from within. The front door swung open, revealing a beaming Roubaul standing in the doorway.
"Grandpa Roubaul!" Wendy and the girls called out in unison. Noah and Mirajane also greeted the elder warmly.
Roubaul's face was completely taken over by an uncontainable, grandfatherly smile. "Hurry up and come in, have a seat!"
After Roubaul ushered Noah and the group inside, Wendy and the girls couldn't wait to pull out the souvenirs they had bought at the Harvest Festival to give to him. Hearing the lively commotion, the other villagers of Cait Shelter also poured in to greet the girls, happily accepting the small gifts.
The villagers immediately began preparing a lavish feast to welcome them.
It wasn't that Wendy and the girls hadn't thought of inviting Roubaul and the rest of the villagers to the Harvest Festival previously, but Roubaul and the villagers had politely declined the invitation. Thus, Wendy and the others could only excitedly recount everything they saw and heard at the festival, pulling out photographs taken during the event to show everyone.
Roubaul and the villagers chuckled affectionately as they listened to the girls share their experiences. Noah hung back, taking the opportunity to quietly observe the situation in the area.
Once the girls' initial excitement had settled down a bit, the surrounding villagers began presenting the gifts they had been preparing for the girls in their absence. From beautifully tailored clothes to all sorts of exquisite handicrafts, the enthusiastic villagers stuffed a literal mountain of presents into the girls' arms.
Unable to carry everything, Wendy and the girls had no choice but to store a large portion of the items inside their spatial magic storage.
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