Chapter 37: Chapter 37: Shock! Has Fairy Tail's Influence Invaded the Magic Council?!
"My head hurts."
When Ian opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was an entirely unfamiliar ceiling.
"Damn, have I gotten weaker?!"
"It was just a few bottles of booze, and I'm already down…"
"Looks like I need some training."
Ian rubbed his aching temples, muttering to himself.
Well, it couldn't really be said that the ceiling was entirely unfamiliar...
After all, this was still the main hall of the Fairy Tail guild.
He just hadn't seen it from this angle very often after waking up, that's all.
Honestly, Ian had gotten too drunk last night...
And ended up passing out in the middle of the guild hall.
The times Ian got drunk in the guild hall were few and far between.
Around him lay a mess...
And a bunch of his fellow guild members sprawled on the floor, sleeping wherever they landed.
Clearly, Ian was the first to wake up.
As for the others...
All the underage members, led by Erza and Mirajane, had been sent home early by Ian.
The rest, however, still lay deep in their dreams, completely unaware, sleeping off the previous night's drinking.
For the record, that group of underage members didn't include Cana.
That girl fought until the very end last night, taking down everyone in the guild...
And ultimately going toe to toe with Ian, whose body and metabolism were quite different, having trained in Dragon Slayer magic.
As Mavis, Fairy Tail's first guild master and widely regarded as the "Fairy Strategist," had correctly said, Cana—being Gildarts' daughter—had immense potential…
"Maybe Cana's just focusing her efforts in the wrong direction."
"Cana's magical power isn't weak at all, she is Gildarts' daughter after all, and her magical foundation is quite solid. If she really put in the effort to train, she would definitely achieve something…"
"But her Card Magic relies too heavily on the attributes and power of the cards themselves. Of course, that's a common issue with 'Holder-type' magic…"
"Perhaps I should work on developing her raw magic power and help her unlock her Second Origin!"
"And then maybe ask the First to pass on the magic of Fairy Glitter to her..."
"Let Cana, like Gildarts, train in 'Crush' as her fundamental magic."
Looking at Cana slumped over the table, crowned as Fairy Tail's drinking champion after besting him last night, Ian silently crafted over a hundred plans to make her stronger…
"Hello? Is anyone here?"
"Excuse me, is this the Fairy Tail guild?!"
Just as Ian was scratching his chin and planning Cana's power development, a timid voice called from the entrance of the guild.
"Huh?"
Ian turned around, only to see a mailman in a wizard's postal uniform standing at the door, clutching a letter and pacing nervously, seemingly debating whether to enter.
"This is Fairy Tail. Can I help you?"
Ian walked to the entrance and addressed the hesitant postman.
"Uh..."
The mailman paused when Ian appeared, then quickly plastered on a professional smile and said softly, "Well, it's like this… I've got a letter here addressed to Mr. Ian. May I ask who that is?"
"That's a coincidence. I'm Ian."
Ian, a little surprised that someone had sent him a letter, scratched his disheveled head and asked the postman, "Who's it from?"
"Uh..."
"It's from someone named Silver Fullbuster."
The postman smiled as he answered.
"Oh, it's from Silver, huh?"
Ian's eyes brightened as he reached out and took the letter.
"By the way..."
"Could you sign here, please?"
The postman handed Ian a pen and a ledger.
"Sure thing."
Ian nodded.
However, when he went to sign, he found that the pen had run out of ink.
"Sorry, I think the last customer used up the ink..."
"I'll refill it right away."
The postman awkwardly fumbled through his bag, looking for a spare pen and ink.
"No need to rush..."
"I've got a pen as well. Just wait here for a moment."
Ian chuckled and headed back into the guild to grab the pen Makarov used for writing letters.
"Thank you for your understanding."
The postman bowed deeply, expressing his gratitude as Ian turned to get the pen.
Then, the postman lifted his head, glancing through the slightly ajar guild door...
And what he saw scarred him for life.
Dozens of half-naked men, wearing nothing but their underwear, lay sprawled across the floor, packed so tightly together that it looked like a scene straight out of his worst nightmare.
It was the stuff of legends—Hell of the Half-Naked Men.
He swore he never wanted to witness such a sight again.
Meanwhile…
"Let me see... I think it was here..."
"Ah-ha! Finally found it—Makarov's pen."
Ian was busy searching the bar counter.
He rummaged through drawer after drawer...
And finally, after some time, he found Makarov's prized pen.
Smiling, Ian turned and headed back to the guild entrance.
"I found the pen."
However, when Ian reached the entrance, the postman was nowhere to be seen.
"Huh?!"
"Where did he go?"
Ian looked around, confused.
On the other side…
The postman, having fled the Fairy Tail guild at full speed, now stood by a public phone booth in Magnolia, speaking anxiously into the phone, "Hello? Is this the Magic Council?! I need to report something! I'm not joking—a so-called 'legal' wizard guild was openly hosting an indecent party during the day!"
"It's obscene! This cannot go unpunished!"
"What?!"
"You want to know which guild?!"
"Of course, it's Fairy Tail."
The moment the postman mentioned Fairy Tail, the phone line abruptly went dead.
"Hello?! Why did you cut me off?!"
"Damn it! Could it be that those guys already have infiltrators in the Magic Council?!"
At that moment, the postman felt like the very fabric of magic society in Fiore and across Ishgar was crumbling around him.
Mest Gryder: "Huh?! There's absolutely no way! How could Fairy Tail's wizards possibly infiltrate the Magic Council?!"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
Later, aside from fining Makarov for violating a ban and recklessly using magic without authorization, the Magic Council slapped Fairy Tail with another 500,000 Jewel fine for "public indecency."
The council didn't even bother investigating the indecency claim—they just knew it was something Fairy Tail would totally do.
As for Fairy Tail, when they saw the fine, they remained silent.
But no one had time to dwell on the council's punishments…
Because what was coming next was Fairy Tail's annual 24-hour Endurance Race!!
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