Chapitre 315: There's no Place Like Home

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.

December 16, x784.

"They sure are late." Macao said while nursing a mug of ale. "Do you think something happened during the exam."

"Nah, they probably just decided to relax a little longer after everything was settled." Wakaba replied before taking a drag from his pipe.

"Yeah, you don't have to worry, Macao." Reedus added while putting the finishing touches on a painting he had been working on all day. "All the strongest members of the guild went along to Tenrou Island. So, everything should be fine."

"*Gulp* *Gulp* I guess you're right." Macao said after finishing off the contents of his mug. "Still, they really are quite late."

"Stop blubbering like a heartbroken woman." Gozaburo said from another seat at the bar.

"What was that?" Ren asked while narrowing her eyes.

"Um… I mean… Honey, you know that's not what I meant." Gozaburo replied in a slightly fearful tone.

"Calm down, Ma'am." Masa said, trying to defuse the situation "The Boss only meant that there was nothing to worry about."

"Exactly!" Gozaburo exclaimed. "Masa's right. I'm sure all of them are fine."

"Mhmm." Ren replied, her eyes still narrowed at her husband.

"Anyway, have any of you seen Natsu?" Macao asked. "I haven't seen him since the day before they left."

"He's probably off doing something stupid." Chico said with a shrug. "I mean, he was pretty upset that he wasn't a candidate for the S-Class Exam this year."

In response, everyone in the guild hall nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of the exam, who do you think passed this year?" Wakaba asked in an excited tone.

"Do you even have to ask?" Gozaburo said in the tone of a proud father. "Of course, it was my precious Sun."

"I'll admit Sun is strong, Gozaburo." Alzack said while cutting into a fillet of fish. "But she's not the only strong member of the guild who was eligible for the exam."

"Yeah, Fried was a candidate this year, too." Bisca added. "And he's probably the strongest member of the Thunder god Tribe."

"Don't forget about Cana, too." Laki said with a smile.

"Gray's pretty strong, too." Reedus added.

Like that, everyone in the guild threw out their predictions for the newest S-Class wizard. And in the typical Fairy Tail fashion, the discussion got rather heated, before eventually turning into an argument that resulted in a guild-wide brawl.

"*Sigh* I hope they come back soon." Ren said in a bored tone while swirling a glass of wine. "Without Ur here, I have nothing to do or anyone to talk to when the boys get all rowdy like this."

A few moments later, as if to grant Ren's request, the sound of several vehicles coming to a stop outside of the guild hall could be heard. Unfortunately, most of the guild was too preoccupied with the brawl to notice. Ren, on the other hand, looked in the direction of the guild hall's front doors with anticipation in her gaze.

"Fairy Tail! We're home~~~~~!" Makarov shouted as soon as the guild's doors slid open.

*Bang!*

Unfortunately for Makarov, he did not have the time to react to the bar stool that had been flung towards the guild's front doors. As a result, he was hit in the face and sent flying back through the still open doors.

"Hahaha!" Natsu laughed happily after seeing the ongoing brawl. "It looks like they threw a party for our return!"

With that, Natsu sprinted into the guild hall and joined the brawl immediately.

Meanwhile, the other returning members of the guild only looked down at Makarov with slight pity and great amusement in their gazes. Makarov, on the other hand, after feeling all the gazes on him gritted his teeth before picking himself up off the ground.

"You damn brats!" Makarov shouted before rushing back into the guild hall to give his rowdy children a piece of his mind.

"*Sigh* There really is no place like home, huh?" Elicia said with a smile while snuggling up against Alfonzo's right side.

"Yeah." Cana, who was snuggled up on Alfonzo's left side, replied with a smile. "Even though we were only gone for a couple of days, it always feels great to come back home."

"Right now, I'd much rather go home and sleep." Alfonzo said, sounding a bit tired.

"Before we do that, we have a celebration party to throw!" Gildarts said while patting Alfonzo strongly on the shoulder. Then, he swept Cana up in his arms and rushed into the guild hall. "Hey, everyone! My little girl is Fairy Tail's newest S-Class wizard!"

Hearing Gildarts' shout, the brawl paused momentarily. Then, the members of the guild either cheered in glee or broke down in disappointment. And the reason for those reactions was simple. The members of the guild who did not attend the S-Class promotion Exam had a little bet going for who would pass this year's exam.

Then, the brawl intensified while the wizards who lost took out their frustrations on anyone they could get their hands on, while those who won simply defended themselves as they were ecstatic about the money they just won.

After fifteen minutes, the brawl finally came to an end. While many of the guild's wizards were covered in bruises, no one was unconscious. So, when the stage was lowered from the wall, everyone was able to hear the announcement of the new S-Class wizard.

"As Gildarts said, Cana Alberona passed this year's S-Class Promotion Exam." Makarov said while gesturing to Cana, who was standing on the stage with him. "So, give her a big round of applause."

Despite some of the wizards still being unhappy that they lost their bet, everyone in the guild hall cheered happily for Cana's success.

"With her partner, Lucy Heartfilia, Cana was able to overcome all the trials that were placed before her to reach the goal of all those who took part in the exam this year."

After finishing his announcement, however, Makarov's expression turned much more solemn.

"Unfortunately, there was much more that happened on Tenrou Island than just the S-Class promotion Exam." Makarov said in a serious tone that changed the atmosphere in the guild hall to a much more solemn one.

From there, Makarov explained everything that happened on Tenrou Island over the last two days, without leaving out any details. And even when Makarov did not have all the information about an encounter, the wizards who dealt with a particular issue would chime in to fill in the blanks.

"Are you saying the island was attacked by Grimoire Heart?" Macao asked in disbelief. "But how did they even get to the island with the barrier that hides it from view?"

"*Sigh* Apparently, the master of Grimoire Heart, Hades, was actually the second master of our guild, Precht Gaebolg." Makarov said in a downtrodden tone. "I don't know what made him change so much, but he wanted everyone on the island dead for whatever he was planning."

While none of the wizards present were old enough to remember the time when Hades… or rather, Precht was the guild master, none of them could believe there was someone who would betray Fairy Tail, even after leaving the guild.

"But that's not even the worst of what happened." Makarov said, the atmosphere becoming solemn once again. "We survived an attack from the Dragon King of the Apocalypse, Acnologia."

Though many of Fairy Tail's wizards were not the biggest on studying history, therefore being unfamiliar with the name Acnologia, there were still a few whose eyes widened in disbelief.

"Are you serious, Master?" Reedus asked in an astonished tone. "Why would Acnologia attack you all?"

"If I had to guess, it's because he felt the power of our Dragon Slayers while we fought with Grimoire Heart." Makarov replied.

"I'm not sure who this Acnologia is." Jet said excitedly. "But since you all came back safe and sound, that means you defeated him, right?"

"Yeah, that's right!" Droy added. "That's just more proof that Fairy Tail is the strongest."

"Yeah~~~~~~~~~!" The other members of the guild, who were unaware of Acnologia's identity, cheered loudly.

Those who did know about Acnologia, however, did not join in on the cheering. Instead, they watched the expressions of those who had to fight him. And when they saw the downcast expressions, they knew things weren't as positive as the others thought.

"No, we didn't defeat him." Makarov said with his head down, teeth gritted, and fists clenched. "He played with us. And when he got bored…"

Noticing how Makarov trailed off in his speech, the guild's atmosphere cooled rather quickly.

"If you didn't win, then what happened?" Gozaburo asked sternly.

"*Sigh* we only survived thanks to Alfonzo." Makarov said in a tone mixed with gratitude and frustration.

Hearing that, all the eyes in the guild fell on Alfonzo, who seemed really tired of being there. Still, he explained what he did and why he created such a magic item. Unlike those on the island, however, the members of the guild who did not take part in the S-Class Promotion Exam showered him with only gratitude for saving those they considered friends and family.

"*Sigh* And now I feel even worse about the way I acted." Ur said before chugging down the wine in her glass.

"What do you mean?" Ren asked, concerned about the tone Ur spoke in.

"*Sigh* It went like this…" Ur said, starting her explanation about the aftermath of the [Fairy Sphere] spell.

Not only Ur, but all those who were suspicious of Alfonzo having a spell like that prepared explained how they acted on Tenrou Island to the people they were closest to in the guild. And when the explanations were done, they all got the same advice.

"Just go and apologize."

And after getting enough drinks in them, that's what they all did. Lucky for them, Alfonzo had also downed quite a few drinks. So, at that point, everyone was his favorite person in the world, and he replied to all the apologies the same way.

"Don't mention it!" Alfonzo said energetically as he wrapped Ur in a hug with a big smile on his face. "Tensions were high, and emotions were out of control. There was nothing we could do about it back then. But I know you, and you know me. And we both know that we don't' wanna hurt anybody, right? So, let's just have another drink and enjoy the night!"

Although his responses were worded slightly differently every time, Alfonzo basically said the exact same thing to everyone who apologized to him. Then, after he said it to Ur, he just passed out from all the alcohol he had consumed, most of which was bought for him by Gozaburo, who was so grateful that his little girl was able to come back from such a dangerous situation.

"I think this is the first time I've seen Alfonzo pass out from alcohol consumption." Erza said with Alfonzo's head on her lap, while she ran her fingers through his hair.

"I know, right." Cana replied with a smile. "*Hiccup* He can usually keep up with me."

"*Sigh* This is my dad's fault." Sun said in a slightly embarrassed tone. "I can understand why he's happy but…"

With that, Sun looked over in her father's direction, an action that was followed by everyone else sitting at the table. And what they saw was the shirtless Gozaburo dancing on top of one of the guild's tables with a bottle of liquor in each hand and a big smile on his face.

"Yeah, but can you blame him?" Lisanna asked with a smile. "Actually, we're all lucky to have even come back."

"Yeah, Alfonzo protected his family like a real man!" Elfman added.

"Although it doesn't happen often, Elfman." Mirajane said with a smile. "But you do sometimes use that phrase in the right way."

"Still, we all need to find a way to thank Alfonzo." Meredy suggested.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that." Elicia said while licking her lips seductively. "I think we'll be able to thank him enough for everyone."

In response, the girls in Alfonzo's harem nodded in agreement. Though, some of them nodded with flushed cheeks, some of them nodded with seductive smiles like Elicia, and one, namely Erza, nodded sternly as if she were about to carry out a sacred duty.

At the same time, Lucy's face reddened as well while thinking how she would thank Alfonzo, as well.

'As soon as we finally have our date, I'll make sure he knows how grateful I am that he saved everyone.' Lucy thought to herself while clenching her fists under the table.

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Chapitre 316: Naming a New Guild Master

Earth Land, Ishgar, Kingdom of Fiore, Magnolia.

December 17, x784.

"Ugh… Where am I?" Alfonzo groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. "It feels like someone smashed me in the head with a sledgehammer."

*Clang!*

Though his eyes were open, Alfonzo was having trouble seeing his surroundings. So, he decided he would sit up and try to explore his surroundings while getting a glass of water for his hangover. Unfortunately, before he could raise his head too high, his forehead bumped into something cold and hard.

"Oww… What the hell is that?" Alfonzo muttered while raising his right hand to feel what he just bumped into.

Immediately, Alfonzo realized that his head had bumped into something metallic. But thanks to his hazy state of mind and the pounding from the hangover, he could not immediately identify the object. So, he ran his hand along its surface.

"This feels really familiar." Alfonzo muttered once again as he ran his hand along the curves of the metallic object hanging over his head. "Is this a chest plate? And are these curves for… titties? Big Titties…?"

As that thought escaped his lips, Alfonzo felt the chest plate shift slightly. As a result, more light fell on his face. It also allowed him to see the scarlet red hair that hung along with the chest plate.

"I see… So, I was sleeping on Erza's lap." Alfonzo muttered as he let his hand run down the curves of Erza's armor until it reached her plump thighs. Then, his hand slid along Erza's skirt until he reached her butt, before giving it a little squeeze. "And I guess Erza passed out while leaning on the table, huh? Well, I could think of… and have definitely experienced worse places to wake up with a hangover."

With that, Alfonzo carefully pushed himself from between Erza's thighs and chest plate, doing his best not to wake her up. Then after freeing himself, he stood up and stretched. At the same time, he looked at the state of the guild hall after last night's party.

"Well, pretty much everyone is here." Alfonzo said after scanning the room. "I wonder what happened after I passed out. I can tell there was definitely a lot of drinking involved, at the very least."

Shaking that unnecessary thought out of his head, Alfonzo looked towards the bar, more accurately, the kitchen.

"I guess I'll go make something for this hangover." Alfonzo muttered as he staggered over to the kitchen's entrance.

Unfortunately for Alfonzo, once he started cooking his hangover remedy, the smell reached the rest of the guild. As a result, he did not get to eat for the next few hours while the others ordered breakfast.

A few hours later, Alfonzo, sitting at his usual table, shoveled eggs, toast, and honey into his mouth to combat his hangover.

"Seriously, you guys couldn't wait until my hangover was gone?" Alfonzo asked.

"Sorry, Alfonzo." Lisanna replied with a wry smile. "We smelled the food and got hungry."

"What the hell did you even smell?" Alfonzo asked in a disgruntled tone. "I barely even seasoned the eggs, and I didn't add anything to the toast, either."

"It's instinct." Natsu replied while eating his own breakfast. "We just know when you're in the kitchen, Alfonzo."

In response, everyone at the table nodded in agreement with Natsu's statement. Alfonzo, on the other hand, pouted in response.

"Anyway, last night was really fun." Cana said with a smile while sipping a Mimosa. "I really like it when Fonzie is drunk. He's so affectionate."

Hearing that, Most of Alfonzo's girlfriends nodded in agreement. Meanwhile, Lucy, whose face was now beet red, lowered her head in embarrassment.

"What's wrong Lucy?" Elicia asked while nudging the shy blonde with her elbow. "You looked really happy to spend all that time in Fonzie's lap last night."

"Lici~~!" Lucy squealed in embarrassment while covering her face with her hands.

Just like Elicia said, last night, there was a rather long stretch, before Alfonzo got too drunk, where Lucy sat in Alfonzo's lap with his arms wrapped around her waist. And the reason for that was simple, while standing next to Alfonzo and chatting with Cana and Marin, Cana playfully bumped her with her hip. Unfortunately, that caused the slightly intoxicated Lucy to lose her balance. But before she could fall, Alfonzo caught her and sat her on his lap. Something that Lucy enjoyed immensely at the time.

"Anyway, *Cough* so what are everyone's plans for today?" Lucy asked, trying to change the subject.

"Sleep!" Everyone who took part in the S-Class exam replied simultaneously.

Everyone else decided to carry on as usual. Meaning, they would train, take quests, or just hang out at the guild hall.

A little while later, after everyone finished their breakfast, they were just about to break up to do their own things. However, just at that moment, the doors to the guild hall opened. And through the open doors Lahar, Doranbolt, and an entourage of accompanying Rune Knights walked in.

Needless to say, the two from the Magic Council were not welcomed warmly.

"What does the Magic Council want with us after all that they didn't do over the last two days?" Laxus, with his arms crossed, asked in a hostile tone.

'*Sigh* I knew this would happen.' Lahar grumbled internally while adjusting his glasses. 'Couldn't the Council at least give them some time to cool down after all that happened? Instead, they send us here immediately to make demands.'

"The Magic Council demands that the method used to detect Acnologia from a distance be shared." Doranbolt said in an authoritative tone. "Our job of keeping the continent safe would become much easier were we to have this method."

Hearing Doranbolt's demand, the entire guild looked at Lahar and Doranbolt as if they were idiots.

"I think it would be best if you returned to Era." Makarov said as the elevator doors slid open. "On top of the Magic Council not having the authority to demand a guild hand over their secrets, Fairy Tail and the Magic Council are on even worse terms than usual at the moment. And if we were to go to war with the Council at this time, I'm sure that all the legal guilds on the continent would side with us."

"What insolence..." Doranbolt replied angrily.

Before he could continue, however, Lahar placed a hand on Doranbolt's shoulder to calm him down.

"You may not be happy to hear it, but Master Makarov is correct." Lahar said. "We don't have the authority to make such demands."

After speaking his piece, Lahar bowed towards Makarov.

"Please forgive our rudeness." Lahar said politely. "Since our request was declined, we shall take our leave."

With that, Lahar dragged Doranbolt and their entourage away from the Fairy Tail guild hall before things could get any worse. Meanwhile, the Fairy Tail wizards looked on in confusion, thinking they would be insulted and threatened until the Magic Council got what they wanted.

"Anyway, now that that little interlude is over…" Makarov said, drawing everyone's attention to himself. "I have an announcement to make."

Hearing that, all the wizards in the guild began to murmur. Before that could go on for too long, however, Makarov continued speaking.

"After the events of this year's S-Class Promotion Exam, I feel it's about time that I retire as Fairy Tail's guild master." Makarov said calmly.

With Makarov's announcement, the guild hall fell into silence. But after a few moments of tense silence, it was broken by a cacophony of uncertain shouts and complaints.

"Calm down, my children!" Makarov shouted, cutting through the noise. "I know this is quite sudden. But I realized just how old I've gotten during the Grimoire Heart and Acnologia attacks. And unfortunately, that has made me realize that I am no longer suited for the position of guild master."

While it was clear that most of those present still did not like Makarov's decision, they could see the fatigue in his eyes. So, they decided to let it go… for now.

"Naturally, since I'll be stepping down as the guild master, I will be naming a successor, as well." Makarov continued. "Before I make my decision, however, I will discuss it with the guild's S-Class wizards and take into account their opinions."

By that point, everyone knew there was no changing Makarov's mind. However, since the new guild master would more than likely be chosen from the S-Class wizards, no one really had anything to complain about. Well, except for two of the possible candidates. Namely, Laxus and Cana.

While Laxus' attitude had improved greatly over the last few months, the way he treated everyone before that was still fresh in everyone's minds. Cana, on the other hand, would have to do something about her drinking problem before she ever had a chance at being approved by the rest of the guild. The guild already knew what it was like to have a drunk hooligan as their guild master, and they did not want to go through it again with an even heavier drinker.

"Before I go back to my office, I would ask that none of the S-Class wizards take any long term quests until the matter of the new guild master has been decided." Makarov said, ending his announcement.

Either way, with his announcement made, Makarov made his way back into the elevator and returned to his office to consider his options. Meanwhile, the Fairy Tail wizards took some time to process what just happened.

January, x785.

A few weeks have passed since the participants in the S-Class Promotion Exam returned to Magnolia. And in that time, the calendar closed on x784. On top of that, none of the S-Class wizards had taken any quests that took longer than two days to complete. Also, over that time span, Makarov had called each of them into his office to discuss their thoughts on the new guild master.

To Makarov's surprise, despite how much he had done for the guild, Alfonzo denied his request to become the new guild master immediately. And his reason was quite simple. He had no interest in being stuck in the guild hall and doing paperwork.

Despite the disappointment he felt at Alfonzo's refusal, he did ask everyone about their opinions on who they thought would be a good guild master. And something else that surprised him was the fact that Laxus did not nominate himself, siting that he did not have the best track record with e other guild members.

But eventually, Makarov did come to a decision for the new guild master. And when he did, he called all the wizards of the guild to meet on the guild halls first floor.

"Does this mean that the new guild master has been decided?" Jet asked from his seat in the audience in front of the stage.

Probably." Levy replied.

"Then, who do you think it will be?" Droy asked curiously.

"It'll probably be Gildarts, Ur, or Alfonzo." Levy replied.

"Seriously?" Jet asked. "You really think Alfonzo is in the running?"

"But he's so young." Droy added.

"Yeah, but he's done a lot for the guild." Levy said. "And no one can deny that."

Usually, Jet and Droy would oppose most things having to do with Alfonzo due to jealousy, since Levy spends a lot of time talking to him about magic theory. But since Alfonzo saved everyone from Acnologia's [Dragon's Roar], they have scaled back their disagreements quite a bit over the last few weeks.

Like Levy, Jet, and Droy, most of the other wizards in the guild were discussing the possible new guild master as well. Before the conversations could continue any longer, however, the lights in the guild hall dimmed as a spot light fell on the stage.

"My children, let me thank you for gathering once again on such short notice." Makarov said as he stepped into the spot light. "I'm sure you all have speculations for this meeting. And let me tell you, your speculations are more than likely correct."

The murmurs in the guild hall started once again while Makarov gave his children time to digest his words.

"Alright, Old Man, don't keep us in suspense!" Gildarts shouted from his seat at the bar. "Just tell us who's gonna be the new guild master, already."

Gildarts exclamation silenced the crowd and caused all eyes focus on Makarov with anticipation.

"Ahem… Very well." Makarov said after clearing his throat. Then, with a solemn expression on his face, he continued. "From today forward, the Fourth guild master of the Fairy Tail guild will be…"

Once again, Makarov paused for dramatic effect. Then, just as the audience started to get restless, he continued.

"The Ice Witch, Ur Milkovich!" Makarov shouted with enthusiasm.

*Spurt!*

Immediately after Makarov made his announcement, the sound of someone spitting out a mouthful of liquid could be heard echoing through the guild hall.

Hearing that noise, all the wizards present looked back to the bar and saw Ur with a shocked expression on her face and wine trickling from her lips and down her chin.

"Are you fucking serious?" Ur roared in confusion. "Why the hell didn't you pick Gildarts?"

"Do you really think I could stay in one place long enough to do the job of a guild master?" Gildarts asked with a chuckle.

"Shut up, Asshole!" Ur shouted in an irritated tone. "I wasn't asking you!"

Meanwhile, Alfonzo, who was seated in the audience in front of the stage with his girlfriends, had just wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead.

'I'm just glad it wasn't me.' Alfonzo thought to himself while a wide grin spread on his face. 'Even though I refused outright when Gramps asked me to be the next guild master, I was still worried. I mean seriously, there's no way I would be able to handle all the paperwork that comes with being a guild master. Anyway, now that the whole business with the fourth guild master is over, I can focus on my date with Lucy and the trial against the Magic Council.'