章節 19: Chapter 19: A Restricted Area in the Guild?

"Laxus?" Mira stepped slightly in front of Rhodes, raising an arm to block him.

"Rhodes just joined the guild two days ago. He was merely practicing his magic."

"Magic? That?" Laxus sneered, "Such pitifully weak magic—what's the use?"

Worm trembled in fear, and Rhodes frowned. This was the worst attitude he had encountered in the guild so far.

Even Porlyusica, who claimed to hate humans, was thorough and considerate when treating the wounded.

But this guy looked like he genuinely disliked him...

No, not dislike—it felt more like disdain. It seemed like he radiated a sense of superiority.

Rhodes, new to the guild, didn't want to cause trouble: "If I disturbed you earlier, I apologize."

"Pathetic. Not just weak in magic but a weak personality too... I really don't understand what the old man sees in people like you."

Laxus looked down at Rhodes, but this time, he was speaking not just to Rhodes but also to Mira and everyone else:

"There are already too many weaklings in Fairy Tail. How do people like this deserve to be my companions, huh? Huh?"

These words angered many in the tavern, especially Natsu and Gray.

The two, who had been quiet under Erza's suppression, slammed the table and stood up: "What did you say?"

The sound of glasses slamming onto the tables echoed from other members, and people glared at the blond youth on the second floor:

"Laxus is still the same!"

Erza stopped her conversation with her friend, her face turning cold: "No matter what, saying such things is too much, Laxus."

Laxus met Erza's gaze, tension thick in the air: "Oh? Erza, are you going to defend these worthless—"

"Enough!"

It wasn't clear when Makarov had sobered up, but he slapped down a request form.

"Laxus, there's a job specifically for you. Go deal with it."

"..."

Laxus looked at Makarov, who didn't even lift his head to look at him.

He let out a light snort, came down to grab the request, and left: "Boring."

Everyone watched Laxus leave, and many looked displeased.

Natsu looked particularly unhappy, as if ready to rush in and fight. However, Gray had him in a headlock, holding him back.

In a corner of the tavern, two men and a woman quietly got up and followed Laxus out.

As they left, the atmosphere in the tavern cooled down, and it took a while before everyone settled back down, gradually starting to talk again.

"Sorry for causing everyone trouble."

Rhodes thought Laxus had issues, but today's conflict started because of him. It might be better to practice in the courtyard next time.

"It's not your fault; that guy is always like this," Laki said with a pout. "If he weren't the guild master's grandson, he'd have been kicked out long ago..."

"Laki!" Mira stopped her from continuing. Laxus becoming like this was surely something that pained the guild master more than anyone else.

"He's the guild master's grandson?" Rhodes compared Laxus's tall and imposing figure to Makarov's short and stout stature.

Couldn't tell at all.

"That's right. He's my grandson, but..." Makarov looked towards the guild door.

"Sorry. It's my fault Laxus turned out this way. Don't take what he said to heart."

"No, no, you don't need to apologize..." Rhodes could more or less guess what was going on.

Following typical story tropes, the kid was likely praised with comments like "worthy of being the guild master's grandson" from a young age, leading to a rebellious attitude.

At first, it was nothing, but over time, he wanted to earn recognition through his own abilities, not just as "the guild master's grandson."

It was like Konohamaru in the neighboring show.

The difference with Laxus was that his rebellious phase had lasted longer, and he seemed to have taken a wrong turn.

Rhodes tried to recall but couldn't remember much about Laxus. But since Daya said it all ends well, this kid would probably be redeemed...

The guild gradually returned to its usual lively state.

As the sun set, night fell.

Lights had been lit in the guild, and only a few customers were left in the tavern, still drinking and chatting.

Rhodes was preparing to sweep the floor with Laki.

"I'll handle the first floor myself today," Laki said apologetically, "since I arrived so late in the morning."

"I'll head upstairs then," Rhodes offered.

"No, you can't. The second floor is Mira's responsibility," Laki stopped him.

"Huh?" Rhodes was puzzled. "It'd be the same if I did it. Mira worked hard today too."

"No means no," Laki insisted. "The guild has rules. Only a few authorized people are allowed upstairs."

"Why...?"

Why did it feel like a martial arts novel with some kind of forbidden area?

"Because there's a special mission board on the second floor, and all the jobs listed there are high-difficulty S-Class missions," Laki explained.

"The rewards are significant, but if you're not careful, you could lose your life. So only S-Class mages are allowed to take missions from there."

S-Class mage was easy to understand—Rhodes guessed it meant the strongest few in the guild.

He asked, "But why not just prevent people from taking the missions? Why ban people from going upstairs at all?"

Laki sighed, "Because there are too many reckless members in the guild."

"True," Rhodes thought about the guild members and understood the rule right away.

Take Natsu, for instance—impulsive and reckless, and the main character no less. Who knows when he might sneak off on an S-Class mission.

This rule was probably set because of him.

No wonder only the most reliable server, Mira, was allowed upstairs.

"By the way, how many S-Class mages are there in the guild? Who's the strongest?"

"Hmm..." Laki thought for a moment. "Setting aside the guild master, the strongest should be that one older guy. But he went on a mission two years ago and hasn't returned since."

"Two years? What mission takes that long?" Rhodes asked, surprised and worried. "Isn't he in danger...?"

"No, no..." Laki quickly waved her hands, denying it. "That guy, Gildarts, is as strong as a monster. I don't know what mission it is, but if it's him, he'll definitely be fine."

It seemed Laki had immense faith in this older member, so Rhodes stopped worrying. "Who else besides him?"

"Other than him, the S-Class mages are Laxus, Mystogan, and Erza, but..." Laki corrected herself, "No, for now, it's just those three. As for who's the strongest, I don't know."

"You've already met Laxus and Erza. As for Mystogan... you'll probably never see him. I think only the guild master knows what he truly looks like."

Another mysterious person. Rhodes silently noted down Mystogan's name.

The most troublesome one was Laxus.

Rhodes was still thinking about when he could help the guild master teach that disrespectful grandson a lesson, so he wouldn't always be so arrogant.

But thinking about his current summoning abilities—Poro, Rift Scuttler...

It looked like it wouldn't happen anytime soon.