Chapter 118: FTRJ: Chapter 118

“Even Gildarts couldn’t do it?” Gray exclaimed, his surprise evident on his face.

“A job even Gildarts couldn’t handle… just how incredibly difficult is a Millennium Mission?!” Lucy was astonished by the legendary difficulty of the mission.

“You’re far too early to even be considering Millennium Missions, Lucy. Give it up,” Erza stated firmly, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Lucy’s eyes widened as she gestured towards herself. “Do I look like I’m itching to take one on?”

Makarov sighed, his voice heavy with a mixture of disappointment and relief. “Is that so? Even you couldn’t complete it, Gildarts? But I’m just relieved you’re safe.” His tone conveyed his gratitude that Gildarts had returned alive.

“I’m sorry, I let the guild down,” Gildarts said, shaking his head in self-reproach.

“No, returning alive is a remarkable feat in itself,” Makarov countered, dismissing Gildarts’s self-criticism.

A smile touched his lips. “To my knowledge, you’re the very first person to survive that mission.”

Gildarts chuckled, his gaze drifting towards Finn. “If it were Finn, though… he might just be able to pull it off!”

Finn paused, momentarily taken aback by Gildarts’s unexpected statement.

Gildarts continued, his voice laced with a hint of intrigue. “I’ve heard quite a bit about your recent exploits, you know. How about it? Fancy giving it a try? It would certainly be an interesting challenge!”

Makarov’s gaze also turned to Finn, his expression thoughtful.

“It’s quite possible that Finn, at his current level of strength, could actually attempt such a mission,” Makarov mused aloud, his voice filled with a mixture of hope and anticipation.

Makarov had personally witnessed Finn’s remarkable growth in recent times: his head-to-head confrontation with the ultimate human weapon, the Magic God Serena; his complete annihilation of Nirvana; and his transformation of the Whispering Woods into a vast expanse of molten lava.

Even now, the aftereffects of his incredible feats had yet to completely subside, a testament to the sheer magnitude of his power. It was undeniable that Finn had reached an unprecedented level of strength.

Feeling the weight of everyone’s expectant gazes upon him, Finn sighed wearily. “You’re not going to let this go, are you? I suppose what you’re really suggesting is that I should accompany you on this mission,” Finn said, his voice laced with a hint of exasperation.

“Hahaha, you’ve seen right through me…” Gildarts replied, scratching the back of his head and erupting into a hearty laugh. “But seriously, you really should consider it.”

Finn nodded slowly. “You should focus on taking care of yourself first,” he advised.

He gestured towards Gildarts’s body, which was concealed beneath his tattered cloak.

Gildarts paused, then shook his head with a wry smile. “You…” he muttered, his voice trailing off.

Although Gildarts hadn’t explicitly mentioned it, Finn had sensed that he had sustained some rather serious injuries during his mission.

However, since Gildarts had chosen not to disclose the extent of his wounds, Finn decided to respect his silence and refrain from probing further.

Gildarts was, after all, the quintessential dependable senior member; he wasn’t the type to burden his guildmates with his worries and concerns.

He was the dependable senior member; he only needed to project an image of strength and resilience to reassure those around him.

In the quiet stillness of a back alley, early in the morning…

“Meow~~”

A yellow tabby cat, its eyes wide with curiosity, let out a questioning meow as it observed the man before it—a man whose entire body was covered in metal studs.

Gajeel stared intently at the tabby cat, his expression unreadable.

“Wrong!”

After a considerable amount of time had passed, Gajeel suddenly let out an exasperated sigh, his frustration evident as he angrily placed the tabby cat onto a nearby, discarded barrel.

With a determined stride, he turned and stormed off.

“This one… also wrong!”

“And this one… darn it!!”

Gajeel’s frustrated exclamations echoed through the alleyway, drawing the attention of a group of stray cats who watched him with a mixture of curiosity and bewilderment, seemingly unable to comprehend the strange behavior of this unusual man.

The repeated setbacks left the Iron Dragon Slayer, Gajeel, feeling utterly defeated, his body half-collapsed on the ground.

As the sounds of meows continued to ring out around him, a growing sense of bitterness crept over Gajeel’s face.

“Darn it, that blasted Fire Dragon and that new kid both have cats…” he muttered to himself, his voice laced with a hint of resentment.

The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. “We’re all Dragon Slayers! Why is it that I’m the only one who doesn’t have a cat?!”

“Gajeel, do you like cats that much?” A familiar voice suddenly cut through the silence.

Gajeel looked up to see Finn standing before him—his black hair neatly styled, his attire simple and clean-cut, giving him a relaxed yet stylish appearance. A teasing smile played on Finn’s handsome face.

“Finn!!”

Gajeel’s eyes widened in surprise, and he quickly scrambled to his feet, attempting to maintain a nonchalant demeanor.

“Y-you… what are you doing here?” Gajeel stammered, his voice barely above a whisper. He felt as if he was experiencing the most mortifying moment of his life.

Finn held up a cake box, a playful smile gracing his lips. “Well, there’s this sale going on at the bakery, so I thought I’d swing by and support their business,” he explained, his tone light and casual.

He then turned his gaze towards Gajeel. “I didn’t expect to run into you here, though.”

“But I have to say, I’m rather surprised to discover that someone as tough as you actually has a soft spot for cats,” Finn continued, his tone laced with a hint of amusement.

Finn tilted his head thoughtfully. “There’s an old saying, isn’t there? Even the toughest individuals have a tender side. It’s quite endearing!”

As Finn nodded in agreement with his own observation, Gajeel’s eyes darted nervously around, as if searching for an escape route, a crack in the earth to swallow him whole.

It seemed as if the world itself had suddenly become an unbearable place for him to inhabit.

“No, why would I like something like that… You must be mistaken. I have some urgent business to attend to, so I must be going now,” Gajeel blurted out, his voice laced with a desperate attempt to appear nonchalant. He turned abruptly and hurried away, his pace quickening with each step.

His speed was such that one might have thought that some terrifying creature was hot on his heels.

“Hey! Gajeel!” Finn called out, his voice echoing through the narrow alleyway.

“It’s nothing… don’t worry about me, I’m extremely busy with work~~” Gajeel replied without turning back, disappearing around a sharp bend in the alleyway.

“No, what I meant to say was that there’s no path leading that way,” Finn called out, his voice laced with exasperation.

However, his words were met not with a response from Gajeel, but with…

Bang—

The sound of a wall collapsing echoed through the alleyway, causing Finn to facepalm in utter exasperation.

“All this over a simple fondness for cats? Does he really have to be that shy?” Finn muttered to himself, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

“But… now that I think about it, cats are pretty cool,” Finn murmured to himself before departing from the alleyway.

Inside the Fairy Tail Guildhall…

Happy gazed lovingly at the fish he intended to present to Carla, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. He had meticulously tied a decorative ribbon around the fish, even adding a perfectly formed bow.

Satisfied with his handiwork, Happy set off towards Carla with a skip in his step, clutching the fish tightly in his paws.

“Carla! This is a fish I caught especially for you! I wanted to give it to you as a gift!” Happy chirped, extending the fish towards Carla.

A blush, unlike any seen before, crept onto Happy’s usually blue face.

“I don’t want it,” Carla retorted, turning her head away with a dismissive gesture.

“Because I absolutely hate fish,” she added, her voice firm.

“Oh…” Happy’s ears drooped, his initial enthusiasm replaced by a wave of disappointment.

“But Carla, what do you like? I’ll get it for you immediately…”

Before Happy could finish his sentence, Carla’s impatient voice cut him short.

“Are you seriously bothering me? Please, just leave me alone!” she exclaimed, her voice laced with frustration before turning and heading towards the guildhall entrance.

“Carla, please don’t be like that!” Wendy interjected, her voice laced with concern.

However, Carla merely let out a dismissive snort before turning her back and leaving.

“Does she really need to get that worked up over something like this?” Lucy commented, observing Carla’s retreating figure.

Happy stared dejectedly at the fish in his paws, feeling utterly lost and unsure of what to do.

“Happy, I’m so sorry. That’s just Carla’s personality. Don’t take it to heart,” Wendy said apologetically, turning to Happy to offer words of comfort.

“It’s okay,” Happy replied, shaking his head before turning and hurrying after Carla.

Upon seeing Happy following her, Carla stopped in her tracks. “Didn’t I tell you to leave me alone?” she said, her voice sharp.

Happy hung his head, his tail drooping dejectedly to the ground.

“Did I do something to make you angry?” he asked cautiously, his voice laced with concern.

“It’s not what you think,” Carla sighed, turning to look at the dark, ominous sky.

“Honestly… why don’t you understand anything?” she exclaimed, her voice filled with frustration.

Happy’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Am I… supposed to know something?” he asked, his voice laced with uncertainty.

“Seriously, you’re not capable of protecting Natsu like this,” Carla stated, shaking her head.

“And I have to protect Wendy… no matter what happens, I’ll protect Wendy!” Carla declared, her tone unwavering and resolute.

“I’ll do my best to protect Natsu too. He said I’m his partner!” Happy declared, clenching his tiny fist.

“You can’t protect him!” Carla retorted, turning to face Happy. “Not as long as you remain so clueless about yourself.”

“Myself… what exactly is myself?” Happy was left speechless, his mind reeling as he watched Carla’s retreating figure.

Suddenly, a torrential downpour began, the sky opening up and unleashing a deluge of rain.

The once lively and bustling streets of Magnolia fell silent, the downpour casting a somber mood over the town.

Finn walked alone through the deserted streets, the relentless rain soaking his hair and clothes.

“Why did it suddenly start raining so hard?” Finn muttered to himself, his voice barely audible above the sound of the rain.

“And… this feeling… it’s so strange,” Finn murmured, his gaze fixed on the sky.

A massive hole had formed in the ominous cloud cover above, creating a chilling sight.

A heavy, oppressive atmosphere settled over Magnolia, casting a shadow of unease over the town.

Finn began to walk towards the guildhall, his steps determined.

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