Chapter 57 : Laxus, do you want to fight me?

Gajeel didn't fight back. The punch sent him flying, and he slammed into a massive boulder dozens of meters away. 

As the dust cleared, Gajeel lay against the stone, his body charred and badly injured.

"Hey, Laxus! This is between us—no need to be so rough!" a man with brown hair and a hat shouted, his voice edged with concern. He was Jet, part of the "Shadow Gear" team, along with Droy and Levy.

The team had originally planned to rough Gajeel up a bit, hoping to settle a score. During the Phantom Lord battle, Gajeel had beaten three of them up. 

Since he had joined the guild, they figured he needed to be taught a lesson—just enough to release some pent-up anger.

But then Laxus showed up and unleashed powerful magic on Gajeel, taking it far beyond their expectations. The team just wanted to give him a good scare, not kill him.

"Ah?" Laxus turned toward the trio, his magic power surging. The magic and pressure he exuded made the three tremble.

"Laxus," Levy spoke up, mustering courage, "this is between us and Gajeel. You don't need to get involved or attack Gajeel."

Thunder and lightning crackled around Laxus, causing Levy to hide behind a tree in fear.

"Don't attack them," Gajeel said, struggling to stand. "If you want to vent, take it out on me."

"Idiot! Don't say stuff like that!" Jet yelled. Laxus had a reputation for being easily provoked, and that was the last thing they needed right now.

"It was the old man who decided to let someone like you into the guild, huh?" Laxus sneered. "Tolerating former enemies just makes us look weak and vulnerable. So much so that even some punk thinks they can challenge Fairy Tail's authority! This guild needs to show its strength."

"Save the speech, Laxus. Nobody here is listening," came a sudden voice from above.

A blue cat with wings floated down toward Laxus. It was Happy, but something was off.

Laxus stared at him, his expression turning cold. "What's with this nonsense, Everit?" he asked, recognizing the presence within Happy.

"Ah, just exploring new experiences," Everit replied casually.

"You're always nosy on other affairs without contributing anything significant to the guild," Laxus grumbled.

"What's wrong with being nosy?" said Everit. "It's good to gather together, enjoy each other's company, and not worry about strength or personality differences. When we accept and tolerate one another, we create a space for joy. Noise is just a reflection of everyone being happy, and it's our unique personalities that make everything more interesting."

"Laxus, if everyone was as competitive and focused on utility as you, that wouldn't be Fairy Tail—it'd be a black magic cult, or a dark guild."

"What are you trying to say?" Laxus barked back, lightning sparking around him.

"Happy's body can't handle your thunder and lightning," Everit replied calmly.

"I don't care about such things," Laxus said, still crackling with Lightning. "And neither can you handle my Lightning."

"Maybe," Everit shrugged.

Laxus grumbled and stormed off, sparks trailing behind him.

"Laxus, let's go fishing sometime," Everit called after him.

Laxus didn't respond.

"You're Everit, right?" Levy asked once Laxus had left.

"Speaking of which, Levy, we've got some trouble. Come back to the guild with me, and we can talk along the way," Everit said.

"Okay!"

"Please take Gajeel for treatment," Levy said to her two teammates. "I'll catch up with Everit."

"Got it!"

On the way back to the guild, Everit explained the events leading up to the current situation. Levy's brow furrowed as she listened.

Once they reached the guild, Levy immediately got to work without saying much. Everyone knew she was back and soon gathered around.

"How long do we have left?" Lucy [Natsu] asked, looking a bit overwhelmed.

"About two minutes," Cana replied.

"Oh no!"

Everyone started to panic.

Time seemed to stretch endlessly.

"There's just half a minute left!" Cana announced.

"I'll give it a try!" Levy declared, her face set with determination.

"Aruboroya tesura rugi gou."

A sudden burst of multi-colored light filled the room.

"Success!" everyone cheered.

The light began to fade, its colors shrinking back to normal.

Natsu gazed up at the sky and unleashed a burst of fire. "We're back!"

"Yeah!" Gray quickly stripped off his clothes in excitement.

"Great!" Lucy and Juvia sighed with relief.

"Hold on, something feels off!"

Someone in the group sensed something was wrong. 

"Hey, that's my body!"

"Oh no, my soul's been swapped!"

"Why is this happening?!"

It turned out that except for Natsu and a few others who had returned to their original bodies, everyone else had switched! 

"Nice body!" Cana exclaimed, dropping her barrel of wine to strike a few poses.

"The Master's body has an insane amount of magical power," Makarov muttered, looking stunned.

"What a mess!" Levy exclaimed, her eyes wide.

Meanwhile, Everit had nothing to do with the whole situation. He was fast asleep.

Everit's Diary:

Day n+1: Yesterday's soul-switching magic was pretty interesting. I slept through most of it, but I heard they kept swapping bodies, one after another. In the end, the Master remembered that the magic could be undone by destroying the medium—the request letter—so everyone worried for nothing.

By the way, I wonder if the Master really just remembered at the last minute? 

Everit packed his bags and headed to the river. The weather was perfect, but Natsu and Happy were nowhere to be seen. He was left to fish alone.

"Fine! If they don't want to come, I can have all the luck to myself," he thought. And sure enough, he caught a big one! 

Snap!

A sound of breaking branches came from behind him.

"Laxus, if you're here to fish, find your own spot. Don't try to steal my luck," Everit said without turning around.

"I'm not interested," Laxus replied.

Everit turned to see Laxus leaning against a tree, arms crossed over his chest.

"The Thunder God Tribe is back?" Everit asked.

"Looks like you've been paying attention," Laxus replied with a smirk.

"I might not know everything about you, but I know enough," Everit said confidently.

"Everit, do you really disagree with my point of view?" Laxus asked seriously.

"What if I say yes?"

"You'll become S-class in the new guild."

"And if I say no?"

"Then there won't be a place for you."

Everit laughed, then tossed aside what he was holding. He grabbed his fishing rod, turned to face Laxus, and asked, "Laxus, are you looking to challenge me?"

"I've been waiting for this for a long time!" Laxus's face lit up with excitement, ready for a fight.

****

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