Chapter 77: Selene's Advance - The Fierce Battle Between the Dragon Slayer Queen and the Moon Dragon!

Noon.

"Boom!!"

Within the increasingly chaotic battle in the Fairy Tail guild...

Eventually, the senior member of the guild, Warrod, seemed to have had enough. He summoned countless vines, restraining all the troublemakers present.

"Hey! You little brats, are you trying to make me angry?"

"Don't you know the thing I hate the most is noise?"

"If you keep making a ruckus like this..."

"I'll have to kick all of you out of the Fairy Tail guild!"

Warrod's face turned dark as he spoke, his expression stern. The sheer intensity of his magic made everyone present feel a weight on their hearts. An overwhelming power like his was not something an ordinary person could match.

"S-sorry!"

"Please, don't kick us out..."

Under Warrod's immense magical pressure, Natsu, Gray, Lyon, and others all fell to their knees, apologizing and pleading for forgiveness in humble submission.

"Pfft, hahaha..."

"I was just kidding!"

"I love the lively atmosphere of the Fairy Tail guild the most~"

"Even the flowers and trees I plant love the excitement~"

"But you should also consider things from little Makarov's perspective."

"Little Makarov has it tough..."

Before Natsu and the others could respond further, Warrod suddenly dropped his stern demeanor. He broke into a bright smile and, with a wave of his hand, used his wood magic to repair the damaged guild building.

"Warrod, weren't you supposed to scare them a little?"

Makarov approached Warrod, reminding him loudly.

"Huh?"

"I forgot..."

Warrod scratched his head, which looked like a bunch of broccoli, as he spoke, with a look of sudden realization, explaining in a feeble voice, "Little Makarov, you know, once you reach a certain age, it's easy to become forgetful. I'm in that state now. Even though I might look no different from before, I don't have many clear moments."

"Anyway, don't worry..."

Warrod patted Makarov's shoulder before turning to address the rambunctious guild members: "Just take my earlier scolding as a joke! Honestly, I am still pretty annoyed."

"Master Warrod..."

"We could hear everything you and Makarov were saying!"

The guild members helplessly teased, exasperated by the elder's sudden shift.

Meanwhile...

Ian and Irene had already left the guild. Walking hand in hand down the streets of Magnolia, they looked like a couple in love.

"Ian, look at this! Everything here is so interesting..."

"Ian, do you want some candied apples?"

"Have you ever tried candy apples before, Ian?"

"They have bagels here too, do you want to try some?"

Irene seemed like she was experiencing a market for the first time, filled with curiosity about everything. She picked up a rattle-like toy, eyeing the snacks sold at various stalls with excitement, wanting to taste them all.

Although dragons' tastes differ from humans...

Under Ian's influence, Irene had found a creative way to temporarily grant herself human taste buds, allowing her to savor the flavors she had long lost.

"Buy them all!"

Ian, seemingly an unfeeling money-spending machine, paid for everything Irene wanted without hesitation.

Ian didn't care about the cost at all...

Why, you ask?!

Because he's rich!

Don't you get it? He invested early in Fiore's largest construction company, becoming Fairy Tail's wealthiest member!

After all, it's true that every day is demolition day for Fairy Tail!

In the Kingdom of Fiore, even the king might face unemployment, but the construction team never would! Any civil engineer would dream of being in Fairy Tail's world—it's simply a paradise for builders.

And so, Ian and Irene shopped and walked until they stopped in front of a clothing store, where Irene suddenly paused, her eyes filled with curiosity.

"This is..."

Irene was gazing at a beautiful white wedding dress.

In that moment, her eyes sparkled.

"Ah, dear customer~"

"You have a great eye. This wedding dress is one-of-a-kind in the entire Kingdom of Fiore! It symbolizes the unique love you two share..."

The salesperson had noticed Irene's fascination with the wedding dress and immediately approached with flattery, promoting the gown enthusiastically.

After sizing up both Ian and Irene, the salesperson continued:

"You look like a couple about to be married~"

"Such a perfect match, as if made by the heavens!"

"We are the largest, most famous bridal shop in Fiore. We have the dress that will make your dream come true! And of course, congratulations on your wedding~"

One must admit, top salespeople really have a way with words.

"Ian..."

Hearing this, Irene turned to look at Ian.

"Buy it!"

The maiden... no, the woman's blush could conquer the world!

Without a second thought, Ian bought the wedding dress.

"Oh my, thank you for your patronage~"

The salesperson smiled broadly, as bright as a summer flower, and took Ian's magic bank card before heading inside to complete the transaction.

"So, when is your wedding planned?"

After completing the transaction, the salesperson wrapped the wedding dress and asked Ian and Irene about their wedding plans.

"We're already married. We even have a child."

Irene smiled as she took the wrapped dress, her face serene.

"Already have a child?"

"You really can't tell!"

"You both look so young..."

The salesperson looked at them, clearly astonished.

Honestly, from appearances alone, they both looked barely over twenty at most.

"Haha, you really know how to talk."

Irene shook her head, amused.

"May I ask, when did you two get married?"

The salesperson, almost like an elder relative talking to the younger generation, asked out of curiosity.

"Oh dear, who remembers such things?"

Irene said, glancing at Ian.

"Ahem..."

"If I'm not mistaken, it was February 14th of X376~"

Ian didn't dare delay, quickly stating their wedding date.

"Haha, good thing you remember."

Irene smiled even brighter.

"Irene, please put the knife down."

Ian, meanwhile, wiped away the cold sweat beading on his forehead.

"X376, February 14th?"

"Haha..."

"That's quite a while ago!"

"Wait, wasn't that over four hundred years ago?"

"Are you joking?!"

The salesperson froze in place upon hearing this...

If he wasn't mistaken, today should be January 1st of X779, right?

So, their wedding was over 403 years ago?!

"No joke!"

"We indeed got married over four hundred years ago."

"It was a makeshift ceremony on a battlefield..."

"Irene didn't even get the chance to wear a wedding dress..."

"Honestly, it was too rushed and very regretful!"

Ian's eyes turned wistful, recalling past memories.

"Buzz!"

Meanwhile, Irene snapped her fingers...

And the wedding dress wrapped up by the salesperson was suddenly on her body.

"Ian, how do I look in this?"

Wearing the pure white wedding dress, Irene held a sword in her hand as she asked Ian.

"Is carrying a sword while wearing a wedding dress a thing?"

The salesperson silently complained to himself.

"Of course, you look beautiful~"

"But it's not the dress that's beautiful; it's you in the dress who's the most beautiful in the world! The dress is beautiful because of you."

Ian looked at Irene with deep affection, praising her.

At that moment, Ian's survival instincts were almost overflowing from the continent of Ishgar.

"Oh dear, we're old lovers now, how embarrassing~"

Irene blushed, stowing away her sword before giving Ian a playful smack on the shoulder.

"Boom!"

Perhaps because of her strength, her actions caused the entire store to shake.

"Please..."

"Someone come take this crazy couple away!"

The salesperson thought to himself, feeling utterly helpless.

"Goodbye~"

After Irene struck a few poses in front of the mirror and used some photo magic to record them, she and Ian finally left the ill-fated bridal store, hand in hand.

"We hope to see you again."

After they left, the salesperson bowed, clearly relieved to have them gone.

Ian and Irene continued to play until the evening...

As the sky darkened...

Wearing a yukata, Irene walked beside Ian through the festival.

"Whoosh~ Whoosh~ Whoosh~"

Soon enough, fireworks began soaring into the sky, blooming over Magnolia. The beautiful display caught everyone's eyes, filling the town with a sense of peace.

Of course, this was not because the continent of Ishgar was at peace...

But simply because Fairy Tail, the Kingdom of Fiore's top guild, was here. Thanks to Fairy Tail, the people of Magnolia and even the surrounding towns could live their lives in peace.

As for the Magic Council...

To be honest, although they made every effort to protect the people of the continent, their power was limited. They couldn't even stand up to an S-class opponent, let alone an enemy on the level of the Ten Wizard Saints.

When facing dark guilds like Tartaros or Grimoire Heart, they didn't even need Precht or Hades to act—just a single member of those guilds could turn the entire Council into dust!

The Council's only real deterrent lay in their possession of the Etherion and Face—ancient superweapons. Without these, they had nothing to make the true powerhouses of the continent fear them...

Otherwise, they wouldn't have allowed Deliora to rampage across Ishgar, destroying towns and displacing thousands of people for over four centuries.

That's also why the Council often turned a blind eye to Fairy Tail's rough methods—they needed Fairy Tail to deal with threats they couldn't handle.

"Look, Ian!"

"The fireworks are beautiful~"

Irene pulled Ian's hand, leading them to a quiet spot where they could watch the show in peace.

"No firework, however beautiful, can compare to even a thousandth of you in my heart."

Ian held Irene's hand tightly, speaking words that, while cliche, carried genuine affection.

In this world, those words weren't cliche at all.

"Oh my, stop it~"

Irene's face flushed red. Even though they were long-time partners, she still blushed like a young girl.

"The moon is beautiful tonight."

Ian looked up, noticing the round moon in the sky, smiling softly.

However, before he could finish...

He suddenly realized something was off about the moon tonight.

For some reason, it was especially round and unusually large!

"Wait..."

Ian squinted, and saw a massive nine-tailed fox descending, seemingly dragging the moon down toward the world of Earth Land...

"Oh, crap!"

Ian's eyes widened in shock, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.

"The moon is definitely not beautiful tonight," he thought.

"Selene!"

Ian recognized it without a doubt—the terrifying presence affecting the moon could only be the Moon Dragon, Selene.

"Ian!!"

Selene roared from above...

Her goal had always been clear—Ian belonged to her, Selene.

Damn that Irene, that home-wrecking thief—she had to die!

"Heh..."

Hearing this, Irene merely chuckled coldly...

She had nothing but disdain for Selene's arrogance.

Even without considering her own strength, which matched Selene's, Irene would still stand tall, speaking in a righteous, indignant tone: "Selene, you homewrecker!"

"Irene, you sneaky little thief, you bitch!"

"Didn't we agree on fair competition?!"

"Filthy humans, always so deceitful!"

Selene seethed, silently cursing Irene.

"Ian, don't worry~"

"Selene is nothing to worry about..."

"She doesn't have the power to beat me."

"I'll go deal with her, and I'll be back in a moment!"

"Wait for me~"

After soothing Ian, Irene's expression turned sharp, and she transformed into a crimson meteor, shooting into the sky.

"Boom!!"

In an instant, the sky above Magnolia erupted in magical energy.

Just as Irene said, Selene couldn't go all out—she didn't dare provoke the indomitable Black Dragon, Acnologia, who roamed the continent. She could only cause some mischief above Magnolia under the protection of a magical barrier.

The same was true for Irene...

As a result, Irene and Selene fought each other in a controlled manner above the town of Magnolia.

After all, even one of their moves could easily turn the entire town to ash.

"Uh..."

Ian watched in silence. He knew he couldn't afford to provoke either of them—neither Irene nor Selene.

"Boom!!"

Meanwhile, the people of Magnolia looked up at the multicolored magic circles in the sky and the explosions that could have destroyed the entire town, and smiled.

"The fireworks are especially beautiful this year!"

Indeed, the residents of Magnolia were long accustomed to the sight of massive, earth-shaking magic. Those who weren't had moved away from Fairy Tail and Magnolia to live in one of the nearby towns.

A week later...

During that week, it was as though Irene had disappeared.

If not for the occasional deafening roars coming from the sky, Ian might have thought that Irene had returned to the western continent.

Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall...

Makarov, Warrod, and Mavis stood on a platform, apparently about to announce something.

"Everyone!"

"The meeting of the Ten Wizard Saints is imminent..."

"Warrod, Ur, and I will leave immediately for the gathering."

"During my absence, First Master Mavis will be in charge of Fairy Tail! You brats better behave and don't upset Master Mavis. If anything happens, wait until I'm back, understood?!"

Makarov spoke with a serious expression, addressing the members of the guild, each of them with a playful husky-like demeanor, warning them sternly.

Why did someone as powerful as Makarov, who had the potential to enter the 'inhuman' realm, never manage to cross that threshold?

Because the moment he took his eyes off training magic...

These Fairy Tail "huskies" would tear apart the guild he held dear!

Fortunately, Mavis and Warrod's arrival had helped Makarov share some of his burden, allowing him more personal time...

After being overtaken consecutively by Ian and Ur, Makarov had finally developed a renewed sense of ambition regarding his own strength...

Indeed, Makarov intended to reclaim his lost "heart of magic" and resume his magical journey once again.

And now, with Warrod's guidance as an experienced senior...

Makarov had a good chance of stepping into the 'inhuman' realm.

"Understood!"

The guild members all responded in unison.

"Sigh."

Makarov sighed upon hearing their response. If only they would truly listen...

"Oh, Ian and Gildarts, come with me."

After his sigh, Makarov continued with the business at hand.

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