Chapter 6: Gildarts on the Brink of Bankruptcy

"This one will do," Alex said as he took a quest off the mission board.

The task was to exterminate a monster named Gidoken. According to the mission description, Gidoken would come to the nearby city of Volke to hunt at night, and its prey was humans. Over the past week, more than 100 people had fallen victim to it.

The reward for the mission was 400,000J.

Eyewitnesses described Gidoken as a flying moth.

Reading this, Alex was a bit puzzled. Just how big were moths in this magical world? A moth that could eat people—Alex had never seen such a thing before.

Of course, there were many things in the magical world that Alex had never seen, so he could only chalk it up to new experiences.

After deciding on the mission, Alex took the quest sheet to Makarov for approval. In this world, all wizard tasks needed to be recorded in the guild to facilitate later payment of the commission fee.

Additionally, as the provider of the commissions, the guild would also take a percentage of the fee to maintain its operations.

It's worth noting that in other guilds, the split between wizards and the guild was typically 70/30. However, in Fairy Tail, the split was 90/10, meaning the guild only took a basic management fee.

Despite this, most of the wizards in Fairy Tail weren't wealthy, as a large portion of their earnings often went to compensating for damage caused during missions.

"Are you sure you want to take this mission, Alex? For your first mission, it's better to start with something simpler. First, to help you get used to your strength, and second, because it's your first mission, it's just to familiarize you with the process," Makarov said, looking at the mission sheet Alex handed over, his expression serious.

"You chose an extermination mission right off the bat; it's a bit difficult," Makarov added.

"You said it yourself, Master: getting familiar with my strength. I believe intense battles will help me understand my abilities better," Alex replied.

"Alright, if Gildarts is willing to be your guide, I'll approve this mission," Makarov said after taking a sip of his drink and pondering for a moment.

"Thank you, Master," Alex said with a smile, taking the quest sheet from Makarov and heading to Gildarts' house. Alex had learned the location of Gildarts' house the previous day, so he wasn't worried about finding it.

...

"Honestly, it's hard to believe that the strongest wizard in Fairy Tail lives in such a simple house," Alex said, looking at the modest wooden cabin in front of him.

"Knock, knock, knock." A series of knocks woke up the sleeping Gildarts inside. Gildarts looked at the barely lit sky outside and sighed.

"Alright, alright, stop knocking. Wait a moment, ha~~," Gildarts yawned from inside.

Hearing the yawning, Alex stopped knocking. After a while, a drowsy Gildarts opened the door and peeked out at Alex.

"Alex, what are you doing here so early? I was finally having a good sleep," Gildarts complained slightly.

"Uncle, I'm going on my first mission. The Master wants you to come with me to guide me," Alex said, slightly twisting Makarov's words, but knowing the outcome would be the same.

"Oh, the Master really knows how to keep me busy. I just got back from a mission!" Gildarts grumbled but still followed Alex. After all, the Master's orders couldn't be ignored.

Soon, they arrived at the guild.

"Master, Gildarts is coming with me. Can I take this mission now?" Alex said, showing the quest sheet to Makarov.

Seeing that Gildarts had come along, Makarov had no choice but to nod in approval.

"Alright then, no backing out now," Alex said, putting the quest sheet into his bag and heading towards the door.

At that moment, Gray suddenly blocked Alex's path and said, "Alex, can I come with you? I just want to see what's going on; I won't interfere with your work."

Not knowing what to do, Alex looked at Makarov.

Makarov sighed and said, "Since Gildarts is with you, it's fine for Gray to go along as well."

Turning to Gildarts, he added, "I trust you to keep these two safe and bring them back."

With the Master's approval, Gildarts reluctantly agreed, "Alright, I'll keep an eye on them."

Excited, Gray pumped his fist and said, "Don't worry, Alex. With my help, we'll complete the mission perfectly."

Alex shook his head and said, "It feels like it won't make much difference whether you help or not."

Gray was instantly stunned.

Alex patted Gray on the shoulder and said, "Come on, if you keep spacing out, we won't wait for you." With that, Alex walked out the door first.

..

Volke City, renowned for its culinary delights, stretched endlessly with countless food stalls lining the streets. The aroma from a freshly steamed basket of buns made Gray's mouth water incessantly.

"Uncle, how about we grab something to eat before we go?" Alex's eyes sparkled as he gazed at the various food stalls around him.

Gildarts, thinking about his wallet, immediately turned serious. "Remember, the first thing a wizard must do when accepting a mission is to meet the client and learn the specific details of the task."

"Then you should devise your plan. During the mission, you must not be distracted by other things. A wizard should prioritize their mission, understood?"

"Oh, I see!" The two novice wizards nodded repeatedly.

Alex thought, "As expected of Fairy Tail's strongest wizard. Look at that sense of responsibility."

"Wow, aren't those women cold, dressed like that?" Alex remarked, noticing the scantily clad greeters at a distant restaurant.

Recalling Gildarts' earlier advice, Alex berated himself, "Oh, right. Gildarts just said not to get distracted. We should meet the client first."

He then called out to Gray, "Gray, let's go. We need to visit the client's place."

"Okay." Gray reluctantly tore his gaze away from the steaming buns and followed Alex.

But then they noticed Gildarts hadn't moved. Alex, puzzled, approached him and saw that Gildarts was fixated on the greeters, his eyes practically forming heart shapes.

"Uncle, we need to go," Alex said, tugging at Gildarts' sleeve.

"Hm? Oh, right. Ahem, let me teach you the second lesson for wizards: always fill your stomach before a mission. You can't complete a mission on an empty stomach," Gildarts said, his gaze broken and quickly improvising a lesson for the two novices.

Alex's face turned black with lines of disbelief. Knowing Gildarts' true intention, he sighed internally, "Such a lecherous uncle."

"So, we can buy some buns to eat first?" Gray's eyes immediately locked back onto the buns.

But Gildarts shook his head sternly. "Buns won't fill you up. Wizards have big appetites, so we need to properly replenish our strength."

He pointed to the restaurant with the greeters and said, "I think that restaurant looks good. Let's eat there."

"But I think the buns are fine too," Gray protested.

Suddenly, Alex felt a chilling presence. Gildarts' expression turned dark as he said, "Kid, did you have a problem with my choice?"

Gray stiffened and quickly said, "No problem at all. I think you're right, Uncle. You're right."

Gildarts, who had just been intimidating, instantly switched to a smiling demeanor, adjusted his clothes, combed his hair with one hand, and confidently led the way.

Alex couldn't help but internally applaud. Such a dramatic change of expression—if he were in his past life, Gildarts would surely win an acting award.

...

After a while, Alex and Gray emerged from the restaurant, holding their stomachs and smiling, while Gildarts followed, looking dejected with his head down.

Feeling the last 5,000J in his wallet, Gildarts suppressed the urge to cry. He had hoped to chat up the girls, but they ignored him completely. Meanwhile, the two brats ate 70,000J worth of food—70,000J!

Even though he was an S-class wizard and earned a lot, his destructive nature meant much of his earnings went to covering damages. Otherwise, he wouldn't still be living in a rundown house...

Alex tried to hold back his laughter, while Gray looked puzzled.

"Alex, what's wrong? Your expression looks strange."

"Cough, cough, you're still young. You'll understand someday," Alex said, waving off the clueless kid.

Soon, they arrived at the mayor's office in the city center. The client for their mission was the mayor of Volke City.

"Hello, Mayor Volke. We're wizards from Fairy Tail, here for the mission you posted," Alex greeted the mayor upon entering.

Mayor Volke looked puzzled and said, "You brought children? Gidoken is a very powerful monster. Can you really handle it? A wizard who took this task a few days ago went missing."

Gray immediately responded, "Don't underestimate me just because I'm a kid. I'm strong too." He raised his small fists to emphasize his point.

"Mayor Volke, don't worry. Even though we are young, the Master has approved us to take on missions. You don't need to worry about that," Alex said calmly, pulling Gray back.