A New Life in Fairy Tail

Chapter 355: I Will Always Look Your Way, Forever Guarding You

Makarov, as the master of the guild, had also climbed aboard one of the parade floats.He wore an outfit resembling a clown costume, complete with a red cat-eared hat and a massive bowtie across his chest. With a wide smile, he hopped from left to right, pulling hilarious faces and striking comical poses for the crowds lining both sides of the street.

"Fairy Tail's Master is out!"

"Wow, he looks incredibly flashy!"

"What a bizarre performance!"

"Stop with the slapstick comedy gestures already!"

"Ahahahahaha!"

"Ahahahahaha!"

"Those moves don't suit you at all, Master!"

"Stop shaking your butt, Gramps!"

The surrounding spectators burst into roars of laughter, completely entertained by Makarov's antics.

After putting on his goofy routine for a while, Makarov finally came to a halt.

He steadied his stance and took on a solemn expression. He clutched his left hand into a fist across his chest, balled his right hand into a fist, and then extended his thumb and index finger, raising his hand high above his head with his palm facing inward.

Seeing Makarov strike this pose, the rest of the guild members seamlessly followed suit, one after another.

Soon, every single member of the guild was maintaining the exact same gesture, holding it in unison for roughly three minutes.

Only then did Makarov lower his hand, signaling the others to lower theirs as well and resume their respective performances.

Some of the tourists visiting from elsewhere who had never witnessed Fairy Tail's Fantasia Parade found it a bit strange that all the members would suddenly freeze and perform the exact same hand sign.

However, the permanent residents of Magnolia were long used to it. For the past decade or so, during every Fantasia Parade, the members of Fairy Tail would always gather at a specific interval to strike this pose together, led by Master Makarov.

It happened every year, without fail.

While the townspeople didn't completely understand the deeper meaning behind the gesture, they simply treated it as one of the guild's signature traditions.

In reality, Noah had only learned the true significance of the pose after joining the guild. After witnessing his very first Fantasia Parade, he had sought out Laxus to ask about it.

Even if I cannot see your silhouette, and even if the distance between us is vast, I will always look your way, forever guarding you.

By striking this pose together during the Fantasia Parade, they were sending a message to any comrade who hadn't yet returned to the guild, letting them know that everyone would always be watching over them, forever keeping them safe.

Learning this had only made Noah love Fairy Tail even more. This was a guild as warm as a home—a massive family where, despite lacking any bonds of blood, everyone cherished one another as true kin.

According to Laxus, this gesture had actually originated as a message he sent to his grandfather, Makarov, during his very first stage performance.

Because the crowds at the Fantasia Parade were always so massive, Laxus had been terrified that he wouldn't be able to spot his grandfather watching from below. Thus, he had come up with this pose during his routine. It was his way of proving that even if he couldn't find him in the crowd, Laxus would always be looking his grandfather's way.

Deeply moved by the gesture, Makarov had expanded upon it, turning it into a designated symbol that the entire guild understood and cherished.

The Fantasia Parade carried on deep into the night, finally concluding only after every single float had returned to the guildhall.

The crowds packed tightly along the parade route gradually dispersed, and the town of Magnolia slowly began to sink back into a quiet calm.

But inside Fairy Tail, the real party was just getting started.

"Cheers!!!"

Everyone joyfully raised their mugs in unison, draining their drinks in a single, hearty gulp.

The adult members of the guild were downing alcohol, while the minors, like Wendy and the others, stuck to fruit juice and milk. Though Noah wasn't particularly fond of drinking, he poured himself a mug as well to join in on the toast.

With that opening salvo, the Fantasia Parade afterparty officially kicked off, and the atmosphere inside the guildhall instantly turned rowdy.

Some people hadn't had their fill of fun yet, so they didn't even bother removing their mascot suits, launching straight into bizarre dances right on the spot. Others, still clad in their performance outfits, held up their instruments and belted out songs at the top of their lungs.

The guild was in a state of absolute chaos, yet it was incredibly lively.

"The Fantasia Parade was so beautiful this year, Carla!"

Though Wendy hadn't touched a drop of alcohol, her cheeks were flushed bright red from sheer excitement.

"When is the Fantasia Parade ever not beautiful?" Carla asked, looking at Wendy with a sigh of resignation.

She then turned her head toward Noah, who was sitting at the adjacent table. "How did you even think of creating those planetary illusions?"

"Yeah, big brother Noah! Those models were absolutely gorgeous! It really felt like we were drifting inside a river of stars!" Meredy chimed in excitedly, while Yukino nodded along vigorously beside her.

"You mean this?"

Noah raised his right hand, and a miniature planet materialized right in his palm. Soon, a steady stream of new celestial spheres began popping up all around him, eventually enveloping Wendy and the rest of the girls as well.

A cascading trail of stardust followed, making them feel as if they were literally sitting in the middle of a galaxy.

"Yes, exactly like this!" Meredy reached out to scoop one up, only for her hand to pass right through it. Yet, a brilliant smile remained on her face as she kept trying over and over again.

"It was just a sudden whim I had after seeing Grand Chariot cast a few times. Glad to see it turned out well!" Noah said with a chuckle.

"The Super Magic, Grand Chariot? Ah, I see." Carla nodded in realization, as did Wendy and the others. They had all witnessed the spell being cast before, so with Noah's prompt, they easily connected the dots.

"Noah! You usually don't drink, but tonight you absolutely have to have a cup with us!"

Just then, Macao approached Noah's table with a mischievous grin, holding a mug high. Wakaba followed closely behind him, sporting an equally suspicious smile.

"A drink? Sure."

Since Noah had already had one toast, he saw no reason to refuse another. Given how happy and celebratory the occasion was, a little alcohol wouldn't hurt.

"Perfect! Noah says he's drinking!" Macao suddenly bellowed to the surrounding guild members.

"Whoa!"

"Nice!"

"Now we're talking!"

Hearing the proclamation, the nearby guild members instantly cheered, raising their mugs and crowding around the table.

"You guys..." Noah said, eyeing Macao with a hint of suspicion.

"Hey, you just said you'd drink, you can't back out now!" Wakaba chimed in quickly.

"I won't back out. I just don't particularly care for alcohol, it's not like I can't hold my liquor at all. Are you two plotting something?" Noah narrowed his eyes at the two suspicious middle-aged men standing before him.

"No way, absolutely not! You're overthinking things," Macao stammered, a thin bead of cold sweat forming on his forehead as he waved his hands dismissively.

"Yeah, exactly, what kind of plot could we possibly have? You're definitely imagining things," Wakaba added, waving his hand before raising his mug toward Noah. "Come on! Let me toast you to celebrate the massive success of today's parade! Those visual effects you pulled off were just too beautiful."

"As long as everyone enjoyed it."

Noah clinked his mug against Wakaba's. Wakaba immediately threw his head back, draining his drink in one smooth motion. Once finished, he turned his mug upside down to show it was completely empty.

Seeing this, Noah smiled, tilted his head back, and downed his own drink, flipping his mug in the same manner.

"You drank his, so you definitely can't skip out on mine! Here's to the grand success of the Fantasia Parade!" Macao offered, raising his mug.

"To the success of the parade!"

Noah didn't refuse. He clinked mugs with Macao, and the two of them downed their drinks, flipping their empty mugs simultaneously.

"Me next! To the success of the parade!"

"You've got to drink mine too! Cheers to a great festival!"

"To the parade!"

Seeing Noah match Macao and Wakaba drink for drink, the surrounding guild members stepped up one by one. Holding their mugs high, they lined up in front of Noah, using the success of the parade as an excuse for every single toast.

After Noah had downed seven or eight drinks in rapid succession, Ultear, who was sitting nearby, looked at him with concern. "Are you going to be okay drinking this much?"

Erza and Sorano cast worried glances his way as well. None of them had ever seen Noah drink this heavily before.

"You guys..."

Seeing the situation unfold, the gentle expression on Mirajane's face completely vanished. Her demeanor turned incredibly stern, looking as though she was about to snap. For a brief moment, a flash of her long-absent delinquent persona seemed to resurface.

The guild member currently offering a toast, along with everyone waiting in line behind him, shivered in fear. Back in the day, Mirajane had been every bit as terrifyingly violent as Erza.

Though she had completely reformed her image over the past two years to become the epitome of gentleness, nobody had forgotten what she used to be like. Back then, she would chase guild members down for a beating, pick fights with Erza on a daily basis, and cause far more property damage to the guildhall than Natsu and Gray combined.

"It's fine, Mira. I think I've figured out what they're trying to do," Noah said, waving a hand to calm her down.

Looking at the queue forming in front of him, he realized it consisted entirely of the guild's male members, and he quickly deduced their intentions.

"Noah..." Mirajane dropped her fierce expression, her eyes filling with worry instead.

"Trust me, I'm fine," Noah reassured her with a smile.

Mirajane nodded, though she still threw a highly unamused glare at the row of men waiting in line.

"Haha..."

The guild member at the front of the line gave an awkward chuckle before raising his mug. "To the success of the parade, cheers!"

"Cheers!" Noah raised his mug, clinked it against the man's, and drained it completely.

"My turn, cheers!" The next member didn't even bother hiding his grin, holding up his drink.

"Cheers!" Without a shred of hesitation, Noah downed another one.

"Nice!"

"Keep it going!"

"Another round!"

The rest of the guild crowded around, shouting and cheering to stoke the excitement.

Noah found himself getting into the spirit of things. Every time he finished a drink, he immediately refilled his mug. One cup followed another as more than half of the male population of the guild lined up to trade drinks with him.

Sitting right beside Noah, the glares coming from Ultear and the other girls grew increasingly hostile. The male members had to brave the immense, chilling pressure of those stares just to clink mugs with Noah.

Yet, Noah accepted all challengers, matching them drink for drink without missing a beat.

Knowing that Noah rarely touched alcohol, the girls sitting around him kept their eyes glued to him, their faces full of lingering worry as they watched him down an absurd amount of liquor.

~~~

Get early access to 50+ advanced chapters on Patreon!

https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn