On the way back to Magnolia, Alex makes sure that Gajeel, Totomaru, and Juvia won't cause troubles after joining Fairy Tail. Well, they don't even dare to think about it because they don't want to anger Alex.
He also makes sure they won't tell anyone how he dealt with Jose and co before. It's not like he cares about how others will look at him. But this is an important matter involving 2 big Guilds and a Wizard Saint, so it needs to be handled carefully.
Alex will report it to Makarov himself and consult on what to do next. It might involve the Magic Council if it becomes too big of a problem and it will be very troublesome, so the members don't really need to know because it will be a bigger ruckus.
While moving to Magnolia, Alex actually talks a lot about magic with them. They were worried at first and answered him out of fear, thinking that he was just interrogating them. But their attitudes change quickly because he discusses magic genuinely with them and even gives them advice.
They are very surprised that Alex gives genuine advice instead of just playing around. His advice is also eye-opening for them because it's different from what they usually get. Well, they rarely get advice actually and usually work on their magic themselves.
At most, Jose will give them magic books and they need to learn those by themselves without any proper guidance. They also never talk seriously about magic with their Guild Mates. Their current achievements are mostly because of their own hard work, that's why they don't have a strong attachment to their Guild.
Most Guilds are also different from Fairy Tail where the members are close and feel like a big family. Most Guilds are just gatherings of people who are looking for jobs as Guilds are technically just places to find job requests, so most Guilds' members are not very close with each other.
Phantom Lord is similar to this. Most of them purely see each other as work colleagues. They don't have strong attachments to each other. They also often fight, but unlike Fairy Tail's silly friendly brawls, they are fighting seriously because of hate and enmity.
That's why Gajeel, Totomaru, and Juvia are surprised when Alex genuinely gives them advice to get stronger. After all, they were trying to kill him not too long ago.
"Hmm? Why do I give you genuine advice? Obviously to make you stronger. You will join my Guild, so you will be my Guild Mates. It's normal for me to want my Guild Mates to be stronger because it will strengthen the Guild too. Besides, the stronger you become, the better it will be for me because then I will have better opponents in my training."
Alex's wide grin in his last sentence makes them believe that it's his true motive. It also makes them understand that he will make them fight him again. He might say it's training, but they know it won't be light training.
Well, they can't do anything about it now because they can't run away from this. So the best thing they can do is get stronger to prevent themselves from being beaten up too badly. Fairy Tail Mages are still alive, so they must've survived the training fights with Alex.
Anyway, it doesn't take too long for them to reach Magnolia. Alex greets the town's people who also greet him happily as he walks toward the Guild. Most people here know Alex and he surprisingly knows most of their names. He can remember names and faces better than magic theories.
It impresses Gajeel, Totomaru, and Juvia because they never receive such warm and happy greetings from the town folks where Phantom Lord's base is located. Instead, the people of Oak Town where their HQ is located are mostly afraid of them.
After walking for a while, they finally arrive in front of Fairy Tail's building. It's not that big compared to Phantom Lord's main HQ and Fairy Tail also doesn't have branches like them. But this not-so-big Guild is actually one of the strongest in Ishgar.
Alex opens the front door and enters the Guild. Everyone is already standing near the entrance because they've heard that Alex has returned. They all are waiting to know about the 10 Years Quest that he took.
"Oh? What's this? You guys are waiting for me? Did you miss me that much?" Alex smirks while looking at his Guild Mates.
"OI, ALEX, LET'S HAVE A MATCH!" Natsu suddenly runs toward Alex while shouting. He's always so competitive and it has been more than 2 months since Alex left, so Natsu wants to show his growth.
Natsu charges with 2 fists covered in flame. Then he sends a strong punch at Alex, but Alex just grins before grabbing Natsu's collar and throwing him to the back. Natsu's head crashes onto Gajeel's head and both of them are sent rolling on the street.
"That was a surprise attack, not a match. You should wait for the other party's agreement for a match." Alex says it while turning around, but Natsu seems to lose consciousness because his head hits Gajeel's. Gajeel is also unconscious now.
"... Well, he won't listen anyway." Alex ignores them and walks to the bar to greet Makarov.
"How was the job?" Makarov asks seriously.
"It really lived up to its level. That was a really difficult job and it was a very frustrating job. I did it though, so we're all good." Alex grins as he hands over the job completion letter from the King.
Makarov smiles when he sees the letter. "I see. Then, it only means one thing. Let's have a party!"
"Sigh, can't you let me rest first?" Alex really just wants to lay on his bed for at least a night before doing anything else now, but it seems his Guild Mates are too happy that their Guild has cleared a 10 Years Quest.
He doesn't have the heart to stop them, so Alex just joins the party. Alex also introduces the trio ex-Phantom Mages to Makarov. Makarov seems to recognize them although he doesn't really know them, but he still accepts them because Alex is the one bringing them here.
The party now turns into a welcoming party for Gajeel, Totomaru, and Juvia too. Everyone starts talking with them too and invites them to have fun. They still feel awkward, especially Gajeel and Juvia. But they surprisingly get used very quickly and joined the merry party as if they have been here for a long time.
Alex then tells Makarov that he wants to have a private talk later and Makarov agrees. It will always be a serious talk when Alex asks for a private conversation, after all, so Makarov won't refuse.
Then suddenly, the door opens strongly, making everyone look there. A blonde girl stands there while panting a little after running for a while. She looks around and suddenly smiles brightly when she sees Alex.
"Big brother Alex!" Lucy suddenly runs toward Alex and wants to hug him happily.
But she can't because Alex stops her by grabbing her face. "Who are you?"
"E-eh? You don't remember me?" Lucy asks awkwardly before backing off a bit.
Alex looks at her for a while and inspects her seriously because he genuinely doesn't recognize her. Then his expression changes because he finally recognizes her.
"Ah! Aren't you Lucy? Hahaha, you've grown up, huh? The crybaby has grown into a young lady now, hahaha!" Alex laughs while patting Lucy's head as if she is still a little girl.
The way he still treats her like a little girl makes her pout, but she's also happy that she can finally see him again. After all, he's the reason she came all the way here and joined this Guild. So she's very happy that they finally reunited again.
"Hey, big bro Alex, have you met big sis Ultear and Aunty Ur?" Lucy asks while they talk and drink.
"Yeah, sometimes. Their Guild is far from here, so we can't meet too often. The last time I met them was last year when I accompanied Master in the Guild Masters annual meeting. There will be another meeting soon, so you can meet them if you go to the town where it's held. Ur always brings Ultear to the meeting, so you'll meet both of them."
Lucy looks happy when knowing that she can meet Ur and Ultear again. After all, just like Alex, both Ur and Ultear were also important people for her although they didn't live with her as long as Alex.
"Ah, right. Now that you're finally here, why don't you show me how much your magic has grown? Let's test it in the training field tomorrow."
Alex grins while looking at Lucy. It's a normal grin, but it looks like the devil's grin which makes Lucy flinches and shivers. She has just remembered that Alex is a demon when it comes to magic training. It doesn't seem like she can run away too, so she can only accept her fate.
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Ch. 157. Alex vs Acnologia (Part 2)