Chapter 549 - 549: Don't Be So Proud of That! That's Property Damage!

"Subjugation quests... S-Class anomaly hunts... I suppose that works. It perfectly solves our logistics issue regarding travel funds," Noah nodded, understanding the Magic Council's logic perfectly.

Fairy Tail's current military strength was completely unparalleled. Noah's presence alone was enough to make the Magic Council tread incredibly carefully. Add in an army of globally renowned, high-tier mages, and Fairy Tail was essentially a roaming superpower.

These foreign subjugation quests had likely been sitting in the Council's backlog for months because the local guilds simply didn't have the firepower to handle them. Since the Fairy was flying right over these danger zones anyway, commissioning Fairy Tail to clear them out was a win-win. The Council avoided long-term ecological disasters, and Fairy Tail got paid to have fun.

"Exactly," Laxus nodded. "My plan is to divide everyone into mixed strike teams when we reach a target zone. We'll pair the S-Class mages with the younger or weaker members. The veterans can carry the subjugation, and the younger kids can gain valuable, high-stakes combat experience in foreign environments. Then, we just split the bounty based on contribution."

"That's a solid plan. Since you and Grandpa already handled the Council, I don't have to worry about it. What about the rest of the preparations?" Noah asked.

Once Noah finalized the flight path and hauled the bulk provisions to the guild, he had dumped the rest of the logistical nightmare onto Laxus and the other S-Class mages. They were completely used to managing the guild's administrative chaos while Noah was busy in his lab, so the transition was seamless.

"Everything is set. Everyone has loaded their personal luggage into their assigned private quarters on the ship. The bulk provisions you bought have been cataloged and securely stowed in the lower cargo bays. We are 100% ready for launch," Laxus confirmed.

"Perfect," Noah smiled. He double-checked the digital checklist on his Archive screen. Seeing every box checked off, he nodded in satisfaction.

He turned around and faced the bustling, packed guildhall.

"ALRIGHT! EVERYONE BOARD THE SHIP! WE ARE LAUNCHING!" Noah's voice boomed across the room.

"WOOHOO! VACATION TIME!" Natsu roared, instantly sprinting out the front doors.

"Foreign fish! Here I come!" Happy cheered, flying rapidly after him.

"Idiots... calm down," Gray sighed, shaking his head. But a split second later, he broke into a massive grin and practically sprinted out the door after them.

The rest of the guild surged forward, a massive, chaotic, incredibly excited wave of mages pouring out of the guildhall and heading straight for the Fairy parked on the riverbank.

Eventually, only Noah, Makarov, Mavis, and the S-Class mages remained in the empty hall.

They systematically swept the entire building, ensuring every single non-essential magical appliance was powered down, all critical guild documents were locked in the subterranean vault, and all windows were securely bolted.

Once they confirmed the building was perfectly secure, they stepped outside. Noah was the last to exit.

He closed the heavy double doors of the guildhall. Raising his right hand, his index and middle fingers glowing with golden Ethernano, he rapidly traced a complex sequence of sealing runes in the air.

A massive, intricate golden magical array flared into existence over the front doors before fading into the wood.

Seconds later, a colossal, shimmering golden dome materialized, completely enveloping the guildhall, the surrounding courtyard, and the underground library. The dome hummed with absolute power for a few moments before turning completely invisible.

This localized Absolute Defense Ward was tethered to their guild marks. Only recognized Fairy Tail members could pass through it. If a thief, a spy, or an enemy guild attempted to breach the perimeter, they would be violently repelled. Furthermore, any unauthorized contact with the barrier would instantly transmit a high-priority alert directly to the Fairy's command deck.

With the guild secured, Noah and the Masters walked toward the riverbank.

By this point, hundreds of Magnolia's citizens had gathered near the river, watching the massive white-and-orange warship prepare for takeoff.

Hearing that Fairy Tail was embarking on an exclusive, continent-spanning luxury cruise, the citizens were naturally overflowing with intense, bitter envy. An international vacation on a supersonic flying fortress was a dream no amount of money could buy.

Noah ignored the envious stares; it was to be expected. He and Makarov waved goodbye to the few shopkeepers and local vendors they were friendly with before walking up the heavy boarding ramp.

The moment they stepped aboard, Noah tapped a rune on his wrist. The massive ramp retracted and sealed seamlessly into the hull.

Noah walked into the forward lounge. The entire guild was clustered around the panoramic windows, buzzing with excitement.

Noah stepped up to the captain's chair, tapping the holographic console to initiate the launch sequence. A massive golden propulsion array flared beneath the hull.

Without a single vibration, the Fairy smoothly lifted off the grass.

Noah engaged the localized atmospheric shielding, preventing the sheer downforce of the thrusters from blowing the observing citizens into the river.

"NEXT STOP: THE EASTERN CONTINENT! WE'RE OFF!" Noah announced over the PA system.

"YEAAAAAHHH!" The guild cheered deafeningly.

The Fairy slowly ascended over Magnolia. Once they reached a comfortable cruising altitude, Noah banked the ship, pointing the bow eastward, and engaged the autopilot.

While the guild members either stayed glued to the windows to watch the scenery or headed down to explore their private rooms, Noah had more pressing matters to attend to.

He turned to Makarov and Mavis. "Let's head down to the engine room."

The three Masters left the lounge and descended into the ship's heavily secured engineering bay, standing before the massive, pulsing Lacrima engine.

"Alright, First Master. Stand in the center of the room. I'm going to establish a direct magical tether between your core and the engine's primary output array," Noah instructed.

"Understood," Mavis nodded, stepping into the designated containment circle on the floor.

Noah walked over to the engineering console. His fingers flew across the holographic keyboards. A complex array of glowing runic circles materialized on the floor beneath Mavis, gradually expanding and rising to encircle her small body. She gently floated a few inches into the air.

As Noah meticulously calibrated the arrays, a continuous, incredibly dense stream of pure, refined Ethernano began flowing from the colossal Lacrima crystal directly into Mavis's magical circuits.

After several minutes of intense calibration, the ambient runes slowly faded. Mavis drifted back down to the floor, the containment circle vanishing completely.

"The tether is established. How do you feel?" Noah asked, stepping away from the console.

"It feels incredible," Mavis gasped softly, looking at her hands. "I can feel a massive, oceanic reserve of magic pressing against my internal circuits. The moment I expend my own magic, the tether instantly floods my circuits to refill them. It's an absolutely seamless, instantaneous replenishment cycle."

To test it, Mavis rapidly cast several high-tier Light Magic illusions around the room. The moment the spells manifested, the slight dip in her magical reserves was instantly erased.

"Perfect. The telemetry matches my theoretical calculations exactly," Noah smiled in satisfaction. He ran a quick, localized diagnostic scan on Mavis's physical body to ensure the immense magical pressure wasn't causing cellular degradation. Seeing that she was perfectly healthy, he nodded.

"Alright. You are cleared to cast the modified bloodline-tracking spell," Noah stated.

"Okay. Here goes," Mavis closed her eyes and brought her hands together.

HUMMM.

An invisible, incredibly profound ripple of ancient magic erupted from Mavis's core. The tracking pulse washed over the entire airship before instantly expanding outward, sweeping across the horizon at impossible speeds.

"How is the drain?" Noah asked.

"I literally don't feel it," Mavis opened her eyes, beaming brightly. "I can feel the spell actively drawing a massive amount of magic from my core, but the engine is replacing it so quickly that my internal reserves never actually drop."

Maintaining a continent-spanning radar spell was a colossal, exhausting endeavor. But thanks to the Fairy's engine acting as an infinite external battery, the physical and magical toll on Mavis was completely negated.

"Excellent. Let's take a walk around the ship. I want to make sure the tether remains stable regardless of your physical location relative to the engine room," Noah suggested.

Mavis nodded, and the three Masters left the engineering bay. They slowly toured the entire ship, moving through the residential wings, the dining hall, and the training bays. Noah constantly monitored the tether's stability via his Archive connection.

By the time they returned to the forward lounge, Noah was completely satisfied.

"The tether is perfectly stable. The engine is handling the load flawlessly. The only limiting factor now is your mental stamina," Noah concluded, looking at Mavis.

While the magical drain was negated, continuously processing the sensory feedback of a continent-wide radar placed a heavy burden on the human brain.

"I can easily maintain focus for several hours at a time," Mavis estimated, analyzing her current cognitive load.

"A few hours is fine. I will be continuously monitoring your bio-rhythms. If I detect any significant mental fatigue or stress, I will forcefully sever the tether and force you to rest. You cannot push your mind to the breaking point, immortality curse or not," Noah warned her sternly. He knew her stubborn personality; she would absolutely work herself into a coma if he didn't intervene.

"I understand," Mavis nodded dutifully.

"Alright, we're good to go. I have some personal research to run in the lab. If you need me, just send a telepathic ping," Noah said.

"I'm going to go to the lounge and look out the window! I want to see the world!" Mavis cheered, instantly darting toward the front of the ship.

"I'll join you. It's been a long time since I've seen Fiore from this altitude," Makarov smiled, following her.

Satisfied that the primary objective was running smoothly, Noah headed to his private laboratory to review the anomaly subjugation requests Laxus had procured from the Council.

Meanwhile, up in the forward lounge, a massive crowd of guild members was pressed against the panoramic windows.

Instead of flying in the stratosphere, Noah had programmed the autopilot to cruise at a relatively low altitude of roughly one kilometer above the ground. He also adjusted the external aerodynamic shields to completely deflect the wind, giving everyone a crystal-clear, stunning view of the Fiore Kingdom passing by below.

"Woah! I've been there!"

"I did a subjugation quest in that forest! I killed a massive boar!"

"I helped harvest cabbages in that village down there! The houses look so tiny!"

"I fought a massive rock-golem on that mountain! See that huge crater on the peak?! I made that!"

The lounge was filled with excited, chaotic chatter as the members pointed out familiar landmarks.

However, when the last voice proudly boasted about blowing a hole in a mountain, the entire lounge suddenly went dead silent. Everyone slowly turned to look at the speaker.

Natsu was standing by the glass, pointing enthusiastically at a distinctly unnatural, massive crater blown into the side of a distant mountain peak, grinning proudly at Lucy.

Everyone instantly deadpanned and turned back to the windows, completely ignoring him. Of course it was Natsu bragging about property damage.

"Don't be so proud of that! That's massive property damage!" Lucy scolded him, punching him lightly in the shoulder.

"Hahaha! Don't worry about it! I just accidentally used a bit too much magic on my Roar back then. It's totally fine!" Natsu laughed, waving off her concern dismissively.

"It was absolutely not fine!" Happy interjected from the side, a dark, traumatized shadow falling over his face.

"You completely obliterated the client's property during that fight! You had to forfeit the entire quest reward to pay for the damages, and it still wasn't enough! You blew through your entire savings! We were completely broke!" Happy recounted miserably.

"We didn't even have enough money to buy train tickets home, so we had to walk across half the country! We were starving! We tried to fish, but we caught nothing! We tried to hunt, but we couldn't find any animals! We didn't eat for an entire day!

"Eventually, Natsu found some weird glowing mushrooms under a tree and boiled them. We ate them, immediately passed out, and almost died of acute poisoning! If Noah hadn't magically sensed our dying signatures and teleported across the country to purge the poison, we would have been dead! We had to beg Noah to lend us money just so we could eat for the rest of the week!"

"STOP! DON'T REMIND ME! I WORKED SO HARD TO FORGET THAT!" Natsu shrieked, clutching his head in absolute horror, violently shivering as the repressed trauma of extreme starvation and near-death mushroom poisoning flooded back into his mind.

~~~

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