A deathly silence enveloped everyone in the guild hall.
The lively atmosphere from Natsu and Erza's earlier duel had long vanished, replaced by an extreme sense of suppressed anger and bewilderment.
"Damn it...damn it!!!"
Natsu's roar still echoed, and the cracked floor beneath his fist was the best proof of his fury.
He suddenly stood up, flames rising from his body again, transforming into an angry fireball, about to rush out of the guild.
"Erza is our comrade! I absolutely...absolutely won't forgive those guys!"
However, as soon as he took a step, a massive figure blocked his path.
It was Makarov.
"Get out of the way! Old man!"
Natsu's eyes were bloodshot, completely losing his reason.
Makarov's face no longer held its usual kindness and amiability; instead, it was filled with solemnity. He looked at the impulsive Natsu and slowly extended a hand.
"For your own good, you should calm down first."
A strange light flashed, and the raging flames on Natsu's body instantly extinguished.
He visibly shrank, and with a "poof," he transformed into a palm-sized Fire Salamander with scales still on its body.
"...Huh?"
Natsu, now a Fire Salamander, cried out in confusion, seemingly still unsure of what had happened.
Makarov casually picked up a glass from the table and placed it over him.
"Thump thump thump!"
The Fire Salamander Natsu frantically bumped against the inside of the glass, but it was useless.
"Let me out, quickly let me out of here."
"Natsu, you're being noisy!"
In such a silent atmosphere, Natsu seemed particularly loud, and Mirajane couldn't help but say,
"If I let you out, you'll definitely cause trouble."
Natsu immediately retorted upon hearing this:
"I won't cause trouble! By the way, quickly change me back to my original form!"
Gray, for once neatly dressed, spoke in a slightly low voice:
"The opponent is the Council. We can't intervene this time either."
Natsu said, unwilling to show weakness:
"Let me out, I'll just say one thing. I don't care about the Council or anything; anyway, they're the ones who are wrong."
Gray said with some resentment:
"Even if it's white, if the Council says it's black, then it's black. How would they listen to anything we say?"
For a moment, the entire guild fell silent again, a deep sense of powerlessness enveloping everyone.
Lorne silently watched all of this.
He, of course, knew what was going on. Although it was just a formality of arrest, he still felt annoyed.
After all, it was clear that there were problems within the Council, and they were the ones who acted, preventing a greater crisis.
It was bad enough they didn't get recognition for their contributions, but they had to go through all this for a minor issue.
The only surprise was that this time, it seemed to be the real Natsu who had been turned into a Fire Salamander.
In the original plot, it seemed Macao turned into a lizard to impersonate Natsu, allowing Natsu to directly chase after Erza.
Lorne frowned slightly. This wouldn't do!
If Natsu didn't go make a fuss at the Council, he just felt like something was off!
Anyway, Natsu going to cause a scene would only mean being locked up for one more night!
Thinking this, Lorne acted immediately. He quietly sought out Macao.
After discussing with Macao, he had him transform into a Fire Salamander to impersonate Natsu.
Lorne then created some ice crystals, along with a little trick, to confuse their vision.
And at this moment, the people in the guild weren't paying much attention to other things.
Thus, Lorne successfully swapped Natsu out.
Natsu was secretly sent out, while Macao, transformed into Natsu, continued to shout in the glass.
No one noticed anything amiss during the entire process.
No, perhaps the old man noticed something but didn't intend to stop it.
And so, the relatively quiet atmosphere in the guild continued.
Time passed minute by minute until Lucy finally couldn't bear it anymore and stood up, saying:
"I really can't just ignore this. Let's go give our testimonies!"
The always silent Old Man Makarov spoke again:
"Wait a moment, no matter how urgent it is now, we won't make it before the verdict."
The lizard "Natsu" was still shouting vigorously.
"Do you really want to let him out?"
As Makarov asked this question, the Natsu in the glass instantly fell silent.
Natsu's reaction made the other guild members somewhat confused!
"What's wrong, Natsu? You suddenly lost your spirit!"
Then, with a wave of his hand, a ray of light struck Macao, returning him to his original form.
Seeing this, Lorne immediately wanted to quietly slip away before everyone could react.
However, Old Man Makarov's gaze turned towards Lorne.
Lorne could only give up his actions, laugh awkwardly, and then shift his gaze, pretending not to know anything... The next day, Fairy Tail returned to its usual boisterousness.
The Council's arrest warrant ultimately was just a formality. Erza was safe and sound, not even a hair out of place.
As for a certain pink-haired idiot who caused a ruckus at the Council and was locked up for a night, he was now energetically running around everywhere.
"Erza, let's continue our previous duel."
Natsu, now free, remembered their unfinished duel from before, and with flames igniting on his fists, he charged towards Erza.
Lorne leaned against the bar, holding a glass of juice, watching with interest.
His little plan last night had been very successful.
Natsu got to vent at the Council as he wished. Although it was useless, he felt satisfied.
The result?
There was no result.
Erza didn't even turn around, delivering a precise elbow strike to Natsu's abdomen with a backhand.
"Ugh—"
The flames on Natsu's fists extinguished with a "poof," and he collapsed, falling asleep.
One-hit knockout.
The guild hall was instantly filled with laughter.
At this moment, Master Makarov, sitting on the bar, gently let his eyelids droop.
"What's wrong, Master?"
Mirajane noticed the Master's unusual behavior and asked softly.
"Nothing, just very sleepy!"
Makarov opened his eyes and looked up again,
"It's that guy!"
As soon as he spoke, an invisible, intangible, yet irresistible wave of drowsiness, like a tsunami, swept through the entire guild.
Natsu, Erza, Mirajane... whether S-Class Mages or ordinary members, one by one they fell, sinking into slumber.
The entire guild hall, from boisterous to silent enough to hear a pin drop, took less than ten seconds.
A dead silence.
Except for... two people.
Master Makarov, although drowsy, could maintain consciousness.
And the other person was Lorne.
Lorne merely yawned, nothing more.
This wasn't because Lorne was particularly strong, but something he had gradually discovered after coming to the Fairy Tail World.
Any negative magic directly affecting his body or mind would be nullified by an incomprehensible rule, becoming completely ineffective.
Curses, petrification, mind control, and... sleep.
Lorne put down his juice glass and looked around.
People lay scattered everywhere, in various poses, sleeping soundly.
It was at this moment that a figure silently appeared at the guild entrance.
He wore a black hat covering the upper half of his face, a dark green mask covering the lower half, a tightly buttoned trench coat, and carried several oddly shaped magic staffs on his back.
Only a pair of eyes were visible on his entire body.
Fairy Tail's most mysterious S-Class Mage—Mystogan.
"Yo, Mystogan, long time no see."
Lorne was one of the very few in the guild who had seen his true face... oh no, who had seen him in this attire.
He naturally raised a hand to greet him.
Mystogan also knew that his magic had no effect on Lorne; he had tried increasing the output before to no avail.
He merely nodded at Lorne as a response, then walked directly towards the quest board.
Watching this scene, Lorne's eyes lit up.
A bold, exciting, and absolutely everyone-would-hunt-him-down idea furiously sprouted in his mind.
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