This Trade War had a very serious negative impact on Ishgar, especially the destruction caused by Magic Guilds, which was more severe than all other guilds combined.
Perhaps it was precisely because the Council realized this that they proposed the 'Ten Wizard Saints' plan.
"The letter says that if I accept this invitation, I should go to the Council's branch in Fiore Kingdom on the 10th of next month to participate in the 'Award Ceremony'."
The Council's branch in Fiore Kingdom is located in the southwest.
It takes about ten days to travel from Magnolia by carriage, and there are only five days left until the end of this month. This means Weston doesn't have much time to make a decision.
"So, are you going to accept this invitation?"
Mavis, Zera, Yuri, Precht, Warrod, and the other guild members all turned their gaze to Weston, the person in question.
They knew that Weston had always harbored the grand ambition of making Fairy Tail the world's number one Magic Guild, and was even more dedicated to changing the Magic World, integrating the magic system into all aspects of life.
This was a good opportunity.
If he could join the Ten Wizard Saints and become one of the representative figures of Ishgar's Magic World, his influence would greatly increase, and it would be much easier for him to achieve those things in the future.
"If you accept, your name won't just be famous in Fiore Kingdom, but will spread throughout all of Ishgar! Won't that bring you even closer to your dream?"
Mavis looked at the 'invitation letter' sent along in the envelope, her eyes sparkling with joy as if she had seen a fairy, encompassing the stars within them.
"I say, compared to power, shouldn't we first determine the responsibilities we need to bear?"
Zera, on the other hand, snatched the letter from Weston's hand and reread it carefully.
"Hmm... 'Ten Wizard Saints' is just an honorary title granted by the Council, and does not entail responsibilities, nor does it grant the right to forcibly demand anything from the Council or other Magic Guilds..."
"What? I thought at least we'd get perks like 'meal discounts'."
"Eh?! There isn't any?!"
Warrod and Yuri shouted in unison, like a comedic duo.
Precht, standing beside them, pressed his hand to his forehead, speechless: "I can't stand you two. Who would use such a title to freeload?!"
"Hahaha... just kidding, just kidding!"
"I'm not kidding though~"
Joke or not, whatever!
Precht turned his head and reconfirmed: "No power, no responsibility, just an empty title. It sounds rather meaningless."
"It's not entirely without benefits!"
Zera continued to read: "After becoming a 'Ten Wizard Saint', if you have any difficulties or ideas, you can directly make requests to the high-ranking officials of the Council. As long as it's not too outrageous, they will fulfill them."
"What are the limits of the requests?"
"It's not written here."
"The initiative is completely in their hands, so it still feels useless."
Most of Fairy Tail's members come from commoner backgrounds and rarely interact with important figures, thus lacking a certain breadth of vision and wisdom, making it difficult for them to make accurate judgments in such matters.
Fortunately, there were still clear-headed people among them.
Mavis's thoughts were different from Zera's and Precht's.
"I don't think it will be useless."
"The Council has to deal with all magic-related affairs within Ishgar, so their workload can be said to be very heavy."
"If a situation truly arises and information has to be submitted in written form, layer by layer, who knows how much time would be wasted."
"But with the identity of a 'Ten Wizard Saint', if something truly happens, you can directly speak with high-ranking councilors. This itself is a very rare opportunity."
Zera still couldn't understand: "But our Magic Guild itself handles problems, so what kind of trouble would require direct dialogue with the Council's high-ranking officials?"
"Well..."
Mavis lowered her head slightly, pondering what example she could give to help Zera understand more accurately.
Weston, beside her, already had the answer in his heart.
"For example, if some people in the guild use too much force during a job and accidentally destroy streets, shops, Towns, or even mountains..."
"At that time, if I, a 'Ten Wizard Saint', go to the Council to clean up your mess, it would definitely be much better than just compensating for the losses!"
He paused, then continued: "At least it can prevent Fairy Tail from being labeled a Dark Guild someday!"
Weston was perfectly clear about how much trouble the future Fairy Tail would cause the Council and how heavy a workload they would create.
Could Makarov truly get the Council's understanding every time just because Fairy Tail was Ishgar's number one at the time and he himself was good at writing written apologies?
Of course not!
It was more because Makarov himself was a 'Ten Wizard Saint', and he also had an old friend, Yajima, among the Council's high-ranking officials!
The saying 'it's easier to get things done when you have someone in power' and 'it's better to be in power yourself than to have someone in power' applies here.
"Hahahaha..."
"Anyway, 'being labeled a Dark Guild' is too ridiculous, isn't it?!"
"Exactly, exactly, that sort of thing is absolutely impossible!!"
Everyone burst into laughter.
But soon, they noticed Weston wasn't laughing; instead, he was looking at them with an incredibly resentful gaze.
"Uh... it... it shouldn't, right?"
"After all, we're very careful when we work, and we wouldn't cause widespread destruction!"
Weston: ￣へ￣
"How can you even have the nerve to say 'careful'?"
"Since the guild was founded, the word 'careful' has had absolutely nothing to do with Fairy Tail, okay?!"
"Remember that one time, Yuri destroyed half a street because he used too much force during a job!"
"Fortunately, it was a dilapidated old street, the houses were very old, and no one lived there, otherwise he would have been in big trouble!"
"Another time, after Zera defeated a magical beast in the wilderness, she didn't properly check the surrounding environment and forgot to put out the fire, which eventually burned down half a forest!"
"Not only did she lose her job salary, but she also had to pay out of her own pocket for compensation. The most infuriating thing was that she implicated me, forcing me to write an apology letter to explain to the Council!!"
"Precht too, Warrod too, everyone else too, there are so many situations like this!"
After finishing all these annoying stories in one breath, Weston took a long, deep breath.
"Now, do you still think it's ridiculous for Fairy Tail to be labeled a Dark Guild someday?!"