Ishgar Magic Council, abbreviated ERA.
All ten councillors, the Chairman included, were gathered to discuss the recent events in the magical world.
At present the magical world was at peace—at least in the eyes of those in high places. After all, they weren't the ones suffering.
Right now, only two items sat on the conference table.
The first was the handling of the 'Phantom Lord' disturbance.
The second was the penalty and compensation for the damage recently caused by Fairy Tail's mages—routine business for the councillors.
'Daring to openly attack and blockade an entire city—this is no ordinary dark guild. These scum of the magical world must be executed!'
Councillor Hogg, the only hawk among them, opened with a call for execution, leaving the rest speechless.
Chairman Crawford cleared his throat. 'Hogg, the Magic Council operates by the book; Phantom Lord's crimes don't warrant the death penalty.'
With the Chairman speaking, the other doves quickly chimed in to dissuade.
Hogg fell silent; six of the ten councillors were Crawford's people, so anything he said was pointless.
The atmosphere cooled at once.
Seeing this, the youngest councillor in the Council's history, seated near the back, spoke up—Siegrain.
'Come to think of it, although Fairy Tail wrecked Oshibana Station, they also wiped out Phantom Lord in one swoop—quite the good deed.'
As soon as Siegrain finished, another young councillor, Ultear, added, 'According to Captain Lahar's report, a mage named Hope actually locked down Lullaby all by himself with an ingenious magical device—simply incredible.'
Several councillors nodded; many of them disliked the trouble-making Fairy Tail, yet couldn't ignore the guild's contributions to the magical world.
'Then let's commend them publicly.'
'Add a bonus while we're at it. Didn't that "Salamander" Natsù just level half of Hargeon with his cat and a girl?'
'That's half a port city. Makarov will probably empty his pension to pay for it—should the Council help share the cost?'
'Worry for nothing; the girl is the heiress of the Heartfilia Conglomerate—her family's rolling in money.'
'Out of the loop, are you? Several rival conglomerates ganged up on Heartfilia; they're nearly bankrupt—no way they can bail out Fairy Tail.'
'You're all behind. Someone already filled the hole for Fairy Tail.'
'Who? Got money to burn?'
'Warrod Sequen.'
'Ah, that big shot. Then forget it.'
…The councillors chattered on, the topic drifting further and further.
Meanwhile, the 'stars' of their discussion were likewise chatting away inside Fairy Tail, the whole guild buzzing with noise and laughter.
Hope watched curiously as Mirajane took a magical stamp from behind the bar; she explained it was the special seal used to brand guild marks on mages, and the color could be chosen freely.
Once the mark was applied, it would stay with the mage for life unless they were expelled or the guild fell.
'Hope, what color do you like?' Mirajane smiled, opening the stamp.
Though her job was barmaid, she was in fact the grand steward the master trusted implicitly—so much so that she kept the guild's seal.
Hope rolled up his sleeve, exposing his left forearm. 'Red. Put it here.'
Without another word, Mirajane pressed the stamp, and a slim, fairy-like sigil appeared on Hope's arm.
From the moment that pattern touched his skin, Hope officially became part of Fairy Tail.
For someone who had been doing odd jobs only days earlier, it felt like a temp worker finally getting full-time status.
Looking at the mark, Mirajane's lips curved upward. She pulled out a simple megaphone from under the bar and shouted into the hall:
'Everyone! Let's welcome Hope as an official Fairy Tail mage!'
'Congrats, congrats!'
'Now I can fight him—I'm fired up!'
'Time for a party!'
…
Amid the cheers Hope couldn't help smiling.
He already knew every newcomer got a welcome ceremony—usually a banquet where everyone celebrated together.
The celebration had gone off-script in Lucy's case.
She'd joined just as the daily brawl broke out, and that same day Natsù dragged her into the 'strongest team'; her guild mark had only been added today.
Talk about rotten luck.
Cana walked over with a mug, slapped Hope heartily on the back. 'Congrats, Hope. We're family now—call me "senior".'
The slap staggered him; Hope winced and swatted away Cana's heavy hand. 'If you call me "Big Bro Hope" first, I'll gladly call you senior.'
Cana pouted—she wasn't falling for that.
If she spoke first and Hope reneged, she'd lose out.
Seeing she wouldn't bite, Hope sighed inwardly; only Natsù and Happy fell for such childish bait.
'Um, Mirajane.' He turned, serious. 'Can I take a job now?'
The abrupt question left Mirajane stunned.
Beside her, Cana spat out her drink; luckily Hope blocked it in time with a tray.
Both stared at him as if he'd grown a second head—he'd barely become a guild mage and already wanted to grind? Mirajane spoke slowly: 'You can, but I suggest starting with simple requests. And you're not S-class, so no second-floor jobs.'
Hope nodded.
He'd known the rules since day one.
Mainly, yesterday he'd asked Droy to buy some magical plant seeds to prepare for his 'Plant' magic.
Magical seeds weren't cheap—60,000 J gone in a flash, leaving his wallet painfully light.
When he'd requisitioned resources from Doranbolt in Clover Town the day before, how could he have forgotten money? A fatal oversight…