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[FT] Ch 2: Hargeon City
🕑 Added 2025-10-14 02:06:24 +0000 UTC— — — — — —
Not long after Kazuma left, the Fairy Tail guild hall was already buzzing again.
"Man, that kid's insane! Not even a full year in the guild and he's already done a hundred missions!"
"Yeah, and his strength's no joke either. He might not officially be S-Class yet…"
"But he's pretty much there. Once the next exam rolls around, he's guaranteed a spot."
The guild members chatted and drank, all praising Kazuma between gulps of ale.
"If only I'd worked a little harder when I was younger," one sighed dramatically. "Maybe I could've been S-Class too."
"Oh please. I remember what you were like when you were younger. You couldn't keep up with him even if you tried."
"What was that? You trying to start something?"
"Maybe I am!"
In true Fairy Tail fashion, a full-blown brawl erupted within seconds. Bottles flew, tables flipped, and the guild descended into its usual chaos once again.
---
Meanwhile, on a train bound for Hargeon City, Kazuma sat by the window, studying the new ability he'd just unlocked.
[Hidden Reserve Energy: Stores an amount of magic equal to your maximum capacity, retrievable at any time.]
"So… it stores a full bar of magic I can use whenever I want?"
A grin spread across his face. "Wait, that's basically a second mana bar!"
His mood soared. His base magic was already on par with an S-Class wizard's. Add the tenfold buff from his system—and now this new reserve—his total magic supply was easily twenty times that of a normal S-Class mage.
"My Arsenal of the treasures eats up a ton of magic, sure," he muttered to himself, "but I've got more than enough to burn!"
He smirked. "Fairy Tail's number one? That's me. Anyone disagrees, I'll just blow them into the ground."
After letting the pride swell for a moment, he forced himself to calm down and pulled out the mission sheet.
"Let's see… human trafficking ring, missing woman, bounty 200,000 Jewels."
He stared at it for a long second.
"…What kind of trash mission is this? No wonder nobody wanted it. The old man just dumped it on me."
Two hundred thousand J was laughable. Monster hunts paid at least a few million, and this one wasn't just a straight fight—it involved investigation, tracking, and maybe even rescue work.
A job like this should've started at five million J, minimum. Two hundred thousand barely covered travel expenses.
Still, Kazuma wasn't in it for the money. The real reward came after—the 10% magic capacity boost from completing another mission.
"Fine. A job's a job. Can't ruin my reputation by half-assing it."
He leaned back and began studying the details carefully.
...
By the time the train pulled into Hargeon, the sun was already dipping below the horizon. Kazuma stepped out of the station and walked along the seaside street.
Hargeon was a port city—busy, loud, and full of merchants. Trade thrived here, but so did crime. When it's easy to run, it's easy to get away with bad business, and this city saw plenty of it.
Kazuma unfolded a map and was about to start asking around when something caught his eye.
Up in the sky, a blue cat was flying.
"…Wait, that looks familiar. Isn't that Happy?"
"What's he doing out over the ocean? Midnight fishing? No, that can't be right—Happy's more of a housecat."
He squinted. "No... This little guy can't even catch a mouse, let alone a fish."
Curious, Kazuma moved closer and waved.
"Hey, Happy! What're you doing up there?"
The cat's ears perked. "Huh? Oh—it's Kazuma!"
Happy was flying with a blonde girl clutched in his paws. Hearing Kazuma's voice, he broke into a wide grin and banked toward him.
"Who's Kazuma?" the blonde asked, confused.
"He's super strong! Way stronger than Natsu!" Happy said proudly.
They were halfway over when Happy's face suddenly fell. "Uh-oh… magic time's up."
"Happy!" the girl shrieked as both of them started to plummet.
They didn't hit the ground, though—a rope of light lashed out, wrapping around them and pulling them to safety.
Kazuma caught them effortlessly with one hand.
"Seriously, Happy," he said with a sigh. "You really need to work on your stamina. Dropping halfway through flight? That's just sad."
"Wow… you're amazing!"
The blonde—Lucy, as he now recognized—stared at him, wide-eyed. Her heart skipped for a moment as she realized how close they were.
Then it hit her that it wasn't love she was feeling—it was pure adrenaline.
"Thanks for the save," she said quickly, regaining her composure. "By the way, Natsu's still on that ship over there!"
"What kind of ship?" Kazuma asked, glancing toward the harbor.
"It's a slave ship! Human traffickers! I almost got caught, but Natsu and Happy saved me!"
Her voice trembled slightly as she spoke. "But my Celestial Keys got thrown into the ocean—I can't fight without them!"
"Human traffickers, huh?" Kazuma's eyes narrowed. "Guess I don't have to look far for my target."
He smirked, raising a hand. Behind him, space rippled like water—and one by one, glowing magical portals materialized in midair, gleaming cold and deadly under the sunset.
"Lucky me," he said, his grin sharpening. "You guys just saved me a lot of legwork."
"Uh… hey, what are you doing?"
Lucy stared at the weapons materializing behind Kazuma, one after another, until there were easily over a hundred of them. The sight alone made her feel an overwhelming sense of "oh crap"
"What am I doing?" Kazuma grinned. "Taking them out, of course."
"I just happened to pick up a mission about a human trafficking ring… and look at that, they came right to me. Half a day's work and mission complete. Lucky, huh?"
He gave a lazy wave, and in front of him a massive magic cannon appeared. Reaching into his Treasury of the King, he pulled out a sleek magic scope engraved with Eagle Eye magic—perfect for long-distance targeting and range calculation.
"Happy, aside from Natsu and those traffickers, is there anyone else on that ship? Hostages, maybe?"
He adjusted the cannon's position slightly, channeling magic into it. The energy hummed—locked and loaded.
"Wait, you can't just fire that thing!" Lucy shouted before Happy could even answer. "There are tons of innocent girls on that ship! You'll blow them all up!"
She paused, then added desperately, "And what about Natsu? He's your guildmate!"
Kazuma waved her off. "Natsu'll be fine. That idiot's too stubborn to die. But yeah, if there are hostages, full bombardment's off the table."
He smirked. "Still, this works out perfectly. Catch the traffickers red-handed, rescue the victims, get the evidence—all in one shot. Mission cleared."
He stood up and stretched. "Alright then, guess I'll just sink the ship. Happy, and uh—what's your name again?"
"Lucy," she said, still dumbfounded.
"Right, Lucy. You and Happy handle the rescues. I'll deal with everything else."
Kazuma flashed her a bright, confident grin.
"Wait, hold on—what do you mean deal with everything—no, don't—!"
"FIRE!"
Kazuma's grin widened as he unleashed the shot.
The cannon roared, a thunderous boom echoing across the harbor. Every shell struck with perfect precision, slamming into the ship's lower hull—crippling it instantly without touching the upper decks where the hostages were held.
"Ship's taking water," he said calmly, adjusting the scope. "They'll panic and start running soon. That's your cue to move."
He set the scope aside and layered himself with Heat vision, locking on to every heat signature that wasn't civilian.
"Roger that!" Happy saluted, shaking the seawater from his fur before flying off again.
"Hey—Happy, wait for me!" Lucy called, panicking. "I can't fly! What am I supposed to do, swim there?"
She looked down at herself helplessly. Without her Celestial Keys, she was basically useless. That's the worst thing about being a Celestial Wizard—no keys, no power.
"Why don't you just use magic to run across the water?" Kazuma asked.
"I… what? I can't do that!"
He blinked. "What do you mean you can't? What kind of wizard doesn't even know how to walk on water with magic?"
Lucy's shoulders slumped. "Sorry, I'm just that useless…"
Defeated, she crouched down and started drawing little circles in the dirt. Truth hurts, and right now it cut deep.
Then—
Bang!
A deafening gunshot cracked through the night, and a glowing magic round streaked across the harbor like a comet. In less than a second, a trafficker who'd just climbed out of the sinking ship dropped dead with a hole in his skull.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunfire rang out in rapid succession.
On the ship, chaos erupted once again. The traffickers who'd escaped were suddenly right back in a nightmare.
"Stay calm! Everyone stay calm!"
"Where the hell's the enemy?! How many of them are there?!"
"There're shining circles outside. Anyone who shows up gets gunned down by them."
"The enemy's—"
Bang.
The man didn't even finish his sentence before his head burst open, blood misting into the sea.
"Run! We're all gonna die!"
"Don't run, you idiots! Grab the goods!"
Bora—the gang's leader—was panicking now too. The "goods" he meant, of course, were the young women he'd kidnapped and drugged with his magic.
Bang!
Another one dropped. Each gunshot was like the tolling of a death bell—every sound claiming another life.
"Forget this! Money's useless if we're dead! Bora, I'm out!"
"I refuse to die as a background character."
One man dove into the water, thinking he could escape below the surface. A heartbeat later, a muffled pop echoed underwater—his head exploded just the same.
"Where?!" Bora shouted, scanning the darkness. "Where's the shooter?!"
He was sure he could dodge the guns outside—he could see their golden flashes—but where was the real shooter? And how had he killed the men beside him without a single glint of light?
He threw up layers of flame magic as a shield, eyes darting through the shadows. Then his pupils shrank in horror.
"The port… it's coming from the port! He's been sniping us from there this whole time? That's over a thousand meters away!"
He could hardly believe it. To hit every shot at that range with that kind of power—whoever that was, they weren't just strong. They were terrifying.
"That's a monster… I can't fight that! I have to hide, hide—"
His gaze darted to the group of terrified women nearby. "Yes, if I hide among the hostages, he won't dare shoot!"
Most of his men were already dead. Trembling, he ran toward the women, his flames flaring brighter for protection.
Bang!
And he never made it. His skull burst open mid-step, the flames flickering out uselessly.
For all his talk, it was over in seconds. Every last one of them had fallen before Kazuma's gunfire.
"Idiot," Kazuma muttered, watching the smoke dissipate. "Covering yourself in fire at night on the open sea? You might as well kill yourself."
"Even a cat wouldn't be that stupid," Happy said, shaking his head as he hovered nearby. "And he calls himself a mage…"
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