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The group spent half a day exploring Caracole City, buying some local specialties, and finally booked an entire floor in the city's most luxurious hotel.
Although Caracole City was just a port city, its function as a trade hub made it easy to gather information.
Inside Makarov's room, seven people sat scattered in groups of two or three, as Mira summarized the collected intelligence.
Alvarez is a Magic Empire.
People with Mage potential account for over ten percent of the total population—on average, one in ten people has the qualification to become a Mage.
The terrifying magic base and the system of mandatory Mage military service have made the Alvarez Empire's army arguably the strongest in the world, throughout history.
This special system has fostered a unique magical atmosphere.
Under these circumstances, even ordinary people who cannot use magic have a far greater understanding and love for magic than all the countries on the Ishgar continent.
A massive war machine that can be activated at any time.
This was Noah's most intuitive feeling about the Alvarez Empire and the Western Continent.
Compared to the young Noah, Makarov, who had lived for over eighty years, felt that the current Ishgar was, in comparison, all the more precious.
Although the magic base was far inferior to the Western Continent, in terms of using magic to improve people's livelihoods, the Ishgar continent's development far surpassed the 'Magic First' Alvarez.
While the Magic Council was rigid and inflexible, it did manage to keep various countries in check, preventing them from harboring thoughts of war.
However, in terms of military combat strength, Ishgar was truly outmatched by Alvarez.
"What a terrifying country."
The one who exclaimed this was none other than Laxus, who was usually arrogant and looked down on everyone.
With Laxus's strength, no matter how many Mages the Alvarez army had, he didn't care. The vast attack range of his Lightning Magic was incredibly efficient at clearing out fodder.
What made Laxus wary was that under such a system, people with high magical talent would receive prioritized training, and as long as they didn't die, they would inevitably become top-tier Mages.
For example, Brandish, whom they had learned about earlier, became one of the most powerful people in this country at only sixteen years old, and her title of "Nation Destroyer" directly showcased her combat power.
According to the information gathered, there are currently twelve such individuals like Brandish, also known as the "Spriggan 12," who are the strongest fighting force of the Alvarez Empire.
It is said that the two strongest among the "Spriggan 12," the "Wizard King" and the "Nation Destroyer," possess terrifying power capable of destroying the land.
If it were before, Laxus would have surely thought this was just Alvarez's boasting.
But ever since he witnessed Noah integrating the floating island land in seven days, he realized that there truly were powerful individuals in this world capable of destroying land.
If even someone as wild as Laxus was subdued, let alone the others.
Gray and Gajeel slumped on the sofa, questioning their lives.
Brandish, younger than them, was already a top combatant of an empire, while they were still being thrashed by the guild's S-Class Mages...
Some were worried, some were depressed, and some felt it didn't matter.
Noah didn't care how powerful the Alvarez Empire was. No matter how strong the "Wizard King" or "Nation Destroyer" were, they would be finished against Fairy Tail.
Although the power gap was vast, as long as he got a cheat from the World Will, everything would be fine.
What do you call the protagonist of the world? Leans back
Erza had already planned the next course of action. She intended for Noah to go alone to the capital of Alvarez to meet the "Wizard King," the Grand Strategist who had founded the nation over ninety years ago but had held sole power for eighty years.
According to the collected intelligence, this "Wizard King" was a very kind and reasonable old man, highly esteemed by the public, even far surpassing the emperor who hadn't appeared in forty years.
The invasion war launched against Ishgar over a year ago was actually a petty scheme by a few individuals within the empire, which was forcefully stopped by the Wizard King.
The reason given was that soldiers should not sacrifice themselves for meaningless wars.
Facing such a rational Grand Strategist, as long as sufficient reasons and bargaining chips were provided, he would surely be willing to help find Natsu, Lucy, and Happy.
Otherwise, finding Natsu and his team in the vast sea of people would only be possible by approaching Brandish.
Erza was unsure if Brandish knew the cause of her mother's death, and if she did, whether she would resent Lucy because of it. If Brandish truly hated Lucy, with her status, mobilizing personnel to deal with Natsu's team would be effortless.
Therefore, instead of seeking out the sixteen-year-old Brandish, whose attitude was unclear, it was better to directly meet the seasoned and steady Wizard King.
Although it was risky, Erza believed it was worth a try.
Moreover, by sending only Noah, even if there was danger, he could handle it. At worst, escaping wouldn't be a problem.
Erza: "I've said my piece. Who's for it, who's against it?"
Makarov: "I agree."
Laxus: "Hmph."
Mira: "I also agree."
Gajeel and Gray: "Me too."
Noah looked speechlessly at the group. The atmosphere was already set—what good would his opposition do now...? He then spread his hands helplessly. "It's no problem for me to deal with the Wizard King, but what will you all be doing?"
Erza gave a sly smile. "We're tourists, of course. We'll be enjoying the exotic customs of the Western Continent."
Oh no! Erza had actually learned to slack off too!
Noah regretted it deeply. Why did he keep instilling the idea of slacking off in Erza? Now, it had backfired on him.
Mira was still good, she wouldn't... Noah turned to find Mira writing something on two forms and asked curiously, "Mira, what are you writing? A plan?"
Mira casually waved the form in her hand. "I heard there's a Big Eater competition in Caracole City the day after tomorrow. Erza and I both plan to participate—this is the registration form."
"We do have a schedule, but those are all for the Master's sightseeing itinerary: watching beautiful women by the pool in the morning, at the beach in the afternoon, and in the hot springs at night, which is really too low-brow."
It was indeed low-brow, but none of that mattered.
Noah was thunderstruck. "Even the old man... So you've already planned your subsequent vacation, and you're just waiting for me to do all the work, huh?"
"Not everyone, though. Laxus and those two don't seem to have any vacation plans."
Noah looked at Laxus, Gray, and Gajeel with gratitude. They were indeed good brothers. Although they couldn't help him much, they also weren't thinking of their own pleasure.
It was truly moving...
Laxus lightly coughed, interrupting Noah's self-congratulation. "The three of us made a last-minute decision: hot springs tomorrow, and the Big Eater competition the day after tomorrow."
Gajeel, understanding Laxus's meaning, followed suit. "Mira, when you fill out the registration form, please fill one out for the three of us as well."
Gray also nodded. Although the decision had been made for him, seeing Noah's constipated expression, as if he had accidentally eaten a fly, was absolutely worth it.
Noah slumped on the sofa. "The clown is me."
Having such a team, was this truly the retribution for his excessive slacking off in the past?
That was truly bad luck.