"..."
The friendly smile on Gray's face instantly froze over. His outstretched hand hung suspended in the air. The situation was awkward beyond belief. If Gray hadn't vividly remembered how Night had knocked Natsu out cold with a single blow, he absolutely would have blasted an ice spell right into his face—that was just how insulting it felt.
But, considering the sheer strength this guy possessed, Gray had no choice but to swallow his pride. He withdrew his hand, turned away, and glared at the wall. His usually handsome face was now darker than a thundercloud. Sitting across from them, Erza was also taken aback for a moment. Then, a faint dusting of pink crept across her cheeks—she had evidently just remembered how eagerly Night had shaken her hand moments prior.
"Pfft! Hahahahaha! That's hilarious!!"
At that moment, an unrestrained burst of laughter rang out. Cana, who was hugging a barrel of wine larger than her own head, choked on her drink and spat it out right onto the table. She doubled over, practically wheezing from laughing so hard. Her laughter acted as a spark that instantly ignited the rest of the guild.
"Haha! Little Cana's right! That's just priceless! I'm liking this new guy more and more!"
"Hey, Gray! Night-kun isn't into little boys like you! He prefers cuties like Erza! Hahaha!"
"That's the spirit! Go on, Night, win Erza's heart! I believe in you!!!"
Bawdy jokes and teasing remarks rained down from the guild's veterans. They all absolutely loved watching scenes like this unfold, and Gildarts—that incorrigible womanizer—was no exception! In fact, that last comment about winning Erza's heart had come directly from him. To which Night could only reply in his mind: You bet I will!
"Quiet down!!" Makarov barked, and silence once again claimed the guildhall.
The Master walked over to Natsu's sprawled form, hoisted him up by the scruff of his neck, and casually tossed him into the crowd. Gildarts effortlessly caught the boy with one hand. Only then did Makarov continue: "And now, regarding the results of the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial!"
As expected, those words instantly commanded everyone's attention. The entire room held its breath.
"In this trial, Laxus... was defeated!!" Makarov announced solemnly.
"What?!" A murmur of sheer disbelief rippled through the guild. Laxus had demonstrated his power time and time again, and it was on a completely different level from anyone else's. Many had been absolutely certain that he would undoubtedly become an S-Class Mage this time around.
"Haha, well, old man Gildarts is just too strong after all!" chuckled one of the veterans who was well acquainted with the trial's rules.
Hearing this, the others nodded in understanding and shifted their gazes toward Gildarts. But of course! To become an S-Class Mage, Laxus would have had to defeat Gildarts! When they thought about it that way, his failure was perfectly logical.
"No," Gildarts shook his head, noticing the eyes fixed upon him. "I was merely a spectator during this trial. Laxus's final opponent was someone else!"
"Someone else?!" The crowd was plunged back into a state of utter confusion.
"Wait, can people outside our guild participate in the S-Class trial?!"
"Yeah! And who could possibly beat Laxus anyway? It'd have to be one of the oldest and strongest mages out there!"
"Gildarts, who did Laxus fight?!"
"That's correct, only members of our guild are permitted to participate in the trial!" Makarov interjected. "And the person Laxus fought is indeed a member of Fairy Tail!"
"From our guild?!" Everyone was stunned. Was there really some hidden monster lurking within Fairy Tail that they had never even suspected?
"Master, don't keep us in suspense! Who is it?! We're gonna burst from curiosity here!"
"Yeah, yeah! We're all family here, what's there to hide?!"
Makarov merely gave a wry smile. "You've already seen him. In fact, he came in with us today!"
Already seen him?! Came in with them?! It was as if a collective short circuit occurred in everyone's brains. Seen him? Came in with the Master?
"He's sitting right over there!" Gildarts nodded toward the table.
Only a complete idiot wouldn't realize who he was talking about. It was glaringly obvious that this person was...
"NIGHT?!!!!!"
"There's no way!!" the guild gasped in unison. Everyone stared in absolute shock at the black-haired boy, who looked to be around the same age as Gray and Natsu. It was incredibly difficult for them to believe that this "child" had managed to defeat Laxus, whose power, in their eyes, had already reached the S-Class level!
The most shaken of all was Gray. His world had completely collapsed. His mind was entirely blank. A being that surpassed even Erza in sheer terror had appeared, and by all accounts, this being seemed to dislike him!! Oh god!! The end of the world truly had arrived!!
As for Erza, she was no less astounded. In her mind, Laxus was someone she could not yet defeat. And if Night had managed to beat him, it meant his strength far, far exceeded her own! But the shock quickly faded, and a burning thrill ignited in Erza's eyes. Now, she wanted to cross swords with him more than ever!
Night, however, finding himself the center of everyone's attention, wasn't embarrassed in the slightest. On the contrary, he was clearly reveling in the effect he had produced. He let out a theatrical sigh and declared, "You mean that blondie, Laxus? Well, yeah, he's not bad. I even had to try a little bit to pin him to the ground!"
Bam!!
At those words, half the guild nearly fainted on the spot. We get that you're tough, but do you really have to show off that much?! If those present hadn't retained at least a shred of common sense, they absolutely would have mobbed Night all at once!