Early in the morning.
Lucy walked into the guild and immediately noticed the unusually serious atmosphere.
Even Jehfrit, who had been smugly carrying his gourd around for days, was now spinning a card between his fingers with a blank expression.
Spinning cards with his index finger—Lucy remembered Mirajane mentioning that this was one of Jehfrit's habits when deep in thought.
Jehfrit had many little tells that revealed his mood:
For example—
When he was angry or frustrated, he would push his glasses up with his left ring finger, hiding his face behind his palm.
When he was happy, he'd tilt his head slightly while smiling. Lucy noticed Mirajane did this too—she wondered if they influenced each other.
When *really* happy, he'd spin his cane.
And during battle, when he felt confident, he'd grip his cane tightly and smile with unwavering confidence.
As for card-spinning—
Sometimes, he'd flick the card away, signaling he was thinking but in a good mood.
But like now—silent, expressionless, just endlessly flipping the card over—he was lost in heavy thoughts.
Something must've happened…
Lucy moved forward and saw a large diagram floating mid-air, filled with names connected by lines.
"Lucy, perfect timing," Mirajane said.
"What's going on?" Lucy asked curiously.
"I'll explain the mission," Mirajane said, pointing at the chart. "This is the power structure of the dark magic world."
"This one's my drawing!" Reedus added proudly.
"This task relates to it," Mirajane continued. "Lucy, you already know about Dark Guilds and Dark Mages, right?"
Lucy nodded. "Legitimate guilds are regulated by both the Magic Council and the Kingdom. They're registered, and all members are accounted for."
"But Dark Mages accept illegal jobs, operate outside the law, and aren't registered. They're essentially criminal mages. Even murder doesn't bother them. These people form Dark Guilds, which are extremely dangerous. Like the Skull Guild before—it followed John Ahanita's orders and committed crimes like kidnapping and unlawful imprisonment."
"Exactly," Mirajane confirmed. "In fact, not only do standards Guilds have alliances—but the Dark Guilds formed their own alliance called the Balam Alliance."
"The Balam Alliance is led by three of the strongest Dark Guilds—Tartaros, Oración Seis, and Grimoire Heart—and controls dozens of smaller Dark Guilds. These groups constantly plot evil schemes. Lucy, the Eisenwald and Skull Guild you fought before were among them."
"Eh?!" Lucy gasped.
"They were subordinates under the Oración Seis," Gray added.
"What do these X marks mean?" Lucy pointed. "Are they the ones we've already taken down?"
"Right," Mirajane nodded.
"These guys here—Corpse Spirit Soul—were recently destroyed by the Thunder God Tribe," Macao explained.
"When Juvia and Gajeel were still in Phantom Lord, they took out quite a few Dark Guilds too—all under the Oración Seis," Juvia said proudly to Gray.
"Very impressive," Gray replied.
Juvia beamed.
"But wait…" Lucy hesitated. "Doesn't that mean we've been attacking their guilds? Won't they hold a grudge?"
She remembered how even Phantom Lord, though despicable, still had some limits as a legal guild.
Dark Guilds had *no* such limits!
"No need to worry about revenge," Master Makarov said firmly. "Because we're going after them first!"
"Huh?!" Lucy blinked.
Makarov's expression grew serious. "I attended a council meeting a few days ago. The Oración Seis are preparing something terrible—we can't afford to wait for them to finish their plan. We're launching a preemptive strike!"
"We?!" Lucy exclaimed. "That sounds super dangerous!"
"It's not just us," Makarov clarified. "This enemy is extremely powerful. To minimize casualties, we're forming an Allied Forces—a coalition force."
"An Allied Forces? A joint army?" Lucy asked.
"Correct," Makarov explained. "Selected members from five strong guilds—Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, Cait Shelter, and Ilva—will form the Allied Punitive Forces to take down the Oración Seis."
Lucy suddenly had a bad feeling. Remembering how Mirajane had said "perfect timing," she feared the worst…
"Now I'll announce the team members," Makarov declared. "Erza."
"Understood," Erza nodded.
"Natsu."
"I'm fired up!" Natsu grinned.
"Gray."
"Troublesome," Gray muttered.
"Lucy."
"Seriously me?!" Lucy yelped in shock.
"Because I recommended you! Let's go together, Lucy!" Natsu slapped her back with a toothy grin.
"You idiot!!" Lucy groaned dramatically.
"Jehfrit."
"I don't want to." Jehfrit flicked the card away, watching golden threads weave through the black blur before returning to his hand.
"Stop being childish, Jehfrit!" Makarov scolded.
"Fine, fine." Jehfrit sighed reluctantly.
"At least Jehfrit is coming," Lucy thought, feeling a bit safer—though she couldn't help noticing how unenthusiastic he seemed.
"Why does Jehfrit seem so down?" Lucy asked.
"Because his nemesis is also joining," Gray smirked.
"Nemesis?" Lucy blinked. Someone capable of giving Jehfrit trouble? She couldn't imagine anyone like that existing!
"Yeah," Gray said, picking up a newspaper. "Recognize her?"
Lucy looked at the headline story—a stunning young woman labeled *The Elf Goddess*, credited with destroying three Dark Guilds overnight.
"Of course," Lucy nodded. "She's one of the most famous mages—almost as well-known as Erza. She looks like an elf, has amazing power…"
"She's also beaten Jehfrit more than once," Gray added.
"No way!" Lucy's eyes widened. "Jehfrit got beaten?! That's impossible!"
Even during the Phantom Lord war, he hadn't taken a single injury fighting Master Jose.
He fought Laxus without even getting hit.
And in Ahnita Town, he held off two S-class mages while supporting others—barely breaking a sweat.
Lucy couldn't even picture him losing.
"That's why she's his nemesis," Gray said. "He avoids her like the plague."
"And she's that beautiful too…" Lucy stared at the photo, shocked.
"Jehfrit," Gray teased, "still think you're invincible?"
Jehfrit's voice turned icy. "Spreading rumors fun, huh?"
Gray shrugged. "You'll see soon enough."
"I'm not scared of her!" Jehfrit snapped. "Violent -woman. Rude, uncivilized, and definitely not an elf—demons have pointy ears too. She's probably a goblin! I should have called The Goblin Slayer!"
Lucy, who had been unsure before, now fully believed it—just from seeing Jehfrit's rare flustered state.
"All right," Makarov interrupted. "Prepare yourselves—we leave shortly."
"Gray-sama, Juvia won't be able to go with you this time,"Juvia sniffled. "Please stay safe!"
"I will," Gray nodded. "Be careful on your missions too."
"Gray-sama is so gentle!" Just a small show of concern made Juvia beam.
"Jehfrit, Erza," Makarov said seriously. "Bring everyone back safely!"
"Yes sir!" Both nodded solemnly.
At Jehfrit's home.
"Mr. Jehfrit, really don't need me to come with you?" Ikuto asked.
"No," Jehfrit shook his head.
"But the Oración Seis are very dangerous. You're not great at close-range combat," Ikuto warned. "I told you—I'll be your sword, defeating all enemies for you."
Jehfrit tilted his head, then smiled confidently. "They won't threaten me. Don't worry."
"If you say so… please be careful. Emily and I will wait for you."
"Emily believes in Jehfrit !" Emily raised her tiny fist. "Jehfrit will catch all the bad guys!"
"Good girl," Jehfrit ruffled her hair.
After a long journey.
Jehfrit remained unusually quiet the whole way.
Lucy grew even more curious—what kind of person could make someone as confident as Jehfrit act so withdrawn?
Someone with a reputation as high as Mirajane's in the magical world…
Could she possibly be worse than Natsu's motion sickness?
The meeting point was a villa full of girlish charm and fairy-tale decor—covered in heart motifs.
"This is Bob's villa—the Blue Pegasus master," Erza explained.
"No wonder it's decorated like this," Gray muttered, clearly uncomfortable with the style.
Natsu sat on the carpet, trying to recover from the motion sickness.
Jehfrit remained silent.
*Slam!*
Suddenly, a spotlight lit up the staircase.
Lucy looked up—three men stood there.
"Host club?" Lucy blinked. Their outfits screamed host bar.
"Welcome, Fairy Tail members!" the trio struck poses.
They announced in unison: "We are chosen members of Blue Pegasus—Tri Men's!"
A blonde guy stepped forward with a flashy pose. "I am the Hundred Night... Hibiki!"
A younger boy spoke in a cute tone: "I am the Holy Night -Eve."
Finally, a tanned man lowered his voice dramatically. "I am the Silent Night - Ren."
"So cool!" Lucy gasped. "And that guy 'Hundred Night' is always ranked high on Weekly Sorcerer's *Most Desired Boyfriend* list!"
Weekly Sorcerer often published strange rankings:
Most Desired Boyfriends, Most Desired Girlfriends, Most Beautiful Female Mages, etc.
By the way—
Jehfrit consistently ranked top ten on the boyfriend list.
Mirajane, the Elf Goddess, and Erza were also near the top.
Evergreen and Juvia were on the lists too—Lucy had yet to appear, likely due to being new and not having done much yet.
"Ugh," Gray grunted.
Lucy turned—seeing Natsu struggling not to throw up and Gray walking around shirtless.
Comparing the two sides…
Somehow…
Sighing, Lucy thought, 'we might be outclassed.'
"My queen, Erza-san~" Hibiki knelt before Erza, praising her. "You look absolutely stunning today!"
Lucy's eyes widened. This charming move had major impact on girls like her—especially compared to Natsu's usual roughness.
"Please sit here," Eve guided Erza to a red sofa and knelt beside her, offering a towel. "You must be tired from traveling."
"No thanks," Erza declined coldly.
Hibiki pushed a tray of water and snacks toward her. "Drink?"
"No."
"Cake?"
"No."
All rejected with icy politeness.
"Truly the Queen," Hibiki whispered, blushing as if enchanted by Erza's mature charm.
"What are they doing?" Lucy wondered. Are they flirting with Erza?
"The fair lady deserves only the finest treatment," Ren said, appearing behind Lucy with a deep voice. "You're very cute, by the way."
He reached to pull her close—
*Slap!*
A hand caught his wrist.
Ren turned, meeting a pair of dangerous eyes.
"Natsu," Lucy quickly ducked behind him.
Natsu glared silently.
"Oh, you're Natsu Dragneel of Fairy Tail?" Ren chuckled. "Sorry, I don't swing that way."
*Crack-crack-crack!*
Natsu squeezed harder—Ren's bones audibly creaked.
"Gah—" Ren pulled free, glaring. "What was that for?!"
Natsu didn't answer—but his stance clearly read *let's fight*.
"Enough," a slimy voice interrupted.
Lucy shivered involuntarily at the sound.
"Ah… Ichiya ," Erza muttered, clearly unsettled.
From the upper floor came a short man in a white suit, radiating oily charm. "My sweethearts! I was born for you alone—Ichiya, Sparkling Star!"
"Ugh…" Natsu clutched his stomach again, motion sickness resurfacing.
"Ichiya!" the man jumped down. "Lucky me—so many lovely ladies today!"
He greeted Erza and Lucy warmly, then glanced at the rest.
"Hey, where's that fake gentleman?"
"Wait…" Lucy finally noticed. "Where's Jehfrit?"