Chapter 373 - 373: Joining the Council
The rowdy, perpetually chaotic atmosphere of the Fairy Tail guild hall had vanished, replaced by an unprecedented, heavy silence. Every single pair of eyes in the expansive room was fixed squarely on Ren, unblinking and wide with absolute disbelief.
The Chairman of the Magic Council.
To the mages of Ishgar, that title wasn't just a fancy political position; it was the absolute pinnacle of authority in the Magical World. The Chairman was the supreme leader who managed all official Mage Guilds, dictated the continent's magical laws, and held the highest judicial and military power in Ishgar. For a guild like Fairy Tail, which was historically notorious for destroying public property and giving the Council endless, migraine-inducing headaches, the very concept was almost incomprehensible.
Something they wouldn't have even dared to dream of in their wildest, most absurd fantasies was now being formally offered right before their eyes.
"It's all much the same to me," Ren finally said, breaking the suffocating silence with a dismissive wave of his hand. He leaned back against the bar counter, looking entirely too relaxed for the magnitude of the conversation. "I have absolutely no interest in political power or anything like that. Wouldn't it be vastly better to spend that time eating, drinking, and actually enjoying life?"
Mest Gryder, standing stiffly in his crisp Council uniform, frowned deeply. He took a step forward, his expression grave. "Mr. Ren, this isn't a matter of personal interest or leisure. This is for the peace, stability, and future of the entire continent of Ishgar."
Hearing Mest's desperate correction, Ren paused. He originally wanted to scoff and ask, 'What do the peace and stability of the continent have to do with me?' but the callous words died in his throat before they could reach his lips.
If this conversation had taken place before his transmigration to this world, he truly might have said such a thing without a second thought. Back on Earth, he had been just an ordinary person, entirely powerless and naturally cynical. Back then, if an old person fell down in the street, he might not have even had the courage to help them up, fearful of getting scammed or dragged into someone else's complicated mess.
But things were vastly different now. After spending more than two years in Earth Land, surrounded by the fierce loyalty and warmth of Fairy Tail, he was no longer that apathetic spectator. He had fought, bled, and forged unbreakable bonds. He couldn't remain indifferent to life anymore, especially when he possessed the absolute strength to protect it.
Before, he could afford to turn a blind eye because he lacked the power to make a real difference. Now, with the vast, world-shaking abilities he wielded, he could easily save thousands, if not millions, of lives with a mere fraction of his effort.
With great power comes great responsibility. It was a cliché saying from his past life, but standing here in a world of magic and monsters, it rang heavier and truer than ever before.
"Ren, what are your actual thoughts on this?" Makarov asked, his grizzled voice steady, though his sharp eyes carried the heavy weight of a seasoned Guild Master who understood the burden of leadership.
Ren let out a soft sigh, running a hand through his hair as he weighed his options. "Hmm... to be entirely honest, old man, I'm really not interested in playing politician and becoming the Council Chairman. But the Magic World is undeniably chaotic right now. With Tartaros having wiped out the previous administration, the Council needs a strong deterrent to step up and salvage the situation."
He locked eyes with Mest, his gaze hardening. "I can agree to become the Council Chairman. However, you need to understand my terms. As for the daily management, the endless paperwork, and the minor guild disputes, I don't plan to get involved. I will only step in when it is truly necessary for me to act."
After thinking it over, Ren knew he had to accept. In the original timeline, it was the Ten Wizard Saints stepping up as the new Council Members that allowed the Magic Council to be successfully rebuilt. He was now officially recognized as the First Seat of the Ten Wizard Saints; it would be highly irresponsible, and somewhat inappropriate, to refuse the call entirely while his peers shouldered the burden.
"No problem at all! As long as you agree to take the title, that is more than enough!" Mest was completely overjoyed, his tense shoulders finally dropping in sheer relief.
As long as Ren's name was officially attached to the Council, it would serve as an absolute, terrifying deterrent to any petty criminals or rising Dark Guilds. The sheer prestige and catastrophic combat power of the First Seat of the Ten Wizard Saints were enough to make even the most hardened villains think twice before breaking the law.
"Since Ren has agreed to shoulder this burden, then I will agree as well," Makarov declared, crossing his arms over his chest with a firm nod. "I'm much like Ren in this regard. There's a lot of work to do here at our own guild, and I have a family of brats to look after, so I might not attend the meetings in ERA very often."
Makarov was acutely aware of the perilous situation Ishgar currently faced. Without the threat of the Etherion satellite cannon, and with all the previous Council Members having been brutally assassinated, the Magic Council's deterrent power had hit rock bottom.
It was exactly like a kingdom's law enforcers suddenly losing all their weapons and authority. Naturally, criminals would no longer be afraid, which would inevitably lead to a massive surge in illegal activities and underground syndicates emerging from the shadows. Makarov had already received scattered, troubling reports of various incidents recently.
The most serious rumor involved a highly organized Dark Guild that had violently seized control of a small, independent country. If such atrocities were left unchecked, it would embolden other Dark Guilds to follow suit, potentially spiraling the continent into an era of unprecedented lawlessness and bloodshed.
The absolute top priority right now was allowing the Magic Council to quickly re-establish its prestige and crush any rising threats before they could multiply.
"That's fantastic news!" Mest said happily, a genuine smile breaking across his weary face.
He had initially visited the former Council Member Yajima to ask for his help in persuading the Fairy Tail Master. But Mr. Yajima had simply chuckled, assuring Mest that he could go to Magnolia alone and that Makarov would undoubtedly agree. It seemed the wise old man had perfectly predicted Makarov's deep-seated sense of duty to the continent.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Fairy Tail members were still frozen in varying states of shock, trying to process the monumental shift in power dynamics.
"This... this... doesn't this mean Ren has actually become the Council Chairman?!" Macao stammered, his jaw practically hitting the floorboards.
"No way... our Ren?" Wakaba muttered, dropping his lit cigar onto his lap.
Nobody knew what to say at this moment. It felt incredibly surreal, like a brother you usually drank and brawled with at the local tavern had suddenly been crowned the supreme ruler of the world. This massive jump in status was truly too large to comprehend, making the normally boisterous mages feel a sudden, awkward constraint in Ren's presence.
It couldn't be helped. Fairy Tail mages were infamous for getting into trouble and casually destroying towns, so their greatest fear had always been the suffocating wrath of the Council. Now that the absolute boss of those very Council members was standing right beside them, how could they not feel unnerved?
Noticing their stiff postures and wide, fearful eyes, Ren couldn't help but find the situation hilarious. A loud chuckle escaped his lips. "What are you all looking so afraid for? Shouldn't you be throwing a massive party instead? Think about it—from now on, if you get into trouble or accidentally blow up a mountain, the Master and I will have your backs. You won't ever have to fear those stuffy Council Members again."
The entire guild hall froze for a split second as Ren's words fully registered in their adrenaline-junkie brains. Then, a collective spark of dangerous realization lit up their eyes.
"He's totally right!" Natsu yelled, slamming his flaming fists together with a manic, toothy grin. "The Master is a Council Member, and Ren is the big boss Chairman! Why should we be scared of those old geezers ever again?!"
"Yeah!" Gray chimed in, having already stripped down to his underwear in his excitement. "Doesn't this mean we can cause as much trouble as we please without getting fined?!"
Thwack! Thwack!
Two loud, comical smacks echoed sharply through the hall as Makarov's giant, magically enlarged hands chopped both Natsu and Gray squarely on the tops of their heads, driving them face-first into the floorboards.
"You foolish brats, what kind of absolute nonsense are you spouting?!" Makarov roared, his face turning a furious shade of red. "Don't go causing trouble for no reason! If you destroy a town now, I'm the one who'll have to sit through the boring meetings and get scolded by the other Saints!"
"Ow! It was just a joke, Gramps!" Natsu whined, rubbing the steaming, cartoonish bump forming on his head.
"What joke?! If you have time to stand around spouting nonsense, go find a job on the request board and get to work!" Makarov barked, furiously shooing the snickering guild members away.
Once the guild hall returned to its usual, chaotic hum, Makarov's expression sobered. He turned to Ren and Mest, gesturing toward the back hallway. He then led the two of them into his private office, ensuring the heavy wooden door clicked shut to block out any eavesdroppers.
Mest shifted uncomfortably under Makarov's intense, scrutinizing gaze. He asked with genuine confusion, "Master Makarov, did you call me in here because there's something specific you wanted to discuss regarding the Council's reconstruction?"
Makarov folded his hands behind his back, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Does the Magic Council have any recent, concrete intelligence regarding the Western Continent?"
Makarov's tone made it clear that he was deeply concerned about the lingering threat of the Alvarez Empire.
Mest's eyes widened in sheer shock, his breath hitching. "How... how did you know I was gathering intelligence on the Western Continent?"
Mest was completely taken aback. He didn't know how Makarov could possibly know he possessed classified information on Alakitasia. He had kept his independent espionage a strict secret, purposefully hiding it from his superiors in the Council to avoid triggering a diplomatic incident. He hadn't told a single soul about this.
Makarov let out a heavy sigh. "It's always like this with you. So incredibly troublesome," he lamented, shaking his head. "But now, with the world shifting the way it is, there's absolutely no need to hide it anymore."
Before Mest could react, Makarov raised his hand and gently tapped his index finger against Mest's right shoulder. A warm, brilliant golden light flared in the dim room.
"This... this is... the Fairy Tail emblem... I..." Mest gasped, his eyes dropping to his shoulder in absolute bewilderment.
Glowing vividly on his skin beneath the fabric of his pristine Council uniform was the unmistakable crest of the Fairy Tail guild.
Almost immediately after the emblem materialized, a sharp pain lanced through Mest's head. He staggered, gripping his temples as a massive, buried section of his own memory began to automatically unlock and violently flood his mind.
Vivid images flashed behind his eyes. In his restored memory, he wasn't just a Council lapdog; he was a proud, covert member of Fairy Tail who had willingly accepted Makarov's dangerous order to infiltrate the Magic Council. His primary mission had been to climb their ranks to obtain all highly classified information regarding the Western Continent from their secure archives.
To prevent his cover from being blown by the Council's telepaths, he had executed the mission with terrifying thoroughness, utilizing his own magic to completely erase his true identity from his own mind.
"I... I'm really a member of Fairy Tail... then I still..." Mest whispered, his voice trembling as the sheer weight of his restored memories crashed into him.
Suddenly, a wave of profound, agonizing embarrassment washed over him. He distinctly remembered how he had self-righteously marched onto Tenrou Island under the alias 'Doranbolt,' pretending to be Mystogan's mystical disciple just to participate in the S-Class Mage promotion trial. He had acted so arrogant, so utterly convinced of his own fake persona, while secretly plotting to gather evidence to arrest the very guild he actually belonged to.
Mest's face burned crimson. He was suddenly so mortified he wanted to use his spatial magic to find a deep hole and crawl into it for the rest of eternity.
"That's exactly why I thought your memory magic was so troublesome," Makarov chuckled softly, taking pity on the flushed spy. "But now, there's no need for those elaborate disguises anymore. Since I've officially accepted the invitation to be a Council Member, and Ren is the Chairman, we can obtain intelligence on the Western Continent openly and legally from now on."
This strategic advantage was one of the primary, unspoken reasons Makarov had agreed to join the Magic Council in the first place. Even with a monstrously powerful anomaly like Ren standing on their side, Fairy Tail was still just a single, isolated guild. They seemed far too small and vulnerable when faced with the sheer, overwhelming military might of a colossus like the Alvarez Empire.
By joining the Magic Council, Makarov could actively participate in its reconstruction and directly influence its continental defenses. To truly protect Fairy Tail, and by extension the entire continent of Ishgar, the unified military and political power of the Magic Council was absolutely indispensable.
"Now, compose yourself, my boy, and tell me everything about the intelligence you've gathered on the Western Continent," Makarov commanded, his tone shifting back to that of a stern but caring Guild Master eager to understand the current geopolitical situation.
"Yes, Master," Mest replied, standing up straight as his demeanor shifted from a confused Council officer to a sharp, loyal Fairy Tail operative. "Over the past year, I secretly dispatched a small, elite espionage team to the shores of the Western Continent to gather intelligence..."
Mest began to thoroughly report the fragmented information he had painstakingly obtained. Because all official diplomatic relations and trade routes between the Western Continent of Alakitasia and the Eastern Continent of Ishgar had been completely severed for years, traditional scouting was impossible. He could only send his teams disguised as ordinary, lowly merchants, forcing them to operate in the shadows and bribe local officials just to obtain bits and pieces of terrifying information regarding the Empire's movements.
[Akarin's Note:
Enjoying the story? Dropping a quick review, comment, or Power Stone means the world to me!
Want to read ahead on our official home, or unlock 50 advanced chapters (plus an Ad-Free experience) to feed your addiction? Help keep this shameless translator alive here:
(P.S. Replace the [.] with a regular dot . to use the links!)
🌐 Official Website: elysianreads[.]com
✨ Patreon (50 Advanced Chapters & Ad-Free): patreon[.]com/AkarinTL
☕ Ko-fi (Support / Sponsor): ko-fi[.]com/AkarinTL
🔗 All My Links: linktr[.]ee/AkarinTL
Thank you so much for reading and keeping this project alive!]