A New Life in Fairy Tail

They weren’t particularly interested in gambling either; they had just played a bit since they were already there.

Now that they had won some money and Noah had suggested stopping, they readily agreed.

”You girls shouldn’t follow their example, understand?” Sorano pointed at the despondent Natsu, Happy, and Lucy, warning Yukino-kun and the younger girls.

Yukino-kun and the others nodded frantically. They definitely didn’t want to end up like Natsu and his group. Just looking at them made it obvious how miserable they were. Gambling was instantly etched into their minds as a strictly forbidden activity.

”Alright, let’s head back to our rooms. Aren’t there a bunch of video game consoles and games provided in the suites? Those should be pretty fun too,” Noah suggested, seeing that Natsu’s group was still moping.

”Oh yeah! Happy, let’s go! We haven’t finished that game from last night!”

Natsu’s moods came and went like a summer storm. The moment he heard Noah’s suggestion, he instantly perked up and sprinted toward the elevator, completely forgetting his gambling losses.

”Aye!” Happy cheered, flying right behind him.

”Let’s head back too,” Noah said to the rest of the group. They nodded and followed.

When they reached the lobby floor, the others went ahead toward the elevators, but Ultear grabbed Noah’s sleeve, holding him back.

”What is it?” Noah asked, looking at her.

”There’s somewhere I want to go with you,” Ultear said softly.

”Where?”

”You’ll see if you follow me.”

Ultear took Noah’s hand and led him toward the exit.

Noah didn’t know where she was taking him, but he didn’t mind. He simply let her lead the way.

They walked for a while until Ultear finally stopped. Noah looked up, then turned back to her. ”This is where you wanted to bring me?”

”Mhm.”

Illuminated by the vibrant lights of the theme park, Ultear’s face was exceptionally red.

They were standing right beneath the massive Ferris wheel.

Noah had found it strange that Ultear and the girls hadn’t mentioned wanting to ride this all day. From his understanding, a Ferris wheel was usually one of the top attractions women wanted to experience at an amusement park.

It turned out she had been saving it for this specific time.

Since they were already here, there was no need for Ultear to lead him anymore. Noah tightened his grip on her hand and took the lead, guiding her toward the Ferris wheel entrance.

Ultear followed closely behind, her blush deepening.

They stepped into one of the cabins. As the mechanical doors slid shut, the cabin began its slow ascent into the night sky.

The space inside became a private world belonging only to the two of them.

...

When the cabin finally completed its rotation and returned to the boarding platform, the doors opened. Noah and Ultear stepped out, one after the other.

Ultear had one arm wrapped tightly around Noah’s arm and a hand gently covering her mouth. Her eyes were shimmering, and her face was flushed a brilliant, radiant red.

”Let’s head back,” Noah said, turning to look at her.

”Mhm,” Ultear replied softly.

The two walked back to the Holiday Inn together. Noah escorted Ultear all the way to the door of her suite.

”Make sure you get to sleep early.”

”I know.”

By now, the intense redness in Ultear’s face had subsided significantly. She pulled out her key card, unlocked the door, cast one last glance back at Noah, and stepped inside.

Noah waited until her door clicked shut before returning to his own suite.

The moment Ultear closed the door, she was ambushed by Sorano and the others, who had clearly been waiting for her.

”So? How was it? How was it?” Sorano asked, her face practically glowing with curiosity.

Ultear’s face, which had just returned to a normal color, instantly flared bright red again. She glared playfully at Sorano. ”You’ll find out when it’s your turn.”

”Hehe, I just wanted a sneak peek...”

”No way. I’m going to take a shower and go straight to bed.” Ultear waved Sorano off and hurried toward the bathroom.

”What a shame,” Sorano sighed, watching Ultear’s retreating back.

”Can’t you tell just by looking at her face? Why even ask?” Mirajane chuckled from the side.

”I wanted to know the specific details!”

”I’m curious too. It’s a pity,” Mirajane agreed, looking equally disappointed.

”Let’s just go to sleep. We have more playing to do tomorrow.” Seeing that she wasn’t going to get any juicy details out of Ultear tonight, Sorano decided to turn in.

Mirajane nodded and headed to her own bed.

This left only Erza, whose face had turned a deep shade of crimson the moment the conversation started, and Lucy, who was watching the scene with wide, curious eyes.

When Noah returned to his suite, he found Natsu and Happy yelling excitedly at the TV screen, deeply engrossed in a video game.

Gray was sitting next to them, constantly complaining about their loud reactions while simultaneously playing just as enthusiastically.

Seeing the fun, Noah decided to join them.

After playing for a while, Noah called it a night. They took turns showering and then went to bed.

The next morning, everyone woke up early. After breakfast, they headed straight to the beach.

After Noah helped Ultear and the girls apply their sunscreen, the four of them started a game of beach volleyball, with Noah acting as the referee.

It was safe to say the referee was treated to quite a spectacular visual feast.

After they finished their game and were heading back to rest, they spotted Natsu sprawled face-down on the sand in the distance, with Lucy standing helplessly beside him.

Curious, the group walked over. ”What happened to Natsu?” Sorano asked.

”He said he wanted to try surfing... and this was the result,” Lucy sighed, looking down at the groaning Dragon Slayer.

”So... sick...” Natsu moaned weakly.

Noah and the others were speechless. He knew perfectly well he had crippling motion sickness, yet he still tried to go surfing.

”I can only commend your bravery. Hang in there,” Sorano giggled.

”You guys rest here for a bit. We’re going to sit over there,” Noah told Lucy.

”Okay. I’ll look after him,” Lucy said, watching Natsu suffer.

Noah and the others found a spot further down the beach to relax.

After resting, they continued to enjoy the seaside activities.

That evening, after dinner, the group headed down to the underground casino once again. This time, however, no one went to gamble; they all stuck to the regular arcade games.

When it was time to head back upstairs, it was Erza who grabbed Noah’s sleeve.

”I... I... want to go... somewhere... with you...” Erza stammered, her face burning red as she tugged gently on his sleeve.

”Sure, let’s go together!”

Seeing Erza’s flustered state and hearing her request, Noah realized this must have been planned out by the four of them beforehand, explaining Ultear’s actions last night and Erza’s tonight.

Noah took Erza’s hand and led her toward the exit.

Erza followed, her face completely red, letting Noah guide her.

Arriving at the base of the Ferris wheel, Noah turned to her. ”Is this where you wanted to come?”

”Mhm...”

If Noah didn’t have enhanced hearing, he wouldn’t have caught her tiny response.

”Then let’s get on.”

Noah led Erza toward an empty cabin that had just descended. Erza followed him without a hint of resistance.

Once inside, the mechanical doors slid shut, leaving the two of them alone.

The cabin slowly lifted off the ground, ascending into the night sky.

...

When the cabin returned to the ground, Noah and Erza stepped out. Erza’s face was an unbelievably vibrant shade of red.

Her legs were so weak she had to lean her entire body weight against Noah just to stay upright.

”Are you okay?” Noah asked softly.

”I-I’m fine...” Erza whispered.

”Let’s head back.”

”Mhm.”

Noah placed his right arm around Erza’s waist, half-hugging and half-supporting her as they walked back to the Holiday Inn.

”Make sure you get some rest.”

”Mhm.”

After responding to Noah, Erza slipped into her suite. Noah watched her go in before returning to his own room.

The moment Erza walked in, Sorano pounced.

”How was it?! How was it?!” Sorano asked, practically vibrating with curiosity.

Erza didn’t answer. Her face instantly turned even redder, and she stumbled dizzily toward the bathroom without a word.

”She’s way too shy when it comes to this kind of thing. She’s never going to give you an answer,” Mirajane noted from the side.

”Aww! I really want to know!” Sorano flopped onto the sofa, groaning in frustration.

”It’s your turn tomorrow. Won’t you find out then?” Ultear chuckled.

”But I want to know early...” Sorano whined, hugging a throw pillow tight.

”I’m actually a little curious myself,” Lucy admitted, a faint blush on her cheeks.

”You’ll understand once you get a boyfriend,” Mirajane said with a sweet smile. Then, her eyes narrowed slightly as she focused on Lucy. ”Wait... do you already have a boyfriend? Who is it?!”

”No! I definitely don’t!” Lucy panicked, waving her hands and shaking her head frantically.

”Really? What a shame. I really wanted to know who Lucy’s boyfriend was,” Mirajane sighed in exaggerated disappointment.

Thoroughly spooked by Mirajane’s teasing, Lucy quickly fled to her bedroom. She didn’t want to risk Mirajane asking any more dangerous questions.

”Just go to sleep early. You’ll know everything tomorrow,” Ultear told Sorano, who was still agonizing on the sofa.

”Fine.” Realizing her curiosity wouldn’t be satisfied tonight, Sorano sluggishly trudged off to bed.

The next day, everyone headed down to the beach again.

This time, the group decided to play watermelon splitting. The first person chosen to be blindfolded was Lucy, and Natsu was the one directing her.

”Right! Right! Up! Up! A little more to the left!” Natsu yelled excitedly, guiding the blindfolded Lucy.

”What do you mean ’up’?!” Gray yelled from the sidelines, thoroughly exasperated by Natsu’s directions.

”Right there!” Natsu ignored Gray and signaled Lucy to strike.

”Got it!” Lucy raised the wooden stick high and swung it down hard in front of her.

”Hah!”

SMACK!

”What the hell are you doing?!” a deep, furious male voice roared from right in front of Lucy.

Realizing something was terribly wrong, Lucy yanked off her blindfold. She found a tall, muscular man sitting up in the sand right where the watermelon was supposed to be.

A massive, angry red welt was forming squarely on his forehead.

Lucy looked at the spot where the man was sitting, then looked at her own position. She instantly realized that she had just brought the wooden stick down full-force directly onto his forehead.

~~~

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