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Chapter 62

A Hunting We Will Go

Tomorrow had soon become today. I was lying down fast asleep enjoying sleeping in. Soon enough, I slowly opened my eyes and glanced out of the window which had the morning sun's rays shining through it. I let out a small yawn and then I stretched my arms letting out a satisfying grunt.

"Alright then," I mumbled. "Time for me to get up."

I then got out of my bed and I sleepily made my way to the bathroom, so I could get ready to start my day.

It had been a couple of days since I went with Lucy to the apartment she was staying at. She and I spoke with the landlady about renting a room for me and she was more than willing to give me a room. She seemed to be a pretty nice person, but... she did kinda look at me in a strange way for some reason. Not because of my reputation and such, but something else.

Anyway, the room that the landlady gave me was pretty nice. It had a lot of space and the bathroom was pretty sweet. It even had a stove and a fireplace. It was a bit similar to Lucy's, but my room had a few different colors of walls, the walls being blue instead of pink. I had to admit, the place was the perfect home for me. Although I still had to make some money to pay for the rent, so I was planning to go out on a job to get some.

I soon finished getting ready and left my room locking the door. As I headed outside, I happened to walk by Lucy's room. Suddenly, I heard loud yells coming from inside her room.

"Natsu! How many times do I have to tell you to stop breaking into my room?!"

"Oh come on, Lucy! Take it easy would you?"

"Yeah. You could be a little quieter you know!"

"I'll take it easy when you two stop barging in my room like this!"

From the sound of things, it sounded like Natsu and Happy had somehow gotten into Lucy's room. I know Lucy told me about it before, but I didn't think it was really true.

"Guess Lucy wasn't kidding when she said Natsu and Happy have a habit of getting into her room," I said to myself. "Hopefully no one will do that to me when it comes to my room."

I then left the apartments heading towards the guild hall. I walked along the canal while humming a small little tune. I soon could see the guild hall in sight. I walked through the gates and went through the courtyard where the outside cafe was, filled with lots of people. As I walked by, I noticed that some of the customers were looking at me. When they did, they looked away and began whispering to each other. There was no doubt that they were probably gossiping about me. However, I kept on walking pretending not to notice or hear them walking into the guild hall and headed for the request board. As I walked over to the request board, I noticed that a certain long-haired bluenette and a white cat standing by the board looking at different requests.

"None of them don't really stand out, do they?" asked Carla.

"Hey there Wendy. Carla," I greeted. "I take it you guys are looking for a job to go on as well?"

"Oh hi Willy," said Wendy. "Yes. We are. We just got back from one actually and were hoping to go out on another one."

'Well that's good," I said. "It seems that you've gotten the hang of the kind of work the guild does."

"So far she's only taken the smaller low paying jobs around the city," said Carla. "But she could stand to be a little more ambitious."

"Carla! I'm trying!" pouted Wendy.

Then Mira along with Natsu, Gray, Happy, and Lucy came up.

"There's no problem of taking small steps to get experience. It's perfectly normal," said Mira.

"She's right, but you should also try to get into the bigger jobs like we do," said Natsu.

"They're a lot of fun and you'll get to go to all sorts of places," added Gray.

"Yeah. You're right," smiled Wendy. "The sooner I'm able to take on the bigger jobs, the sooner I can be more of help to the guild."

I chuckled. "Good for you Wendy. You sure are quite the idealistic girl for your age."

"Lucy can sure take a page or two from your book," commented Happy slyly.

Lucy scowled at the blue cat. "Are you saying that I'm not helpful or got no heart?" she growled.

Happy smirked. "Sure is a tough question isn't it?"

"No, it's not, stupid cat!" snapped Lucy angrily. "I'm helpful by inspiring others with my inner and outer beauty."

Happy then laughed mockingly. "Inspiring with your inner and outer beauty? Oh, you're helpful alright, by making me laugh when you say stuff like that!"

That was the final straw for Lucy. She immediately began chasing Happy around the guild trying to get her little hands on him. I stared blankly at the two are they went about their chase.

"Um... has Lucy always been that short tempered?" I asked.

"You have no idea man," said Natsu. "You should see her when she's really mad."

"I know. I did hear you guys this morning when you barged in her room," I said. "Maybe you shouldn't do that."

"Aw come on man. Lucy doesn't mind us coming into her room," said Natsu. "Besides, have you slept in her bed before? It's the comfiest thing in the entire world."

"Speaking of which, how is your room over there, Willy?" asked Mira. "Are you settling in OK?"

"Just fine. Thanks for asking, Mira," I replied. "Lucy wasn't kidding about the rooms over there. Mine's pretty nice and everything over there is just perfect. The only problem is the ruckus Natsu, Lucy, and Happy cause when they barge into Lucy's room."

"Well that's to be expected," chuckled Mira. "Natsu always does make a habit of doing that I heard. Hopefully, they won't cause too much of a ruckus for you. Other than that, I'm happy that you found a place to live. However, if you ever decide to come live in the dorms, feel free to let any of us know, OK?"

"I will, Mira," I said. "Till then, I guess I better go out and get a job. The rent's not gonna pay for itself."

I then checked the board looking at all of the of different fliers finding the right one to take. "Man... there sure are a lot of them," I said. "Not even Osia had this many. I suppose Fairy Tail's more popular as a guild than I figured it would be."

I looked and I searched each flier until finally, my eyes stopped on one in particular. I approached it and took a quick read.

BANDIT HUNT

The citizens in the town of Shirotsume are being plagued by a gang of bandits and are unable to stop them. Even the Royal Army of the Magic Council who went to search for them were unable to apprehend them. Please help get rid of them! Reward money: 140, 000 jewel.

"Where exactly is Shirotsume?" I wondered.

"I remember that place," said Mira. "That was where Lucy, Natsu, and Happy went for Lucy's first job. It's a village that's in the mountains just past Mount Hakobe."

"Did you find a job that in that location?" asked Gray.

"Sure did. Apparently, there's some bandits that are causing trouble over there," I said. "Not even the Magic Council's guards were able to catch them. I'm thinking of taking this one."

"Hold on a sec Willy. You're planning on going all by yourself?" asked Wendy.

"Of course I am," I told her glancing at her. "I used to go on jobs by myself all the time as a kid. Course they were pretty much fishing and other normal jobs. This'll be the first time I've ever done a job like this before as well, but I'm sure I can handle it."

"Hold on a minute. Hunting bandits all by yourself?" wondered Lucy worriedly. "Shouldn't you have someone who with you? Especially since these bandits even were able to avoid the Royal Army."

"Hmm... you do have a point there, Lucy," I said thoughtfully. "But who should I have to go with me on this job?" I then looked at Mira. "Hey, Mira. Would you be willing to go with me on this job?"

"I wish I could Willy, but I have to work at the bar," replied Mira.

"Aw. That's too bad," I replied with a hint of disappointment. "And I can't ask Elfman either because he's out on a job too."

"If you want someone to fight bandits with, I could be your guy," said Natsu punching his fist in his palm. "I'm always looking for some butts to kick."

"I don't think that's a good idea," said Gray. "Unless you want a hothead moron like him burning down everything and docking your pay."

"Watch it, freezy pervert," growled Natsu.

I then thought about who should I take along with me on this job. Then the very person in question came into the guild hall. I then went up to the person in question.

"Hey, Erza. How's it going?" I greeted.

"Hello there, Willy," Erza greeted back. "I just came into the guild. Was there something that you needed?"

"Yes. I'm just about to go out on a job dealing with some bandits," I explained. "I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

"Where is the job located?" asked Erza.

"In Shirotsume," I replied. "It's a bit far, but the reward's pretty big. It should be able to cover me for about two months."

"Sounds like a plan," smiled Erza. "Very well. I'll go with you."

I couldn't help but smile widely. "Thank you very much." I then turned to Mira. "Hey Mira, me and Erza are gonna take this one. Is this OK with you?"

"O-oh. Yes! Sure," said Mira who sounded a bit awkward. "Let me just sign you both in first."

She then went behind the counter of the bar and got a large brown book with the Fairy Tail insignia on it. She flipped through the pages till she reached one in particular and began writing information on that page. When she was finished, she looked back at us.

"You're all set now," she said. "I'll notify the people who made the request. Come back safely."

"We will. Thank you, Mira," I said. Then I turned to Erza. "Well then, I suppose we better get ready to go Erza."

"I agree. I must head to my dorm room and get some things," said Erza with a light smile. "How about we both meet up at Magnolia Station?"

"Sounds good to me," I said. "See you then."

And with that, Erza walked away out of the guild. I took a look at the request again and I smiled.

"I can't wait to get started," I thought to myself. "This'll be a great way to test my skills and a way to make a lot of jewel."

I then took off in a happy sprint heading out of the guild and towards the meeting place.

NO POV

Mira watched as Willy left the guild setting off to go on his job. She couldn't help, but let out a wistful sigh feeling a little sad. Lucy happened to take notice.

"Is something wrong Mira?" she asked. "You seem kinda down."

"Oh it's nothing, Lucy," replied Mira. "I'm fine."

"You wanted to go with him, didn't you?" asked a voice coming next to her.

Mira slightly jumped and saw that Makarov had suddenly appeared on the counter next to her drinking a mug of beer.

"M-master," she gasped with a hint of surprise.

"It's pretty surprising," said Makarov. "I never pegged you to be the jealous type Mira."

Mira chuckled. "Maybe I am," she said. "I just wanted to go with Willy on his first job as a Fairy Tail wizard, that's all. Plus, I'm a little worried about how he'll fare on this job."

"There will be other opportunities to go with him," said Makarov. "But for now, as you said, you must focus on your job here."

"Alright Master," said Mira.

"And I wouldn't worry about Willy. He'll be fine," said Lucy. "Especially since that Erza's with him. Those two will be fine."

"I suppose so," said Mira. "I just hope that Erza doesn't give Willy too much trouble."

WILLY'S POV

I soon managed to make my way to the station where Erza wanted us to meet. I didn't see Erza yet, so I decided to wait for her. As I waited, I took a quick look at the request.

"Considering the fact that Shirotsume is in the mountain region close by Mount Hakobe," I thought to myself. "It'll take us a couple of days to get there. I wish it would be easier if I flew there, but using my wings takes some magic power out of me and I want to be in top form when Erza and I and Erza fight those bandits. Which means we'll have to use a mode of transportation to get there. Just then, I heard a familiar voice.

"Sorry that I'm late. I hope I haven't kept you waiting long."

"Not at all, Erza. Glad you-"

Then the moment I turned, I stopped mid-sentence and my eyes widened in surprise. Erza had arrived all right, but she was pulling along a large wagon filled with various different suitcases stacked up as high as a small house.

"What in the world is all that, Erza?!" I exclaimed. "Does all of that belong to you?"

"Yes indeed," replied Erza. "It's just a few things just in case. Is there some sort of problem?"

"N-no. It's no problem," I said. "I was just surprised that you're carrying so much stuff is all. And I would hardly call that a few for that matter. Anyway, I take it we're gonna take the train to get to Shirotsune?"

"Not exactly," said Erza. "Shirotsune's deep in the mountains just past Mount Hakabe, so we're going to take the train as far as Oshibana, then we'll arrange for a carriage to take us to Shirotsune."

"Sounds like a plan," I said to her. "Shall we get going?"

"Yes. That we shall," replied Erza.

The two of us then boarded the train that was en route towards Oshibana and both took a seat waiting for the train to depart. As we waited for the train to depart, I noticed that Erza was holding a small book in her hand.

"Hey Erza, I didn't know that you read," I said. "What kind of book is that?"

"I-it's nothing special. Just a romance book," said Erza blushing. "I like read a couple of books every now and again. I usually borrow some from Levy."

"Oh yeah! Levy does like to read books!" I said brightly. "I should borrow a couple of books from her sometime if I ever see her again."

"Y-yes. That would be good," said Erza who was still blushing a bit.

I really didn't know why she was blushing. Probably because she was feeling embarrassed about being a bookworm. I didn't really press onto the matter any further as the train finally left the station and we were on our way to our destination.

We soon arrived at Oshibana and had a carriage arranged to take us to Shirotsune. It was a bit small in size considering that it didn't have its own railway station, but it looked just right for someone wanting to live somewhere in the mountains. It was getting pretty close to evening and was getting a bit chilly, but Erza and I didn't mind.

When we made it into town, we went straight to the mayor's office where the mayor was waiting for us.

"My name is Nadi," said the mayor. "I am quite pleased that you answered my request and I thank you for that."

"Not at all sir," Erza said. "The pleasure is all ours. We'll take care of those bandits for you no problem."

After we spoke with the mayor, Erza and I walked through the Shirotsune heading outside of the town to find the bandits.

"So I take it the bandits are somewhere in the forest outside of town?" I asked.

"Yes. According to what the mayor told us, the bandits have been causing trouble for quite some time now," said Erza. "They steal jewel and valuables and their base has to be somewhere, although I'm not sure where their base could be."

"That shouldn't be too much of a problem to find," I said. "I should be able to track them down using Aqua Sense."

"Aqua Sense? Oh yes. The spell that Tu-Chi taught you to sense the whereabouts of your target," said Erza. "If I recall correctly, that's the spell you used to stop Natsu before right?"

"As long as they have water in their bodies, I'll be able to sense them," I replied. "Once we get into the forest, I'll be able to track them down in no time."

As we walked through the main road, various townspeople were looking at us. A couple of them pointed at Erza and began whispering excitedly while others looked at me seeming to be irked by what they saw. I was willing to bet that they weren't very pleased to see me. However, I chose to ignore them and focused on the task at hand.

Erza and I were soon walking through the forest. Everywhere we looked, there was nothing, but trees and a couple of animals. So far we could see anything but the bandits. I then placed my palm on the ground and closed my eyes.

"AQUA SENSE."

My body began to glow in a light blue color and a pulse of my magic went through the area. In my mind, I could see nothing, but small blue shapes representing the animals in the area. Then I saw a large blue shape which looked like a wide line meaning that it was a river.

"I don't see any sign of the bandits," I said. "But there's a river just ahead of us. If I can touch that river, my Aqua Sense will be twice as strong and expand my radius."

"Then let's go there then," said Erza.

The two of us ran through the trees around us making our way towards the river. We soon came to the river which was gurgling quietly. I then dipped my hand into the water and used the Aqua Sense once again. My spell went along the river for quite a distance and then I saw a waterfall just above the river. That was when I sensed several different shapes just above the waterfall and they were most definitely human-like.

"I think I found the bandits," I said straightening up. "They're just down this river and just above the waterfall a few miles away."

"Good work," said Erza. "Let's follow the river until it leads us to the waterfall."

The two of us then ran along the river following it. Finally, we heard the sound of crashing water. It was faint at first, but as we grew closer and closer, the sound grew louder and louder. We soon found it.

"That's it," I spoke in a low voice. "That's the waterfall I sensed."

"Do you see the enemy?" asked Erza.

I squinted my eyes looking around very carefully. "Nope. I don't see any bandit in sight," I said. "That's weird. I know that I sensed them in the vicinity."

"The bandit's base must be hidden somewhere around here," said Erza. "Since I don't see their base anywhere around here, there's only one place where the base could be. Inside the waterfall."

I then dipped my hand in the water and used my Aqua Sense again. This time, I could see multiple shapes coming from just behind the waterfall.

"Looks like you were right Erza," I said. "They are hiding behind the waterfall and there seems to be tons of them. They appear to be getting ready to move out."

"Then let's stop them before they have a chance to attack," said Erza. "They'll most likely plan to move out when night falls. We'll make for them to make their move and that's when we'll strike."

"Understood," I acknowledged.

The two of us then hid behind the bushes just close enough to the waterfall, but not too close so we would be seen. And so we waited for nightfall to come. The sun was setting, but it still somewhat day out, so we would be waiting for a while. I then stared at the waterfall waiting for something to happen. A few minutes passed by, then Erza broke the silence.

"So Willy, how are you settling in?" she asked. "Any problems in the guild?"

"No. Not really," I replied. "Everything's going pretty well since I came here."

"How about your apartment?" continued Erza. "I heard that you're now renting a room in the building where Lucy lives."

"Yep. The room is very nice," I replied. "Really cozy and comfortable. Well... with the exception of Natsu and Happy breaking into Lucy's room and causing a ruckus."

"I really must apologize about that," said Erza. "I've told those two constantly to show Lucy a little respect, but to those two, my words fall on deaf ears."

"Well... Lucy tells me that they're not the only ones who break in her room," I said. "She tells me that you and Gray did the same thing a couple of times."

Erza then blushed with embarrassment. "Th-that was different," she said. "That was because I wanted to make sure that she was safe and I had Natsu and Gray come with me just in case."

I raised a brow feeling a bit doubtful, but I decided to drop it not wanting to press any further onto the subject.

Erza and I continued to sit by the falls waiting. Night soon fell and Erza and I soon heard strange sounds coming from behind the falls.

"They're getting ready to move out," I said.

"Then it's time we make our move as well," said Erza. "Let's go."

I nodded in response as the two of us prepared ourselves for battle ready for whatever the bandits had for us once we attacked.

If you liked what you read or if you want to give me some ideas for my fanfic, don't hesitate to let me know.

Dragoman out!