Perhaps because it had been so long since Eden, Erza, and the others had gathered, they spent the entire day fooling around.
During this time, Nami also met Cana for the first time.
Well, Nami was originally supposed to have met Cana at the sea restaurant, Baratie.
However, that time…
Cana had drunk too much on the ship and couldn't go down to meet everyone.
"Eden, you bastard…"
"Forget about Natsu and Erza."
"It's been a long time since we've seen each other, too. It's time we settled the score."
"Erza and Natsu aren't the only ones who've gotten stronger, you know!"
As Cana spoke, she rolled her shoulders, looking eager and ready to fight Eden to the very end.
"Eh?"
"Besides a blockhead like Natsu, there's actually someone else in the Fairy Tail guild who wants to challenge Eden?"
Nami was exceptionally shocked by this. She turned to Happy, who was beside her, and asked, "Could it be that this girl in front of me is also incredibly strong?"
"Aye."
"Nami, are you asking about Cana?"
"Cana is indeed very strong."
After being called out by Nami, Happy put on a thoughtful pose, contemplating for a full five minutes before explaining softly.
"Cana has been selected by Master Makarov several times as a guild member qualified to participate in the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial!"
"In other words, she's one of the candidates for S-Class Mage in Fairy Tail."
"In fact, when it comes to experience in the S-Class Trials, Cana's is even greater than Natsu's and Gray's~"
Happy told Nami everything he knew.
"Ehh?"
"So she's that amazing of a woman?"
Nami's face was filled with shock.
"And that's not all~"
"Cana is the daughter of that Gildarts~"
Happy looked at Nami mysteriously and said with a smile.
"What?"
"Cana is the daughter of that Gildarts?"
Even when Gildarts wasn't intentionally causing trouble, the World Government had still directly issued a bounty of a full two billion Berries for him…
At this moment, Nami fully understood the golden standard of Fairy Tail's strongest, and what kind of monster Gildarts, the strongest in Fairy Tail, truly was!
Therefore, after hearing that Cana was Gildarts' daughter, the way she looked at Cana completely changed…
In Nami's mind, Cana was now a monster on the same level as Erza, Mirajane, and Eden.
"I'm already looking forward to Cana's performance in battle."
As Nami spoke, her eyes, fixed on Cana, were filled with shock, anticipation, and a hint of envy.
Right, she also wanted to possess great strength, instead of being a burden to her comrades and family.
"Uhm…"
"I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed, Nami."
"A duel between Eden and Cana is a bit different from the duel you're imagining."
Seeing the anticipation in Nami's eyes, Happy fell somewhat silent.
In short, the greater Nami's expectations, the greater her disillusionment would be in a moment.
"Bring the booze!"
At the same time, Eden and Cana, who had been faintly facing off on opposite sides of the street, had at some point led everyone to a nearby tavern…
In an instant, several mugs of beer were placed in front of Eden and Cana.
In response, Eden and Cana spoke almost simultaneously, saying in unison to the tavern owner, "Bring as much as you have! Is this little bit enough? If the foreigners next door saw this, they'd think we can't afford it?! Just bring the barrels!"
"Cana, Eden, you two, take it easy!"
With Nami stunned and Lucy absent…
Levy could only temporarily take on the heavy burden of being the "straight man," a role usually shouldered by her two best friends, and said helplessly, "Also, we're the foreigners here."
"Let's do this!"
Unfortunately, whether it was Eden or Cana, their eyes no longer saw anyone else, only a thick desire for victory…
Especially when the owner ordered his staff to deliver barrel after barrel of alcohol to the two of them, they became so excited that they directly picked up the barrels and began to chug them down like crazy.
"Ah…"
At the side, Nami watched the two who had already begun their duel, her mouth agape and her eyes wide with overwhelming shock and disbelief.
"No way?"
"This is the so-called duel?"
Nami asked the people around her.
"Aye!!"
Happy and Natsu nodded in unison.
"Hey, hey, hey…"
"Isn't that a bit too much?"
When Eden and Cana finished the tavern's alcohol at an average speed of one barrel every thirty seconds, Nami was completely stunned, her eyes filled with confusion. "Eden is a Water Mage, so I can let that slide."
"Could it be that Cana is a Water Dragon Slayer, too?"
"Otherwise, how could she drink so much?"
Nami speculated about Cana's magic type, suspecting that, like Eden, she was a Water Dragon Slayer.
"Cana isn't a Water Dragon Slayer, you know?"
"The magic Cana excels at is Holder-Type Card Magic, as well as Fortune-Telling Magic~"
"The reason Cana can drink so quickly?!"
"She's just simply good at drinking."
Happy offered an explanation.
"Huh?"
Nami was dumbfounded. Come again? What do you mean she's 'just simply good at drinking'?
Can someone who is 'just simply good at drinking' compete with a Water Slayer Mage in a drinking contest?
He's using magic!
And you? You're just good at drinking?
"Now I finally understand why Cana is Gildarts' daughter."
"Strictly speaking, she is indeed monster-level."
Nami said after her brain rebooted from its crash.
"Drink!"
"Everyone, drink together!"
After chugging twenty barrels of liquor in a row, Cana had already forgotten that she was in a duel with Eden…
With a barrel in one arm and the newcomer Nami in the other, she started getting cozy with the pretty girl while pouring alcohol down Nami's throat.
Yes, the bond between Cana and Nami was rapidly warming up, through the medium of alcohol.
The next day.
"My head hurts so much!"
"Water, give me some water to drink."
When Nami woke up, she found the entire hotel in a state of chaos.
The members of the Mage Guild Fairy Tail were scattered all over the place, passed out.
"Uh, Nami's awake."
When someone noticed Nami had woken up, everyone present couldn't help but shiver…
Whether it was Natsu or Happy, even Gajeel looked at Nami with a hint of fear in his eyes.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
"Why are you all hiding so far away from me?"
Nami looked at the Fairy Tail members who were silently keeping their distance from her and asked, annoyed.
"Nami, do you really not remember anything that happened last night?"
Just then, Erza walked up to Nami and asked.
"Yesterday?"
"I only remember drinking a lot yesterday. I've forgotten everything else."
"I must have blacked out, right?"
"Oh no, just hearing the word 'drink' makes me want to puke right now…"
Nami said, covering her mouth with a pained expression.
"Is that so?"
"You blacked out and don't remember anything?"
"It's better that you don't remember."
As they spoke, everyone present recalled the chaotic situation from the previous night. After Nami had too much to drink, she went into a full-on rampage mode, attacking anyone she could get her hands on!
Furthermore, Nami wasn't just simply hitting people. Every punch she threw was faintly surrounded by pitch-black lightning. Every single punch was a critical hit, sending Natsu and Gajeel running for their lives, covering their heads.
In the end, it took the combined efforts of Erza and Eden to finally stop the rampaging Nami.
"We can absolutely never let Nami drink again."
After a long silence, all the Fairy Tail mages present came to a unanimous decision.
"Anyway, we've stayed here long enough."
"It's time to leave Alabasta."
"After all, there are still many guild members we haven't found."
"We can't rest easy until we find every last one of them."
Eden stretched lazily and said to the crowd.
"Indeed."
"Elfman, Lisanna, and Wendy… they're all people to worry about."
Erza nodded lightly, expressing her agreement.
Lucy: "So I'm not included in the members you're worried about, right?!"
Erza and Eden: "That's because we have faith in your strength, Lucy!"
Lucy: "Oh, thanks a lot~"
Ahem…
After making their decision, the group didn't hesitate. They left the tavern and headed towards the docks where their ships were moored.
Meanwhile, when the tavern owner woke from his slumber and saw his tavern, which looked like it had been torn apart by a pack of huskies, he felt like his world had collapsed. He roared in anger, "From now on, anyone with this emblem is absolutely not welcome!"
And with that, the tavern owner hung the Fairy Tail guild emblem outside his door.
"What's your plan from here?"
Erza asked Eden.
"As for us, we'll stick to the original plan and head to Sky Island," Eden replied.
"Mm, that makes sense."
"Then we'll stick to our original plan as well, using the influence of the Marines and the World Government to search for our remaining comrades in the Four Seas and the first half of the Grand Line, Paradise."
Erza nodded slightly and stated her plan.
"Alright."
"Then let's wish for both our plans to proceed smoothly."
"I look forward to our next reunion."
"I hope we can gather all our comrades scattered across the world sooner rather than later."
Eden nodded, speaking some pleasantries that also reflected his deepest wishes.
"By the way, where is your ship?!"
Once they reached the docks…
Erza suddenly realized that Eden's pirate ship was nowhere to be found. Mistaking that their ship had been destroyed, she said, "Is there a problem with your ship? Do you need me to give you a ride?"
"No need to trouble you."
"Oh, speaking of ships, let me introduce you to our new comrade."
As Eden spoke, he strode to the edge of the sea, plunged his hand into the water, and said silently in his mind, "Little Black, come."
Vmm!
"The King is calling for me!"
Following Eden's call…
Deep within the sea, a certain super-massive Sea King, which had been snacking on Alabasta's guardian deities, the Sea Cats, immediately stopped its hunt and swam towards the surface.
BOOM!
About a minute later!
With a deafening roar that broke the surface of the water and the monstrous waves kicked up by the colossal beast's emergence, a super-massive Sea King, whose height above the water alone was several hundred meters, appeared at the docks of the Alabasta Kingdom.
"Run! It's a Sea King!"
"Oh my god?!"
"A Sea King of this level could probably destroy the entire town!"
"Its weight must be in the tens of millions of tons! (Sorry, my previous estimate of tens of thousands of tons was wrong, I accidentally turned it into a gaseous fish)…"
The moment Little Black appeared, the people of the port city began to evacuate at a visible rate.
"Hahaha, see that, Gajeel?"
"This is our new comrade! With Little Black, we Dragon Slayers won't get seasick on the ocean anymore."
Natsu stood with his hands on his hips, looking incredibly smug.
"So cool!!"
"Damn it! I want a partner like that too," Gajeel thought. He approached Little Black, attempting to stroke it with his hand.
CHOMP~
And then, Little Black swallowed Gajeel, who was trying to get close, as if he were a little snack.
"Uhh…"
"Little Black ate Gajeel."
For a moment, the group, which had been laughing and joking, froze in place.
"Blech~"
However, before anyone could worry too much, Little Black spat Gajeel out of its mouth with an expression of utter disgust. The look it gave Gajeel was as if it were looking at a pile of something indescribable.
"Little Black spat Gajeel back out."
"I can't believe Gajeel tastes so bad, even a fish finds him disgusting~"
Happy narrated the events as they unfolded.
"After all, Gajeel is an Iron Man!"
"And a rusty one at that…"
"There's no creature in this world that would enjoy eating him."
Eden added.
"You guys are really something else."
Gajeel's eye twitched as he glared at Eden and the others.
"Anyway, let's part ways here!"
Eden ignored the fuming Gajeel and looked at Erza, Levy, and Cana.
"Okay."
After a brief farewell, the groups headed towards their respective vessels.
Well, even though Eden's group's vehicle wasn't exactly a ship.
"The next target is Sky Island."
Eden said aloud after he, Natsu, and Nami had settled on top of Little Black's head.
"Got it."
Nami said, consulting the compass on her wrist and the sea chart to prepare their course.
Yes, determining the course was the navigator's duty.
"Sky Island, huh?"
"That's a place of legends."
Just as Nami was adjusting their direction, a charming and magnetic female voice sounded from beside them.
"Indeed."
The first moment Nami heard the voice, she turned her head with a smile and replied softly.
It wasn't until she turned her head back and took a full five seconds to think calmly that she realized something was wrong. She looked at the woman who had spoken again and exclaimed in shock, "Wait, who are you?!"
"Me?"
"I am Nico Robin~"
Robin looked at Nami and introduced herself with a smile.
"I know you!"
"I saw you at Crocodile's officers' meeting."
Nami's memory was quite good. She remembered Robin standing by Crocodile's side, serving as his right-hand woman.
At this, Nami said angrily, "So, as one of Crocodile's officers, what are you doing on our ship… our fish… our comrade?"
Nami changed her designation for Little Black several times. Neither 'ship' nor 'fish' seemed right; 'comrade' was the most fitting.
"Because I was invited to become your comrade."
Robin rested her chin on her hand, looking at Nami as if she were an adorable little girl, and calmly stated the fact that she had been invited.
"Huh?"
"I don't remember anyone inviting you…"
"Get off our ship right now."
Nami stood with her hands on her hips, yelling angrily at Robin.
"Uhm…"
"I was the one who invited her."
At this, the previously silent Natsu suddenly raised his hand weakly and said so.
"Eh?"
When Natsu's words fell, both Nami and Happy were slightly stunned.
"Don't worry!"
"She's not a bad person."
"Her scent… it didn't fit in with anyone else there."
Natsu explained his reason for inviting Robin.
Natsu didn't know how others saw Robin. In his eyes, Robin was just an eight-year-old girl forcing herself to act like an adult.
If Master Makarov were here, he would definitely choose to invite Robin to join the Fairy Tail guild.
"Eden, look at him!"
"Natsu is just inviting strangers onto our ship!"
Seeing that she couldn't win Natsu over, Nami could only appeal to Eden.
"Is that so?"
"Then I approve."
After thinking for about half a second, Eden agreed to Robin's request to join Fairy Tail and continued, "Your name is Nico Robin, right? My name is Eden. From now on, we're comrades."
"What? Eden, have you been deceived by this woman too?"
Nami glared resentfully at Eden. It seemed the only person who could be wary of Robin was her. The road ahead was long and arduous~
"Speaking of which."
"I have here a pouch of gems that Crocodile had treasured for a long time."
Robin said, pulling out a pouch of gems that Crocodile usually kept locked in his safe.
"From this day forward, we are the best sisters in the entire world."
Seeing this, Nami didn't hesitate for a second. She immediately accepted Robin's gems and declared the fact that she and Robin were the world's best friends.
"Heh heh~"
"What a shallow woman."
Happy sneered, mocking Nami.
"This is a welcome gift for you, little kitty~"
Robin said, handing a pre-prepared high-quality salted fish to Happy.
"I approve of Nico Robin joining Fairy Tail!"
After accepting the salted fish, Happy raised his little paw. He declared that from this day forward, he was also part of the Robin faction.
"Huh?"
"What right do you have to talk about me?"
"You greedy little bad cat."
Nami said, landing a punch on Happy's head as she retorted angrily.
"Hahaha~"
"Are you all always this cheerful?"
Robin laughed as she watched the lively atmosphere of the Fairy Tail members.
"Of course~"
"It'll get even livelier once all of us from Fairy Tail are gathered together."
Eden replied.