Chapter 274: The Century-Old Mission (Third Update)

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While George's clone was hunting dragons in the Harry Potter world, another of his clones in the Fairy Tail world finally obtained new intel on dragons from Makarov. 

"George, I've noticed you've been inquiring about dragons a lot lately." 

Makarov sat at the bar, sipping his drink, his expression serious as he questioned George. 

George nodded. 

"Yes, Master. I've been researching a new type of magic, but to practice it, I need to become a Dragon Slayer Mage first. 

That means I must find a Dragon Lacrima within the next two months." 

Two months—just about the time he needed to complete his Animagus transformation. 

"I see..." 

Makarov hesitated for a long while, seemingly making a difficult decision. Eventually, he spoke slowly. 

"If this will help you advance in your magic, and considering your strength, you might be able to give it a try. So, I'll tell you— 

Have you ever heard of the Century-Old Mission?" 

Previously, he would never have mentioned it to George. Even if George had the strength of an S-Class Mage, the mission was far too dangerous. 

That's why, despite Natsu's relentless search for dragons, Makarov had never revealed anything to him. 

He feared that Natsu, being too impulsive, would rush into it and lose his life. 

However, after hearing Erza's report on the Tower of Heaven incident, Makarov reconsidered. Perhaps George truly had the strength to take on this challenge. 

"The Century-Old Mission—the one said to be the most difficult mission in the entire magical world, which no one has ever completed? It has something to do with dragons?" 

George's eyes immediately lit up. 

Makarov nodded. 

"Yes, it does involve dragons, but I can't disclose the details. You'll only learn everything if you officially accept the mission and travel to the designated location. 

But I must warn you—this mission has been issued for a hundred years, and no one has ever succeeded. Every mage who accepted it has perished. 

Even Gildarts from our own guild took this mission three years ago, and there has been no word from him since." 

"Gildarts Clive? The S-Class Mage everyone talks about?" 

George's mind stirred. He had heard of Gildarts before—his reputation as an exceptionally powerful mage was well known. 

"Although he's an S-Class Mage, I should tell you—his true strength surpasses even mine." 

Makarov's expression grew even graver. 

"And yet, even someone as strong as him has been missing for three years. That should give you an idea of just how dangerous this mission is. I urge you to think carefully before making a decision." 

"If his strength surpasses even yours, that means he's at the level of the Ten Wizard Saints… And if a mage of that caliber has been missing for three years without any news, then this mission is clearly no ordinary task." 

George furrowed his brows in thought. Then, after flicking his tail, he made his decision. 

"If it really involves dragons, I want to give it a try. Who knows, I might even run into Gildarts and help complete the mission together." 

Is the mission dangerous? 

Of course it is. Even at full power, George was only on par with the weakest of the Ten Wizard Saints. The fact that Gildarts hadn't returned in three years meant that even a high-level Saint Wizard had struggled—or worse, perished. 

To put it bluntly, George suspected that Gildarts might already be dead. 

But George was different. He wasn't taking on this mission to complete it. His goal was to track down dragons and become a Dragon Slayer Mage. 

Whether the mission was completed or not didn't matter to him. 

If he encountered a situation beyond his ability to handle, he would simply abandon the mission and escape without hesitation. 

After all, if there was one thing he was confident in, it was his ability to escape. 

If he wanted to flee, even ten Saint Wizards wouldn't be able to stop him.

However, the fact that Makarov was willing to tell him about this mission truly surprised George. 

After all, the entire Fairy Tail guild was currently relying on his Repair Charm to maintain financial stability and achieve positive economic growth. 

If he left to take on the Century-Old Mission, the guild would likely return to its previous state of financial struggle. And if he were to die during the mission, Makarov might just break down completely. 

Looks like the old man will have to slowly study the Repair Charm he left in the guild's library. 

But upon deeper reflection, this decision was very much in line with Makarov's character. 

The guild master had always encouraged Fairy Tail mages to pursue their magical paths with unwavering determination—even if it meant the guild teetered on the brink of bankruptcy, he never wavered from that belief. 

Now that George was searching for dragons as part of his magical journey, Makarov naturally supported him, without overthinking the guild's financial dependency on him. 

"Since you've made up your mind, take on the mission once the Harvest Festival is over!" 

Seeing that George had already decided, Makarov didn't try to dissuade him any further. Instead, he simply reminded him: 

"Your life is the most important thing. If you can't complete the mission, you can always try again in the future." 

While Makarov encouraged George to boldly advance along his magical path, as guild master, he regarded every mage in Fairy Tail like family. He didn't want to see any of them die on a mission. 

"Understood, Master!" 

George nodded—he, too, had always believed that survival was the top priority. 

The Harvest Festival was the most important annual event for Fairy Tail. On that day, nearly all guild members who could return would gather to celebrate. 

At night, the guild would hold a grand magical parade through the town, attracting countless spectators from other cities. The entire town would be bustling with excitement and joy. 

And tomorrow was the Harvest Festival. The town had already begun its preparations, and he had heard that there would be a Miss Fairy Tail competition during the day. 

Erza, Mirajane, and several other female mages had already signed up to participate. 

"By the way, has Jellal returned?" 

After recovering, Jellal had joined Fairy Tail and formed a small team with the former Tower of Heaven survivors, taking on missions together. 

A few days ago, he had informed Makarov that he needed to take care of some personal matters and left. 

George wasn't entirely sure what was going on, but based on the memories he had seen from Jellal, he suspected that Jellal had gone to settle some unresolved issues with the dark guilds. 

After being manipulated by Ultear, Jellal had followed a dark mage and learned numerous powerful spells. That dark mage was none other than the leader of the Oración Seis—one of the three most powerful dark guilds in existence. 

The Oración Seis was indeed formidable, but Jellal wasn't weak either. So, George wasn't too concerned. 

Still, since they were guildmates now, it was only natural to check in on him. 

More importantly, George had been studying Heavenly Body Magic under Jellal recently and still had many unanswered questions. 

"He sent a message via a magic lacrima, saying he hasn't finished his business yet. He won't make it back in time for the festival." 

Makarov waved a hand as he responded. 

"That's a shame." 

George sighed. 

He had hoped that if Jellal returned, he could ask him a few more questions about Heavenly Body Magic before setting off on the Century-Old Mission. 

But it looked like he would have to wait until he completed the mission—or until he became a Dragon Slayer Mage—to continue his studies. 

(End of Chapter)