Rhodes naturally refused to let Mira face danger alone. He pressed down on Mira's arm and led her towards the roadside.
Mira seemed momentarily stunned, then obediently stepped back to the side of the road.
Rhodes stood alone in the middle of the street. He kicked at the wrist of the bag snatcher, causing the dagger to fly into the air.
"Damn it..."
Before the snatcher could even finish his sentence, Rhodes had already grabbed his wrist. He twisted his body to the side and forcefully used his shoulder to execute a textbook Kana's shoulder throw!
With a dull thud, the snatcher's body hit the ground heavily, and the bag in his hand flew out.
Without even looking up, Rhodes casually extended his right hand and caught the falling dagger by its hilt.
Nailed it!
Rhodes was quite satisfied with his performance, though he did mess up a little bit afterward.
His original plan was to catch the dagger and then squat down to intimidate the bag snatcher by stabbing it into the ground beside his ear, but he had overlooked a few details.
First, the ground of the commercial street was paved with bluestone, not the softer soil like in the guild.
Second, the bag snatcher was just an ordinary person, not as sturdy as a mage.
Rhodes had applied the same force as if he was sparring with a fellow guild member, which ended up making the snatcher cough up blood and faint instantly. There was no need to intimidate him further.
"Uh... Did I go too hard? I didn't mean to..." Rhodes squatted down guiltily to check on him. The guy was still breathing, but his arm was likely fractured.
"It's fine. Armed robbery is a serious crime. The city guards will take care of him," Mira said, picking up the fallen bag. "Let's wait for the owner here."
Some of the bystanders had already gone to fetch the city guards, and the person who had been shouting earlier also ran over.
"Isn't that Miss Mira?"
"She's a mage from Fairy Tail!"
Someone quickly recognized Mira, and also noticed the guild emblem partially exposed under Rhodes's short sleeves.
Someone went to check the snatcher's injuries, and rather than sympathizing with him, some onlookers even appeared envious.
To be beaten up by a Fairy Tail mage and only end up unconscious and with a broken arm—what good luck this guy had.
Hearing their compliments and strange remarks, Rhodes looked towards Mira with a hint of confusion. "Did I just embarrass Fairy Tail?"
"Not at all," Mira smiled. "You looked really cool just now~"
And the guild's reputation remained the same as ever: "They're all good people, but sometimes lack a sense of propriety."
The bag's owner was a somewhat plump lady with a slightly outdated hairstyle, her cheeks painted with blush.
Mira handed the bag over, "Please check if anything's missing."
"Thank you so much! There's something very important in the bag... Huh?" The lady was momentarily taken aback upon seeing Mira's face, and then noticed Rhodes's emblem.
"Are you from... Oh, what a coincidence! My husband is also in your guild. His name is Wakaba!"
The lady gestured towards her forehead, "You know, the one with hair like this, always smoking."
"Ah, so you're Mrs. Wakaba! I'm Mirajane, and this is Rhodes," Mira replied naturally.
"He often talks about you and your daughter. Without you, his life would be a mess."
"Really? He said that?" The lady looked both pleased and a bit bashful, "So he actually knows that."
"Yes, yes, Mr. Wakaba indeed mentions you quite a lot." Rhodes chuckled awkwardly.
He certainly did mention her often, though it was mostly complaints.
Rhodes found Mira's way of speaking quite clever—the first half, "He often talks about you..." was true, while the second half, "Without you..." was her assumption.
But putting them together created a subtle misunderstanding. And even if the lady asked Wakaba about it later, he probably wouldn't be foolish enough to deny it.
The lady then asked if Wakaba still leered at the waitresses at the guild or flicked his cigarette ash around, to which Mira responded with polite smiles and ambiguous answers.
Though Mira could be mischievous, she wasn't one to say things that could disrupt someone's family harmony.
Rhodes silently took notes on the art of conversation for a while, until the city guards, dressed in brown uniforms, hurriedly arrived.
Wakaba's wife explained the situation, confirming that Rhodes was acting out of bravery.
The city guard checked the snatcher's injuries, confirmed that he wasn't going to die, and ordered his men to carry him away. They also took the dagger as evidence.
As Mira had said, armed robbery was a serious crime in this country. Rhodes not only avoided trouble but also received thanks.
Magnolia Reputation +10.
The matter was quickly resolved, and the lady also said goodbye to Mira, whom she found very likable.
"By the way, this is for you, just a small token of my gratitude." She stuffed two tickets into Rhodes's hand.
She glanced at Mira, then at Rhodes, and whispered with a smile, "Young man, do your best, okay?"
"Huh? I..." Rhodes glanced at the tickets—"Honey Sweets House New Opening Complimentary Voucher"—but before he could decline, the lady had already walked away.
"What did she say?" Mira asked.
"Uh... She gave us some vouchers." Rhodes thought for a moment and handed both to her. "Do you like desserts?"
"It opens next month." Mira took one, waving it lightly. "How about we go together and try it?"
"Uh... Sure." Next month, just a little over a week away. Desserts, huh? Rhodes felt a small sense of anticipation.
"Now then, it's time to get down to business." Mira put away the voucher and pulled out a shopping list, unfolding a long piece of paper.
Rhodes peeked at it and clutched his pendant, thinking he'd better ask the river crab to carry it all back later.
The vibrancy of the shopping street was somewhat different from what Rhodes had imagined. Compared to the skyscrapers and bustling traffic before he transmigrated, this was more of a mix between a city commercial street and a village market.
There were quite a few people coming and going, and the sound of hawkers calling out was constant. There were large, well-established stores as well as small roadside stalls.
Considering that Magnolia had a population of only about 60,000, this shopping street was quite impressive.
Mira carefully picked out high-quality fruits, vegetables, and meats, haggling skillfully with the various shopkeepers in her sweet voice.
Rhodes followed her step by step, occasionally taking a food bag, sometimes watching her select ingredients, sometimes looking around at the surroundings.
There were wilted vegetable leaves casually discarded near the vegetable stall, the area in front of the seafood store was wet and littered with small puddles.
A gust of wind carrying the smell of fish blew by, a scruffy little dog ran past, and people bustled about with their shopping...
This scene, it looked a lot like real life.
"Rhodes? Let's go, next we need to order some wine."
Mira's pleasant voice pulled Rhodes back to reality. In front of him was that familiar smiling face, and his heart started to beat a little faster.
He used to think this smile was far away from him, but now it suddenly felt very close.
"What's wrong, tired?"
"No, let's go."
"The word 'we' is really nice."
He... just had a tiny unrealistic thought.