"What reason should I use to stop you from moving forward?"
Mira put down the towel, pulled Rhodes up to sit, then dipped into the prepared medicinal solution to help him apply it.
Rhodes smiled, "This scene feels familiar."
"Yes, there was someone covered in wounds, unable to communicate, needing help changing bandages. Now he's uninjured, can communicate, and still needs help applying medicine."
Rhodes joked, "...Who is this person? Only knows how to trouble others, really annoying."
Slap! A palm landed on his back.
"Hiss~~" Rhodes took a sharp breath; whether it hurt or not, he'd pretend it hurt a lot.
Mira suddenly said, "Tomorrow, I'll come practice with you."
"Ah?" Having someone accompany him was certainly good. "Why the sudden decision..."
"I'll help you quickly find the most suitable plan, so you won't end up like this. And..."
Mira lowered her eyes; besides, she didn't want to continue feeling down.
Mira wasn't sure if doing some simple training would be helpful. Wanting to regain her magic power and use Take Over magic again wasn't an easy thing.
But if she could persist like Rhodes, be as positive as Natsu, at least Elfman would feel more at ease.
If this could encourage Elfman to overcome the shadow cast by that incident, it's something she should do as an older sister, right?
Right now, this is all she could do.
...
"It's already so late; didn't Elfman wait for you?"
"Yes, I told him to go home earlier."
"Then... I'll walk you home," Rhodes said naturally. "Recently, many tourists have come to town. It's not very safe for a girl to walk alone at night."
"Sure." Mira smiled. "But we're going in different directions; you'll have to take a long detour to get home."
"No problem. By the time I get you home, my recovered magic power should be enough to summon the Swift Crab."
Actually, his magic power right now... well, it definitely wasn't enough.
"Then I'll trouble you." Mira held her small bag with both hands naturally hanging in front of her, smiling slightly, adding a touch of charm to the night scene.
When the two left the guild, it was already past nine in the evening.
There were no streetlights; they could only rely on the faint glow from the windows of houses along the street.
There were also small festive lights prepared for the celebration, twinkling on and off. Staring at them too long could make one feel a bit dazzled.
The weather was excellent today, with a sky full of stars accompanied by a crescent moon.
Unlike modern big cities, here one could watch the starry sky without interference from city lights.
The two walked slowly along the road. The streets were silent and empty, occasionally accompanied by the chirping of insects.
Rhodes asked, "Are you renting a house here too?"
Mira said, "No, we bought one a few years ago."
"Bought?" Rhodes almost forgot that the person beside him might be a little rich lady.
"Yes, about three years ago, we decided to settle down here. I thought that if we had a house of our own, Elfman and Lisanna would feel more secure."
She could now mention Lisanna to Rhodes quite naturally.
Three years ago, she was only fifteen—the age when, according to this country's laws, one could just start drinking alcohol.
Rhodes thought about himself at fifteen... can't compare, can't compare.
Not just him—many girls in the guild chose to live in dormitories, partly for convenience, partly because they couldn't save enough money.
Like Erza—if she wanted, she definitely had the ability to buy a house in a short time.
But she'd rather spend half a million Jewels a month to rent five dorm rooms to store her armors and various outfits.
Then she'd invest the remaining money into new armors, new clothes, and all kinds of desserts.
Cana also had this ability, but she had a house left by her late mother and unknown father, so she didn't need to work too hard.
A girl like Mira, saving money with her younger siblings to settle down here—not only strong in earning but also skilled in managing a household.
Rhodes asked, "It wasn't easy, was it?"
"Yes, at that time, we worked desperately to save enough money. The three of us went through a lot."
When someone talks about past hardships and believes it was worth it, and can smile about it, does that mean she's relatively happy now?
Mira spoke with a slight smile as she recounted:
"During that time, we worked tirelessly... and when I came to my senses, I had been selected as an S-Class candidate."
"..." Wow, can becoming S-Class be achieved by working hard?
"I thought you were striving to compete with Erza, fighting every day, battling from the guild all the way to the exam site.
In the middle, defeating an innocent Cana before continuing to fight Erza, and after the fight, you passed the exam."
"Don't exaggerate." Mira laughed.
"Although it's not far off. At that time, when I heard Erza was going to be an examiner, I got really fired up.
Looking back now, rushing to fight Erza, I feel my attitude toward Cana during the exam was quite overboard."
"Cana was really pitiful."
"Speaking of which, young Cana was very cute, and so was Erza. Have you seen photos of them when they were little?"
"I haven't!" Rhodes was not just curious about their childhood appearances. "Does the guild have photo albums?"
"Of course, and there are also Reedus's sketchbooks. Let me think..." Mira pondered for a moment. "They should be in some corner of the library."
"I'll look for them tomorrow!"
"Are you that interested?"
"Of course! I'm not just curious about them; I'm also very curious about what the 'She-Devil' looked like."
"Oh my." Mira touched her cheek with one hand. "I feel a bit shy. I looked a bit different back then."
"Now I'm even more looking forward to it," Rhodes said.
"You weren't dark, fat, and covered in freckles as a child, only to grow up to be this beautiful, right?"
"..." Mira raised her handbag as if to hit him. Was that a compliment or not?
Mira's house was an ordinary two-story building, not much different in style from the common houses near the guild.
When Rhodes escorted her downstairs, the lights in the house were still on—Elfman was waiting for her to return.
Looking at the windows glowing with light, it felt different from returning to his own dark house.
"Would you like to come in for a bit?"
"It's already late; maybe next time."
Rhodes felt that going in now might result in a fight with Elfman, which wasn't necessary.
He summoned the Swift Crab, climbed on, and waved to Mira, "See you tomorrow."
Mira stood at the doorway and replied, "See you tomorrow."
...
"Home, huh."
Rhodes felt a bit envious. The big family of the guild was one kind of happiness; having one's own small family was another kind of warmth.
Riding on the back of the crab, enjoying the cool night breeze, Rhodes waved his hand and summoned Wurm.
Wurm, now grown to the size of a basketball, was a perfect cuddle pillow. Rhodes hugged it—warm and soft.
"Humph!" Wurm struggled to escape his clutches. This person had suddenly sent it back earlier, and now suddenly summoned it again.
It was still angry!
"I sent you back earlier to speed up my magic recovery."
Definitely not because you were a third wheel.
Wurm's little horn drooped downward—not believing, not happy.
Rhodes whispered devilishly, "Fried eggs, scrambled eggs, poached eggs, egg custard, egg drop soup..."
Wurm's little horn perked up slightly but tried hard to press it down.
Rhodes thought for a moment, "How about I give you a bath, massage your back, and rub your tummy later?"
"Purrr~!"
Wurm became happy, snuggling in Rhodes's arms.