"The person who claims to be the descendant of General Eli Mansch of the Sai Wen Kingdom, Xi Mansch, has been handed over to the local city hall as requested by the client.
As for the follow-up handling, I think we might need to pay a little attention, that's all."
At the guild's reception, Erza solemnly summarized the key points of the mission.
Makarov nodded with satisfaction.
Erza was someone who gave him peace of mind, while Rhode was the kind who could make even the troublesome ones a bit less of a hassle.
The combination of these two made him extremely satisfied.
Not only did they complete the task beautifully, but their follow-up handling was also excellent. Most importantly, they helped him win against Goldman.
As he expected, Erza + Rhode was indeed greater than Baggs + that other guy.
They were simply a golden team.
Next time something like this comes up, he'll definitely send them again.
However, if there was anything strange...
Makarov wondered, "Why is Rhode so quiet today?"
"Huh?" Rhode responded as if suddenly hearing his name called when he was daydreaming in class.
Ah, this child can also daydream at times. Makarov asked, "Do you have anything to add?"
"No, Erza said it well."
"..." If Erza said it well, then why do you keep looking at Mira? Never mind, Makarov was in too good a mood to ask further, "In any case, you did well. Mira, it's still up to you afterward... Mira?"
"Ah, yes, President."
"..." Why are you blushing? Makarov glanced at Mira, then at Rhode.
Oh~~
The President had seen it all before; with just a little thought, he knew roughly what happened between the two.
He jumped down from the counter, hands behind his back: "In any case, I'll leave it to you."
Ah, youth is a wonderful thing.
Mira lowered her head to write, and after finishing, handed the document to Erza and Rhode to sign.
When Rhode handed back the register and pen,
Their fingers touched, and Mira retracted her hand as if shocked, dropping the pen onto the table.
The two exchanged a glance, and Mira realized she might have overreacted. Normally, she wouldn't even mind such small touches.
Be natural, be natural.
Mira picked up the pen and went back to work nonchalantly.
Affected by her, Rhode also started feeling everything was a bit unnatural, unsure of what to do for a moment.
Erza seemed thoughtful, her scrutinizing gaze drifting between Mira and Rhode: "Could it be, you two are..."
Mira quickly replied, "No!"
Erza's voice overlapped: "Had a fight?"
Rhode looked at Mira's slightly embarrassed look, trying not to laugh, "We didn't fight, really."
After he spoke, he was met with an adorably pouty Mira.
"As long as you didn't fight, we're all comrades here. If there's anything, you should sit down and talk it out clearly." Erza nodded seriously, "If you need a mediator, feel free to ask me."
Rhode glanced at Mira and asked with a smile, "Shall we get a mediation?"
"No, thanks." Mira smiled sweetly and beckoned to Rhode, "Would you like to come inside the counter?"
"...Okay." Surely nothing good awaited, but Rhode chose to walk over.
"Ouch~~" His toes ached; today, it really hurt.
Mira asked with a smile, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, just bumped my knee on the counter." The resilient Rhode took out the account book from behind the counter, "Shall we get started?"
"In that case, I'll be off first." Erza had two armors that needed some repair.
Mira retracted her foot, feeling a bit more normal after the little prank. Since the morning, she didn't know how to talk to Rhode.
Rhode noticed her normal expression had returned and earnestly got back to work: "When was the last time we ordered wine?"
"The day before yesterday."
"What about the expenses?"
"The bill is in the drawer, along with yesterday's food purchase receipts, which I haven't recorded yet."
"Okay."
The two started working seriously, and everything seemed normal, though their eye contact was more frequent than usual.
"Mira, regarding this mission," Gray placed a request form on the table.
"Okay." Mira glanced at it and asked, "Going alone?"
"No, teaming up with Loki."
"Loki?" Mira looked up and around, seeing Loki half-hiding outside the guild's entrance, waving at her.
Mira glanced at Rhode, "Loki's still the same."
Rhode sighed, "I suppose he should more or less get used to my presence by now, right? If I'm always here, is he just not going to work?"
"Who knows?" Gray asked Rhode, "You really haven't done anything to him?"
Rhode said, "Up till now, I've spoken to him no more than ten times, and half of those were during our first practice match."
Gray asked, "Want me to help mediate?"
Rhode glanced at Mira, wondering why everything today seemed to revolve around 'mediation': "If you can manage it."
Mira shot a glare at Rhode; what did he mean by wanting Erza to mediate earlier?
She handed the stamped request form back to Gray: "It's still a bit dangerous, remember to be careful."
"Thanks." Gray took the request form and left, but after a few steps, he turned back, feeling something wasn't quite right with those two today.
"You're so slow, Gray," Loki said, hands in pockets, complaining.
"Sorry, just felt Mira and Rhode were acting strange today."
"What's so strange about it?" Loki adjusted his glasses, "it's obvious they're in love."
"No way?"
Gray, or rather many in the guild, had some inkling of Rhode's little crush on Mira.
Usually, those two seemed quite close, but there was never any clear sign.
Honestly, it seemed Alzack and Bisca were progressing faster than those two.
And even though Mira's personality had changed a lot, to the point where more than just Rhode had a crush on her, and there were many who fancied her, not many dared to officially pursue her.
Demon Mira, after all, everyone in the guild knew how that title came to be.
In fact, there's still a small group who haven't fully adjusted to how Mira is now.
Dating Mira?
That's hard to imagine.
"Trust me, I don't miss these things." Loki's glasses gleamed with wisdom.
"It's not so easy to hide the look of admiration in one's eyes. There were signs before, and now, they might even be..."
"What?"
Loki clasped his hands together, showing a knowing smile: "Making great progress."
Gray gave an expression of disdain; Loki was great in many ways, but his love life was a chaotic mess.
"By the way, when do you plan to make peace with Rhode?"
Moments ago, exuding confidence, now Loki was flustered: "Wha... what peace? We don't have any issues."
"If there's no issue, why hide from him? Don't use that 'I'm not good with Star Spirit Mages' excuse on me, Rhode's not a Star Spirit Mage."
"Even if he's not a Star Spirit Mage, he's still summoning element..."
Loki didn't want to discuss it further and effortlessly switched the topic, "That coat is expensive, is it really alright to just throw it around?"
"Eh?!"