Mira certainly wasn't fighting alone.
Rhode had already transformed into a Shadow Wolf, lurking in the distant shadows, truly protecting her from the dark.
It's not that he thought Mira would be harmed by some petty traffickers; he was mainly concerned about some peculiar, unforeseen magic.
Therefore, Rhode had made some preparations both above and below ground.
Isn't this akin to risking one's wife to catch a wolf?
Though if a wolf met this wife of ours, it would only flee.
"Achoo~" The adorable blue-haired little girl sneezed, looking even more pitiable.
Under Mira's superb acting, someone finally took notice of her.
A group of three, one quickly walked past her from behind, did nothing, and after passing, stopped at the alley entrance, glancing left and right.
The other two were on either side of the street, keeping a distance from each other as they walked toward her as if they were complete strangers.
One of them brushed past the little girl, took out a cigarette and lit it, the smoke suspiciously lingering as it curled toward the girl's nose.
Mira immediately realized what it was, held her breath, walked forward a few steps, and then pretended to feel sleepy, softy falling forward.
Before she hit the ground, the third person suddenly pulled out a sack and covered her head with it, skillfully tying the bag shut.
He then, like magic, took out a carrying pole and two large baskets, placing the sack inside, and picked up the pole like a peddler, leaving.
The three continued pretending not to know each other, each going their separate way.
To kidnap a child with such meticulous preparation, no wonder they were never caught.
And before leaving the guild, Rhode was discussing with Mira about sacking Laxus, and today Mira got sacked... it felt a bit peculiar.
Rhode remembered the scent of the two unarmed people, not sending beasts to trail them to avoid alerting the enemy.
He just kept a distant shadowy track of the person with the pole.
Rhode saw the town's patrol meet the peddler head-on; the peddler stopped to chat with their captain, looking very familiar.
Damn, it was an inside job.
There were evildoers among the town's residents, luckily they hadn't gone to meet the mayor first, avoiding leaks of information.
Also luckily, Mira's little face was smudged with dirt, and blue-haired people weren't rare either. Perhaps he couldn't recognize all the town's children.
The peddler, carrying his load, took multiple turns outside town; when familiar people asked, he claimed he was off to a nearby village to do business.
But when he reached a quiet, remote path, his steps turned, entering a secluded little forest.
After more twists and turns, he arrived at a desolate mountain.
Rhode assessed the surroundings, deeming it unsuitable for the Shadow Wolf to hide, so he switched to the Stone Beetle form, lurking underground, revealing only his head.
The Stone Beetle head looked like an ordinary stone, not very conspicuous.
In a nook of the desolate mountain, there was an inconspicuous grass hut; one fat, one thin person came out complaining: "So slow, why dawdle so long today?"
"Don't speak so lightly, you don't know how tense the town is now; no one dares let a child walk the streets alone." The peddler set down his load, untied the sack for his companions to 'inspect the goods.'
The fat one smacked his lips: "Though dirty, seems like a good seedling; no wonder they say your town produces beauties."
"It won't be 'our town' anymore; this is the last one, probably snuck out to play." The peddler stretched his shoulders, "Judging by the recent conditions, any more attempts would have to break into homes."
Transformation Magic is a wonderful power, where weight seems to reduce with body size.
For instance, if Macao turned into a small lizard, Romeo could easily grab him by the tail.
So the peddler didn't notice the weight of Mira's transformed state differed from an ordinary little girl.
The thin one grabbed the bag's opening, carried her inside, offhandedly remarking, "With Misty's Smoke Magic, breaking in isn't a problem."
The fat one added, "That makes nine, and Black Bear will bring another from Lelake Village; once Misty and crew return, we'll depart."
Lelake Village was the village the peddler claimed he was off to for business.
"Why send Black Bear?" The peddler was worried, "That guy is too reckless."
The fat one replied, "It's the last one anyway; even if he snatches openly, what can ordinary people do to him?"
Mira, who'd just been dragged inside and planned to jump out and give each a slap, decided to wait a bit longer upon hearing their conversation.
Rhode had the same thought; he first sneaked further away, sending a team of Shadow Wolves to quietly head to Lelake Village, preventing the reckless Black Bear from causing harm.
After completing this, Rhode continued watching from afar.
He was contemplating learning Telepathy Magic, so he could chat with Mira during boring times, and quietly coordinate strategies when needed.
After a while, the peddler's two compatriots returned; they were the lookout and smoke-deployment guys.
A faint sobbing sound from within the grass hut made one a bit agitated; Rhode pondered whether to jump out and take down these people and then catch Black Bear.
Finally, a figure appeared at the road's end, carrying a sack on their shoulder, another following behind—presumably an accomplice.
"Finally back!" Misty, squatting at the door smoking, stood up, "Take care of the kids, time to go!"
This seemed to be the whole crew: the fat and thin two, the peddler trio, and Black Bear's duo—seven in total.
Shortly Mira would receive Lalabi's Soul, hum a few tunes, and safely escort the kids away.
Releasing beasts would work too, but it would likely scare the kids, a lullaby was better.
Things suddenly took an unexpected turn.
When Black Bear reached the grass hut's entrance with the sack, instead of placing it onto the car prepared by his companions, he looked at Misty:
"In Black Bear's eyes, Misty: adept at using Smoke Magic, cautious and meticulous. Though quite prudent, he's rather nagging."
Rhode felt a bit mocked, and sensed something was off with Black Bear.
Misty sensed something was wrong; the peddler was puzzled, "Black Bear? Suddenly spouting nonsense?"
Black Bear turned to the peddler, continuing: "In Black Bear's eyes, Padeleer: a recently acquainted outsider, just as cautious as Misty. Proficient in Requip Magic, a handy fellow, claims to be a Demon Swordsman, but is inept in fights."
"You're not Black Bear! Who are you?" Misty clenched the cigarette in his hand, pointing at the cloaked person behind, "And who are you?"
"Receive: Beast Soul—Black Bear!" Black Bear really transformed into a Black Bear, roaring and charging, his claw striking Misty.
"What?" Misty was shocked; it was clearly Black Bear's magic!
The cigarette in his hand emitted thin smoke, but couldn't block the bear's claw.
The bear's paw struck Misty's chest, sending him flying into a tree, knocking him unconscious.
Padeleer's hand produced a longsword, but he didn't dare attack: "Get out here, Black Bear's gone mad!"
The fat and thin guys, along with the lookout, rushed over: "What's happening?"
"Since everyone's here, it's more convenient." The cloaked person finally spoke, it was a slightly crisp female voice.
"Black Bear! Who is she?" shouted the thin guy.
Black Bear didn't speak; the thin one then shouted at the cloaked figure, "What did you do to Black Bear?"
"I'm not interested in telling my name to filthy small fry like you." The cloaked lady didn't remove her hat, merely extending a blue-gloved hand from under the cloak, holding two golden keys between her fingers.
Rhode recognized it at once, Star Spirit Keys, and they were golden! Zodiac?
"Open, Gate of the Scorpio: Scorpio!"