Rhode was telling the truth; this time, he really wasn't prepared, not even having bought the most important ring yet.
He was holding a wooden ring with some embarrassment, unsure if he should take it out, as it was made with magic from a Tree Monster.
Although he tried to make it as ornate and intricate as possible, it was still just wood in the end.
Mira now felt that Rhode was just like a piece of wood.
He had already proposed, she had accepted, they had hugged and kissed — what did it matter what he took out at this point?
Didn't she know that he was short on money lately?
Mira confidently extended her left hand in front of Rhode, her eyes full of encouraging smiles.
Rhode had no choice but to place the ring on her middle finger, saying apologetically, "Use this for now, and we'll replace it with a better one later."
Mira withdrew her hand, glanced at it repeatedly in front of her eyes, and gently caressed the fine patterns on it with her left hand.
She held her hand to her chest like it was a treasure, gently shaking her head, "I'm not changing it; if it's given to me, it's mine, and I don't want to change it."
Who could say which was more precious: something bought personally or something made by hand?
Mira stood on tiptoe and, in front of everyone, kissed him on the cheek again.
Rhode felt like he might have saved the world in his previous life; otherwise, how could he deserve such a wonderful girl?
There was another uproar from the crowd below, some shy girls covered their eyes again, though their fingers splayed wider this time.
Mira leaned into Rhode's embrace, waved with him to everyone below the stage, "Thank you all for your witness and blessings!"
Makarov smiled with benevolence and joy, "To celebrate Rhode's successful proposal, also to celebrate Mira accepting the proposal, let's have a feast!"
"Oh oh oh!!!"
The guild immediately burst into noise, though they usually liked to tease, at times like this, everyone was full of blessings.
The female waitstaff, led by Laki, suddenly felt like their 'ship' had finally come to fruition.
There were the mature members, led by Macao, mumbling, "Why have they only just gotten to the proposal? I thought they were an old married couple."
Gray seemed to have just figured out what was happening, "Rhode really proposed to Mira?"
Proposing to Demon Mira, was it out of fear of dying or because he wasn't afraid of dying?
Jubia blushed, "So... so it was a proposal, and in front of everyone, how bold."
She glanced at Gray, "Gray darling, Jubia also wants to, also, also..."
Her voice grew softer, so much so that Gray couldn't hear her, "Huh? What did you say?"
Not sure what scene she imagined, Jubia was so shy that she defeated herself, covering her face and rolling on the ground, "Jubia~~~~"
What a troublesome woman, why did the president arrange for him to take care of her? Gray moved a little further away from her, joining the feast with glee.
...
True to Fairy Tail's fame, once the feast started, everything else was forgotten.
Whatever reporters, interviews seemed unimportant; by the time Rhode and Mira stepped down from the small stage, more than half of them had forgotten why the feast was even held.
The two 'main characters' were directly forgotten to the side.
Rhode strongly suspected that if they hosted a wedding banquet at home in the future, these people might forget the reason for the feast and directly tear the house apart.
Indeed, it would be better to hold the wedding banquet at the guild; the new guild was solid and could take it.
Rhode went straight to Makarov once he stepped down, "Sorry, President, we agreed to have Mira perform to support the interview, but I ended up messing it up."
"What's the problem? Isn't this nice?" Makarov chuckled as he looked at the two, "So, have you set the wedding date?"
The two exchanged glances, Mira shyly touched her face, "We haven't had the time to discuss that yet."
"Is that so?" Makarov slurped a little drink, "Cheer up~"
He was particularly happy now, mainly because he saw the kids pursuing their happiness with effort.
A secondary reason was Mira being so joyous today, she didn't catch him drinking.
Mira was genuinely happy.
She thought Rhode would wait until he had saved enough money, bought a house, prepared a ring in secret, then propose and marry in one stroke.
This somewhat stubborn guy, what's wrong with getting engaged first?
She never expected that today's request for a performance would result in such unexpected joy; had she known, she would have been singing at his doorstep ages ago.
Mira now felt completely happy, not even knowing what she should be doing.
With a smile on her face, arm-in-arm with Rhode, who had just transitioned from boyfriend to fiancé, she wandered aimlessly in the tavern, evoking a sense of a newlyweds' toast.
"Sister, congratulations!" Elfman cried like a child.
"Really, why are you crying like this when I'm the one being proposed to? Your sleeves are soaked." Mira let go of Rhode and playfully tugged at Elfman's sleeve with a frown.
"Because I'm happy for you, boo hoo... Manly man!" He used the other sleeve to wipe tears as one sleeve was pulled.
Actually, he and Lisana used to worry that their sister might never get married, though neither dared say this out loud, fearing getting beaten.
Sometimes, they thought it wouldn't matter if she never married, as long as the three of them stayed together, they could take care of her.
But with Lisana gone, Elfman often worried he couldn't take care of his sister well.
Now, seeing his sister find a suitable partner felt so wonderful.
"Boo hoo... Rhode, I entrust my sister to you, a man's request!"
"I will do my utmost to protect her, and give all my strength to ensure her happiness."
Rhode held both Mira's shoulder and Elfman's back, trying to embrace the two siblings together. Mira fit into his embrace smoothly, but Elfman…
His brother-in-law's size was indeed too large, and he wasn't cooperating at all.
"Manly man!" Elfman, whether realizing Rhode's intention or responding to his previous words,
still had two streaks of tears on his face as he stretched out his arms, embracing both Rhode and Mira together.
"Sister, Rhode, congratulations! Manly man!"
No wonder he's called the Beast King; his hugging strength felt like it was aimed at breaking the bones of the two in his embrace.
Luckily, Rhode and Mira aren't ordinary people, so being hugged by an emotional brother was hardly an issue.
Rhode even had the mind to joke, "You don't even want to call me brother-in-law."
"Bro... brother-in-law!"
Rhode instantly beamed with joy, having awaited this title for so long.
Mira withdrew her hand to poke Rhode lightly, then wrapped her arm around the two men's waists.
Just as she was recovering from the emotions, Lucy noticed everyone was caught up in the party spirit, and journalist Jason seemed a bit neglected.
Good opportunity!
Judging by Jason's kneeling, slightly trembling stance at the edge of the stage, he must be angry due to the sudden incident and the indifference of everyone, right?
"At a time like this, it's up to the candidate for Fairy Tail's Best Newcomer and the strong contender for Most Beautiful Mage, me, to step up!"
If she could successfully catch Jason's attention, provide valuable news, and even dispel any dissatisfaction he had with the guild using her charm…
Then she would become the guild's great contributor, earn prominent coverage in Weekly Sorashara, and leap into nationwide fame as a mage!
Plans in place!
Lucy approached Jason with the most graceful gait, oh, he must be livid judging by his expression, right?
She carefully chose her words and spoke in a gentle tone, "Excuse me, sorry for the inconvenience, our guild..."
As she spoke, Lucy bent over and extended her hand, intending to pull Jason up.
However...
"COOL! Cool! Cool! COOOOOL!" Jason's face was flushed, not with anger, but with excitement.
The Fairy Tail Strategist has succeeded in proposing, becoming engaged to the renowned model, Demon Mira! What a fantastic news story!
He was so excited that he jumped up from the ground with fists raised.
Unfortunately, this spelled trouble for Lucy.
Standing in a slight bow, Jason's fist hit her jaw, causing her to fall back with her head thrown back.
A small white soul floated out of Lucy's mouth, tears streaming down her cheeks, "Why did this happen..."