Sigh

In the Fairy Tail guild hall, Riyao was being scolded.

The office door was closed, the curtains were drawn, and only the desk lamp emitted a dim, yellowish light.

Makarov stood on the desk, his short body trembling slightly with anger, his mustache bristling like two brushes, and he roared as he poked Riyao's nose with his finger.

"You brat! Do you know what you're doing?! You might very well be cursed by the god Ankhseram!"

His voice echoed in the closed office, the documents on the desk rattled, and water spilled from the teacup.

Riyao lowered his head, his hands behind his back, like a schoolboy who had made a mistake, obediently listening to a scolding.

But he couldn't help but retort in a low, muffled voice.

"I asked God Ankhseram."

Enraged, Makarov jumped onto the table. His small frame gave him amazing jumping ability. He grabbed Riyao's ear, yelled at the top of his lungs, and spat all over Riyao's face.

"Give Him back! Do you even know the consequences of being cursed by Him?!"

Riyao tilted his head to cooperate with Makarov's ear-pulling motion, but his expression remained calm, even somewhat nonchalant.

"Well, strictly speaking, I only created a puppet and linked it to the life force within the crystal ball. It's not like I pulled a dead person back from the underworld; at most, it's just... a transformation of life form?"

Makarov's beard trembled with anger, and he was about to continue scolding him when Riyao suddenly reached out and hugged Makarov's short body, pulling him into his arms with a wicked smile.

"How about I hold you for a while and see if it triggers Death Hunt?"

Makarov froze instantly, his cloudy old eyes widened, and the anger on his face turned into terror.

He struggled desperately, his short, thick arms flailing wildly in Riyao's arms, his beard bristling.

"Let me go! Quickly... Riyao, you're a good boy, let me go!"

Riyao held him tightly, deliberately tightening his arms to hug Makarov even more.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Makarov's heart was in his throat, and the hairs on his body stood on end.

Five seconds, ten seconds, fifteen seconds...

Nothing happened.

Riyao released his grip, and Makarov plopped down on the table, panting heavily, a fine layer of cold sweat beading on his forehead.

He looked up and glared at Riyao, wanting to curse but unable to, and finally could only let out a heavy snort.

"She definitely doesn't love me."

Outside the door, several people were pressed against the door, trying to eavesdrop, their ears pressed against the door panel and their eyes wide open.

Unfortunately, Makarov activated a soundproofing magic circle, and not a sound could get through the crack in the door; only the door panel could be seen vibrating slightly from time to time.

Gray was crying in the hallway, sobbing uncontrollably, like a hailstorm.

Tears streamed down her face like beads from a broken string, pattering down her cheeks, and snot was running down her face. She cried like a two-hundred-pound child.

Ur laughed heartily, his wooden body creaking as he reached out and patted Gray's head. He didn't control his strength well, and Gray's head tilted to one side.

"Haha! Gray is still such a crybaby! Just like when he was a kid!"

Gray wiped his face, forcefully wiping away his tears and snot, and retorted with red eyes, his voice hoarse and muffled.

"I wasn't crying! There was hail in my eyes!"

Beside him, Natsu was laughing so hard he was rolling around on the floor, clutching his stomach and stomping his heels on the ground.

"Gray cried so dramatically! Haha... Hail! He said he got hail in his eyes! Haha!"

The others laughed more restrainedly, but their shoulders were still twitching. Some covered their mouths and chuckled, some turned away with their shoulders shaking, and some simply buried their faces in their wine glasses.

Gray just wanted to disappear into the ground. He covered his face with his hands, the skin peeking out from between his fingers was burning red, and even the tips of his ears were red.

Riyao was thrown out of the office by Makarov, and the door slammed shut from the inside, almost trapping his heel.

Mirajane immediately came up to ask with concern, her long silver hair shimmering in the corridor light, her eyes filled with worry.

Is there a problem?

Riyao shifted his body, not wanting to stick close to Mirajane, and took a step to the side.

Mirajane frowned. Usually, by this time Riyao would have rushed over to hug and kiss her. Why was he avoiding her today?

"There's nothing wrong, it's just that the old man has a bad temper."

She took a step closer, and he took a step back.

She moved closer, and he moved away again.

The two began circling in the corridor, like two butterflies chasing each other, except one was chasing and the other was fleeing.

Erza, surrounded in the middle, crossed her arms, veins bulging in her reddish-brown eyes, and the veins on her forehead throbbing.

She was so confused by the two of them that she finally snapped and yelled.

"Are you two just using me as part of your game?!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Mirajane pounced on Riyao.

She grabbed Riyao's arm and clung to him, her long silver hair tickling his neck. She tilted her head up and whispered in his ear, her voice both sweet and dangerous.

"Riyao ~ Are you hiding something from me~"

Riyao's eyes began to dart around, his gaze drifting from the ceiling to the floor, then to the potted plants beside him, trying to bluff his way out.

"Looks like we've been discovered after all."

He sighed, his face filled with sorrow.

"Okay, I admit I hid some money from my savings."

Mirajane warned, one hand on her hip, the other tapping Riyao's nose, her silver eyes gleaming with a dangerous light.

Then she dragged Riyao up to the second floor. Riyao was being pulled along, staggering as he walked, and he kept shouting.

"Mira! Mira, let me explain! That money was for a legitimate purpose!"

Mirajane whispered in Riyao's ear, "You think I believe you?"

The good news is that I wasn't cursed.

The bad news is I'll have to sleep by the door again tonight.

The people on the first floor trembled as they listened to the sounds of domestic violence coming from the second floor.

The crackling sounds, Riyao's screams, and Mirajane's silvery laughter mingled together, creating a particularly eerie atmosphere.

Macao and Wakaba exchanged a glance, seeing a tacit understanding of shared misfortune in each other's eyes.

They silently raised their glasses, saluted the second floor, then clinked glasses and drank in one gulp, as if bidding farewell to their comrades.

Riyao walked downstairs with a black eye, one eye bruised, his hair disheveled, and his collar askew.

But Mirajane was laughing happily, her long silver hair brushing against his shoulder, her face beaming with a blissful smile, showing no trace of the domestic violence she had just committed.

●_●

After laughing at Gray, the guild members laughed at Riyao.

Riyao expressionlessly pulled out the black leather notebook, opened the cover, took out a pen, and glanced around the hall to see who had laughed out loud.

The moment it was taken out, everyone stopped laughing.

The members, who were just laughing, froze on their faces, as if a pause button had been pressed.

Some people swallowed their laughter, some pretended to cough to cover it up, and some simply turned and left.

The person who used that notebook will suffer terribly the next time they get injured.

While Riyao's healing magic is incredibly effective, the process... well, it will make you experience what it means to be "painfully pleasurable."

Haven't been injured in a long time? Riyao will thoughtfully let the other person get hurt, and then thoughtfully heal them.

Mirajane went to the kitchen to help Lisanna. Riyao casually found a place to sit down, put his hands behind his back, looked up at the ceiling, and his panda eyes were particularly noticeable under the light.

Macao and Wakaba sat down next to him, patting him on the shoulder with heavy, compassionate strokes.

The three sighed simultaneously, their voices unified and weary. "When will the men of Fairy Tail be able to stand up again?"

Makarov came out of his office and saw the three men sitting in a row, sighing and looking very puzzled. He scratched his bald head.

He went over and chatted for a bit, and after understanding the situation, he sat down as well.

The four of them sighed in unison, their voices sounding even more weary than before.

Happy flapped its wings and flew over, tilting its head to look at the four sighing men, and complained with a puzzled expression.

Is this how mature men communicate?

Riyao waved to Alzack at the bar, his eyes filled with a sympathetic plea.

They'll inevitably follow in their footsteps sooner or later; they'll have to learn whether they want to or not. Sharing happiness is worse than enjoying it alone.

Alzack hesitated for a moment, glanced at Bisca next to him, then at Riyao and his "alliance of resentful husbands," and silently walked over and sat down.

The five of them sighed in unison.

Jet and Troy noticed something in common among the five, their eyes lit up, and they eagerly ran over, wanting to join them.

The group glanced at them all at once, giving them a look of disdain that clearly said: You think you're worthy?

Lucy chimed in with her hands on her hips.

"Are there any requirements to join?!"

Jet and Troy were so disgusted that they ran away crying, wailing as they went.

"We have dignity too!"

Mirajane poked her head out from the kitchen, her long silver hair dusted with flour, and called out with a smile.

"Riyao, come in and help me."

Riyao instantly switched to a fawning expression; even his panda eyes couldn't hide the radiant smile on his face, and his voice was so sweet it could melt your heart.

"Here I am!"

He sprang up from his chair and walked briskly toward the kitchen, his back ramrod straight, his tailbone like it had a spring in it.

Macao, Wakaba, and Makarov spat on the ground in perfect unison.

"I'm ashamed to be associated with you."

Riyao walked proudly into the kitchen with his head held high, his steps light as if he were walking on clouds, completely ignoring the scornful shouts behind him.

Behind them came several more weary sighs.