Mini Riyao

Countless miniature Riyao were scattered all over the ground, densely packed, like a pot of boiled beans.

Each miniature Riyao is only the size of a palm, but its facial features and expressions are clearly visible; some are rubbing their heads, some are patting their bottoms, and some are pushing each other.

The chattering and noise blended together, and the entire guild hall suddenly became lively.

"Over here, over here!"

You stepped on my foot!

"Who's stepping on whom? I'm younger than you!"

"Stop pushing! Stop pushing!"

Gildarts scratched the back of his head, looking at the miniature Riyao scattered all over the ground, his expression a little guilty.

"I accidentally lost control."

Mirajane walked out of the kitchen carrying a curry chicken chop rice bowl, and paused for a moment when she saw the miniature Riyao scattered all over the floor.

She blinked, looked down at the ground, then looked up at Gildarts.

"Huh? What are you guys playing?"

She placed the food in front of Gildarts, then bent down and reached out to gently pick up a miniature Riyao from the ground.

The miniature Riyao was the closest to her feet. She grabbed it by the scruff of its neck and lifted it up. Its limbs dangled in the air for a moment, then it gave up struggling and lay peacefully in Mirajane's palm.

Mirajane held the miniature Riyao up to her eyes, her eyes sparkling.

"Riyao looks so cute."

Mini Riyao rolled around in her palm, lying on its back with its limbs outstretched, just like a kitten sunbathing.

"I feel like this is fine too."

Mini Riyao rolled over and nestled against the edge of Mirajane's palm, peering down.

"From now on Mira can just put me in her pocket when she goes out, so she won't have to walk."

Mirajane tilted her head and thought for a moment, then tried to tuck the mini Riyao into her collar.

Mini Riyao's little legs barely touched the edge of its clothes before it sprang up, its tiny arms flailing wildly in the air.

"Hey!! There's a kid here! I meant Pocket! Pocket!"

Mini Riyao's little face turned bright red.

"The cheongsam I'm wearing today doesn't have pockets."

Mirajane blinked, looking completely innocent.

"That's about the same as not thinking about it."

"Much worse!!"

The miniature Riyao on the ground protested in unison, their voices as synchronized as if they had rehearsed.

Gildarts was driven crazy by the noise of these little creatures, so he waved his hand, and a beam of light swept across the ground.

All the miniature Riyao simultaneously transformed into points of light, then coalesced back into a human shape.

Riyao restored everything to its original state, stood by the bar, and straightened his disheveled clothes.

"Goodness, thank goodness you didn't learn the Crush Magic. Otherwise, you would have ruined a perfectly good spell."

Gildarts picked up a spoon, scooped up a large mouthful of curry rice, and stuffed it into his mouth.

"Huh, how did it recover?"

Mirajane looked at her empty palms, her tone clearly filled with disappointment.

"I haven't had enough fun yet."

"Ugh, it's so upsetting to look at."

Gildarts swallowed the chicken in his mouth, gave a casual reply, and continued eating.

Riyao stretched his neck, and since he had nothing better to do, he glanced at Lucy, who was leaning on the bar.

"Lucy, you never do any quests or train, you just lie here all day. Next time you run into another weird enemy, you're going to suffer a lot."

"You know what."

Lucy looked up, resting her chin on her arm, her face filled with utter despair.

"I'm puzzled too. Every time I fight, the opponents I'm assigned are all weirdos, it's like the whole world's weird enemies are lining up to target me."

"Oh no, Little Lucy is in such a sorry state."

Gildarts looked up from his plate, curry sauce still smeared on his lips.

"Want to learn Crush Magic from me? No matter what kind of weird enemy they are, we'll take them down one by one without them making a sound."

Mirajane shook his head and picked up a towel to wipe his hands.

"No, Lucy will collapse after casting Crush Magic only a few times. Crush Magic consume too much energy. Uncle, you only find it easy because you have a lot of magic by nature."

Lucy has resigned herself to her fate.

She sighed and buried her face in her arms.

"Forget it, at least this Nerfed Star Dress lets me fight head-on. It's better than having to hide behind the Celestial Spirit before."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the guild door was slammed open.

Natsu and Happy rushed in, both covered in dust, but their faces were full of excitement.

Natsu ran to the counter and slammed several crumpled request forms onto the surface, making a loud thud as the papers hit the table.

"Mira! Settle my bill! And get me and Happy some food, we're starving!"

Mirajane glanced at the order forms and pushed them in front of Riyao.

"Let's register Riyao first, I'll go prepare the food."

She turned and walked into the kitchen, the straps of her apron swaying gently behind her.

Riyao took the order forms and looked through them one by one.

Each authorization form bears the signature of the principal; the handwriting varies, but all signatures are clear and legible.

He pulled a register from under the bar, turned to the latest page, picked up a pen, and began registering.

"Alright, let's show it to the old man later."

Riyao closed the notebook and looked up at Natsu.

"By the way, did you guys cause any trouble on this trip?"

"No, no!" Natsu immediately shook his head, his head bobbing like a rattle-drum.

We're being extra careful this time!

But when he said this, his eyes darted around, and he turned his neck to one side, refusing to look into Riyao's eyes.

"Really?" Riyao squinted. "Happy, you tell me."

"Aye."

Happy raised his paw, looking serious.

"Natsu didn't cause much damage this time."

So, that means there was a little bit of damage?

I didn't say that.

Happy immediately lowered his paws, his expression as innocent as a newborn kitten.

Lucy leaned on the bar counter, turning her head to look at Natsu.

"Natsu, what kinds of requests did you take on this trip?"

"Ah, let me think!" Natsu counted on his fingers.

"The first one was a wild boar! That boar was huge, taller than a person! And its tusks were this long!"

Natsu spread his arms out to demonstrate.

"Natsu burned down a small patch of forest while hunting wild boars," Happy added from the side.

"The second was catching the bandits! Those bandits stole a lot of treasure, and we chased them for a whole day and night!"

Natsu accidentally burned some of the treasure while chasing the bandits.

"The third one... oh right! The most interesting one was retrieving the client's treasure from a strange bird's nest! That strange bird's nest was built on a cliff, and it was extremely difficult to climb!"

"Natsu roasted all the eggs in the strange bird's nest. They smell pretty good."

As Riyao listened, he made notes in the register, his pen scribbling across the paper.

Natsu was excitedly telling Lucy his adventure stories, while Happy was reporting the list of destructions to Riyao.

Two voices rang out simultaneously from either side of the bar, one passionate and the other calm and indifferent, the contrast so stark it made one want to laugh.

As Lucy listened, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"So Natsu, how many decent things did you actually do on this trip?"

"Hmm? You did it all!" Natsu said matter-of-factly.

"And then you burned everything that could be burned, right?"

"That was an accident!"

Mirajane carried a large platter of meat and a large platter of fish out of the kitchen and placed them on the bar.

The meat was a perfectly grilled steak, charred and fragrant, and the fish was Happy's favorite saury, still steaming hot.

"Eat."

Natsu and Happy pounced on the food at the same time, one on the meat and the other on the fish, their movements perfectly synchronized.

Mirajane leaned against the bar, watching the two wolf down their food, and asked with a smile.

Are you going to continue working on other commissions?

"Mmm!" Natsu's mouth was stuffed full of meat, his cheeks puffed out like a hamster's. "I still have a few requests left. Let's go after I finish eating!"

Riyao closed the register, glanced at Natsu's eating habits, and then looked at the notes in his hand.

"Okay, I've noted down the damage. The compensation will be deducted from your commission."

"Huh?!" Natsu almost choked.

"I didn't cause any damage!"

"You swear to Happy."

"Hmm..."

Natsu lowered his head and quickened his pace of eating the meat.

Happy calmly continued eating his fish.