Farewell, My Admired Heroines

Less than a kilometer from the guild hall, a leisurely stroll wouldn't even take twenty minutes.

However, the tempting aromas wafting from the various breakfast stalls and shops along the way somewhat hindered Rhode's progress.

Warm was even more troubled than him, its large tongue lolling out, its eyes unsure where to look.

The variety of food here was as diverse as the clothing styles, with Chinese, European, and Japanese options readily available.

Rhode picked out a steamed bun stall that looked appealing and bought two buns, one for himself and one for Warm.

Rhode only ate half, giving the remaining half to Warm.

He felt he shouldn't waste anything until his finances improved; buying this was less worthwhile than eating a bowl of noodles at the guild.

Warm, on the other hand, ate with great delight. Perhaps it was because the Howling Abyss was such a resource-scarce place, but the child wasn't picky at all.

"Good morning, Mira."

"Good morning, Rhode, and Warm."

Laki arrived a little late today, apologizing breathlessly as soon as she got there, "Sorry, I was tidying up my collection this morning and lost track of time."

Mira said, "It's alright, it's not too busy this morning, and Rhode is here to help now."

"Collection?" Rhode was quite curious about what Laki collected. Wood carvings? After all, she used wood-style magic.

"Laki's collection is quite interesting," Mira said with a smile. "If you ever get a chance, Rhode, you absolutely must visit."

Rhode had already gotten a glimpse of Mira's mischievous side. Looking at Mira's smile, he felt things weren't that simple.

"Unfortunately, male students are strictly forbidden from entering the girls' dormitory. However, I can bring one or two smaller items for you to see if I have time."

Laki adjusted her glasses, and the white light reflecting off the lenses made Rhode feel even more uneasy.

"Just to ask, it's not anything scary, is it?"

"How could it be? They're all very cute collectibles!"

Rhode grew more suspicious. Mira wouldn't say anything, just smiling, as if anticipating Rhode's 'surprised' expression.

He'd find out sooner or later anyway, so Rhode put his curiosity aside and decided to eat a bowl of noodles first.

After he had eaten his fill, the guild hall gradually became lively. The Master, dressed in casual clothes and holding a wooden staff, appeared and sat cross-legged on the counter as usual, watching the children play and laugh.

If someone didn't know the situation, seeing him like this, they would probably think he was just an ordinary, kind old man.

"Master, regarding my magic, there's something I'd like to ask you about..."

After finishing his assigned chores, Rhode immediately approached Makarov to explain his situation.

"Is that so? Then let's try it now. We'll go behind the guild hall."

Makarov was actually a little touched. This child was actually coming to seek his opinion before doing something potentially dangerous!

His level of maturity already surpassed over ninety percent of the Fairy Tail members.

"Also, 'asking about anything' isn't the correct usage."

"Oh."

Rhode waved goodbye to Mira, leaving Warm to play in the tavern, and headed towards the back door with the Master.

Behind the guild hall was a large courtyard, with bluestone walls. In the center was an iron gate with the Fairy Tail emblem hanging on it.

Rhode looked out through the gaps in the gate. Outside was an endless expanse of water. The morning sun cast orange-red light onto the water's surface, which was then shattered by a gentle breeze, filling his vision with shimmering light.

As someone who wasn't very disciplined, Rhode hadn't seen the morning sun for a long time since starting university.

"So the back of the guild hall is the sea?"

"No, it's a lake, just a very large one." Makarov knew Rhode's general knowledge was still lacking, so he added, "Magnolia is an inland city. To see the sea, you have to take a train to Harujion. That's a port city, and the scenery is quite nice."

"Then I must go see it someday," Rhode set another small goal.

"It's good to have places you want to go. Makarov's biggest worry is that Rhode will lose his direction.

In the current situation, as long as he has something he wants to do, whether it's learning magic or traveling, it's all good.

"Alright, let's begin."

"Okay." Rhode took out a pendant from his collar and recited the incantation again.

This time, a vortex appeared from the ground. Moreover, what he felt through the vortex was no longer a cold wind, but moist water vapor, and he could faintly see the shadows of aquatic plants.

The vortex disappeared, and Rhode felt the magic within him pour out like a flood, vanishing by more than half in an instant.

Ripples like a water surface spread across the ground, and a creature nearly 1.5 meters tall and about 2 meters long, covered in green armor, emerged from the water ripples.

It had six legs, a pair of short pincers, and a pair of bright green eyes and antennae that looked like twin ponytails on its head.

It felt a bit wider than a regular minivan, shorter, and also shorter.

"Is this... a crab?" Makarov looked up slightly at the creature taller than him.

"I think so..." When it appeared, Rhode already knew the name of this big guy. "It's called a Canyon Swiftclaw, from the riverways of Summoner's Rift. Its characteristic is... it runs very fast?"

Canyon Swiftclaws are commonly known as River Crabs, Crabs, Riverway Crabs, and so on.

It's like Poro, a creature from the game League of Legends, just not on the same map.

To be precise, it comes from the Serpentine River, or the Serpentine River, though Rhode, like most players, doesn't know the name of that river.

Unlike Poro, which is like a mascot, the Canyon Swiftclaw is a neutral creature, commonly known as a wild monster, and killing it yields money and experience points.

In the game, the River Crab is probably the weakest type of wild monster because—

It! Does! Not! Attack!

It's said that in ancient versions, the River Crab used to have attack power, but when Rhode played, it was a wild monster that just ran away when hit.

This thing should be one of Tatsuya's favorite wild monsters; almost every time he supports Rhode on the lane, Tatsuya has to brush a River Crab to liven things up.

He can forgo kills, but he must brush the River Crab.

Rhode wasn't too disappointed that his second summon might still lack attack power.

Because what was more disappointing was that his summoning path might be different from what he imagined.

He thought he would get help from various beautiful... various powerful heroes, but now it seems it can only be wild monsters.

Rhode held the necklace Tatsuya gave him with mixed feelings. Should he say it's worthy of being a necklace from an arrogant jungler?

If this continues, he might as well change his name from Rhode to Ivern.

Despite his internal grumbling, he still had to practice the magic.

Even though it wasn't the direction he expected, being able to summon wild monsters was still powerful.

If one day he could summon the Baron or the Dragon, wouldn't he be invincible?

Putting those thoughts aside, the size of this Swiftclaw was somewhat beyond Rhode's understanding.

But then again, thinking about the size difference between heroes and River Crabs in the game, it seemed to be about that big.

Although this guy had no offensive capabilities in the game, in reality, just based on its size, a bump could probably be quite deadly, right?

Rhode felt the tangible magical connection between himself and the Swiftclaw, and with the Guild Master by his side, he mustered the courage to approach it.

As if understanding Rhode's thoughts, the Swiftclaw gently lowered its body, allowing Rhode to place his hand between its two antennae—it should count as a head pat.

It felt cool and a bit damp, but thankfully, there was no fishy smell.

"Do you have any special abilities I don't know about?"

Rhode felt that game settings might change when mapped to this magical world, so he asked.

Actually, he had asked Poro Warm the same question...

Then Warm had performed skills like clinging to his leg, jumping into his arms, and eating for him, which were very 'impressive'.

Now, Rhode could only hope that this Canyon Swiftclaw would bring him a little surprise.