A Pleasant Sound is a Good Head

The tavern was as lively as usual. Erza's intimidating presence had significantly diminished as she spent more time in the guild.

Although she would still step in to lecture when things got too out of hand, well, people tended to forget their troubles once the pain was gone.

Someone would always get drunk and start a fight.

This meant Rhode was sometimes still forced to practice dodging various flying objects.

After getting through the morning work hours, Rhode left Warm behind and dashed off to the library. He wanted to use the Wind Chant Glasses to look at some books about magic.

As for history and geography, he'd put those aside for now. It was enough to occasionally ask Levy for stories.

The pages flipped rapidly, the words and sentences on them reflecting onto the lenses, allowing Rhode to see every sentence clearly.

Rhode finished a 700-page encyclopedia in about twenty minutes.

Rhode now had a basic understanding of many magic types. While it didn't grant him photographic memory, it was equivalent to having read them thoroughly once.

Such an item was incredibly useful for things that didn't require deep study, and even more so for people who enjoyed reading.

For those who didn't need to study in depth but simply wanted to broaden their knowledge, it was an absolute godsend.

A reading speed 32 times faster was truly outrageous. Rhode suspected the Wind Chant Glasses might even incorporate time-related magic.

The inventor was simply a genius.

After returning the encyclopedia to its place, Rhode sat down and closed his eyes to meditate, letting his brain rest for a bit.

After a while, he found books on ancient magic and spatial magic, and continued reading until lunchtime.

"You must be Rhode, right? I'm Marcus, and I use Sand Magic."

A boy with a side-parted hairstyle ordered a drink and sat at the bar, striking up a conversation with Rhode. "I've heard your legends, you're amazing."

Rhode blinked. "I have legends?"

Mira, smiling, poured Marcus a drink and listened with equal curiosity.

Even someone as gossipy as her didn't know about any impressive legends surrounding Rhode.

"You know, before you even joined the guild, you easily dealt with a beast tide and destroyed a large forest!"

Marcus waved his hand. "Truly worthy of being a Fairy Tail Mage! You fit in perfectly here!"

Rhode wanted to clarify the absurd legend, but Marcus didn't give him a chance.

He pressed on, "So, what magic do you use? It must be powerful, right?"

"It's not that powerful. I use..."

"Is it Natsu's Fire Magic? When it comes to destructive power, fire is definitely the strongest, right?"

"No, it's..."

"Then it must be Earth Magic. Its destructive power would be immense in a forest. I heard Jura, one of the Ten Wizard Saints, uses Earth Magic, and also..."

Rhode tried to interject several times but found that the man gave him no opening at all, reminding him of a hairdresser he'd met on the street who was always trying to sign people up for memberships.

"Marcus is the host for all sorts of guild events. He just loves talking to people. And when he drinks, he gets a bit..."

Mira whispered to Rhode, carefully choosing her words. "...he gets a bit chatty. It's hard to get a word in. Just listen quietly until he's done."

"...Alright," Rhode nodded. Compared to Laki, who enjoyed collecting torture devices, Marcus, who became talkative after drinking, was quite normal.

Mira reminded him, "If you don't want to listen, you can just leave. In the guild, if there's something you dislike, you can express it directly. You don't need to force yourself for the sake of politeness."

"It's fine. I'm a bit curious who spread the rumor that I destroyed a forest."

Rhode was a little annoyed. He had been attacked by beasts, so why had he suddenly become a destructive force?

"Y-yes, who would spread such a rumor?" Mira's expression was a little unnatural.

She wasn't the one spreading the rumors; she had simply told her companions the truth about Rhode's origins.

The beast tide and the forest destruction were real events. But somehow, as the story spread, it turned into Rhode easily defeating fierce beasts and destroying the forest.

Mira wasn't entirely sure if she was the primary culprit.

Marcus had been blabbering for nearly five minutes before stopping to take a swig of beer to wet his throat.

Just as Rhode was about to seize the opportunity to ask a question, a beer bottle flew through the air and hit Marcus on the back of the head.

"Pfft~~~~" Marcus sprayed half his beer out in one go. "Who was that!"

The answer to that question was almost obvious.

Marcus turned around and saw the conspicuous brawl in the tavern. Without a word, he joined in.

Rhode dodged quickly and wasn't sprayed with beer.

Mira skillfully took out a rag and wiped down the counter, then watched her companions fight with a smile.

The fighting continued until someone, it was unclear who, knocked over Erza's plate.

The air fell into a brief silence. Natsu and Gray tried to sneak away stealthily.

"That's enough!" Erza shot up, her armored fist landing equally on everyone's head.

Natsu, Gray, and Marcus, among others, clutched their heads and collapsed onto the floor.

Erza clenched her fists. "Fine! Since you all want to fight so badly, I'll fight you. We'll fight until one side can't stand up anymore!"

"Aye!" Happy, the blue cat, stood on the table and raised his hand, gloating. "They already can't stand up!"

"Heh heh..." Mira chuckled merrily. "It's just like this again."

That word, 'again,' was perfectly chosen. In just a few simple words, Rhode gained a full understanding of this guild.

"Here," Mira brought out a pudding. "Give this to Erza when the time is right."

Rhode was confused. "The right time?"

Mira pointed at Erza and smiled without saying a word.

Just then, Erza, who had been so imposing moments ago, suddenly trembled. As if she had lost her soul, she staggered back to her seat.

She didn't sit down. Instead, she crouched down and picked up a pile of broken ceramic shards and smashed sweets from the floor. "My... strawberry pudding..."

The majestic Fairy Queen was now as helpless as a little girl.

"Oh my, Erza's like this is so cute," Mira said, cradling her face and enjoying a peculiar pleasure.

"..." Now would be the 'right time,' wouldn't it? Rhode hesitated as he walked towards Erza.

"You guys..." The air pressure around Erza dropped. She turned her head and glared fiercely at the culprits lying on the ground.

Everyone couldn't help but tremble.

"Miss Erza?"

Rhode called out, deliberately adding a respectful title.

"Hm?"

Erza snapped her head back, her face shadowed. One of her eyes seemed to flash red, like a beast on the verge of rage.

The astonishing aura made Rhode's heart skip a beat. It felt as if her gaze had dragged him into a low-pressure zone.

"Y-your pudding, it looks like it's strawberry flavored too," Rhode managed to say.

"..." The astonishing aura continued for another second.

Then, the Queen transformed into a friendly older sister. She stood up, tidied her hair, and revealed a gentle smile. "Thank you very much."

Erza even clenched her fists and began to self-reflect, lamenting, "Honestly, I almost got angry over a pudding. My training is still insufficient."

Happy's wings sprouted from his back, and he flew to Rhode's ear without any pretense. "You already got angry, though."

"..." Rhode remained silent, looking at Happy with admiration.

Little cat, you really dare to speak. Can't you just give her some face?

Erza said earnestly, "Speaking of which, aren't you Rhode? You joined the guild so recently, and you're already so concerned about your nakama. I'm very touched."

A genuinely touched expression appeared on her face. As she spoke, she pulled Rhode's head into her embrace. "That's right! Fairy Tail should be like this!"

Clang!

Rhode's head slammed into hard metal armor, making a crisp sound. His head buzzed.

He stole a glance at Mira, who was giving him a thumbs-up at the counter...

Was this also part of your plan, Miss Mira?