Invitation and Refusal

Erza seemed to have something to do, so she left the tavern directly.

Then... Natsu resurrected with full health: "Let's settle this, Rodi!"

"It's Rhode," Rhode corrected, then added, "You saw it just now, right? I'm very weak, I was knocked down with one punch."

The little blue cat chimed in, "It's okay, Natsu was also dealt with in one punch when he challenged Erza before."

"You talk too much, Happy! I'm different from before, now I can definitely..."

Happy covered his mouth and muttered, "I can definitely last a few more punches."

"What did you say!?" Natsu glared, as if he wanted to fight Happy first.

Happy flew behind Mira, peeking out, "Love!"

Mira said nothing, just wiped the freshly washed glasses with a dry cloth.

"Anyway, fight me. Your crab looks quite strong!"

"Hmm..." Rhode thought for a moment, "Tomorrow. I need to rest."

The main reason was that he didn't want to get beaten a second or third time today; he was still hurting.

"Then it's settled!" Natsu left in a hurry.

Happy didn't rush to leave. He stood on the counter and asked Rhode, "Are you a Mage who uses Summoning magic?"

Rhode nodded, "Yeah."

Happy's mouth began to water, "Can you summon fish?"

Rhode silently reviewed the types of Wild Monsters he knew, "Probably not. At most, toads."

"Lost..." Happy suddenly squatted in a corner, the entire cat shrouded in shadow.

"...Are fish that important?" Rhode was speechless. Besides, even if he could summon fish, they would be for combat, not for eating.

Happy raised his fist, "Fish are the supreme delicacy!"

"Yes, yes," Rhode didn't want to argue with the cat about whether fish were delicious.

Warm seemed to like Happy, who was similar in size to it, and snuggled up to him. The two cute creatures quickly started playing together.

In the evening, Levy arrived at the guild and, along with Jet and Troy, picked a mission from the notice board before coming to find Rhode to learn Chinese characters.

"Today I'll teach you two slightly more complex Chinese characters: 'fist' and 'pain'."

Rhode borrowed Levy's Light Pen and wrote the two characters stroke by stroke, not forgetting to explain their meanings.

"Why are you suddenly teaching me these two characters?"

"...It's a feeling that came up."

"Ah, right. I heard them say you dueled with Erza today."

Levy gave him a 'you're so brave' look, her lips couldn't help but curl up, and then she tried hard to press them down, looking like it was a struggle.

"It's a long story... If you want to laugh, just laugh."

"Haha... No, I'm not laughing at you... Haha, well, I'm just happy to have learned new words."

It was precisely because there was no malice in her laughter that Rhode couldn't get angry. He sighed:

"By the way, here's your Wind Chant Glasses back."

Levy shook her head, "You can borrow them for now. I have spares, and I'll be working tomorrow, so I probably won't need them."

"You've only been back for two or three days? So diligent?"

"Because the last job's reward wasn't high, and I also played in the target city for a few days..."

Actually, Levy's team's strength was quite average in the guild, so the missions they took were often not very difficult.

Correspondingly, the rewards wouldn't be very high.

And then the reward for one mission had to be split among three people. Compared to other partners, it was natural to be a bit more diligent.

But even so, it was enough to make Rhode envious, "I still don't know how long it will be before I can take on some higher-paying missions."

Levy suggested, "If you want to take on missions, how about joining our Chariot Engine Squad? This time the reward is quite good."

Rhode was a little tempted, but immediately shook his head, "No, with my current strength, I'd just be a burden even if I joined you."

"It's okay. This time it's a mission to go into the mountains with an exploration team to solve puzzles and find treasure. It relies more on brains than on combat strength."

Levy closed one eye and held up two fingers, tempting him, "The reward is 200,000 J."

Rhode swallowed. It wasn't because Levy's gesture was so cute, but because the reward was so tempting.

If 200,000 J were split equally among four people, it would be 50,000 J, which was more than half a month's salary for him.

But going into the mountains...

"I think I'll pass. Thank you, I don't think I'm ready yet."

"Is that so?" Levy tilted her head and didn't press further for the reason, "What a shame."

Rhode gave a wry smile, still haunted by the attack from a wild monster shortly after he'd arrived, and then Erza's punch today…

Until he possessed a certain level of strength, he absolutely wouldn't dare to step outside the town limits of Magnolia.

Makarov, who had been resting with his eyes closed, glanced at Rhode. This child was also a 'problem' child.

—

After finishing work, Rhode didn't go straight home. Instead, he jogged along the main road in front of the guild hall, gradually picking up speed after a simple warm-up.

'I should train my body, or I'll be at a disadvantage.' The Master's words still echoed in his ears. Rhode felt that just doing push-ups before bed was too perfunctory, so adding running seemed like a good idea.

The large box of medicine and medical supplies Erza had given him was sent home by Rhode via Swift Crab.

That box was probably custom-made by Erza, as it had the Fairy Tail emblem on it. He figured no one would casually move it if it were left by the door.

Rhode ran past the residential area near the guild, lightly leaping down the stone steps, each nearly two meters high, two at a time, arriving in another residential area.

Continuing along the main road, he reached the bank of a canal that ran through Magnolia City.

In the distance, he could see the tallest building on the opposite bank – Cardia Cathedral.

The few streets surrounding the cathedral were considered the city center, meaning the guild was actually built on the very edge of the city.

This was probably also why Rhode's rent was relatively cheap; it was a little further from the city center.

Upon reaching the river, Rhode didn't head towards the city center. Instead, he continued running along the canal until his heart pounded, he was panting, and sweat began to stream down his cheeks.

He wasn't sure how far he'd run, but he counted over three thousand steps.

Rhode was surprised to find that his physique might be better than before he'd transmigrated. He used to be in this state after running three laps around the track, but now he was clearly a bit stronger.

In the past, the feeling of his lungs about to burst would have driven him to stop, but now, Rhode knew he was just getting started.

True training wasn't just for the body, but also for the will. Every time he felt he couldn't go on, he just had to persevere a little longer, even running an extra hundred meters was progress.

Of course, for a weakling like him with such poor stamina, talking about willpower might be laughable – at this distance, others would just be warming up, and he'd already be training his willpower?

There was no helping it; his physique was what it was. Rhode's legs were already struggling to move, and he had to rely on the twisting of his waist and hips to propel his legs forward.

Warm, that disloyal creature, had followed him for a few steps with its short legs, but soon it thought of becoming a burden on Rhode's shoulder.

Rhode decisively chose to send it back.

He felt he wasn't ready for added weight yet.

The weather today wasn't exactly clear, so when the sun set, only a blurry point of light could be seen.

"Keep it up, young man!" Someone in a boat traveling upstream saw Rhode, drenched in sweat, and casually cheered him on.

Rhode laboriously lifted his sore arm in response, continuing his 'willpower training.'

The residents here were quite friendly.