A Little Bit of Gossip

Rhode flipped through two magazines quickly, took off his glasses, and prepared to start his physical training for the day.

"I told you not to hide under the bed."

Rhode grabbed Warm by the scruff of his neck. Warm's four legs dangled naturally, his tongue sticking out slightly, his small horns drooping, looking pitifully like he was begging, 'Please don't scold me.'

"This is perfect." Rhode put Warm down and went to the laundry room, got a basin of water, and grabbed a rag.

Warm sat obediently on the floor, waiting for Rhode to wipe him down.

However, Rhode threw the rag at him: "Since you're already dirty, why don't you clean under my bed for me? It's inconvenient for me to do it."

Warm: ???

"If you finish cleaning before I get back, I'll buy you cookies tomorrow. See you later!"

Warm hesitantly picked up the rag with his small paws.

Rhode closed the door with a click and went downstairs for his run.

The route was slightly different from yesterday. Since he already knew his approximate limits, Rhode adjusted the turnaround point a bit, estimating that he would be completely exhausted by the time he ran home.

When he first started running, he could still think about his training plan for the day, pondering whether he should get a punching bag to hit at home.

By the latter half of the run, all he could think was, 'One more step, one more step.'

This kind of training was effective—at least Rhode was getting more proficient at applying cold compresses and external wound medicine to himself.

When he dragged his lead-heavy legs up the stairs, clinging to the handrail, he saw a 'little gray dog' squatting by the door.

"You actually cleaned it? That deserves encouragement."

Rhode shuffled to the bedside and threw himself onto the bed. His first thought was, 'It's over. I'm covered in sweat, I'll have to change these bedsheets too.'

Warm, sticking his tongue out, watched Rhode for a moment. He then jumped onto a chair, then onto the table, grabbed the bottle of potion Rhode had used yesterday, and jumped onto the bed.

"Thanks." Rhode struggled to prop himself up, took the potion bottle, and immediately noticed the gray paw prints Warm had left on the bedsheet.

"..."

Rhode's stare made Warm feel guilty. He took a few steps back and jumped off the bed, leaving a few more footprints.

"Alright, let's get you a bath first."

Summer dawns always came very early. By the time Rhode opened his eyes, it was already bright daylight.

Warm, who had been sleeping by his pillow, had disappeared, just like before.

Rhode hadn't figured out if it was because his magic supply was interrupted after he fell asleep, or if there was a time limit for summoned creatures.

He got out of bed, put on his slippers, and stretched. The soreness in his legs and the significantly increased magic within him made him feel very grounded.

Perhaps it was because his base was so low, but any effort he put in yielded easily visible results.

"Ding, MP Cap +10!"

Rhode provided a voice for his silent golden finger.

While the increase in magic was a good thing, what made him even happier was what he discovered last night after meditating and trying to sense the River Crab's condition through the necklace.

Rhode not only 'saw' the River Crab submerged in the water, but he also saw the entire river channel, and... another River Crab.

The other one was leisurely walking around downstream in the river channel, as if patrolling.

Rhode had a feeling that he could summon this River Crab at any time if he wished.

Once the injured River Crab recovered, he should be able to summon two at once.

He felt his magic reserves—well, he still needed a few more days of training.

Rhode washed up and went out, greeting Goodman as usual, and casually summoned Warm.

He didn't forget to buy Warm a bag of cookies on the way.

Funds decreased by 500J.

Watching Warm happily gobble down a cookie with a flick of his tongue, Rhode began to consider a feeding plan.

For Poro in the game to grow, they needed Poro Delicacies... although they looked like cookies, what ingredients were used to make them?

Should he find more ingredients and have Warm identify them himself?

That was one way to do it.

Lost in thought, he arrived at the guild.

Rhode did his usual cleaning tasks and waited for Marcus, whom he had arranged to meet yesterday, before heading to the backyard together.

He had already inquired about Marcus. Marcus used Sand Magic and was good at defense, but less so at offense.

His overall strength...

Mira had tactfully given him a rating of 'not very remarkable compared to Erza,' to save Marcus some face.

Rhode savored this, thinking she probably meant that he wasn't very remarkable within the entire guild.

Then, Rhode lost again.

Although Marcus couldn't take down a Canyon Swiftclaw as cleanly as Natsu, he could at least block the River Crab's charge.

When the River Crab hit the sand defense wall with a thud, several sand ropes wrapped around its legs, restricting its movement.

"Looks like it really is just a functional Wild Monster," Rhode finally understood the River Crab's role.

Marcus walked past the River Crab towards Rhode. "Want to keep fighting?"

Rhode got into a stance. "Yeah."

He couldn't win, of course. With only two fights under his belt, how could he compare to people who brawled every few days?

Even for someone as unremarkable as Marcus, dealing with Rhode was easy.

It's just that Marcus was more inclined to "stop before it's too late," so he didn't leave Rhode with any bruises or similar injuries.

In Marcus's own words: "I don't want a friend I just met to not want to talk to me the next day."

For someone like him who enjoyed talking to people, an audience was quite important.

Rhode figured that since Marcus liked talking, he'd humor him for a bit before work.

Coincidentally, whether it was to get more information or to correct his Common, Rhode needed to interact with people.

"A quick way to increase magic power? There's no such thing. Magic power naturally grows through diligent practice.

Oh, right. As you get older, your magic power will also naturally increase a bit. Take me, for example. I'm 16 now, and in another seven or eight years, I'll definitely be very strong.

Huh? Rhode, how old are you?"

"Almost 19..." Rhode blinked. How would he calculate his age and birthday in the future?

"18? Then you're the same age as Erza, Mira, Bisca, and Alzack..."

Marcus thought for a moment, then patted Rhode's shoulder as if to console him. "You gotta work hard."

"..." He felt no comfort at all.

"Speaking of which, Bisca hasn't been studying magic for very long, and she can already handle things on her own. So you don't need to rush at all. Just work hard..."

As Marcus spoke, Rhode's gaze fell on the green-haired girl chatting with Erza.

That was Bisca. Although they hadn't formally met, Laki had introduced her to Rhode.

Bisca and Erza were good friends, and she also used Requip Magic, but hers was for various firearms.

In addition, there was enthusiastic popular science (gossip) from Mira:

Bisca started learning Requip Magic because she admired Erza, and she also liked Alzack, who specialized in gun magic.

According to Mira's observations, Alzack sometimes stared blankly at Bisca's back. She felt that the two of them would eventually get together.

Alzack... Rhode looked around and, as expected, found a handsome guy dressed like a cowboy not far from Bisca.

Rhode realized that his guild not only had many eccentrics but also quite a few handsome men and beautiful women.

Some readers said they couldn't remember who was who because the names didn't match the characters, so I added some illustrations in earlier chapters and will try to add more pictures later.