Won!

"Were you going to defend yourself with those Stone Monsters, then use that crab monster to chase me?"

Jet did not notice all those details. He remained confident. "If you can do it, then give it a try!"

"It wasn't that simple." Rhode patted the leg of the large Stone Beetle. "Ancient Stone Beetle, Split!"

Crack!

At Rhode's command, blue light flashed through the cracks on the Ancient Stone Beetle's back. It voluntarily split in half, and by the time it landed, it had become two Stone Beetles.

This was different from the game. Stone Beetles could split on their own.

Three nearly identical Stone Beetles lined up in front of Rhode, while the Swift Crab stood ahead of them, glaring at Jet.

"It can split? If it's five against one..." Jet froze. From his angle, he could only see Rhode's head.

"No matter how many there are, they won't get any faster. My speed will never lose!"

"Don't worry, I can't maintain this state for long." Rhode jumped onto a Stone Beetle's back and felt out the rate at which his magic power was being consumed.

"If I can't catch you within five minutes, I lose." Rhode pointed ahead. "Rift Scuttler, charge!"

The Swift Crab shot straight forward, leaving trails of afterimages behind it.

Then Rhode took a deep breath. "Stone Beetles, burrow!"

The three Stone Beetles raised their front legs and lowered their heads. Their massive pincer-like mandibles opened and closed as they simultaneously drilled underground.

They even took Rhode down with them!

"Don't think you can catch me!" Jet dodged the river crab's charge with high spirits. When he looked back, Rhode had already vanished.

Then a faint tremor ran through the ground. The soft soil was overturned from below, and Jet pushed off the ground, instinctively leaping away.

A Stone Beetle burst from the earth and missed him.

But a second Stone Beetle drilled up beneath Jet while he was still in the air.

Jet twisted at the waist, flipped, and kicked. "Hawk Dive... damn it!"

Jet's expression changed. At that moment, the third Stone Beetle emerged with Rhode on its back, its mandibles opening and closing as they firmly clamped around Jet's waist and one arm.

Rhode swung his fist and stopped it just short of Jet's nose. After a moment, he smiled. "Well?"

Jet struggled a few times. Clamped like this, he could barely exert any strength. Somewhat frustrated, he said, "You beat me."

The Stone Beetles released Jet, and their forms blurred along with the river crab before finally disappearing.

Rhode had already jumped down. He was absolutely thrilled inside, but in consideration of Jet's feelings, he had to restrain himself and only showed an ordinary smile.

"Thanks for practicing with me."

Rhode held out his hand.

"Teammates are supposed to help each other."

Jet held out his hand too, but instead of shaking it, he smacked Rhode's palm aside. He raised his right fist, the back of it facing Rhode.

"Handshakes are too serious. I don't like them."

Rhode copied him and raised his fist to bump Jet's. They laughed together.

He seemed to like this guild more and more.

"Woo!!!" Marcus emerged in a cloud of dust, microphone in hand, shouting excitedly.

"The winner is—Rhode! After a string of defeats, Rhode has earned his first victory since joining the guild! Let us congratulate Rhode! The man who uses Summoning Magic to summon powerful monsters... Rho! De!"

Cheers erupted from the onlookers. Many of them had been watching since Rhode's match against Erza.

They greatly admired Rhode's spirit of fighting again and again despite repeated losses, but they had always hoped he would win at least once.

Though less than half a month had passed from beginning to end, they felt the joy of watching a child grow up and finally make something of himself.

Mira was among those cheering, but after raising her fist and shouting once, she simply stood there with a quiet smile.

Her red dress stood out sharply among the crowd.

"Nice one, Rhode!" Kana's voice was incredibly loud. She held a bottle of liquor in her right hand and waved a stack of cash with her left as she shouted at Rhode.

"I'll buy you a drink later! And you don't need to find anyone tomorrow—I'll practice with you!"

Today, aside from Mira placing an encouraging bet on Rhode, everyone else who participated in the wager had bet on Jet.

As a result, Kana made a fortune. She would not have to worry about drinking money for quite a while.

Rhode, however, felt awkward. He knew she meant she would practice fighting with him, but Kana's outfit, the drunken look on her face, the cash in her hand, and those words together made it far too easy to misunderstand.

But after the cheers came condemnation. A crowd of people who had lost their bets, including the two uncle-level figures Macao and Wakaba, began venting by accusing Jet of deliberately holding back and making them lose money.

Jet immediately started arguing with them. Unsurprisingly, the argument quickly turned into a brawl.

Rhode tilted his head to dodge a shoe thrown by who knew whom, caught an innocent Poro that had been hurled as a weapon, and decisively moved away from them.

"My magic power's running low. I'd be at a huge disadvantage in a fight, so let's retreat!"

"Wuuu..." Worm's eyes turned into spirals as it answered dizzily.

Master watched everyone fighting with a smile. Rhode's improvement delighted him, and seeing the children get along so well also made him happy.

Besides, it was rare for them to fight in the courtyard rather than inside the building, so he did not have to worry about them breaking anything...

Crash!

Macao smashed through a window and flew into the guild hall.

Master kept smiling, but a vein bulged on his forehead.

"Damn you, Wakaba!" Macao burst back out through the window, trailing purple flames.

Rhode could not even figure out why he was fighting Wakaba. The two had just been on the same side.

Still, he hugged Worm and moved even farther away. He even considered summoning the Stone Beetles again to block for himself.

Because the battle had begun escalating: Wakaba spewed fists made of smoke, Kana pulled out several cards, and Elfman's arm transformed into a beast's claw...

"Macao, don't think you can run!" Several figures rushed out of the hall, enlarging the hole in the window—they had just been knocked over when Macao flipped a table of drinks.

Master's smile gradually vanished, and the vein on his forehead turned into a cross.

"I smell a fight!" Natsu, who had just returned from a mission, charged into the backyard without even putting down his luggage.

Thanks to him, that unfortunate window had now become one with the window beside it.

"I'm joining in too! Fire Dragon's—"

Master finally could not take it anymore. His body rapidly expanded, and an enormous shadow covered the entire battlefield. "Use the door properly! Don't destroy the guild!"

Before Natsu could even shout "Iron Fist," Master stomped him flat. The people who had been fighting so enthusiastically were also all slapped into the ground with two swats.

"My, my... it turned into this again." Mira smiled softly behind Master, as though her own younger brother was not among the people embedded in the ground.

Rhode hugged Worm and trembled. Speaking of destroying the guild, he had demolished the courtyard wall when he summoned the river crab before.

"Thank goodness Master didn't hit me with the Buddha's Palm. I'm grateful beyond measure."