Shagotte and Happy's parents eventually departed.
There were things they simply had to do, unfinished responsibilities that couldn't wait. But this time, they parted with peaceful hearts, comforted by the fact that Carla and Happy were safe, here, and smiling again. A temporary farewell was no longer a painful thing. As long as they returned, they could meet again.
It had to be said: Natsu had done surprisingly well today.
Besides dragging Happy off to challenge Lily to a duel, he treated him to every kind of fish on the guild menu. By the end of it, it looked like the kitchen had been hit by a sea monster, completely cleared out of fish dishes.
Happy had wanted to treat Carla too, but she'd turned him down with a cool shake of the head.
Slightly dejected, Happy turned to Rhodes for help. "Rhodes! Call Warm out! He'll appreciate this fish feast more than she does!"
Wendy, of course, remained glued to Carla's side the entire time.
She kept up a stream of conversation, worried that Carla might feel down after her parents left.
Carla, though, gave a conflicted little sigh. "You don't have to make such a big deal out of it… I'm not sad or anything…"
Still, she didn't pull away from Wendy's side.
The rest of the guild had largely returned to their usual antics, though a hint of celebration still lingered in the air. Laughter echoed, mugs clinked, and even the occasional small spell went off mid-conversation. The afterglow of the past days hadn't faded just yet.
Erza, perhaps sensing the lively atmosphere, chose not to interfere.
After flipping through Weekly Sorcerer with flushed cheeks for a few minutes, she suddenly rushed out, muttering something about "urgent armor upgrades."
For some reason, her face was still red when she left.
Meanwhile, Gildarts was in full-on proud dad mode, seated with Macao and Wakaba, passionately discussing the "joys of parenting."
Cana was tempted to knock all three out with the barrel of wine she was holding.
Seriously, Gildarts?
These were your advisors?
Macao, the guy who only remembered he had a kid after the divorce?
And Wakaba, who was practically allergic to affection from his daughter?
What was he expecting to learn? What not to do?
Besides, she was eighteen. Why were they still going on about parenting?
And it was all Rhodes and Mira's fault! Yesterday, they'd gone off about how "fatherly love matters, even if it's belated" and now Gildarts wouldn't stop bringing her dolls and pacifiers and baby bibs!
Cana shot a murderous glare at the two culprits.
Mira, completely unfazed, was busy pulling Lisanna toward the guild doors. "We're heading out~!"
"Okay, wait." Rhodes quickly stuffed his wallet into her hand. "Here, the passbook's in there too. If it's not enough, just withdraw more from the bank."
Mira was taking Lisanna shopping for essentials, mainly clothes. After two years, Lisanna had grown quite a bit. The old outfits, preserved like mementos, likely wouldn't fit anymore.
And Rhodes, ever thoughtful, knew Mira probably wouldn't spend too much on herself, so he handed her his entire wallet without hesitation.
"Wow, sis~ Onii Sama is so good to you," Lisanna teased, hugging Mira's arm, hoping to see her blush.
But Mira only smiled sweetly and tapped her head with the wallet. "He's good to you too, isn't he? Letting you use his savings?"
Lisanna blinked, then giggled. "Hehe~ That's true. Thank you, Onii sama~!"
She waved cheerfully at Rhodes as the two walked out together, hand in hand.
Just then, Laki sidled over to Rhodes with a teasing smirk. "So~ how does it feel, watching your fiancée walk off with another woman? Feeling even a tiny twinge of jealousy?"
Rhodes chuckled. "When you get a boyfriend, I'll hire someone from Blue Pegasus to flirt him away."
"Hey!" Laki puffed out her cheeks.
"No 'hey's." Rhodes began placing items onto Laki's tray one by one. "This is the alcohol for the second floor, this is the food for the first floor, and this one's the takeout order from the south side of the city."
Laki's eyes widened. "How can you give deliveries for the first and second floors to the same person?! And since when do we offer a 'food delivered straight to your mouth' service?!"
Rhodes shrugged. "Normally we don't. But we do when I'm getting revenge."
Laki raised the tray threateningly, ready to smack it into his face.
Rhodes chuckled and quickly moved to help her redistribute the tasks.
After a short bout of normal work, a young woman standing at the counter raised her voice and called clearly, "Manager."
Rhodes looked up. Although he was technically the tavern's manager, hardly anyone ever called him that.
He spotted the speaker right away, a tomboyish girl with a no-nonsense stance.
"Sally? What's up? Don't tell me you're about to overdraft your salary again."
Sally folded her arms. "Is that the only thing you think I do?"
"Then… are you asking for time off?"
"Nope," she said flatly. "I'm quitting."
Rhodes blinked. "Quitting? Why?"
Hands on hips, Sally huffed, "Why do you think? Iz and I were only part-timers to begin with. The Master roped us into full-time because of a staffing shortage. Now that things are running smoothly again, well, I think it's time."
Rhodes scratched his head. "It has been nearly two months. You getting tired of it already?"
Sally nodded, her expression earnest. "Anyway, next month's the S-Class Trial, right?"
Rhodes raised an eyebrow. "You're aiming for that?"
"Yep! Iz and I are going all-in. No more tavern shifts, we're going to take on missions full-time!" Her eyes sparkled. "Even if we run into you during the exam, don't expect mercy!"
Rhodes smiled slightly. He didn't take them too seriously, they had been beaten two-on-one by Mickey once, but he appreciated their spirit. Jet and Droy were still chasing the dream every year, after all.
Still, he sighed. "You two quitting at once is going to leave a hole in the staff roster…"
Sally grinned mischievously. "Then I'll just quit alone. Iz can keep working."
"Sally!" A voice suddenly called from behind.
Before Sally could turn, an arm wrapped tightly around her neck. Iz grinned while putting her in a headlock, giving her repeated noogies.
"OW OW OW! I was just joking!"
Rhodes laughed and waved them off. "Alright, alright. Both of you, then. Lisanna might want to help out soon anyway. Until then, I'll just drag in some muscle."
"Thanks, boss!" both girls said, already halfway out the door.
Rhodes watched them go, then scanned the guild hall. His gaze landed on a certain blonde chatting animatedly with Levy.
He thought for a moment, then stepped away to prepare a few things. After a while, he returned, waved with a bright smile, and called out, "Lucy! Come over here for a sec!"
Lucy blinked, puzzled, and walked over. "Mr. Rhodes, what's going on?"
Rhodes put on a serious face. "It's like this. During the Edolas incident, although everyone played a part, there was one person whose contribution stood out the most."
"Huh?" Lucy tilted her head, then gasped and covered her mouth. This kind of setup, calling her out specifically... could it be...?
"That's right," Rhodes nodded gravely. "After thinking it over carefully, whether it was gathering information, activating Moon Drip, or fighting the army when magic was useless, there was one common factor."
Lucy's heart pounded.
Rhodes pointed at her. "It was your Celestial Spirits. So really, it was you. You were key to all of it. The power of your Spirits is your power. That's why, on behalf of the guild, I want to thank you properly."
"No, no, that's too much, everyone worked hard!" Lucy waved her hands, trying to sound humble, but the way her face lit up with each passing second completely gave her away.
Rhodes smirked. "No need to be modest. Everyone did their part, sure, but you really stepped up. So... here."
He placed a small gift box on the counter in front of her.
"The guild's budget is a little tight right now, so I couldn't prepare a huge reward," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "But I picked this out for you. I hope you'll accept it as a token of appreciation."
Lucy's eyes sparkled like stars. "Can I open it?"
Rhodes' grin widened. "Of course."
...
bonus@2400