Phoenix and Lisanna slowly walked up to Mirajane. Mirajane, who was already upset about losing the fight, became even more furious when she saw her sister intimately hugging her arch-rival.
"Let go, Lisanna! You're a girl, how can you just hug a strange man?"
"Big Brother isn't a stranger, he's Phoenix the Undying! He's the powerful Mage I admire most!"
Lisanna stuck out her tongue and made a face at Mirajane, not only not letting go, but hugging him even tighter.
"You... you... even if it's him, no!"
"Why?" Lisanna asked, confused, which left Mirajane fuming.
"No why! It's just because you're a girl and he's a boy, it's that simple!"
"But Big Brother is different, he's very amazing and very gentle."
"Gentle?"
Mirajane touched where Phoenix had instantly slashed her waist earlier. Although the wound was shallow, only a graze, it seemed he had held back, but the bone-deep pain hadn't lessened at all. Thinking of this, the faint gratitude that had just risen in Mirajane's heart was instantly replaced by intense fury.
"Gentle? That's truly absurd! If someone like him is called gentle, then there are no bad people in the world."
"Sister!"
Lisanna let go of Phoenix and ran to Mirajane, shaking her arm with a pleading tone.
"Big Brother is really, really good. He's as amazing as the rumors say, but not as rough as the rumors claim."
"Rough? Mavis, is my reputation that bad?"
Phoenix turned his head and asked for confirmation. He never paid attention to such things, but Mavis knew everything clearly.
"..."
Mavis didn't speak, just looked at Phoenix with a silent gaze.
"I'm sorry, please don't keep looking at me with such a disappointed gaze, otherwise I'll truly lose the courage to even live."
Phoenix, with teary eyes, clasped his hands together in a pleading gesture, which made Mavis sigh helplessly.
"People are just so unaware of themselves."
"..."
Phoenix hung his head low, feeling that his future was truly utterly dark.
"Big Brother, cheer up. No matter what others think of you, you'll always be the best person in Lisanna's heart."
At this moment, Lisanna, who seemed to have calmed Mirajane, returned to Phoenix's side again, hugging his arm and comforting him.
"Hahaha, I wouldn't dare claim to be the 'best', after all, your brother and sister are the best people in your heart, right?"
"Big Brother is too!"
"No way, am I really that good?"
Phoenix, having just been disheartened by Mavis, truly didn't believe he was as good as Lisanna claimed.
"Mmm, well... because Big Brother was the first person to offer me help. I'll never, ever forget how angry you looked when you were protecting me."
"...Heh heh, what silly talk, Lisanna. There are many, many good people in this world. Even if it wasn't me there at the time, anyone else would have helped you."
"But it was Big Brother who helped me, that can't be wrong, can it?"
"Uh... I can't argue with you."
Phoenix was almost choked by Lisanna's single sentence. Seeing Lisanna's determined face, as if she would stick to this truth no matter how he explained, Phoenix had no choice but to concede.
"Wah! Big Brother is indeed the gentlest!"
Lisanna let go and threw herself into Phoenix's arms, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and not letting go. This made Phoenix's face stiffen, but seeing Lisanna's happy expression, he couldn't bear to scold her.
"Li... Lisanna..."
The strange dark aura behind Mirajane grew stronger and stronger, and her eyes glared fiercely at Phoenix.
"You Turkey, remember this! If you dare to have any designs on Lisanna, I will definitely kill you!"
"Huh? Kill me?"
Phoenix was always impervious to both soft and hard approaches; soft might not even work, let alone hard.
"Don't forget you still owe me a condition that cannot be reneged on. Given your unruly attitude, if I make you my slave, let's see how you'll still act so arrogantly!"
"You!"
Mirajane glared hatefully at Phoenix, her tone unyielding: "So what if we both lose? No one will benefit!"
"Big Brother, please don't do anything excessive to Sister, okay?"
Lisanna, nestled in Phoenix's arms, pleaded weakly.
"Although I like you very much, Lisanna, soft words don't work on me. So, 'gentlest' or whatever, it definitely doesn't suit me!"
Setting down Lisanna, whose body had stiffened slightly from his words, Phoenix sighed, "Do you know, Mirajane, you have a very outstanding sister. From the moment I started targeting demons, Lisanna became increasingly close to me, as if she liked me very, very much. After our battle, she didn't rush over immediately, not because she didn't care about you, but because she knew your life and death were already in my hands. So she didn't leave, but first sought confirmation from me. Even now, she always tries to protect her brother and sister with the unique, albeit insignificant, strength only she possesses."
"I, though I don't consider myself too bad, I also never think of myself as a good person. The outside world must be full of rumors about me, and judging by the village's reactions, what you know is probably similar, all about my numerous misdeeds. Like me? Indeed, there are people in this world who truly like me, but she would never be someone who genuinely likes me after only meeting once."
"I'm very happy, Lisanna. Even knowing it's fake, my heart still feels very warm. The feeling of being liked, it's... just too wonderful."
"Wuwu~~ I'm, I'm sorry..."
Lisanna lowered her head, tears rolling down.
"You! If you knew from the beginning, why did you keep pretending to be foolish? You're the one who deceived Lisanna!"
Seeing Lisanna cry, Mirajane immediately glared furiously at Phoenix. If she couldn't beat him, Phoenix would surely have been pulverized by Mirajane by now.
"Mirajane Strauss!"
Phoenix's cold gaze pierced Mirajane as if to end all light. Mirajane's heart trembled, but she still stubbornly glared back at Phoenix.
"Although Lisanna deceived me, she did it to protect you and him. And you, what have you done?"
"Of course I'm protecting them too!" Mirajane roared angrily, but Phoenix harshly refuted her.
"Absurd! Do you truly believe your attitude and actions are protecting them?"
"How is it not?"
Crack!
Phoenix fiercely punched to his right, and the space echoed with the sound of shattering glass, followed by a deafening roar that shook the clouds above.
"You're merely exercising your capricious rights under the guise of protection!"
"You... you... I..."
Mirajane was so angered by Phoenix that she couldn't speak for a moment, her strong heart seemingly torn open.
"Acting rashly without even discerning whether the other party is friend or foe, have you truly considered the consequences?"
"Others show goodwill, yet you respond with harsh words. Have you truly prepared yourself for that?"
"Who exactly granted you the right to act recklessly, and who granted you the arrogance to disregard others' help?"
"You're a demon? You're strong? What a joke! On this land, there are countless beings stronger than me; your power is utterly insignificant!"
"'Both sides lose'? You say that so easily! I'd like to see how you'll drag me down with you!"
Phoenix's words, like blades, cut into Mirajane's strong heart again and again. His every word was so incisive that Mirajane couldn't utter a single rebuttal.
"Could it be... could I really be..."
"No! Sister isn't like that!"
Lisanna flew into Mirajane's arms, crying loudly, her tearful big eyes turning to look at Phoenix. Lisanna said, pouting, "I don't like you! I'll never, ever like you again!"
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