Time passed by quietly like this, and in the blink of an eye, it was late July, the height of summer in X791.
Thanks to the efforts of all the guild members, the numerous piled-up requests were finally mostly resolved.
Although the excitement of the Great Demon Fighting Martial Arts hadn't fully subsided, requests continued to pour in. But from today onwards, it was more or less back to the normal rhythm of life.
The efficiency of the construction team hired by the mayor was good, and during the guild's busy days, they had completed the renovation work.
The overall structure of the guild hadn't changed, but after some repairs, it looked brand new.
What everyone was most satisfied with was that the old ceiling fan was replaced with 'air conditioning,' powered by Magic Crystals, supplemented by the necessary mechanical structures. It's said this product only began to be promoted in the last two or three years.
In this scorching summer, blowing cold air while drinking cold drinks and watching Natsu lose to Asuka in a shooting contest and then crawling all over the ground with Asuka on his back was truly an enjoyment.
Despite being young, Asuka has already shown a remarkable shooting talent. She can accurately hit the bullseye with a toy pistol from about twenty paces away.
"Gulp gulp gulp... Ah!" Lucy cheerfully downed a glass of chilled juice, flopped onto the counter, and sighed, "Finally, I can rest properly!"
"Haven't teamed up with Natsu and the others recently?" Rhode glanced at her, noticing that this kid didn't seem to like wearing underwear in the summer.
"Because everyone has so many designated tasks." Lucy said, both helpless and proud, "I also have many designated tasks, you know!"
"Impressive, impressive, Mr. Jude even designated Lucy three times." Rhode praised as if he didn't know anything, "It must be because of our Miss Lucy's strong abilities, right?"
Lucy blushed and said, "It's because dad's business has been smooth lately, and he always needs an escort when traveling with a trade caravan... Also, I seriously accepted the payment."
"Sigh, Lucy is so heartless." Mira sighed as if lamenting for Jude, "She even charges money to escort her own father."
Lucy argued, "Collecting payment after completing a request is the guild's rule, right?! And last time Wendy was with me, even if I don't collect money, I can't just not give it to Wendy and Carla, right?"
Mira, relentless, said, "Poor Wendy and Carla, kindly accompanying Lucy on a trip but becoming her excuse to ask her dad for money."
Lucy shouted loudly, "It's not like that!"
However, Mira dramatically flopped into Rhode's arms, gently placing her hand on her stomach: "Darling, what if our future daughter turns out like Lucy?"
Rhode patted Mira's back, resignedly: "What else can we do? Of course, we'll let her be, no matter what she becomes, she's still our daughter."
"..." Lucy was annoyed, but didn't know what to say, so she just patted the table, "Another glass!"
Ordering juice like she was ordering alcohol.
"Lu-chan!" Reby came running out of nowhere, hugging Lucy from behind, "Do you want to join an event?"
"Event?"
"Yes!" Reby said excitedly, "The guild's bath has been refurbished too. We're planning to have a bath party together!"
Lucy was very interested: "Sure, I'll join!"
Reby then looked at Mira: "What about you, Sister Mira?"
"Sounds fun, count me in." Mira laughed, "Also, I'll sign up Lisana too."
"We want to sign up too!" ×2
Jet and Troy appeared from behind Reby, raising their hands excitedly.
Reby turned around and pressed her hands against their faces, pushing them back: "No, girls only."
The two looked slightly disappointed, but Jet seemed to think of something and raised an eyebrow at Troy.
Troy paused, then looked enlightened.
The two exchanged glances and revealed mischievous smiles together.
"Ahem..." Rhode cleared his throat, and when the two looked over, he coldly gestured with his hand across his throat.
Jet and Troy broke into a cold sweat.
With Mira and Lisana around, if they were caught peeping, Rhode and Elfman would definitely kill them.
Lucy asked, "Are there other people? When does it start?"
Reby counted with her fingers: "Wendy already found Kana and Bisca, I also invited Laki and Ginanna, Carla went to the dorm to find Ibarglin, Jubia, and Mickey... If all goes well, all the girls in the guild will participate."
Reby, Wendy, and Carla... Rhode felt a bit weird listening to these organizers.
Is this to train their mindset?
"What about Erza?" Lucy said, "It feels like she's the one who loves these kinds of activities the most."
Mira said, "Erza went to the weapon store, she should be back soon."
Lucy jumped off the stool, "I'll go home and get my stuff right away!"
Rhode casually suggested, "I advise you to leave Loki's key behind."
Lucy thought seriously and decisively tossed the Leo Constellation key to Rhode, along with a Taurus Constellation.
Lucy kept the other keys herself, planning to call Balrog, Alyes, and Aquarius to join in the fun too.
Almost all the girls in the guild left at once, while Elfman, Gray, and Marcus were drafted as temporary waiters.
To signify their roles, Rhode also had them change into costumes.
Marcus, dressed in a waiter's uniform, looked presentable, but Elfman was just unbearable to look at, and as for Gray, he lingered in the changing room for ages and came out with only a bowtie tied around his upper body.
Luckily, the regular patrons of the guild who frequently came to drink were used to this by now.
Marcus's chatting service, Elfman's rough reception, and Gray's extra chilled drinks service were even very well-received.
Before the girls returned, Erza was the first to arrive at the guild.
As usual, she wore her upper armor and a short skirt, but she was carrying a pair of oddly shaped dark red weapons on her shoulder...
Rhode felt they looked familiar but didn't dare recognize them at first: "Are these dual swords? Or dual blades?"
"Strictly speaking, they're scissors." Erza lifted the huge weapons, each taller than a person, and operated them like scissors, snapping them open and shut twice.
Although she didn't intentionally use magic power, two neat cut marks appeared on the counter more than a meter away from the scissors.
Rhode even felt two invisible blades rushing toward him.
He raised a transparent shield to protect himself and the wine rack behind him, then silently gazed at Erza.
"Sorry," Erza said awkwardly, "These weapons are made from the pincers and jaw spikes of the Pincer Dragon's head, I'm not very familiar with them yet."
"The one with a head like a clamp?" Rhode said, "Scissor-shaped weapons are hard to use, right?"
"Yes, but once mastered, they're also very difficult for enemies to deal with. And... they can also do this!"
Erza split her hands apart, and the large scissors emitted a glow. The connection in the middle automatically detached, splitting into a pair of dark red dual blades.
The shape of the dual blades also adjusted to become more ergonomic once separated from the scissors.
Rhode: "!!!"
Oh no, Erza's snapping chopsticks!!!