Chapter 35: Battle and Progress

Mira smiled and reminded him, "Mr. Rhodes, who wants to 'prostrate himself in admiration,' it's time to work."

Rhodes nodded. "Alright, I understand. I used the term 'prostrate oneself' incorrectly."

Mira said, "It seems you've not only improved your magic but also your Common Language."

"That's because you and Laki often correct me, and Levy and Marcus have helped a lot..."

Rhodes paused, realizing that of the four people he mentioned, except for Mira, the others were all lying in the courtyard at the moment.

"Are they okay?"

"They're fine, they'll recover their spirits soon." Mira headed towards the hall. "Let's go inside and tidy up first."

Rhodes followed her, turning back every few steps.

Just as Mira said, the companions who had been flattened into the courtyard by the Guild Master soon got up, dusting off the dirt from their bodies.

Laki was about to use magic to repair the wall when the Guild Master stopped her:

"Tell Macao and Natsu to fix the walls and windows. No using magic!"

Laki provided a pile of lumber, gave Natsu and the others a helpless look, and then only went to repair the damaged tables and chairs inside the guild.

The Guild Master's anger was temporary; a few minutes later, he turned a blind eye when Macao and Wakaba started fighting again while repairing the wall.

Everyone went about their own business. Only Natsu, after hearing about the earlier battle, clamored to fight Rhodes again.

Rhodes happily agreed, wanting to see how he would fare against Natsu now.

After a busy morning, it was time for Rhodes's most anticipated moment of the day—lunch.

Today's dishes seemed exceptionally sumptuous. In addition to the two plates of vegetarian dishes that Rhodes brought out, Mira and Laki each served two large dishes.

First was marinated raw prawns: large prawns arranged neatly around the edge of the plate, heads facing inward and bodies outward, catching everyone's attention.

Then marinated crab roe: unlike directly steamed crab roe, the marinated version was a rosy red, almost appearing solidified.

The crab roe and crab meat lay quietly inside the opened crab shells, making one's mouth water.

Next was a seafood omelet: an entire omelet covering a large round plate, with a neat circle of razor clam meat arranged around the edge, other shellfish meats piled in the center, and green chives visible underneath.

Various ingredients were perfectly fused into the omelet, resembling a blooming sunflower.

Finally, there was crab roe and fresh shrimp congee in a clay pot. As soon as the lid was lifted, the fresh aroma wafted out, making one's mouth water.

Worm leaned eagerly at the edge of the table. Being a polite Poro, it wouldn't move unless given permission.

At most, it would stick out its tongue, drooling pitifully.

Rhodes was also finding it hard to control his cravings. "Is today a seafood theme? Why is it so lavish?"

Laki said, "Because Mira wanted to celebrate for you, she specially asked Mr. Cook to make his specialty dishes."

Mr. Cook was the head chef of the guild's kitchen. It's said he had been working here for over twenty years. Every delicious dish Rhodes had eaten here was basically his handiwork.

"This is... too kind of you." Rhodes's eyes were already glued to the delicious food on the table; he couldn't look away.

"You mean 'I feel embarrassed,' right?" Mira went to fetch three glasses of azure-blue wine, set them down, and took her seat. "Three Blue Starry Nights, courtesy of Kana."

Rhodes and Laki looked over at the nearby table. Kana was sitting on top of it, hugging a wine barrel and tilting it towards them in a toast.

The three of them raised their glasses towards Kana in acknowledgment, then clinked glasses and each took a small sip.

"It's sweet?" Rhodes savored it. Compared to gourmet food, he didn't know much about wine. The taste reminded him a bit of RIO but smoother, with a bit more alcohol.

Mira said, "This is wine from the neighboring country of Bosco. Because of transportation and tariff issues, it's a bit pricey, but it tastes great. The downside is that the alcohol content is too low—not to Kana's liking. As long as you like it."

"It's delicious, thank you!"

Rhodes put down his glass and began to savor today's delicacies.

First was the marinated raw prawns. The shrimp meat was very tender, almost sticky, a texture quite different from steamed shrimp.

Its natural sweetness was highlighted by the marinade, making the overall taste fresh but not fishy—absolutely delicious.

The other dishes each had their own unique flavors. Every bite made him feel the passion the chef had poured into his creations.

Rhodes carefully tasted each dish, praising them incessantly.

"I think Mr. Cook will definitely like you," Mira said with a smile. Many in the guild loved to eat, but Rhodes was the only one who could appreciate and articulate the food so well.

"Haha..." Rhodes said embarrassedly, "Actually... I find Mr. Cook too serious; I don't dare to speak when I see his face."

"That's because Mr. Cook takes everything related to cooking very seriously. And..."

Mira reminisced about the past, saying nostalgically,

"Back when Happy was still little, he once dragged Natsu into the kitchen to find fish to eat. They accidentally knocked over spice jars and ruined a lot of ingredients.

"As a result, Mr. Cook chased them for three streets with a knife and gave Natsu a good beating.

"Since then, Natsu and Happy never dared to enter the kitchen again, and Mr. Cook developed the habit of sternly watching everyone who enters the kitchen."

"So that's how it is." Rhodes nodded emphatically. As expected of Fairy Tail's chef.

In the future, he'd be extra cautious when entering the kitchen. If not necessary, he'd better communicate through the serving hatch.

Laki looked at Mira, feeling a bit happy. Mira had actually brought up events from that time on her own—perhaps she was starting to move forward a bit?

At that time, it wasn't just Natsu who accompanied Happy to find fish and got chased for several streets.

...

In the afternoon, Rhodes had another match with Natsu.

—Originally, he was supposed to spar with Kana, but she had drunk too much and couldn't even stand steadily, hugging a wine barrel and talking in her sleep.

Natsu's destructive power was far greater than Jet's. With one move, 'Fire Dragon's Iron Fist,' he could break one of the Stone Beetle's legs.

One 'Fire Dragon's Roar' could blow the Ancient Stone Beetle flying backward, even causing it to split twice directly.

Only by burrowing underground and launching surprise attacks upon resurfacing could they bring some trouble to Natsu.

But unlike Jet, who was clamped and couldn't exert force, Natsu would burst into flames all over, using intense heat to directly send the Stone Beetles away.

Such an obvious contrast made Rhodes momentarily uncertain about the Stone Beetles' defensive power.

Are they strong or not?

Natsu's breath attack should be quite powerful magic, right?

In this battle, Rhodes achieved unprecedented results. By leveraging numerical superiority, he caused Natsu to lose balance and almost fall.

Unfortunately, before he could pursue, Natsu reacted, propping himself up, flipping over, and using 'Fire Dragon's Claw' to successfully resolve the crisis.

In close combat, Rhodes was no longer completely powerless. He exchanged several decent moves with Natsu before it reverted to a 'tough guy' brawl of trading punches.

This kind of intense, fist-to-fist combat moved Elfman to tears; he almost jumped in to join the fight.