Chapter 97: What to Do

"Don't think about running away, Laxus~"

"You're in this condition and still thinking about Laxus?"

Rhodes patted Natsu's head, "How about challenging me instead? Watch me beat you up."

"Aye! I'll bet on Rhodes winning!"

Now that they knew Natsu was alright, Happy showed no mercy in making fun of him.

Natsu weakly began to argue with Happy.

The more Happy argued, the more enthusiastic he became. With Natsu like this, he felt like a fight would be no problem.

Rhodes opened the cloth pouch, finding several bags of powdered medicine inside along with a note detailing usage instructions.

"How did she figure it out?"

He had been training hard recently, but he always used the Ember Crown to recover. He also applied some ointments and didn't feel discomfort.

"Rhodes, the smell of medicine on you is so strong, it's making me want to throw up."

"Smell?" Rhodes sniffed his arm, then held it to Happy. "Does it smell?"

Happy sniffed, "No fish smell."

"I'm not asking about fish!"

It must have been a very faint scent, only noticeable up close—and Natsu had noticed. Could Granny Porlyusica have smelled it too? Or did she see something about my complexion or stiff muscles?

Looks like the life recovery power of the red buff isn't perfect—I shouldn't push myself too much.

When they returned to the guild, the floor and furniture were all back to normal—likely thanks to Laki.

Natsu followed Rhodes and Happy into the guild, looking listless like a zombie.

"Are you alright, Natsu?"

As soon as they entered, someone asked about Natsu's condition, but Natsu ignored them.

Happy answered in his place, "Aye! Granny Porlyusica said a few days of rest would do the trick."

Seeing that Natsu had no particular direction and was simply following him, Rhodes thoughtfully brought him to Erza's table.

"Erza, I need to get back to work. I'll leave Natsu with you."

"Leave it to me!" Erza pulled Natsu over.

Rhodes heard a "clang" sound.

He touched his forehead. That familiar sound of a head hitting armor...

Hahaha... Rhodes resisted laughing.

When he returned to the counter, Mira greeted him, then asked, "Is Natsu alright?"

Rhodes nodded. "Yeah, he'll just be weak for a while. Some rest should do him good."

"That's a relief. What's that?" Mira noticed the cloth pouch in Rhodes's hand.

"Granny Porlyusica suddenly gave me some medicine."

Mira's work paused. "Are you pushing yourself again?"

Rhodes felt slightly guilty. "Not really, just tried a bit of regular extreme training."

Mira looked at him. "How do 'regular' and 'extreme' even go together?"

"Uh... My Common might not be that good..."

"Rhodes." Her tone wasn't harsh, but her displeasure was evident.

"I'm just trying to find the fastest way to get stronger. I've been easing up lately; I'll figure out the right training intensity soon."

Hopefully, I can find a balance before the medicine runs out.

Seeing Granny Porlyusica's attitude today, Rhodes felt a bit scared—if I accidentally overdo it and ruin myself, I wouldn't even know where to cry.

But thinking back to how casually Laxus beat Natsu today, if I stop working hard, it'll be forever impossible to beat him and Mystogan.

Rhodes looked at the medicine pouch—there's enough here for a while; might as well keep training.

Mira fell silent, and Rhodes felt uneasy. "Uh... aren't you going to say something?"

"Like what?" Mira kept her head down, writing in the register. "You're right—everything you said makes sense, and you have plans for the future, which is good."

"...Oh."

Rhodes felt the atmosphere wasn't right—he should say something.

Reason with her? But she just said I'm right.

Apologize? Out of nowhere, how would that make sense?

Joke around? I was already told to stop earlier.

Coax her? No, we're not at that stage yet.

Ignoring it would be the worst option.

Just then, Cook's voice rang out, "Table 6, grilled lamb ribs, four seasons pizza."

"Got it." Rhodes placed the pouch on the counter and went to the kitchen to pick up the dishes.

As he passed by Mira with the tray, he paused, hesitated for a moment, and quietly said, "Thank you."

Mira's pen paused, and she looked up, her gaze softening as she watched Rhodes walk away.

After a busy day, it was finally time to clock out.

Rhodes helped Mira and the others clean up the guild tavern. Sally and Ede had also been around these days—they couldn't go out for missions, so they decided to help out in the tavern.

Once the chores were done, they bid each other goodbye, and Rhodes headed for the backyard.

Laki asked, "Going to practice again?"

"Yeah, I've been so busy these past few days that I haven't had time to practice magic during the day," Rhodes replied. "Lock the doors; I'll head out through the backyard later."

"Takeover!" Rhodes transformed into his Swift Crab form, practicing the associated skills for a few rounds before canceling the magic.

"Takeover: Wild Beast Spirit - Shadow Wolf!"

Light flickered across Rhodes's body, his figure becoming taller, covered in wolf fur, transforming completely into a werewolf.

Although he had taken on the form of a twin-headed wolf, he didn't grow a second head; instead, a shadowy wolf figure circled him.

Rhodes could control the shadow wolf to lunge and bite as easily as moving his own hands and feet.

While in this form, not only did his strength and coordination improve, but he could also sneak around silently in the shadows, with his sense of smell greatly enhanced—especially sensitive to the scent of blood.

After training in Shadow Wolf form for a while, Rhodes canceled the magic, ensuring he saved enough magic power for the next summoning.

He then started high-intensity training using the equipment in the yard.

Rhodes trained until he was almost out of stamina, eventually lying on the ground to catch his breath, summoning the Crimson Mark Treant to apply the Ember Crown to himself.

"So tired. Why do I do this to myself?"

Determination is determination, but complaining is still complaining.

Rhodes closed his eyes, silently waiting for the effect of the Ember Crown.

The sensation of his strength slowly recovering and the fatigue ebbing away felt very comfortable.

Comfortable enough that it felt like someone was gently wiping the sweat from his face with a warm towel...

Rhodes opened his eyes. "Mira? You haven't gone home yet?"

Mira was squatting beside him, gently tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Since I had to do inventory on the alcohol and make a list for tomorrow's supplies, it took a bit longer. I heard your voice in the yard, so I came to check."

Rhodes believed her—just coming to check, with a prepared towel and even mixing the medicine. Very normal.

Mira's hand gradually tightened. "What—are—you—smiling—about?"

"Ouch, ouch, ouch!" Rhodes hurriedly wiped off his smile. "I was just thinking... aren't you going to tell me to stop for a bit?"