Chapter 109: Wendy
Chapter 109: Wendy
Erza was a person of action, and when she found something fun, she jumped right into it, handling the situation with more finesse than Rod ever could.
Rod woke up Mira before she could be subjected to Erza's artistic talents.
Mira opened her eyes to see the guild hall filled with people wearing painted faces. “Erza?”
Erza's movements froze, and she quickly hid the brush behind her back. “Mira? Uh...”
Mira pouted, “Why didn’t you call me earlier for something this fun?”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
The ranks of the face-painting army grew by one.
Rod took a seat at the bar, watching the two enthusiastic and excited figures. He felt that today, he wouldn't have to get into a fight over this.
Let them fight it out.
He felt a bit disappointed.
As everyone started to wake up, the first thing they did was burst into laughter.
But as the laughter continued, they began to realize something was wrong. Once they understood their situation, they didn’t bother to figure out who was responsible. They just started pummeling anyone who was laughing at them.
If he really wanted to stir up a fight among these idiots, it would be so easy.
Rod mused, then suddenly said, “Mira, come a little closer.”
Mira approached him. “What’s up?”
Whoosh! A wooden beer mug flew through the air where Mira had been standing, smashing into the cabinet behind her.
“Ah~” Mira covered her mouth with a smile. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome, but do you have some kind of magnet for flying objects?” Rod noticed that during every melee, something always seemed to head toward Mira.
When he first joined the guild, he remembered seeing Mira being knocked down by a bottle, though he was too stunned to react at the time.
Mira waved her hand. “I don’t have that kind of magnet.”
Rod grabbed Mira’s arm and pulled her a few meters to the side.
Elfman flew over and hung himself on the wall.
Rod looked at Mira. “Really don’t?”
“Um... probably not.” Mira thought for a moment. “Let’s go out. We need to buy a new set of dishes.”
“What about Elfman?”
“Man up!” Elfman pulled himself off the wall and re-joined the fray.
“Alright, he’s fine.”
Rod and Mira slipped out of the guild, leaving the destruction behind.
...
“The festival atmosphere hasn’t dissipated at all.”
“It’ll probably take about a week to get back to normal.”
After finishing their shopping, Rod and Mira chatted as they returned to the guild, with a river crab following behind them, acting as their porter.
Rod suggested, “Should we go in through the back door?”
Mira smiled. “After this long, it’s about time...”
Rod suddenly extended his arm to block Mira. “Who’s there!”
Mira might not have noticed, but the river crab’s perspective revealed a figure hiding at the mouth of the alley, hesitating to come out.
The figure didn’t respond, and Mira stood quietly behind Rod.
“I’ll set the place on fire if you don’t come out. Robbers get burned alive.” Rod pretended to write a spell, but he was actually preparing to summon a Shadow Wolf.
“Don’t! I’m not a bad person! Please don’t attack me... ah!”
A blue-haired little girl ran out of the alley, but she tripped on a small stone and fell forward, her hands outstretched.
Rod’s left hand, holding his pendant, tensed up. What’s going on?
“It hurts.” The little girl got up skillfully and dusted herself off.
“Told you not to rush.” A small white cat emerged behind her.
Despite its small size, it stood protectively in front of the girl and said, “And Fairy Tail mages, you’re too aggressive!”
The girl crouched down and whispered, “Happy, it’s our fault for hiding.”
”
Shalulu huffed, "Don't just take responsibility for everything. That's why you get bullied so easily."
The little girl lowered her head. "I'm sorry."
"Ugh, you!" Shalulu stomped her foot in frustration.
"Hello, I'm a mage from Fairy Tail. My name is Mirajane, and this is Rod," Mirajane leaned forward slightly, her smile warm and welcoming. "May I ask who you are?"
Rod stood beside Mirajane, wary of any sudden moves from the others.
He could sense the magic emanating from the little girl, and there was an unfamiliar blue symbol on her right arm, indicating she was likely a mage as well.
As for the talking white cat, it was quite normal in this world for cats to speak, even if they could fly, it wouldn't be surprising.
"Shalulu, it's really Miss Mirajane! She's so beautiful!" The little girl whispered to Shalulu before standing up.
She placed her hands behind her back and stood on tiptoe, looking a bit nervous as she said, "My name is Wendy, and this is Shalulu. We are mages from the Cat's Cradle Guild."
Rod nodded thoughtfully. The child was quite adorable, and her compliment about Mirajane being beautiful suggested she was a good person.
Ha, that's a joke.
Mainly because dark guild mages usually didn't dare to loiter around the premises of a legitimate guild, let alone introduce themselves so openly.
Rod had one question: "I've seen the list from the Guild Alliance, but I don't remember seeing the name Cat's Cradle. Is it in a different region?"
"Well, I'm not entirely sure, but our guild is in Shirowellin, south of the Southern Mountains. It's not very well-known outside our area."
"South of the Southern Mountains? That's quite far," Mirajane exclaimed, "Did you travel all this way by yourselves? That's impressive."
Traveling from Cat's Cradle to Fairy Tail meant crossing almost the entire country from the southernmost tip to the northeastern part.
They would have to take a carriage to a port, then a ship across nearly half the coastline of the Fiore Kingdom to Hargeon, and finally a train from Hargeon to Magnolia.
For such a young child to have this much courage was beyond Rod's own capabilities.
Wendy blushed at the praise.
But Shalulu retorted, "It's just a long trip by carriage and ship. Kids can do that, so don't underestimate the mages of Cat's Cradle."
"I absolutely don't mean to underestimate you," Mirajane found Shalulu endearing. Though not very strong, she was always trying to protect Wendy and their guild.
As for the feat of traveling across half the country, Mirajane smiled at Rod.
Rod looked up at the sky. If it weren't for a few unexpected incidents, he might not have even left Magnolia yet.
Wendy was already stronger than him in that regard.
Speaking of which, is this world really that safe?
"Cough..." Rod cleared his throat. "So, you came to see the Magic Parade, right? Did you see the show last night?"
"Yep!" Wendy nodded vigorously, clasping her hands together and her eyes shining. "It was an amazing parade! I've never seen such a wonderful performance!"
She then blushed and looked down, fidgeting with her toes. "And... there's... actually..."
Shalulu sighed and finished for her, "That was one reason, but the main reason was to find you and a guy called ‘Fire Dragon.’"
Wendy whispered, "Shalulu, that's rude to say."
"Find me? And ‘Fire Dragon’?"
Cat's Cradle is a guild where cat spirits reside, and the name can vary in translation.
(End of Chapter)
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