Chapter 77: What Was the Mission Again?
Chapter 77: What Was the Mission Again?
The leopardman's upper body was engulfed in flames, and the two stone beetles signaled Rod to retreat.
It must have been too hot for them; after all, they were insects, not stones.
Rod was worried that Natsu's attack might have finished the leopardman off.
However, Natsu knew exactly when to hold back. He had a good sense of how much magic power the leopardman had for defense, how much he should use for his attack, and the leopardman's fighting habits. After two brief skirmishes, Natsu had gathered enough information.
He had a wealth of experience with this kind of thing.
Rod, on the other hand, still had a lot to learn. If he had taken on the mission to hunt down the bandits, he might have accidentally killed someone, just like the time he broke a robber's bones while catching him in the street.
When the flames dissipated, the leopardman's upper body emitted a burnt smell, his fur was singed and curled, and flames still flickered in some spots.
But he didn't fall. Instead, he roared to the sky and punched both stone beetles, shattering them into four mini stone beetles.
The mini stone beetles tried to continue their "leg-hugging" command but were quickly kicked away by the leopardman, who showed impressive footwork. Two flew toward Natsu, and two flew toward Rod.
"Return to base!"
Rod waved his hand, sending the mini stone beetles back. He then ordered the stone beetle underground and the group blocking the path to attack.
However, the stone beetles couldn't keep up with the leopardman's speed as he lunged at Natsu.
Natsu swung his fist and clashed with the leopardman. This time, Natsu was forced back a few steps. The leopardman's strength in his second form was indeed formidable.
"Sharp Beaks, Feather Storm!"
The Sharp Beaks shot single feathers at the leopardman to avoid hitting their allies.
The leopardman nimbly stepped back, but as he tried to advance again, he stumbled. Something had grabbed his tail.
Looking back, he saw three wolves' mouths clamped onto his thick leopard tail.
"Nice one, Rod! Fire Dragon Punches!" Natsu charged forward, his arms swinging, and his flaming fists pelted the leopardman's face and chest.
"Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!!" Natsu roared in sync with his punches, "Wake up, you leopard bastard! Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!!!"
The leopardman staggered, emitting low growls.
"Village Chief, Siro, and Claudette... they're all waiting for you to come back!"
The red glow in the leopardman's eyes faded, his expression clearing slightly, but then the redness returned.
"Stay! Awake!!"
With a final roar, Natsu's last punch struck the leopardman's nose, sending him flying backward.
The Shadow Wolves released their grip as the leopardman spun through the air, trailing two spiral flames, and landed with a thud, lying motionless.
It looked like they had won.
Just to be safe, Rod ordered the Shadow Wolves to hide, the Sharp Beaks to keep their distance, and the stone beetles to burrow underground, ready to pounce if the leopardman moved.
Fortunately, the worst-case scenario didn't happen.
The leopardman's body shimmered with light, shrinking, and his tail and claws disappeared, transforming him back into a young man.
"We did it!!" Natsu and Happy cheered together.
Rod smiled, "Finally, it's over... Happy, can you move now?"
"Sure! When Rod shouted 'Return to base.'"
Rod pinched Happy's cheek, "Why didn't you get up earlier?"
Happy mumbled, "Because it felt safe with Rod protecting me."
Rod released Happy's face. This kid... really knows how to talk.
The three of them relaxed for a moment before checking on the young man who had been transformed back to his original form.
This guy looks...
Rod couldn't make out what he looked like because his nose was crooked from Natsu's punch, his face was blackened, and his hair was all frizzy.
He looked terrible.
And his shirt and pants were long gone, leaving him in nothing but a pair of boxer shorts.
Happy asked, "Is he related to Gray?"
"Gray's kind of a pervert, so he's not that easy to run into," Rod replied. "The village chief did say someone found bits of Chi-ta's clothes on the mountain a few days ago. Maybe the Reception Magic tore them when he used it."
Natsu, excited, said, "Well, the mission to slay the Beast King is done. Let's take him back to the village!"
Happy chimed in, "Aye! This was the smoothest mission ever, and Natsu didn't burn down the village! We'll finally get the full reward!"
"What's that supposed to mean, Happy!" Natsu glared.
"I just mean it's great having Rod around."
"Are you saying I'm a liability!?"
"Aye."
"Bastard!" Natsu chased Happy around Rod and Chi-ta.
"You two might be celebrating too early," Rod suddenly said. "I remember our mission was to 'slay the rampaging beast horde and their possible leader.' We've only completed half of it."
"What!?"
The two, who were still chasing each other, stopped and gaped. Natsu even pulled out the mission brief to double-check.
Rod sighed, "Do you guys usually forget the mission details?"
"No, it's because... before we left, you asked Mira so many questions and laid out so many plans," Natsu said, reading the mission brief word by word. "I almost forgot everything except the fighting..."
Happy backed Natsu up, "Aye, Natsu used to think occasionally.
But Rod planned out the transportation, reconnaissance, meals, rest, and battle strategies."
"..." Rod was speechless. It seemed that with him around, their brains went into power-saving mode, only to be used during fights. He felt like he was on track to become the guild's chief logistics officer.
A little more strength and experience, and he might even compete for Mira's position.
"Anyway, let's take him back first. Maybe the village chief will be so happy he'll declare the mission complete."
...
It was nearly noon, and smoke was rising from the chimneys of every house in the village.
Only the village chief's house remained quiet.
Village Chief Panser sat in his living room, occasionally looking up at his son's 'portrait' and then pacing restlessly with his cane.
Si-no was taking care of Worm, occasionally bringing Panser a fresh pot of hot tea.
Claudia, following Natsu's instructions, waited at home. She was drawn to Worm's cute appearance and wanted to pet it but was hesitant.
This was a crucial magical beast left by the mage for emergency communication, and Panser and Si-no forbade Claudia from touching it.
Worm didn't mind playing with Claudia, but Si-no had prepared so many tasty snacks for it that eating was far more important than playing.
"Village Chief! Village Chief!" A young man burst into the house, "They're back! The mage is back, and he brought Chi-ta with him! Chi-ta is alive! Chi-ta is alive!"
The village chief, who had been pacing, suddenly stopped. His cane clattered to the floor.
Ignoring it, the old man stumbled to the door, his pace quickening until he was almost jogging.
Reception Magic is strange. In the comics, Elfman's first full-body Reception Magic tore his clothes, but Mira and Lisanna's didn't, and they even had automatic outfit changes.
(End of Chapter)
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