Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 256: Reputation

Hades waved dismissively. "No need for apologies. You simply wished to bolster our strength. None of us expected Fairy Tail to interfere suddenly."

Azuma leaned forward eagerly. "Can't I visit Fairy Tail personally? I'm intrigued by the people who managed to defeat Rustyrose and Zancrow."

Zancrow, who stood nearby wrapped tightly in bandages, jumped up furiously at this. "Who got defeated?! They just got lucky and ran away like cowards!"

Azuma ignored Zancrow completely and continued, excitement building in his voice, "Besides those two newcomers, Fairy Tail has Erza Scarlet, the Fairy Queen; Mirajane Strauss, the She-Devil; Natsu Dragneel, the Fire Dragon; and even Makarov, one of the Ten Wizard Saints. It's overflowing with incredible opponents!"

He clenched his fists in excitement, practically vibrating with anticipation. "What a thrilling guild! I'd love to fight them all right now."

Hades smiled faintly, amused by Azuma's enthusiasm. "Indeed, Fairy Tail is fascinating, but now isn't the right moment."

His expression darkened with ambition, and his single visible eye sparkled ominously. "When our ultimate ambition, the Grand Magic World, is finally realized, you'll have as many powerful adversaries as your heart desires."

At these words, Caprico and Zancrow both wore expressions of fervent anticipation. The Grand Magic World was their grandest dream, a future worth any sacrifice.

Only Azuma remained calm. His mind was focused less on grand ideals and more on the promise of fierce battles ahead. Though he would certainly follow the master's orders, if given a chance to test himself against powerful foes now, Azuma would happily ignore grand schemes.

"Fairy Tail..." Azuma whispered to himself with an eager smile.

Elsewhere, in Magnolia, Rhodes and Elfman had unknowingly become rather famous lately.

The Council, far from keeping the recent events secret, actually seemed intent on fanning the flames of publicity.

However, their emphasis was clearly strategic, they wanted the public to praise Rhodes and Elfman for their bravery, while condemning Grimoire Heart's dark deeds. As for the embarrassing loss of prisoners, the Council hoped everyone would just quietly forget about that.

As a result, the latest sinister actions of Grimoire Heart were inevitably linked to the heroic deeds of Rhodes and Elfman.

Elfman earned a rather impressive nickname: "Beast King."

Of course, Elfman himself would've greatly preferred a more "manly" title, like "Manly Man," "Manly Beast King," or even "Beastly Manly King."

Recently, Elfman must've had a heart-to-heart with Mira, as he no longer rejected the Beast King Soul form. Instead, he had begun training diligently to master it completely, aiming to gain greater strength to protect his loved ones. He'd even started experimenting with other forms of Full-Body Take Over magic, determined to grow even stronger.

As for Rhodes, surprisingly, it wasn't the victory over Rustyrose that brought him the most fame. Instead, it was the astonishingly detailed intelligence report he'd prepared, copies of which had quickly spread throughout all major guilds that truly caught people's attention.

Among the older generations, some had started referring to Rhodes as the "New Era Fairy Strategist"

Younger wizards, who knew less of history, simply called him "The Fairy Strategist."

When Makarov heard these nicknames, he was overjoyed.

The first master, Mavis Vermillion, was someone Makarov deeply admired; after all, she'd even personally given him his name. Hearing Rhodes compared to her didn't offend him in the slightest. On the contrary, Makarov saw it as a precious legacy being passed down, proof that Fairy Tail's new generation was inheriting their predecessors' wisdom and courage.

Rhodes himself, however, wasn't nearly as thrilled. Becoming famous could cause serious problems after all, as the old saying goes, "Tall trees catch much wind." He worried someone might deliberately come after him, eager to brag, "Hey, look, I just defeated the famous Fairy Strategist!"

"You know what this means, right?" Rhodes said to himself, scratching his head in mild frustration. "I'll have to get even stronger."

The simplest solution to avoid being predictable was straightforward: train harder, improve faster, and ensure all the enemy's carefully collected information quickly became useless, outdated garbage.

Both Master Makarov and Lahar had mentioned it would be challenging to learn new magic quickly, but Rhodes believed that with enough hard work, anything was possible.

Besides, Rhodes was even considering creating a new persona for himself, one that matched his nickname, perhaps portraying himself as someone skilled at making plans, but weaker when it came to direct combat.

A bit like a beast tamer, someone who commands from behind.

But in the end, he knew he couldn't rely solely on tricks or reputation. True strength was essential.

"Mira, I'm going out to train," Rhodes called to her.

"Okay," Mira replied simply.

As Rhodes stepped away, he couldn't help glancing back at Mira again and again. Recently, he'd felt something was a bit off about her, almost as if she'd grown slightly distant, or colder than usual.

No, not exactly cold. It was something subtler than that.

Whenever they trained together after work, Mira still cared for him just as warmly as before. Their teamwork during missions was flawless as always.

Yet during their regular conversations, something had definitely changed. It wasn't coldness, exactly, nor was it distance, but rather a peculiar feeling he couldn't quite pinpoint.

Could it be just one of those things? Maybe she was having one of those days?

Rhodes puzzled over it for a while as he headed into the guild's backyard for training. After a while, he decided to take a break and summoned Warm, who excitedly bounded off to the tavern to find Elfman. Ever since Warm had received a feast as a reward for delivering Rhodes's message last time, he'd become particularly eager about delivering messages.

It didn't take long for Elfman to arrive.

"What's up? You want to spar?" Elfman rolled his shoulders, looking excited. "Come to think of it, you haven't tested your strength against my full Beast King Soul yet, have you?"

"Have you recovered fully from your injuries?" Rhodes raised an eyebrow, grinning. "I was just thinking I'd love a proper match."

"Of course! I'm back to peak condition—manly condition!" Elfman flexed proudly. "Actually, I'm planning to take on a new mission tomorrow. How about you?"

"I think I'll rest for a few more days," Rhodes admitted thoughtfully.

After that last intense, near-death battle, he'd gained a lot of experience. It was a perfect chance to reflect, consolidate his growth, and think through his strengths and weaknesses carefully.

Especially the new skill he'd discovered, summoning creatures without using his hands. He wanted to stabilize and fully master this before attempting something more advanced.

His next goal was clear: eventually summon creatures without even needing direct contact with his pendant. Achieving that would take his capabilities in battle to a whole new level.

After all, breakthroughs during life-and-death moments came from consistent training and having a clear goal. He had to set that direction clearly now, rather than relying on luck or instinct alone when the time came.

Elfman didn't press Rhodes to join him for a job; instead, he nodded approvingly. "Honestly, I think it's better if you don't take any jobs for a little while."

"Huh? You're worried someone's gonna ambush me because of my reputation now?" Rhodes asked, only half-joking.

Elfman tilted his head, confused. "Ambush you? What are you talking about?"

Clearly, their thoughts were on entirely different wavelengths.

Rhodes stared blankly, scratching his head. "If that's not it... then why don't you think I should go on any missions?"

"No, nothing," Elfman replied, his tone unusually soft. "I just think you were hurt pretty badly... you should rest more."

That didn't sit right with Rhodes.

He narrowed his eyes, watching Elfman carefully. Something was definitely off. Elfman wasn't meeting his gaze, his eyes flicked to the side, avoiding direct contact.

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That wasn't like him at all.

"Men shouldn't lie, Elfman,".

"So... why?"

...

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