Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 332: Lucy Heartfilia

"I thought I was going to fall to my death."

Rhodes clung to Mira tightly, maybe a little tighter than necessary. The aftershock of battle still buzzed in his chest, but the fear of losing control was stronger.

"Then why do something so reckless?" Mira asked gently, not scolding him, but cradling him as they descended slowly toward the street below.

"Because sometimes... I get angry." Rhodes touched the ground with a quiet sigh and reluctantly released her. The warmth of her arms, soft and comforting, lingered in his memory like the tail end of a spell.

Mira shifted back into her usual form, her demon transformation fading away. Her purple dress returned with a shimmer of magic, though the rain had soaked both of them thoroughly.

She hadn't heard what Sol had said before the fight, but judging by the look on Rhode's face, it must've been something awful. She'd ask Lucy later.

The rain had stopped, leaving the street drenched and steaming. Mira gestured toward the massive "chimney" Rhodes had raised, more of a mountain-shaped crater.

"What about that?"

"Give me a few minutes to restore my magic," Rhodes said, rubbing his temple. "I'll break it down and clean up the debris. And... I guess I'll pay for the damages."

His face twitched slightly. "Hopefully no one had anything valuable stored nearby."

Privately, he was already tallying up the compensation and planning to send the bill to Phantom Lord when this was over.

His eyes drifted to Sol's unconscious body, still lying like a crumpled leaf in the crater's shadow.

'Was that guy really supposed to be S-Class?'

When estimating battle strength, Rhodes had always used his own S-Class benchmark. That's why he went all out earlier, he couldn't afford to be careless after traveling through the night.

But now that he was standing here, looking down at the thoroughly wrecked Sol, it felt like... maybe that had been overkill?

He sighed. Mira could probably have beaten two of them alone.

Just then, Lucy came jogging around the base of the collapsed chimney, soaked but unhurt.

"Miss Mira! Mr. Rhodes! Are you okay?"

"We're fine," Mira answered gently. "What about you, Lucy? Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay!" Lucy winced and rubbed her backside. "Just fell off that big tree monster when it disappeared."

Rhodes raised his hand sheepishly. "That was me. Sorry. My magic ran out."

"It's fine! It's fine! I heard from Erza that you two came back overnight, and..."

Lucy's voice trailed off. Her expression grew heavy with guilt.

"I should be the one apologizing. All of this happened because of me."

Mira let go of Rhodes and stepped forward, brushing wet hair out of Lucy's eyes. "It's Phantom Lord's fault. Don't blame yourself."

"But the guild was destroyed... Levy and the others were hurt... because of me."

Lucy's voice wavered. Rainwater, or perhaps tears, fell from the tips of her bangs.

"My real name... is Lucy Heartfilia."

Rhodes blinked. "Heartfilia?"

That name was more than familiar. It was legendary.

The Heartfilia family was one of Fiore's wealthiest and most powerful noble houses, comparable in influence to the royal family itself. A runaway heiress. It made sense now. She'd avoided giving her full name when joining.

Rhodes quietly imagined the scenario: rich girl flees home, joins guild, and her controlling father sends a dark guild to forcibly bring her back.

And Lucy might be the richest woman in the kingdom. All she needed now was a sincere, broke idiot who'd love her for who she really was.

Rhodes? Completely unmoved. He already had the most beautiful not-quite-as-rich girl in Fiore. What more could he ask for?

Mira looked equally surprised. "Heartfilia? As in the Heartfilia Konzern?"

Lucy nodded slowly. "Yes."

From the things Juvia and Sol had said, she was certain now. Her father had sent Phantom Lord to retrieve her.

But what she couldn't understand was... why destroy the guild? Why attack Levy and the others?

Maybe Phantom Lord had taken the job just to have an excuse to act out their aggression "legitimately." Or maybe this was a ploy, lure the tiger from its den.

Either way, Lucy was convinced now.

This was her fault. Levy's team had been attacked. The guild had been destroyed. And she had brought it all down on them.

"It's all my fault. If I hadn't... If I hadn't joined the guild..." Lucy gripped the fabric of her shirt, her fingers trembling.

Her heart ached. Fairy Tail had felt more like home than her real one ever had. But now... now it was in ruins. Because of her.

"That's not true, Lucy."

Mira's voice was calm but resolute. She stepped forward and wrapped Lucy in a warm embrace.

"When Phantom Lord decided to target our guild, this stopped being your problem alone."

Mira gently took Lucy's right hand and brushed her thumb over the pink Fairy Tail emblem etched into the back.

"Or maybe," Mira added, "from the moment you chose to wear this mark, this stopped being just your problem."

Lucy's tears welled up again. "Miss Mira..."

Mira met her eyes, her own expression filled with quiet strength.

"One person's tears are everyone's tears. That's what Master Makarov always says. So lean on us, Lucy. Don't forget, we're Fairy Tail."

"Miss Mira!" Lucy sobbed, throwing her arms around her, unable to hold back any longer. "Wahhh!"

Mira gently stroked her back, letting her cry it out.

Nearby, Rhodes silently finished restoring his magic with Blue buff.

He stepped toward the enormous crater he had created earlier and placed his dragon-clawed hands against its side.

The towering earthen structure slowly began to sink, crumbling and melting into the ground as if it had never been there. Rhodes carefully smoothed the terrain, doing his best to return it to its original state.

Then, with a resigned sigh, he scribbled out a few notes and tucked them into the doorways of the damaged shops, offering apologies and promising compensation.

Only after all that did he return to Mira and Lucy, finding the latter now a little more composed.

"You should take a shower and change clothes," Rhodes suggested, glancing at her soaked hair and sleeves.

Lucy still looked pale and shaken, and her magic reserves were clearly drained. If she stayed wet like this, she might get sick.

And at this point... she was their guild's key. Phantom Lord could try to strike again at any time. He and Mira couldn't afford to leave her unattended.

They couldn't let another tiger lure tactic catch them off guard again.

But eventually, she needed to be with the others. Rhodes decided he and Mira would wait until they had rested and regained enough strength, then they'd bring Lucy to reunite with the guild.

For now, they needed a safe place to regroup.

Lucy's apartment was modest but cozy. It was Rhode's first time there. The living room was neat, a pink comforter folded neatly on the sofa. It looked warm, inviting.

There were some bottles and jars on the dressing table. If you look closely, some of them are the same brand as Mira's.

In addition, she also has a special desk, on which are placed several recent magazines and half-written papers.

There are many books on the bookshelf, and quite a few of them are well-known novels.

In addition, Rhodes glimpsed a pink dumbbell in the corner of the room, and there were several scratches on the wallpaper nearby, as if scratched by a cat.

"Lucy actually works out?" Rhodes had a strange understanding of the newcomer. "It seems that she is also a very hard-working person."

No one answered him, because Mira and Lucy were taking a shower in the bathroom, and there were only him and the two captives in the room.

Sol was unrecognizable. He had countless broken bones. Judging from the blood in his mouth, he probably had some internal injuries.

Juvia seemed to have been beaten badly by Mira. Not only was her face bruised and swollen, but her clothes were also torn.

Mira said that she had been using dark magic to deal with her body that could turn into water, so she was a bit heavy-handed.

It would take a while for someone with such injuries to wake up, but Rhodes still tied them up with ropes. It was a pity that there was no magic seal stone.

Rhode's body was also wet, so he could only sit on a chair and wait. If it was Natsu, he would probably just lie on the bed.

Mira's voice came from the bathroom: "Rhodes, I forgot to bring clothes in, can you help me bring them in?"

Then Lucy screamed: "Hey\~ No!"

Mira said again: "Then let's go out naked to change?"

Lucy rejected it: "That's even worse!"

"Hey\~ I don't think it's a problem, Lucy is so picky."

"No!" Lucy shouted. "You are his girlfriend, of course you think it's okay!"

"Then... Lucy means you want to be Rhodes girlfriend too?"

"No such thing!"

Rhodes laughed outside. It seems that Mira has counseled Lucy.

As for the last sentence, just listen to it for fun.

If Lucy really agrees, she might die on the street tomorrow.

If Rhodes is lucky, he can keep his life, but if he is unlucky, he will be soaked in formalin and accompany Mira forever.

...

Bonus @800 PS

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