The Nirvit tribe had vanished.
But Wendy said no, from today on, she is a Nirvit tribe.
She might not remain on this land forever, but she had learned so many Nirvit traditions and skills. She would carry them to distant places and pass them on to those who truly needed them.
Maybe, in the far-off future, the spirit of the Nirvit tribe would live on everywhere.
What did it feel like to lose someone important?
Mira, Gray, Lyon, Sherry, Hibiki… many of those present had experienced that pain themselves. They understood what Wendy was going through.
Mira and Erza stayed close to Wendy as she carefully sorted through Master Roubaul's "relics." Together, they picked a suitable stone to place as a memorial in the village.
Following Master Roubaul's last wishes, the others agreed to stay at Cait Shelter for a day or two longer, at least until they were sure Wendy was alright.
"There's really no need for that," Carla muttered, seeing how noisy the Fairy Tail group already was.
Jura smiled gently. "Not at all. At our last inter-guild meeting, we discussed deepening bonds between guilds. This seems like the perfect opportunity."
That was Jura for you, always ready with a noble excuse.
Carla turned away, flicking her tail. "Suit yourselves."
Rhodes leaned over and helpfully translated, "She said, 'Thank you very much.'"
Carla spun around, glaring. "I did not!"
Rhodes continued cheerfully, "She also says, 'I'm too shy to say it out loud, but you're really a chatterbox.' Oh, wait, that last part was for me."
"You're impossible!" Carla fumed, her cheeks turning pink. She stomped her paw, then took to the skies in a flutter. "I regret ever staying to entertain you people! I should've stayed with Wendy!"
The others chuckled at her flustered retreat. It was a good sign. After a full day of mourning, both Wendy and Carla were feeling just a little better, and a little laughter didn't hurt.
Happy, wide-eyed, stared up at Rhodes with admiration. He wanted to learn how to do that.
Rhodes ruffled the blue cat's head. "Just like I couldn't help Jet and Droy, I don't think I can help you either. Keep trying. Or hey, learn from those two."
He gestured toward Ren and Sherry.
Those two were clearly a tsundere pair, but for some reason, their relationship had advanced in record time.
At lunch, they had already started serving rice to each other, then spent forever arguing back and forth: "You eat first!" "No, you eat first!"
It got so ridiculous that Rhodes and Mira reenacted the whole scene in front of them, complete with dramatic voices and exaggerated gestures. That finally embarrassed the real pair enough to eat in silence.
"There's an affair~" Happy commented in his usual singsong tone, staring at the arguing couple with a knowing gleam.
Then he quietly turned around and padded away.
He decided to go fishing instead.
The others were busy with their own tasks. Some helped Wendy handle matters left behind after Cait Shelter's dissolution. Some worked on compiling the mission report from the Nirvana operation. Others were out gathering food and supplies to solve the guild's immediate logistical needs.
Maybe it was the presence of so many warm-hearted companions, maybe the chaotic antics of certain loudmouths, or maybe it was simply that she'd found peace after hearing Roubaul's final words, but Wendy had started smiling more and more over the last two days.
Today marked the third day since Cait Shelter had vanished.
Rhodes's assignment for the day was to hunt and gather enough meat to feed more than a dozen people.
Just as he was about to head out, three golden lights shimmered in front of him, materializing into four unique figures.
One was a soft-spoken young woman with cotton-candy pink hair, dressed in fluffy white woolen clothes. A pair of curled goat horns peeked out from her head.
Next to her stood two identical, bald, sky-blue twins, roughly the same size as Happy.
And finally, a tall man with a cocky stance and a long scorpion tail jutting from behind him completed the quartet.
Rhodes didn't recognize the pink-haired girl, but he definitely knew the other three.
"You're the Celestial Spirits Gemini and Scorpio… and Aries?" he asked cautiously.
He kept his tone calm, slightly wary but not hostile.
Lucy had told him about the Celestial Spirits that had been used by the Angel from Oración Seis: Gemini, Scorpio, Aries.
And under the Celestial Spirit contract laws, if a Spirit's summoner was arrested and convicted for a crime, the contract would be nullified.
Just like how Virgo had regained her freedom, these three must be free now too.
As Rhodes quietly assessed the visitors, they too were curiously studying him, more specifically, the Fairy Tail emblem stitched to his clothes.
"Yo! I'm Scorpio, of the Scorpio Gate! Hey-yeah!" said the scorpion man, throwing up a flamboyant hand sign with his thumb, index, and pinky fingers like a magical rapper.
"Biri-biri! I'm Jemmy—and I'm Mini! We're Gemini!" the two blue twins said in perfect sync, bouncing cheerfully.
"S-sorry to bother you… I'm Aries," the pink-haired girl stammered, fidgeting nervously with her sleeves. "Sorry..."
In just a few words, Rhodes already had a rough sense of their personalities.
Before he could ask anything, Scorpio stepped forward confidently.
"Excuse me," he said. "Is Miss Lucy here? We've come to ask her to become our new Celestial Spirit Mage."
As he spoke, he extended his arm and revealed a golden key etched with the Scorpio constellation. Jemmy and Mini held up theirs too, and Aries bashfully raised hers.
All three keys gleamed in the sunlight—none of them bound by contract.
"What?" Rhodes blinked.
Celestial Spirits… had come looking for Lucy?
They were asking her to make a contract?
What kind of absurdly lucky person is Lucy, anyway? The ultimate "main heroine" buff, right?
Fortunately, although Rhodes had entered the world of magic through Celestial Spirit magic, he wasn't a full-fledged Celestial Spirit Mage himself. Otherwise, he'd probably be dying of envy over Lucy's fate.
He turned to the trio of spirits. "Please wait a moment. I'll go call her."
Spirits without contracts generally weren't dangerous, aside from rare exceptions like Loke, Celestial Spirits were strictly prohibited from meddling in the human world until bound by contract.
Lucy was staying in a small house just behind Wendy's place.
At that moment, for reasons no one could really explain, Natsu and Gray were once again locked in one of their typical brawls right outside.
Lucy stood nearby, one hand holding her skirt, the other on her hip, watching them with an all-too-familiar look of exasperation. She was trying to decide whether it was better to sneak away or wait for the storm to pass.
Her decision was made for her when a stray chunk of ice flew straight into her forehead, knocking her to the ground.
"Can't you two fight somewhere else?" she groaned, pushing herself up off the ground.
Just then, Rhodes appeared, politely covering his eyes. "Lucy, someone's here to see you."
"Huh?" Lucy blinked, confused by his hand placement—then jumped to her feet, grabbed her skirt, and shrieked, "AHHHHH!"
"Perfect timing, Rhodes!" Natsu shouted. "You still owe me payback for earlier!" He forgot all about Gray, pivoting to charge Rhodes with a fiery fist raised.
Rhodes wasn't in the mood. "Not now."
"Like I care!" Flames roared from Natsu's hand.
Rhodes sighed. "Mountain Dragon's Soul."
With a blur of motion, Natsu was floored. A sharp crack landed on his skull, and he collapsed, twitching on the ground like an overcooked fish.
Rhodes casually blew across his fist like it was a smoking weapon, then turned to Gray. "You're not going to try anything too, are you?"
"Yeah, no thanks," Gray muttered, stepping back with a scowl. "But seriously… how the hell did you get so strong, so fast? Are you still training every day?"
Rhodes tilted his head to the sky, gazing upward as if pondering something deep. "If Erza became your girlfriend, you'd train just as hard as I do."
"I'm good. Forget I asked."
...
Bonus @800
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