Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 264: Natsu: Let’s fight it out, Mira!

Mira knelt beside him, one hand gently pinning the back of his head, the other brushing his cheek as she smiled sweetly. "I'm sorry, Natsu. Could you not make me bring out the mean side of me again, okay?"

Happy whispered behind a paw, "Pretty sure it's already out."

Natsu twitched twice before going limp. "Aye..."

Now he was sure. No, his face was sure. This was the same Mira who used to constantly butt heads with Erza.

And everyone else finally accepted the truth too. Like Erza, Mira could take Natsu out with one blow. The demon was definitely back.

Rhodes, meanwhile, was watching with a pensive look.

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It didn't add up. Natsu had been training hard for weeks, and he'd recently learned to absorb that special black fire. His strength should've spiked.

But from what Rhodes just saw, Natsu was weaker than when they'd fought the Dark Guild together.

Maybe his thoughtful expression gave people the wrong idea.

Macao and Wakaba quietly patted him on the shoulder like wise old men, exchanged sympathetic glances, and wandered off without a word.

A few others suddenly felt less jealous of Rhodes. After all, if it was Mirajane, maybe losing to her wasn't so bad.

Mira returned to her usual self and skipped lightly back to Rhodes, her smile gentle, her tone soft as ever.

"Anyway, that's how it happened. My magic power's fully restored, and during a sparring match with Rhodes yesterday, I accidentally ruined part of the guild. I'm really sorry, Master."

From the rubble, Natsu perked up after catching one particular phrase.

"Wait, did you say sparring with Rhodes?" His mood instantly lifted. "So he got beaten too?! Hahaha!"

Rhodes glanced at him with an unreadable expression.

Beaten? Sure. But I got a lap pillow afterward. You? You'll just have sore knees.

"I'm sorry, Master," Rhodes apologized alongside Mira.

"What? Why are you apologizing? This is great news!" Makarov beamed.

If it had been an outsider who destroyed the guild, then they'd have to investigate, identify the attacker, and take action.

But if it was one of their own?

Well, that was just part of being Fairy Tail.

Most of the onlookers had already dispersed. After all, it wasn't the first time a guildmate blew a hole through a wall. It probably wouldn't be the last.

Makarov cleared his throat and formally announced, "In that case, I hereby declare, Mirajane Strauss is officially reinstated as an S-Class wizard!"

The guild erupted in cheers.

Mira's popularity had never faded, and everyone was genuinely thrilled to have her return to her former strength.

Suddenly, the guild felt stronger than ever.

Gildarts, Laxus, Erza, Mirajane, and Mystogan, Fairy Tail now had five active S-Class wizards!

Add in Natsu, whose name had been spreading fast lately, and Gray, who remained on par with him...

Then there was Rhodes, and Elfman too...

Fairy Tail was looking fierce these days.

Even more impressive, the majority of these powerhouses were young.

Macao and Wakaba, watching from the sidelines, couldn't help but get a little emotional.

"Feels like the new generation really grew up all of a sudden," said Macao.

"Yeah. The future of the guild looks more exciting than ever," added Wakaba with a puff of his pipe.

Meanwhile, two of those very 'futures' were currently knee-deep in the rubble, repairing the guild.

Rhodes, despite his many talents, was still a novice when it came to fixing the things he accidentally helped break.

He hadn't wrecked the guild that many times yet, so he didn't have much hands-on experience.

To be honest, he wasn't exactly eager to gain more.

Mira, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying herself. Whether sawing wood, stacking stones, or plastering walls, she worked with smooth precision and a peaceful smile.

"I haven't done this in ages," she said with a soft chuckle. "Kind of brings back memories."

"You used to do this often?" Rhodes asked, glancing sideways.

He still remembered flipping through the old guild albums and seeing photos of Mira's wild, rebellious past. Back then, Mira had been one of the biggest troublemakers in Fairy Tail.

Now she was calmly patching up her own magical mayhem like it was a casual weekend chore.

"Sometimes," Mira recalled with a soft smile, "I used to fix walls with Erza. We'd even compete to see who did a better job. Of course, half the time we ended up fighting, and then had to repair it all over again."

As she instinctively touched her cheek, she resembled a mischievous little kitten.

Rhodes reached out to brush the dirt off her face, but since his hands were just as messy, each wipe only smeared her more.

In the end, he gave up on wiping and just kept smudging her playfully, laughing all the while.

"You're impossible!" Mira giggled and retaliated by swiping her muddy hand across his face.

The two of them looked like a pair of children in a sandbox, suddenly locked in a ridiculous dirt war.

A few guild members who hadn't previously envied Rhodes suddenly felt an unfamiliar pang of jealousy.

Meanwhile, Makarov was at the front desk losing his mind.

He sat cross-legged atop the counter, flipping through a pile of paperwork while aggressively scratching what little hair he had left. "Why is there so much to do at the start of the month?!"

Laki offered a very sincere explanation. "Because the people who usually help you with that work are now out there stacking bricks and mortar in a rather geometrically correct fashion."

"Makes sense." Makarov groaned. It had been so long since he'd done any administrative work, he'd nearly forgotten he was the guildmaster.

Outside of attending meetings and drafting monthly apology letters to the Magic Council, he had mostly been hands-off lately.

Honestly? He'd rather help with the wall.

Peeking through the gaping back door, he muttered, "Are those two seriously still building that wall?"

"Laki," he said with a heavy sigh, "go help them with the woodwork."

It was hard to tell when, or if, those two lovebirds would finish at this rate. Being young was great and all... but efficiency clearly wasn't part of the package.

Still, were they actually going to fix the wall themselves?

"Yup~" Laki chimed cheerfully, more than happy to help out her beloved Sister Mira. Though later she planned to demand snacks or repayment from Rhodes.

The guild courtyard was huge, and despite working through the day, Rhodes and Mira had only finished part of the reconstruction by the afternoon.

That was when Makarov finally stepped in.

"Alright, that's enough for today," he said, rolling up his sleeves. "You two head back. I'll take care of the rest."

"But, Master—" Rhodes started.

Before he could finish his sentence, Makarov had already shooed them off like a pair of loitering pigeons.

Rhodes still didn't quite understand what was going through the old man's head. Why was he, of all people, fighting to do manual labor at his age?