Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 269: Fried

Fried clarified, "According to the guild regulations, a mission request of this level must be approved by the Master or a designated assistant. I cannot verify your authority."

He was clearly rigid, though not hostile. Just one of those rule-sticklers. Fairy Tail had plenty of unique personalities, and Fried was certainly among them.

Rhodes remained calm and gestured to the guild mark on his arm. "Rhodes. I joined last July. I've been helping Mira with request management since the start of the year, with the Master's approval. You can check with pretty much anyone here."

Fried glanced around. The guild members were more shocked by his presence than anything else. No one seemed surprised to see Rhodes behind the counter.

He gave a small nod, then lifted the request slightly.

"I understand. I've heard of you. They call you the 'New Era Fairy Strategist.' As long as we're following the rules, please proceed."

So, he wasn't impossible to deal with, just inflexible. Still, Fried wasn't unreasonable. Rhodes found his attitude tolerable.

Rhodes reviewed the paperwork thoroughly. It was a high-difficulty mission: a criminal gang was causing trouble, and one member was flagged as a highly dangerous mage.

"This is no small job," Rhodes said, frowning. "Are you going alone?"

"We of the Thunder God Tribe will act together. If necessary, Laxus will join."

Fried's voice softened ever so slightly at the mention of Laxus.

Rhodes gave an approving nod. "Alright, then no problem."

He stamped the paperwork and noted the names, Fried, Evergreen, Bickslow, and Laxus, in the registry. Then he handed over the proper documents and additional briefing pages.

"I suggest reviewing pages two and three carefully. Though if Laxus is on the job, it should go smoothly. Just watch yourselves out there."

Fried paused, catching the genuine tone in Rhodes' voice.

More importantly, he noticed something else: Rhodes held real respect for Laxus.

And in Fried's eyes, that meant a lot.

He looked at Rhodes with newfound warmth. As he left the guild hall, he considered something he hadn't expected earlier: 'As long as he respect Laxus enough, we may become friends.

'Maybe, once this mission is over... I should ask if Rhodes wants to join the Thunder God Tribe.'

Rhodes had been thinking that the last time he saw Fried, the guy came off like a devoted housewife hovering around Laxus.

But after chatting for a bit, he realized Fried actually seemed more normal than most of his eccentric teammates, aside from his obsession with rules.

A while later, Erza emerged from the kitchen carrying a small slice of cake. The strawberries had been scarce, so the portions were limited.

Still, Erza generously handed half of it to Mira.

"Oh, Erza, I feel a little bad now. I was teasing you earlier," Mira said, though she wore an unmistakable grin.

"If you didn't say that with a smile, maybe I'd believe you really meant it."

"Hehe~" Mira giggled as she tasted the cake that Erza swore was the best in all of Fiore.

Rhodes, of course, got to try it too.

"Delicious," he said plainly, without his usual flowery compliments. Then he leaned forward again, mouth open, waiting to be fed another bite.

Mira was in a great mood today, so she decided to indulge him a little.

Just then, she glanced at the mission register and was surprised. "Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe were here?"

"Fried took a job. Evergreen and Bickslow were waiting outside. I didn't see Laxus himself," Rhodes explained.

Not knowing much about the Thunder Gods' actual abilities, he asked, "Do you think they're up for this kind of mission?"

"No worries. Among the guild's teams, the Thunder God Tribe is definitely one of the strongest. The three of them have completed plenty of tough missions," Mira said confidently.

She paused for a moment, thoughtful. "It's just that I haven't seen them in action lately. They've probably gotten even stronger."

"What sort of magic do they use? Is it all thunder-based too?" Rhodes asked, realizing he'd never actually asked this before, despite hearing about them.

Even Mira had to think hard before answering, which only highlighted how rarely the Thunder Gods interacted with the rest of the guild.

"They all use powerful and unique types of magic," she said eventually.

"Sounds impressive," Rhodes said. "The stronger our teammates are, the better."

"The last strawberry," Mira said, lifting her fork.

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Rhodes reached out and gently held her hand. "Let's do this—don't move. We both bite it at the same time. Half for each of us."

Mira paused, her cheeks already tinged pink. She seemed to visualize the scene and immediately flushed deeper. Without saying a word, she snatched the strawberry with an "Ahm!" and puffed out one cheek like a smug little hamster.

Rhodes found it utterly adorable.

So, while Mira sat there in her moment of smug glory, he leaned in, gently poked her puffed cheek, then jumped to his feet and ran off with a laugh.

"I'm heading to the library!" he called over his shoulder.

...

Back in the year X686, Mavis Vermillion founded the Fairy Tail Guild alongside Yuri Dreyar, Precht Gaebolg, and Warrod Sequen.

The four of them were known as the "First Fairies." But according to Mavis, there had actually been a fifth, an unknown member whose identity and appearance were lost to time.

It all happened nearly 98 years ago.

Rhodes flipped through the old guild records, wondering if that mysterious fifth member was some hidden final boss buried in Fairy Tail's legacy.

As he continued reading, he came across something even more interesting: Yuri Dreyar was the father of Makarov and the great-grandfather of Laxus.

So the current Guild Master had literally been born into Fairy Tail, and it was all right there in the archives.

According to the record, Yuri got married and had a son with the entire guild there to witness it. And it was Mavis herself who named the child.

That got Rhodes thinking, if all went well with him and Mira, they might end up walking the same path.

Married under the blessings of their friends, raising a child together in the warmth of Fairy Tail.

Their kid would grow up in the guild, surrounded by the wildest, kindest people alive. Honestly, Rhodes wasn't sure if that was a blessing or a recipe for madness... but one thing was for certain: the kid would never have to worry about bullies.

Rhodes gave his cheek a light slap. Daydreaming again in broad daylight.

Back to reading.

Lately, he'd become more and more fascinated by the guild's past. He figured that when new members joined, he'd be the one to tell them about all this stuff.

Truth be told, he doubted even longtime members like Natsu or Gray had bothered to learn half of it.

The last newcomer to join was Tono, and that had been five months ago. Who knew when the next newbie would walk through those doors?

Maybe it would be Lucy. Or Wendy?

He recalled some of the posters he'd seen in the dorms. He had a vague memory of seeing Wendy before, and Lucy, well, she was a blonde, right?

Whichever of them showed up first, one thing was clear: life wouldn't stay this peaceful for long.