Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 488: Little Soldier, He Knows a Lot

"What’s going on?"

"What is Deul doing?"

"Who gave him permission to start the airship?!"

The squad leader who had been overseeing the supply transfer on the ground shouted furiously as the massive airship suddenly roared to life. But no matter how loud he yelled, Gemini wasn’t going to obey him.

The airship lifted off at full throttle, twin jets of white vapor erupting from its rear thrusters and blasting gusts across the plaza, nearly knocking several soldiers off their feet.

"Did he lose his mind?! Is that guy trying to steal the magic crystal for himself?!"

In his panic, the squad leader didn’t even consider the possibility that the ship had been hijacked, after all, no outsiders had been seen boarding.

"Quick! After it!"

He and his men bolted toward the city gate, but what chance did they have of chasing down an airborne ship on foot?

Meanwhile, inside the vessel, the soldiers who had already boarded were thrown into chaos. The sudden takeoff sent everyone lurching, and several unlucky ones stationed near the rear were launched straight off the ship, crashing into the ground below.

Ironically, those soldiers were the lucky ones.

As the airship blasted through its acceleration phase, the remaining troops scrambled to regain their footing and began rushing toward the cockpit to demand an explanation.

But before they could make it far;

Several dark shapes loomed over the deck.

Looking up, they saw something bizarre: a flying cat and a boy with long hair soaring through the sky, and just beneath them, a strange white-feathered bird carrying a blonde girl.

Suddenly, a clear voice rang out:

"Lucy, Flying Kick!"

Lucy Heartfilia dove straight from the sky, boot first, slamming into one of the soldiers and sending him crashing across the deck.

"Enemy attack!" someone shouted in panic.

Even before Lucy could draw her whip, the white bird streaked down from above. With a sharp screech, its massive talons knocked another soldier flat on his back.

Lucy turned and grinned, "Nice one, Lisanna!"

The bird landed gracefully beside her, and in a swirl of magic light, transformed back into Lisanna Strauss.

"You too, Lucy! That flying kick was awesome!"

The dozen or so soldiers remaining quickly formed a perimeter, raising their spears and conjuring magic shields to surround the girls.

But Lisanna just tilted her head with a mischievous smile and pointed toward the sky.

"Look up~"

"Huh?" one soldier muttered, glancing overhead.

There, floating just above the deck, were Happy and Rhodes.

Rhodes’s cloak fluttered in the wind as he prepared to unleash a barrage of summoned creatures.

But before he could cast, something unexpected happened.

The soldiers suddenly fell to one knee, planting their spears upright in a salute.

"Ex—Exceed!" they cried, staring wide-eyed at Happy with reverence and fear.

Rhodes blinked. "Wait, what?"

Happy tilted his head in confusion. "Huh?"

Lucy and Lisanna were both stunned. Their first thought was, could it be that in this world, Rhodes is someone important with the title "Exceed"?

But Rhodes immediately noticed something odd: those respectful gazes weren’t aimed at him... they were aimed at Happy.

Exceed? Rhodes pondered. ’Could that be Happy’s species?’

He leaned over and whispered something into Happy’s ear.

Happy looked at Rhodes skeptically, but seeing Rhodes’s serious nod, he puffed up his chest, flew forward, and commanded in a loud voice:

"You all! Drop your weapons and squat over there!"

Lucy’s jaw dropped. "Where did you even learn to say ’you all’? And how could they possibly listen to you?!"

But before she could finish her thought, the soldiers actually hesitated for a moment, then obediently dropped their weapons with a clatter and walked over to squat by the wall.

Lucy stared, stunned. "They listened?!"

Rhodes and Happy landed softly on the deck. Rhodes kept a close eye on the surrendered soldiers.

"Lisanna," he said calmly, "go pick up Natsu, Wendy, and Carla."

"Got it!" Lisanna gave a nod, sprinted to the side of the ship, and leapt off. Her arms transformed into white feathered wings as she soared gracefully into the sky.

Happy fluttered beside Lucy. "I said it to sound more commanding."

"Huh?" Lucy blinked, confused.

"I mean," Happy clarified, "Rhodes told me to be more authoritative... so I said ’you all’."

Lucy finally realized Happy was responding to her earlier complaint, and immediately shouted again, "That’s not the point! Why are they actually listening to you?!"

"I dunno either." Happy scratched his head, genuinely baffled.

Before long, the airship’s altitude and speed had stabilized just outside the city limits, making it easier for Lisanna to return. She flew back aboard with Natsu, Wendy, and Carla in tow.

As soon as his feet touched the deck, Natsu’s complexion turned green. He collapsed face-down on the floor, groaning.

"Let me off... I’ll walk..."

Wendy, meanwhile, was wide-eyed as she looked up at the enormous magic crystal stored aboard. "It’s so huge! And... it’s not even the whole thing?"

From a distance, it was already massive. Up close, it towered like a six- or seven-story building, radiating a dim magical glow.

Carla, surveying the deck and the obediently squatting soldiers, narrowed her eyes. "So... what are we doing with them?"

Rhodes answered without hesitation.

With a gesture, he summoned six wraiths.

"Strip their armor and gear. Then toss them off the ship."

There was no need to interrogate anyone when Gemini could read minds.

The ghosts silently floated over to carry out the task.

The soldiers saw the phantoms appear, then caught sight of another Exceed, Carla.

Any thought of resistance vanished from their minds.

After all, if their gear was taken under an Exceed’s command, it couldn’t be blamed on them. And from this altitude, as long as they weren’t dropped head-first... they’d probably survive.

One by one, the soldiers were stripped of their armor and tossed overboard by the wraiths. Rhodes couldn’t help but sigh as he watched. Humanoid wraiths with hands really are handy.

Lucy tilted her head. "Why are we taking all their weapons?"

Rhodes pointed toward the massive magic crystal secured on the ship. "We don’t know how many allies we’ll need to protect this thing, and if we can’t use magic, we’ll need something to fight with."

As he spoke, Rhodes summoned six wolves and ordered them to scout the airship for any remaining enemies hiding aboard.

Leaving Wendy and the sick Natsu on deck to guard the crystal, the rest of the group headed into the cockpit to check on Gemini.

"You’re finally here!" Gemini called out, their dual voices overlapping as they held the pilot’s seat. "Our transformation’s gonna wear off in one minute! Does anyone know how to fly this thing?!"

Happy tilted his head. "What happens if nobody does?"

"If no one’s flying, then it crashes!" Gemini responded without hesitation.

"WHAT?!" Lucy jumped back, nearly tripping. "Then why don’t you just keep flying it?!"

"Lucy can’t keep supplying us with magic forever," said Gemini. "She’ll burn out."

Lucy clutched her head in panic. "Oh no, oh no! Mr. Rhodes, boost my magic power, hurry!" novelbuddy-cσ๓

Rhodes raised an eyebrow. "I can’t do that. Not yet, anyway." He turned serious. "How long can you keep going?"

"I... I dunno! Five minutes? Ten if I push it?!" Lucy was near tears. "Should we just land the ship now?!"

Carla sharply cut in, "No! If we land too early, the Royal Army will track us down and surround us before we get anywhere safe."

Lisanna stepped forward confidently. "If it’s flying the ship... I can do it."

Rhodes looked at her. "You can?"

She nodded. "The Natsu taught me a bunch about vehicles and transportation."

Happy waved his paw. "If you meant our Natsu, I’d never believe it."

Lisanna smiled. "Nope, not that Natsu, the one from Edolas. He’s the go-to guy for transport jobs over there."

Rhodes gave a satisfied nod. "Alright. Then I’ll leave it to you. If anything confuses you, ask Gemini before they disappear."

Lisanna slid into the pilot seat and took the controls. The airship gave a sudden jolt, tilting slightly, but she quickly stabilized it.

Gemini, still in Deul’s form, rapidly walked her through the basics: how to accelerate, decelerate, steer, descend, and climb.

Just as the final instruction was given, a puff of smoke erupted, and Gemini reverted back into their original twin blue forms.

To save time, Mini continued assisting Lisanna in piloting the airship, using the knowledge retained from the pilot they had previously transformed into. Meanwhile, Gemi took charge of relaying the information they had extracted from the soldiers.

Gemini was proving to be incredibly useful in situations like this.

"They were planning to transport the magic crystal to the royal capital," Gemi reported in his usual chirpy tone. "Apparently, the King wants to display it publicly."

"Soga, that’s the name of the soldier we copied, doesn’t know the real reason. He thinks it’s just for boosting morale. But it might also be for testing: extracting a bit of magic power to see how it works."

"He doesn’t know how to restore the crystal," Gemi continued. "And he definitely doesn’t know how to reach Earth Land. But he does know that Erza Knightwalker is super strong, super beautiful, and her height and measurements are probably—"

"Stop, stop, stop!" Rhodes interrupted hurriedly, rubbing his temples. "Just tell us about her magic."

He hadn’t expected this little soldier to know so much, and especially not that much.