Winter was nearly over, yet tonight fine snow began to fall once more.
The night sky was dark and starless. A bonfire burned brightly, crackling now and then.
Three wraiths drifted about, moving firewood to where it wouldn’t be dampened by the snow. They whispered to each other in their eerie tongue, debating whether or not they should adjust the fire.
But none of them dared to act without permission. Their master sat before the flas with a book in hand, while his wife sat cross-legged opposite him, eyes closed in ditation.
After a long while, Mira’s long hair began to stir. The light snowflakes above her head were caught in a small whirlwind, spinning away in all directions.
She let out a soft breath and opened her eyes.
Her gaze lingered first on the busy ghosts, then on Rhodes, who was completely absorbed in his book. With a quiet smile, she stepped around him, wrapped her arms around his neck from behind, and leaned her head close to peek at the pages.
The brush of her hair against his cheek tickled, and Rhodes rubbed his face lightly against hers before continuing to read.
Snowflakes fell onto the open book. Most bounced away, rolling harmlessly off the page, but occasionally one lted, leaving behind a small wet spot.
Rhodes touched the damp mark with his fingertip, relieved that the words hadn’t blurred. Still, with a faint sigh of regret, he closed the book and slipped it into his spatial storage. He couldn’t bear to let snow ruin its pages.
"What magic could be so interesting that you didn’t even notice the snow?" Mira brushed the flakes from his hair and took the chance to pat his head.
"It’s powerful magic," Rhodes said with a smile. "If I use it, every beautiful woman around will fall in love with . Want to test it on you?"
Mira snorted. "Try it, and I’ll personally make sure you end up in prison."
Rhodes chuckled. "Actually, I was reading about the Demon Eye. It struck as... useful."
"Don’t you dare." Mira quickly reached out and covered his right eye. "You don’t have a prosthetic, and wearing an eye patch like the Second Master is really ugly."
Rhodes caught her playful hand. "I never said I’d copy him exactly. I just want to study it casually."
The two lingered in easy conversation, chatting about magic and their training. Eventually, they washed up and slipped into their tent, where, naturally, the quiet night beca anything but.
The three wraiths, expressionless as ever, swore they heard nothing and focused on keeping the bonfire alive.
By midnight, the tent grew quiet again. Only whispered voices drifted softly from within.
Though no one could possibly eavesdrop in this deserted village, Mira still preferred speaking in a hushed tone. "How long have we been staying here?"
Rhodes thought for a mont. "About half a month, I’d say."
"Yukino hasn’t co to see us."
"Which ans her visit must have gone smoothly," Rhodes replied.
They had chosen to linger in Jasmina Village for these two weeks, mostly for Mira’s sake.
This was her birthplace, and she wanted it to hold mories of both her and Rhodes together.
So, during these days, they strolled the village streets hand in hand, went to the nearby town to shop, and even ventured into the mountains like ordinary hunters, bringing back small animals they found with ordinary ans.
They learned from local fishern, chiseling holes in the ice to fish and trying their hands at catching trout in the frozen pond.
And alongside all that, Mira took the chance to continue her practice. Having awakened the Second Magic Source, she needed ti to adapt, and to train her new Take Over forms and spells.
This desolate little village, where no one would bat an eye no matter how much chaos they caused, was a perfect place for Rhodes and Mira to spar and test their magic.
Still, there was another reason they had stayed so long. Before leaving the capital, they’d told Yukino that if anything went wrong, she could find them here. So they lingered, waiting a little longer than planned.
But after half a month with no sign of her, it was clear Yukino wouldn’t be coming for help.
Mira broke the quiet. "Then... shall we continue our journey tomorrow?"
"Sure. Stick to the original plan?"
Mira tilted her head, thinking it over. "Since things got disrupted anyway... I want to change our route a little."
"Where to?"
"Sowhere warr. How about the seaside?"
"Good suggestion." Rhodes’s grin ca quick. Honestly, swimsuits were a strong motivator. He leaned closer, rattling off options with anticipation. "Akane Beach? Harujion Bay? Cauldo Resort?"
Mira only smiled mysteriously. "None of those. Antilena."
"Antilena..." Rhodes frowned in thought, then asked, "Isn’t that the famous tourist city in the south?"
Her answer was the sound of her breathing evening out against his shoulder.
"..."
Rhodes sighed. Won are liars. They said "one more round later," but she’d fallen asleep mid-conversation.
Helpless, he tucked the blanket over her shoulder and closed his eyes too.
By morning, Rhodes collected a little "interest" for last night’s broken promise.
Afterward, they packed their bags, doused the bonfire properly, and set off side by side.
When they stepped beyond the yard, Mira turned back for a long mont, gazing at the little house they’d lived in these past days.
They’d cleaned and patched the place up until it looked almost cozy. Now they were leaving it behind.
Rhodes slipped his arm around her shoulders. "Do you want to rebuild the house?"
Mira shook her head softly. "No need. This is fine."
"Then when we retire one day," Rhodes said, "we’ll co back here to spend our old age."
Mira blinked. "Not with everyone else?"
He laughed. "Those guys will still be just as rowdy even with gray hair. How are we supposed to have a quiet retirent with them around?"
Mira pictured it, the guild’s chaos still raging in their twilight years. She laughed, nodding. "You’re right."
The two of them chatted and laughed as they resud their journey.
Antilena was their destination, a seaside tourist city in the southeast corner of Fiore, farther south than Hargeon.
There, winter didn’t exist. The people only knew heat and more heat.
But it was a paradise for visitors: bright sunshine, golden beaches, and crystal-clear seas made Antilena a jewel of Fiore’s southern coast.
And more than that, its fa ca from one other reason, the all-female mage guild, rmaid Heel, had its headquarters there.
Rhodes suddenly rembered that fact after renting a carriage from town. His brow arched. A guild that only took won? Just what was Mira plotting? Was she... testing him?
As he mulled it over, Mira rustled a newspaper and said, "Look here."
"Where?" Rhodes, distracted, glanced out the window instead.
Mira puffed out her cheeks. "What are you thinking about? Don’t tell your mind already drifted to the ’Dancers of the Sea’?"
"Of course not." Rhodes’s survival instincts kicked in imdiately. "Even if a real rmaid showed up, she couldn’t compare to my wife."
Mira’s smile turned sweet. "Good answer. I’ll be sure to tell Lucy you said that, so Aquarius hears it too."
"..."
Rhodes resisted the urge to groan. Whatever. Lucy would never dare repeat it. And if she did, well, Aquarius would take it out on Lucy, not him. With Lucy as a shield, Rhodes was untouchable.
Instead of replying, he leaned closer. "So what do you want to look at? Trouble with our companions again?"
Mira didn’t deny it. "There are reports about them too. But I’m more interested in this."
Rhodes glanced at the headline. "’Independent Guild, Cri Sorcière?’"
Mira nodded. "Yes. Witnesses say it’s a guild founded by Ultear. Right now there are only two mbers, but they’ve already destroyed six Dark Guilds in a single week."
Ultear and ldy. It was the first news of them Rhodes had heard since Tenrou Island.
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