Flare didn’t lift her head. Only her eyes moved, shifting between Rhodes and Natsu.
She knew the pink-haired boy, though not personally. His na had appeared many tis in Ivan’s battle plans against Fairy Tail.
Natsu Dragneel, Fire Dragon Slayer. Impulsive, reckless, easily angered, and weak to transportation.
There had even been two strategies designed specifically to deal with him, though Raven Tail never had the chance to use them.
They had also prepared plans for Rhodes, detailed and extensive ones. Every single one of them had failed spectacularly.
"I don’t know you, pink-haired one," Flare finally said. Her voice was soft and unstable, like a flickering fla that could go out at any mont.
After a short pause, she added quietly, "I don’t know the blonde one either. Only the black-haired man. This is the second ti we’ve t today."
"Really?" Natsu leaned closer, his fists sparking faintly. "Then take another look! If we’re comrades, I’ll break you out right now!"
The two frog-n froze in shock, gripping their staffs.
"Idiot Natsu!" Happy scolded. "You can’t talk about breaking soone out while standing in a prison!"
Lucy quickly bowed to the guards, smiling nervously. "Please don’t take him seriously! He’s just... like that."
Rhodes sighed, his expression weary. "Apologies. They speak before they think."
The frog-n exchanged glances, then nodded stiffly. "Please rember, visiting ti is limited, even for you, Saint Rhodes."
"Of course," Rhodes replied calmly.
Natsu and Flare stared at each other for a while longer, neither finding any recognition.
Seeing that it was going nowhere, Rhodes redirected the conversation. "Then let’s talk about sothing else. The mark on your chest, what is it?"
Flare hesitated, then loosened her collar slightly and pulled it aside. "This?"
"Don’t look!" Lucy shouted, covering Natsu’s eyes.
When she realized Flare hadn’t exposed anything inappropriate, she sighed and lowered her hands.
Rhodes studied the round emblem revealed on Flare’s chest. It was a spiral surrounded by a ring of tiny triangles, resembling a sun. He was sure he had seen that pattern sowhere before, but he couldn’t recall where.
"This is the crest of my village," Flare said softly. "After Raven Tail was disbanded, their mark was replaced with this one."
So it wasn’t a personal choice. So sort of magical rebranding or curse seal, perhaps.
Rhodes considered asking to inspect it more closely but decided not to risk it. Instead, he asked, "Which village?"
"I don’t want to say."
Imdiately, one of the frog-n raised his staff. "How dare you refuse to answer Rhodes, one of the Saint Ten!"
Flare flinched and pressed herself against the wall, fear flashing across her face.
Rhodes quickly reached out and pushed the staff down. "That’s enough. This isn’t an interrogation. It’s a visit."
Lucy stepped in gently. "It’s fine if you don’t want to say. We were just curious. You don’t have to be afraid."
Flare blinked, surprised by Lucy’s tone.
After a long silence, she whispered, "I... ran away from ho."
Rhodes and Lucy exchanged a glance.
"I brought sha to my village," Flare murmured, curling her fingers tightly together. "So I don’t want to talk about it."
The phrase ran away from ho struck Lucy deeply. She imdiately thought of herself, standing outside her father’s mansion years ago, clutching her suitcase before running away to start a new life.
If she had chosen Phantom Lord instead of Fairy Tail, she might have ended up exactly like this girl.
Lucy’s voice softened. "It must’ve been hard, right?"
Flare’s eyes widened slightly. "What?"
"Leaving your family and venturing out on your own, it must have been very difficult, especially in a guild like that." Lucy’s tone carried quiet sympathy. She always had a way of feeling other people’s pain as if it were her own.
Flare lifted her gaze and t Lucy’s eyes. Her chest tightened. The mories she had tried so hard to suppress ca rushing back, the loneliness after leaving the village, the fear, the guilt, and even that mont when a dragon’s shadow had pinned her to the ground.
For a heartbeat, she longed for ho again, for the warmth of the adults who used to look after her. Her eyes grew moist.
One of the frog-n hesitated before quietly reminding, "Saint Rhodes, the visiting ti is over."
Rhodes gave a nod. "Understood. We’ll co again later."
Lucy smiled gently at Flare. "If you don’t want to go back to your village yet, and you don’t have anywhere else to go, you can co to Fairy Tail."
Flare watched them leave, her lips trembling slightly. Only when the sound of their footsteps faded did she whisper under her breath, "But... I don’t want to go to Fairy Tail."
Maybe going ho really was the best option.
Before leaving, Rhodes reminded the two frog jailers, "Please don’t treat her harshly." Then, rembering the old saying that it’s easier to reason with the King of Hell than with his servants, he slipped them two bottles of fine wine from the Joya Kingdom as a token of thanks for their help.
Once again, the so-called righteous mage of Fairy Tail was quietly corrupting the moral fabric of society.
When Rhodes ca out after signing the visitation log, Natsu and Lucy were still quarreling about Flare.
"I don’t dislike her scent," Natsu said simply.
"Pervert!" Lucy snapped.
Natsu frowned. "I ant yours too."
Lucy hugged her arms and backed away. "Even more perverted!"
"I don’t dislike the sll of fish either," Natsu added.
"Don’t compare fish to !"
"Fish tastes better," Happy chid in helpfully.
"You stinky cat!"
Their bickering echoed all the way to the courtyard.
Then a sharp chanical hiss cut through the air. A small airship descended from the clouds and landed right at the Council’s entrance.
The four of them turned to look. On the bow of the ship was a carved tiger’s head, the emblem of Sabertooth.
"Enemies et on a narrow road, huh?" Rhodes murmured with a small smile. "That must be Master Jieman getting summoned."
Sure enough, once the airship settled, a ramp extended smoothly from its side. It was an unnecessary flourish, the kind of feature added purely for dramatic effect, but Sabertooth was nothing if not theatrical.
Two figures erged.
The first was a massive man dressed like a warrior monk, a string of prayer beads as large as fists hanging around his neck, his expression heavy and grim. The other was a tall, elegant woman in a blue high-slit cheongsam, twin buns framing her face, dark eyeshadow and lipstick giving her a sharp, regal air. A white fur stole rested around her shoulders like a crown.
Master Jieman and his daughter, Minerva.
Jieman’s face was dark with restrained anger, while Minerva wore a calm, confident smile, eyes gleaming with amusent.
They approached the Council’s gate, but when they spotted Rhodes standing there, both stopped.
Their gazes hardened, and the air between them turned cold.
...
Bonus@1200 ps
Stones PLzz
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