Watching his son's eager expression, the man's heart was filled with mixed emotions.
Children disappearing from town, rumors of Dark Guild attacks in other regions—in this world, lacking the power to protect oneself was dangerous.
But becoming a mage ca with its own perils.
Just like those two kids from earlier, so young yet already running around facing life-threatening dangers.
The conflict of these thoughts made him sigh.
"Gray… do you really want to beco a mage?"
"Yeah! It seems so cool!"
The boy nad Gray sparkled with excitent, his voice brimming with enthusiasm.
"Becoming a mage is tough. Are you sure you can handle it?"
"I know I can! I'll beco the strongest mage and protect you and Mom!"
The black-haired child grinned, his innocent laughter ringing through the streets.
"...Is that so? Then your mother and I will be waiting."
The man paused before smiling warmly, ruffling his son's hair. Then, bending down, he effortlessly lifted Gray onto his arm.
"For now, let protect you and get you ho fast—otherwise, your mom's gonna scold us."
Under the glow of the streetlights, his sturdy fra strode swiftly toward their house, the sound of his son's cheerful giggles trailing behind.
anwhile, Rayne wasn't one to get lost.
Following the coachman's directions, he soon arrived in front of a rather luxurious three-story building.
"This should be the place."
Muttering to himself, he pressed the doorbell.
In such a remote town, Rayne wasn't even sure if there were proper inns. So instead, he headed straight for the mayor's residence.
As the client, the mayor would at least help arrange accommodations.
"Coming!"
A young woman's voice answered, followed by light footsteps.
Behind the iron gate appeared a young lady with chestnut-brown hair tied into a long ponytail draped over her shoulder.
"May I ask who you are?"
Her eyes widened slightly at the sight of Rayne and Conna—two children showing up at this hour.
If not for the massive sword strapped to one of their backs, she might've suspected they were so illegitimate offspring of her husband's.
"We're mbers of the Fairy Tail Guild. We've accepted the request to eliminate the Dark Guild."
Rayne briefly flashed the guild emblem on the back of his hand.
Beside him, Conna swayed slightly, her eyelids heavy.
Over ti, she'd grown accustod to sleeping at night.
Even though it was still early, winter ant the sky had already darkened—and to Conna, that ant bedti.
Because, for a long-lived species like dragons, ti was a aningless concept.
Dark? Sleep.
Light? Play.
Simple as that.
(Of course, this rule went out the window during nightti missions.)
"Fairy Tail…? Please, co in!"
The woman—Tia—murmured the guild's na before hurriedly opening the gate.
Even if they looked like kids, anyone who could wield such a weapon couldn't be weak, right?
With that thought, she didn't question them further.
"My husband hasn't slept properly in days because of this. Thank goodness you're here!"
Her steps were quick, relief evident in her voice.
"It takes ti for requests to reach us, after all."
Cross-region requests always took longer—not just travel ti, but also verifying the details.
"Ah! I'm Tia. And you two are…?"
"I'm Rayne. This is my partner, Conna."
He offered a faint smile as he introduced them.
"To think you're both such accomplished mages at such a young age…"
Since it was just a townhouse, they reached the interior in no ti.
The inside was brightly lit, a fireplace crackling in the center of the room, its warmth starkly contrasting the winter chill outside.
On the couch in front of the fireplace sat a middle-aged man with streaks of gray in his hair.
His eyes flicked toward the two children—one of whom looked half-asleep.
"Tia, who are these two?"
"They're the mages who accepted our request—Rayne and Conna."
After explaining, Tia turned to Rayne.
"This is my husband, Rick, the mayor of our town."
"...Here's our request form."
Rayne pulled out the docunt and handed it to Tia, his eyes assessing the mayor.
Bloodshot eyes, dark circles, disheveled hair—he definitely looked sleep-deprived.
His magical energy was faint, and though his hands were rough, they weren't a warrior's.
In just a glance, Rayne had already sized him up.
"This is indeed my request. So, Rayne… you're the famous 'Crimson-Ard War Demon', aren't you?"
After verifying the form, the mayor stepped closer.
"...I'd be happier if you didn't call that."
Rayne's eye twitched at the title.
Due to his earlier money troubles, he'd been taking on requests nonstop.
His efficiency was high—but so were the complaints.
Escort missions? He'd charge ahead, cutting down bandits and monsters in brutal fashion.
Battles? His swings were so destructive that anything (or anyone) caught in them ended up as collateral damage—or worse, splattered.
Naturally, this led to many traumatized clients.
As Fairy Tail's rising star, he'd even been interviewed by Sorcerer Weekly—and thus, the infamous epithet was born.
"Understood. Have you two eaten yet? If not, we can prepare sothing."
Quick to notice Rayne's distaste for the title, the mayor smoothly changed the subject.
"We'd appreciate that."
Rayne wasn't one to refuse—after all, this was partly why they'd co.
"Also, if you could brief us on the request details. The form doesn't cover everything."
"Tia, could you…?"
Pleased by his professionalism, Rick nodded to his wife before leading Rayne and Conna to the dining table.
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