Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 268: The Strawberry That Broke Erza

"I lost... boo hoo..." Mira sniffled, hiding her face in Rhodes' chest.

He gently patted her back. "It was a fair match."

"But I ran out of magic," she muttered tearfully. "She still had more armors left to swap into..."

She peeked up at him with teary eyes, not quite crying but definitely looking for comfort.

"You didn't lose in terms of strength, just mana," he said. "Next time, we'll fight her together. If you hold her off for a few seconds, I'll sneak up and knock her out with a brick."

Mira couldn't help laughing. "That's so underhanded!"

Ah-choo!

Even with the fire and blanket, the wind made her sneeze.

"You need a hot shower. You're completely soaked."

"Okay."

Rhodes picked her up again and carried her toward the guild.

Wrapped up and tucked in his arms, Mira looked cozy. From the outside, it probably looked a little more intimate than it really was.

That's when Erza suddenly appeared. "Heading for the shower? I'll come too."

"What?" Rhodes blinked and turned to see Erza, soaked to the bone and wearing an especially daring swimsuit.

"Do you want to shower with Erza?" Mira asked in a deceptively sweet tone. She then reached up and turned Rhodes' face away.

Erza, ever sincere, replied, "Sure. Last time I partnered with Rhodes, we—"

The arm around Rhodes' neck tightened dangerously. Mira was still smiling, but there was a deadly gleam in her eyes.

Fortunately, Erza said with regret that Rhodes rejected her invitation. Mira's eyes softened a lot.

In fact, if you think about it carefully, Rhodes and Erza teamed up a long time ago, and the two had not yet confirmed their relationship.

Even if he took a shower with Erza and rubbed each other's backs, he couldn't be beaten to death.

Rhodes sent Mira to the bathroom, and when she lifted the blanket, he couldn't help but take a few more glances. Mira was a little shy even though she didn't show anything.

At this time, Erza had to be the one to openly take off her swimsuit in front of Rhodes.

Mira quickly pushed Rhodes's back to get him out.

Erza asked with a puzzled look on her face: "Huh? Aren't you going to ask Rhodes to join you?"

Mira was helpless with the thick-skinned Erza: "How can we join you? If you want a back rub, I'll help you..."

Rhodes was pushed out of the bathroom, and could only sigh that Erza was a good brother, and didn't treat him as an outsider at all.

"Why did you come out?" Cana joked with a smile, "I thought you were going to take a shower with them."

"If it were anyone else, I might've gone in." Rhodes had seen through Cana's nature, staring into her eyes and said, "With you, who knows, we might've ended up doing something a little more... interesting

"Tsk~" Cana showed a disgusted expression, and her face was obviously reddened because she didn't know what she thought of.

As expected, she pretended to be mature. Rhodes asked: "Cana you are so beautiful that many people must have pursued you, right?"

Cana was obviously a little guilty: "Of course!"

Rhodes asked: "Then, you must have had a boyfriend?"

"Wine is my boyfriend!"

"Oh – you have a good relationship."

"What kind of look is that! Mira is so beautiful and so popular, but she also hasn't had a boyfriend!"

"That's great, thank you for telling me!"

"You..."

Cana was so angry that she gritted her teeth. 'This person... how did he become like this?'

'Love makes people grow up, huh? But... Alzack still seems exactly the same.'

Cana just slapped the table, grabbed her drink, and took a long sip with a scowl.

By the time Mira and Erza stepped out of the guild bathhouse with their hair all done, Cana was still sulking at the same table.

Mira tilted her head curiously. "What happened?"

Cana suddenly grinned and declared, "Mira, let me tell you something, Rhodes just said I was beautiful."

"..."

Rhodes blinked in confusion. 'Wait—what?!'

Mira simply smiled, tilting her head playfully. "Oh? Is that so?"

Cana: "..."

Cana promptly exploded and stormed off in a flustered huff.

Because not only did Mira not get angry or bash Rhodes over the head, she actually hugged his arm and teased, "There must be more to that story."

It felt amazing to have her clinging to him like that, and Rhodes didn't even think about pulling away. "It's been a while since we had a proper date. Want to go see a movie later?"

They were always around each other, but it was usually either work or training. It really was time for something relaxing.

Mira nodded. "Sure, but... I promised Erza I'd help her make a cake today. How about tomorrow? Plus, we've got guild work this afternoon."

Mira had really bet those fancy strawberries with Erza before their match. And Erza, of course, agreed.

Too bad Mira lost.

Her "punishment" was helping Erza bake cakes.

It wasn't a big deal on paper.

But considering the pride both of them carried, being bossed around by the other might've been the most brutal punishment imaginable.

Rhodes wisely stayed out of it. The most he could do was offer backup support.

"Alright," he said, "but I want compensation."

He tapped his cheek with a grin.

Mira glanced around. No one was watching except Erza, who was fully engrossed in admiring her strawberries.

So Mira leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to Rhodes' cheek.

CRACK!

The bowl of strawberries in Erza's hands shattered on the ground.

Her entire face turned crimson. She pointed at them with trembling fingers. "Y-Y-You... Y-You guys—!"

Mira beamed, clearly enjoying herself. "Hmm? What about us?"

Erza slapped her hands over her cheeks, flustered beyond recovery. "Y-You kissed!"

"Ah la la~ Just a little kiss on the cheek," Mira replied with a mischievous giggle. "There'll be more, once we get married..."

"M-M-Married?!"

A puff of white steam practically rose from Erza's head. Her brain shut down on the spot.

...

Bonus Chapter @400 PS

You can support me on patreon and read upto 40 Chapters ahead @patreon.com/Keepsmiling818