Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 297: Will Wild Monsters Become Stronger?

With the help of the Scuttle crabs, Natsu and Lucy had a much easier time climbing the mountain, but they weren't so lucky with the weather. They got caught in a blizzard, and the whole experience turned into a miserable uphill trek.

It was the middle of summer, and yet here was a full-on snowstorm, right near Magnolia. Watching the scene unfold through through crab, Rhodes couldn't help but feel a little disoriented, like time and space were colliding.

"You seem to care about Lucy a lot."

During their afternoon break, Rhodes had been casually relaying Natsu and Lucy's location and status to Mira.

Mira had listened quietly for a while, but now she finally voiced the question that had been on her mind.

There was no way he could explain the truth directly.

Rhodes thought carefully, trying to come up with the safest answer.

"You don't need to answer if it's going to be a lie." Mira didn't even look at him, she just glanced at his expression, then lowered her head and pulled out a pen and the account ledger, pretending to look busy.

But Rhodes had already handled all the bookkeeping. There was nothing left to distract her.

He gently took her right hand, slipped the pen from her fingers, and straightened them carefully before holding her hand in both of his.

"I can only tell you part of it," Rhodes said quietly. "The master's here."

Makarov, who had been quietly sipping tea nearby, blinked. He'd thought this was just a petty lovers' quarrel, was there really a need to drag him into it?

Rhodes looked down, his tone serious.

"To be honest, the first time I met Wendy, and the first time I met Lucy, they both gave me a strange sense of familiarity. Like I'd seen them before."

"I have this feeling that Wendy will end up joining our guild eventually. And when she does, something major is going to happen. I don't know what exactly, but I can tell it won't be small."

"It might only affect a few people, or it could sweep up the entire guild."

He took a breath, his grip tightening slightly on Mira's hand.

"I don't know what I'll be able to do when that time comes. I'm not even sure if my actions now are helping, or making things worse."

"You know, I'm someone who just appeared out of nowhere."

That was what weighed on him the most. He knew Fairy Tail was supposed to have a happy ending, but what if his presence changed that?

What if his interference made things worse? What if the guild, which should have overcome everything together, got hurt because of him?

At first, he thought it was fine to grow stronger slowly and follow the story behind the scenes.

But now, these weren't just story characters. They were his comrades. His friends. His family.

Even without Mira in the picture, Rhodes couldn't forget the time Gray came to him, sincerely apologizing for being away when Rhodes had needed help.

That wasn't the kind of thing people said to an outsider.

They treated him like family. That's what scared him.

And now that Lucy and Wendy were slowly entering the picture... he was starting to fear the weight of what might come.

Mira gently squeezed his hand in return.

"Wow, so dramatic. Are you sure this isn't just some kind of prophecy?" she teased lightly.

Rhodes gave a helpless chuckle.

"Maybe it's a full-scale war with Grimoire Heart. Maybe a head-on clash with Phantom Lord. Maybe the Magic Council comes after us next."

He felt her warmth grounding him and murmured,

"Whatever it is, something big is coming."

Of course something big was bound to happen, Makarov knew even more than Rhodes did. Whatever lay ahead might be tied to the guild's deepest secrets, or perhaps to the long-standing mystery behind the dragons' disappearance.

But even so...

"You don't need to worry about that too much," Makarov said gently.

"First of all, you're not the only person who 'suddenly appeared.' There are others out there, too, and everyone carries their own story."

He smiled, setting his teacup down.

"The most important thing is this: you're one of us now. You're family."

"Whether what's coming affects a few of us or the whole guild... it won't change how we face it."

"No matter what happens, we'll face it together. Will things get worse because of you? No way! The more family we have, the stronger we become!"

"Fairy Tail's always been a guild full of loud, reckless idiots who stir up trouble everywhere they go, so don't be afraid to mess up. Like I said earlier, just keep moving forward on the path you believe in."

Makarov raised his hand, index finger pointing upward with his thumb out, his classic gesture.

It meant: Even if we're not in front of you, even if we're far away, we're always watching, and always by your side.

Rhodes rubbed his nose, his voice slightly off, "You're not trying to make me cry, are you?"

Makarov grinned. "There's nothing wrong with crying."

Rhodes grumbled, "My girlfriend's watching. It's embarrassing."

From behind, Mira wrapped her arms around him gently. "Then I'll help you wipe them away."

Rhodes placed his hand over hers and tried to change the subject. "Natsu and the others have run into some Vulcans, two of them! Looks like they're guarding something. And now the fighting's started!"

He mimicked Natsu with exaggerated flair: "Iron Fist of the Fire Dragon! Fwoooosh—"

The dramatic reenactment froze mid-pose.

On the vision screen, Natsu slipped on the icy ground and got smacked away, tumbling head over heels. Happy frantically rushed to catch him.

"Can this idiot please be serious for once?!" Rhodes cried out, exasperated.

The two Vulcans wasted no time and turned to charge at Lucy. Thankfully, the crab darted in just in time, whisking her away.

Even though Lucy was clearly shaken, she didn't panic. She gritted her teeth and pulled out one of her golden keys.

"She's summoning a Celestial Spirit—wait, is that Taurus? That's the cow?"

Rhodes had read up on Celestial Spirit Magic and recognized the names of the Zodiac spirits, but this was his first time seeing one in action.

He'd heard the spirits' appearances could shift based on their summoner's preferences.

Still, he was baffled.

"A cow... with an axe... staring at Lucy's chest? Seriously?" Rhodes gave an unimpressed squint.

It wasn't until Taurus noticed that Lucy was bundled up in a thick winter coat that he finally jumped into the fight, with a regretful look on his face.

"This guy seems... kinda unreliable," Rhodes muttered.

One of the Vulcans was held off by Taurus, while the other continued chasing Lucy up the snowy path.

That's when three shadowy figures leapt from the darkness of a mountain wall, three of Rhode's summoned wolves. Two ordinary ones clamped onto the Vulcan's calves, tripping it flat onto the snow. The third, a two-headed wolf, sprang onto its back and bit down on its neck.

Lucy was visibly startled at first, but she looked relieved, until she saw Natsu return.

Then her expression turned sour again, probably because she remembered her embarrassing moment earlier, and realized Rhodes might've seen the whole thing.

But once Natsu got serious, the Vulcans stood no chance. Taurus, despite trying to hold his own, was mistaken for an enemy monster and sent flying back to the Celestial Realm with a single flaming punch.

Rhodes was honestly disappointed in Taurus, supposedly one of the twelve most powerful Celestial Spirits.

"There are only twelve golden keys in the world," he muttered. "And that's all Taurus can do? He couldn't even tank one punch from Natsu."

"The strength of Celestial Spirits increases with their summoner's magic power, right?" Rhodes tried to recall a detail he'd once read in an obscure passage.

"That's correct," Makarov replied with a nod. "Not impressed with Lucy's showing?"

Rhodes tilted his head. "She's definitely a bit stronger than I was when I first summoned the Scuttle Crab. But honestly? I think I could've beaten her with just Warm back then."

In comparison, his own summoned creatures hadn't shown much growth over time.

"Shouldn't they be getting stronger too? Like... as I get stronger, shouldn't they evolve with me?"

He frowned. "Or... does that mean I'm still at zero progress?"