Early on the second day, two things happened at Fairy Tail.
The first was that the guild received a few more commissions than the day before. At this rate, it wouldn't be long before the guild got back on track.
Clever Macao praised Makarov endlessly, saying he truly deserved to be the third master. Just taking over led to immediate results, making him happily continue writing his reflections.
The second was that the news of Erza's team disappearing had already spread.
It was said that Jubia was the first to break down, crying and yelling that Lord Gray had eloped with Lucy.
At that time, her tears accumulated more than a meter deep inside the guild. When Jet and Troy arrived, they opened the door and were washed out by the water, lying on the street for quite a while before coming around.
When Rhode and Mira came over, everyone was cleaning up the tavern ravaged by the flood, and Jubia was squatting in the corner of the wall with her knees hugged, wiping her tears with grievance.
Seeing the two entering, Jubia immediately hugged Mira's waist, whimpering and begging for more accurate news from Mira.
Rhode promptly handed Jubia a tissue — to prevent her from smudging Mira with tears and snot. The new clothes just put on haven't been admired enough yet.
The amount of water was indeed a bit frightening.
Mira gently patted Jubia on the head: "Rhode is about to go out for information. Want to come along?"
"I want to!" Jubia didn't hesitate.
Rhode felt it was unnecessary, but understood Jubia's feelings.
In the end, Mira stayed behind to handle everyone else's questions, while Rhode took Jubia along.
Rhode raised his hand to draw a blue light circle, reminding Jubia to close her eyes.
However, Jubia outright refused. She wanted to see every detail on the way to find Lord Gray, claiming it was all out of her love for him.
"You'll get dizzy."
"Before seeing Lord Gray, Jubia will absolutely not get dizzy!"
"...Suit yourself."
The magic was activated, and the two were enveloped in blue light, flying out of the guild. A few seconds later, they appeared in a room at the Pomelo Hotel.
Because the Magic Array was drawn on the bed covered by bedding, Rhode and Jubia triggered the 'terrain carding' effect, smoothly appearing by the bed without disturbing the covers above.
Just having claimed she wouldn't get dizzy, Jubia was now covering her mouth, her eyes already turning into spiral circles: "Ju... Jubia... will absolutely not get dizzy..."
Despite saying this, her body swayed side to side.
Rhode said, "Why don't you take a break first, I'll..."
"The smell of Lord Gray!" Jubia got so excited she dove straight to the ground. She didn't even bother standing up, crawling on all fours straight out.
Despite stumbling from dizziness, Jubia resolutely crawled towards Gray's room.
Rhode: "..."
In a way, Jubia was quite terrifying.
Rhode inspected around to ensure there were no signs of anyone else having been here, then went to the front desk to pay for an additional two days' rent, planning to continue using this as a base until they found the person.
Though it cost a bit of money, it was convenient. Besides, expenses could be reimbursed by Erza afterward, which made the cost easier to bear.
Upon Rhode's return to the room, Jubia had calmed down slightly, merely lying normally on Gray's bed, sniffing his messenger bag.
Such a pretty girl, yet she appeared oddly creepy.
"If you've rested enough, let's go. Time to meet the mayor."
"Yes!" Jubia slung Gray's bag over her shoulder, holding it tightly, as if terrified of someone snatching it away.
Rhode thought it over, but in the end, he didn't stop her.
If ignoring Jubia, everything up to now seemed normal. Just on their way out, Rhode noticed the receptionist from the day before giving him a peculiar look.
Yesterday afternoon, he brought a white-haired beauty in, and this morning, left with a blue-haired beauty.
Especially since the blue-haired beauty was obviously lovestruck.
The receptionist was torn, remembering that the person was one of the Ten Wizard Saints and a benefactor to the town, ultimately saying nothing.
Rhode mulled it over, realizing that look resembled how many people eyed Loki.
"..." The sudden decline in reputation was all those disappearing idiots' fault!
The two successfully met the mayor.
"Mr. Rhode, Mi... uh, who might this lady be?" The mayor was momentarily stunned, worried about the potential trouble he nearly spoke by naming 'Miss Mira' aloud.
Rhode said, "Oh, this is our guild companion, Jubia. She's particularly concerned about news on those people and specifically came with me."
The mayor wasn't sure whether to believe it or not, offering polite greetings before getting to the main point:
"Here's a list of people who have seen your companions. One was asked for directions, three are hotel staff, and others just saw them occasionally on the street."
Rhode accepted the document, noting it clearly listed names, addresses, and approximate times people saw the group.
Jubia squeezed in to look, her gaze fixated on names appearing female, arbitrarily believing each could be captivated by Lord Gray's charm and thus responsible for abducting him.
Rhode simply handed the list to her: "Are all these people regular locals?"
The mayor looked at the secretary, who replied, "Most grew up here."
Rhode followed up, "Do any of them understand magic?"
The secretary pondered a moment: "Probably not? Although they might use simple Magic Tools."
"Thank you very much." Rhode nodded, looking at Jubia to see if she had any questions.
Jubia promptly blurted, "Which of them is unmarried? Who likes Lord Gray? Who would kid... mmph..."
With each question, Jubia's eyes grew more menacing, her face edging closer to the secretary.
Before frightening anyone, Rhode quickly covered her mouth, grabbed her by the collar, and dragged her out: "Sorry for the disturbance, we have other investigations, we'll take our leave now. Thank you for your help!"
"Mmph mmph..." Jubia wanted to protest not being allowed to finish, only to be dragged out of the municipal hall, hands flailing, leaving two parallel marks on the ground along the way.
When onlookers gave them odd looks, Rhode finally released her hand: "Next, let's quietly investigate these people. Stop making a scene."
"Exactly, a personal investigation is more reliable!" Jubia's eyes sparkled, "We must catch whoever kidnapped Lord Gray!"
"We haven't even confirmed it's a kidnapping..." Never mind, she wouldn't listen anyway. Better keep a close eye on Jubia and prevent any trouble.
Rhode waved his hand, casting Alchemy Mist, then released Broken Ghost Crown, planning to conduct 'home visits' according to the addresses on the list.
Alchemy Mist paired with Broken Ghost Crown provided invisibility and allowed wall phasing, making such investigations incredibly convenient.
Being a conscientious Fairy Tail Mage, Rhode decided he'd observe the men while letting Jubia handle the women.
All went smoothly, except when encountering pretty women, where Jubia tended to observe longer.
Beyond that, she inadvertently switched to viewing rivals, her glare fierce enough to create significant pressure.
Even ordinary people could sense something was off and become unnerved.
Rhode then had to pull Jubia out.
Rhode frowned: "They all indeed seem ordinary, nothing appears wrong."
"Jubia thinks there's something wrong with these." She had circled seven or eight names on the paper.
Rhode glanced, commenting: "Just because they're prettier, right?"
"But, if Lord Gray were enchanted by them... Jubia would..." Jubia bit her handkerchief, tearfully.
Feeling quite exhausted. Rhode ignored her and decisively concluded: "Let's do one last sweep through the town, then head back."