"How is she?"
In the infirmary, Rhodes asked Porlyusica about Minerva's condition.
"The injuries are significant, but there's no danger to her life." Porlyusica set down a vial and wiped her hands. "You people really didn't hold back."
"We were on a battlefield, and she wasn't exactly calm at the time." Rhodes spoke up for Cana, Elfman, and Lisanna. "If we'd pulled our punches, one of our own would be the one lying here."
Porlyusica didn't argue. War was foolish. But sometimes it was unavoidable.
"Demon Factors were injected into her body," she continued. "She gained power from it, but the rejection reaction has taken a toll. That's why her body is in this state."
Rhodes was familiar with Demon Factors. Mira had them too.
They were a strange thing. If he had to categorize them, they were closest to semi-autonomous organelles, similar to mitochondria. They carried their own genetic material, could synthesize specific proteins, and participated in cell metabolism and differentiation, which in turn affected the host's traits and capabilities.
The problem was the immune system. It could identify the altered cells as foreign bodies, triggering rejection. The visible changes in Minerva's appearance were the result of her body's cells and immune response fighting each other to a stalemate. A biological compromise written across her skin.
Mira, by contrast, had a constitution naturally compatible with Demon Factors. If she received an injection, there would be virtually no rejection. No physical changes. Just pure enhancement.
Rhodes asked, "Can she go back to how she was before?"
Porlyusica nodded. "She can. But it would mean the power she gained may weaken considerably. Ask her what she wants after she wakes up. If she chooses recovery, send her to me."
"Understood." Rhodes saw Porlyusica heading for the door and tried to stop her. "There's a banquet going on outside. Why not join us?"
"Too noisy." Porlyusica didn't slow down. She left one sentence hanging in the air behind her. "Tell that idiot to drink less."
Rhodes watched her go. Then he turned, sat down beside the bed, and spoke quietly.
"You heard all of that, right? So what do you want to do?"
Minerva's eyes had been closed the entire time. She realized there was no point pretending anymore. She opened them with a resigned sigh. "Does it even matter what I want?"
"Of course it does." Rhodes's tone was straightforward. "What to do going forward. What kind of person you want to become. What path you want to walk. Those are your choices to make."
Minerva was quiet for a moment. Then she asked something that had clearly been sitting in her chest for a while. "Why didn't you hand me over to the Council? The Grand Magic Games. Sun Village. And now this. I've been working against you at every turn."
Rhodes almost said that her attempts hadn't really amounted to much of an obstruction.
But considering the patient's feelings, he chose a more tactful answer. "Lucy said she doesn't hate you. Cana said the most annoying thing about you is the arrogance, but as it happens, our guild's tolerance for arrogant people is remarkably high."
After all, there had once been a rebellious young man in Fairy Tail who had been far more arrogant than Minerva ever was.
Cana had said that looking at Minerva felt like seeing a carbon copy of that guy. Nostalgic, almost.
At the time, Laxus had been trying very hard to keep a straight face while everyone else laughed.
"Is this the... pity of the strong toward the weak..." Minerva started the sentence but couldn't finish it.
Rhodes looked at her expression and asked, "You know us fairly well by now, don't you?"
Minerva didn't deny it.
Of course she understood Fairy Tail. She had studied every member's basic profile, their history, their relationships, and the philosophy she had once found laughable.
To defeat this guild, she had made herself learn everything about it.
And somewhere along the way, shamefully, a small part of her had started to want what they had.
Her father, Jiemma, had drilled one idea into her from the time she could walk: strength is everything. No one had ever told her that even if her strength fell short, there would still be people who cared about her. People who would rely on her. People who wouldn't leave.
Rhodes glanced at the wall behind him. The muffled sounds of the banquet bled through. Laughter. Shouting. Someone breaking something. Someone else cheering about it. It was messy and irregular and warmer than any music.
He smiled. "There's no shortage of people who chase strength in Fairy Tail. But we don't let strength determine everything. Whether you're strong or weak, we stand together. That's the one rule that doesn't bend."
Minerva closed her eyes. Whatever she was thinking, whatever she was remembering, it softened her voice in a way she probably didn't intend.
"But I joined a dark guild. I should be considered a fugitive."
Starting to care about her status meant she had somewhere she wanted to go back to, didn't it?
Rhodes adopted an exaggerated tone. "What a coincidence. Our guild actually has quite the track record when it comes to harboring fugitives."
Minerva blinked. Surprise flickered across her face, followed almost immediately by something softer. Relief.
So Fairy Tail really wasn't the kind of guild that played by the rules.
Rhodes gave her a thumbs up. "Don't worry. We've looked into your history. Your first mission after joining Succubus Eye was derailed by our people. And then Succubus Eye ceased to exist."
He held up a second finger. "Your first mission after joining Tartaros was stopped by us again. And then Tartaros ceased to exist."
He spread his hands. "So technically, you don't even have a criminal record of successful crimes. There's absolutely nothing to worry about."
Minerva bit her lip. She stared at Rhodes with an expression caught between offense and disbelief.
This person had just described her as both incompetent and a jinx. Someone so bad at being bad that every dark guild she touched disintegrated around her.
Was this how he normally comforted people?
"Are you awake already?"
Mira walked into the infirmary and immediately noticed Minerva's strange expression.
She blinked once. Then, without missing a beat, she adopted a look of wounded betrayal that was somehow even more pitiful than Minerva's.
"Dear... do you like bullying this type?" Mira pressed her hands together and gazed at Rhodes with shimmering eyes. "I... I... for the sake of the child, at least don't bring her home, okay?"
Rhodes: "..."
Minerva: "?"
"Stop it." Rhodes reached over and flicked Mira's forehead with his finger. "At least have some consideration for the patient's feelings. I just finished the psychological counseling, and you're undoing all of it."
Mira covered her forehead and shot Rhodes a glare that clearly communicated we're discussing this when we get home.
Then she turned to Minerva with a warm, gentle smile, as if the previous thirty seconds of theatrical jealousy had never happened. "I'm just kidding. How's your recovery going?"
"Um... it's okay."
Mira sat down beside her and started talking. Like an older sister checking in. Asking small questions. Listening. Offering quiet reassurance in the gaps between words.
Minerva could only think that this person radiated something impossibly warm. Maternal, almost. If she hadn't been the stubborn, iron-willed woman she was, she might have broken down crying right there. A child who had never known a mother's kindness, sitting in front of someone who gave it freely.
How could anyone this gentle exist? And those people on the outside actually called her a She-Devil. How hateful.
Mira held Minerva's hand and smiled. "I think you'd fit in well with us, honestly. If you didn't already have a guild, I would have invited you to join Fairy Tail."
"I..." Minerva turned her face away. Her voice was quieter than before. "Can I still go back to Sabertooth?"
"Of course you can." Mira's smile deepened. "Someone's already here for you. Look."
Minerva turned her head toward the infirmary door.
Four figures stood in the doorway, waving at her.
Sting grinned through his bandages. "Milady! We've come to pick you up!"
Rogue stood beside him, quieter but no less sincere. "Milady... your injuries look serious."
Lector crossed his tiny arms and put on his most solemn face. "What a headache. Now literally everyone in Sabertooth is injured."
"Frosch thinks so too!" Frosch, in contrast, seemed to think the whole situation was rather fun.
"Sting... Rogue... and Lector and Frosch..."
All four of them, humans and Exceeds alike, were wrapped in bandages. Sting and Rogue were leaning on crutches, looking about as pathetic as two guild masters could possibly look. They could barely stand. They had clearly discharged themselves from the hospital in Crocus against medical advice just to be here.
But for the first time, Minerva looked at them and felt that Sabertooth was dazzling.
...
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