"..."
Watching the girl blush herself into a daze, Roland let out a long sigh.
Levy and Mirajane had blushed when we first met too, but they wouldn't blurt out their heartbeat like that... well, except Cana when she's drunk.
"Who gives a token of love at a first meeting? This teru-teru bōzu turns rainy days into sunny ones..."
He shook the little doll in his hand and explained.
After I said I liked rainy days, the system notified me the quest was complete.
The reward was subtle—useless for most people, but tailor-made for Juvia, who had hated rain since childhood.
"Turn rainy days into sunny?"
The blush on Juvia's face hadn't faded. She slowly lifted her head and blinked those lovely sky-blue eyes.
Could something like this really change the weather?
She pressed a hand lightly to her chest. A teru-teru bōzu charm hung from the deep-blue fur stole there as well, one she had made herself.
As a child she had made many such dolls, but no matter how many, they couldn't change the fact that she was a Rain Woman.
Wherever she went, the sky stayed overcast, and she had never seen it truly clear—until she met the man before her.
"You won't know until you try."
Noticing her hesitation, Roland smiled, took her soft, pale hand, and placed the doll in it.
H-he's holding my hand!
Feeling the warmth around her skin, Juvia flushed scarlet and covered her mouth, her heartbeat once again pounding like a startled fawn.
As the teru-teru bōzu settled into her palm, the torrential rain eased, heavy sheets thinning into a fine drizzle...
In just a minute the clouds in the sky scattered completely. Sunlight poured down like a waterfall, filtering through the dense canopy and spangling the ground with gold.
"The rain... disappeared again..."
Realizing what had happened, disbelief flickered in Juvia's eyes. She instinctively lowered her gaze to the doll clenched in her hand.
There was no blazing miniature sun in the sky this time, so—this was clearly the doll's doing.
It actually worked!
"How does it feel—standing beneath a clear sky, free of rain and clouds?"
"So beautiful..."
Facing the dazzling light, Juvia's eyes slowly closed and a genuine, easy smile rose to her lips.
What she had longed for since birth finally unfolded before her eyes...
When she opened them again, tears shimmered in those gemlike irises. She looked up at the smiling Roland.
"Thank you—L-Lord Roland!"
Cheeks still flushed—whether from shyness or the remnants of her excitement—she cried out and threw herself into his arms.
Her fluffy blue high hat tumbled down. She nuzzled against his chest, sky-blue curls flying free in the air.
"..."
Truly a woman of action.
Watching Juvia lavish affection like a pampered pup, Roland wordlessly glanced toward the nearby tent.
Not seeing a familiar petite silhouette, he quietly breathed out in relief.
She didn't push me away—does that mean Juvia was accepted?!
In his arms, Juvia's face showed rapt delight, her body trembling with excitement.
A red maple leaf drifted from the treetops and came to rest above her head. Roland plucked it off, then took a step back.
"It's getting late. Levy and I have a job to do, so—until next time."
He set the fallen leaf on her shoulder and spoke with a soft laugh.
"Miss Juvia."
"Wai—mm, I understand!"
She had wanted to ask him to stay, but held back. With shy eyes she looked at Roland and spoke softly.
"May I ask, Lord Roland—are you also a member of the Fairy Tail guild?"
Juvia remembered the blue-haired girl traveling with him bore the fairy emblem on her back.
Put together with the way they were out on a job...
"Yeah. I joined just two days ago, so I'm a newcomer at the guild."
Two days ago?!
Drat—if only Juvia had met Lord Roland a little earlier!
She bit her lip in secret.
After a brief farewell, Roland headed for the tent up ahead.
Left where she stood, Juvia stared blankly at the maple leaf in her hand, lips parted, lost in thought.
Fairy Tail...
Lord Roland—wait for me!
The job of driving off the bandits was as simple as expected.
"W-what is that guy—some kind of monster?!"
"Our weapons can't even get close—they melt away..."
"Retreat, boss!!"
Watching the boy stroll toward them without a care, cold sweat beaded on the bandit chief's brow. Fear rose in his heart, and the saber in his hand trembled.
It wasn't as if they'd never fought mages, and some of them could use magic themselves.
But before this monster in human skin, neither magic nor weapons had any effect at all.
"Drive the bandits off, okay? Don't take lives!"
The blue-haired girl in the distance looked uneasy and called out a reminder.
Her words only made many of the bandits turn even paler...
"Fall back for now. Once that monster leaves, we'll come back."
After a few seconds' hesitation, the bandit chief obeyed his instincts and fled at lightning speed.
"So that's it... already over."
Staring at the gang's vanishing silhouettes, Roland couldn't help tugging at the corner of his mouth.
He had thought he could test his strength a little, but the moment he arrived—without even lifting a hand—they all ran.
"You're too strong. If you really went at them, there wouldn't even be bodies left..."
Levy patted his shoulder with a squinting smile to console him.
By now, she had a rough idea of her boyfriend's strength.
Terrifying—and at noon he might even be stronger than the Guild Master.
"All right, all right, let's head back. Tonight we can soak in the hot springs at Hosenka Town!"
<><><><><><>
Read Advanced Chapters on : patreon.com/Kaizo247
~ Every 150 PS = Bonus Chapter!
~ Push the Story forward with your [Power Stones]