It took Rhodes a moment to understand what the lady was thinking. When he finally did, he could only give a wry smile and explain that the Ten Wizard Saints didn't have the authority to dissolve guilds.
Of course, if he really wanted to, Rhodes could find other ways to make it happen, but he clearly had no such intention.
Hearing that, the lady let out a long sigh of relief. Her face softened as she handed over the hospital room numbers for Phil and Doru.
As they walked through the hallway, Wendy whispered in awe, "So Brother Rhodes is really that amazing now."
Carla glanced at her. "Hasn't he been like that for quite some time?"
"No, I mean…" Wendy tilted her head, struggling to put it into words.
Lucy stepped in, smiling. "She means he's become the kind of important person who makes everyone nervous no matter what he says or does."
Wendy nodded quickly. "Yes, that's exactly what I mean! I never noticed before, but suddenly he just… feels different."
Carla's tail flicked thoughtfully. "When you're always together with someone, you don't notice how much they've changed. Just like the Master, he's a Wizard Saint too, but people only get nervous when he's angry."
Rhodes glanced back over his shoulder. "So you're saying I don't have much prestige unless I get mad?"
He paused dramatically, then put on his most serious face. "Alright, you three, come to my room tonight."
Wendy blinked. "Huh?"
Rhodes continued solemnly, "Wendy, you'll be in charge of preparing dinner. Carla, back massages. Lucy, you're in charge of bringing the foot-bath water."
Wendy burst into giggles. Carla gave him a deadpan glare. "Are you planning to become an idiot too?"
Lucy, meanwhile, puffed her cheeks indignantly. "Why is my job the worst?!"
"I was joking," Rhodes said lightly, then looked at her more closely. "Wait, you didn't actually imagine that, did you?"
Lucy's face went red. "Of course not!"
Carla sighed. "She definitely imagined it."
A nurse passing by gave them a polite smile. "Miss Phil is awake, but Mr. Doru is still in a coma. They're in the second room on the left."
The guild emblem on Lucy's hand did its job, one glance at it and the staff treated them with respect.
The group headed upstairs and soon reached the ward.
Inside, a young man with a bruised face lay in one bed, an IV drip attached and his right leg suspended by a sling. On the other bed sat a young woman with bright orange hair, absently peeling an apple with a small knife.
Once she finished, she placed the apple on the table and, much to Lucy's bewilderment, began eating the long strip of apple peel like noodles.
Four peeled apples already sat in a neat row beside her, meaning she'd eaten at least that many skins.
When she heard the knock, Phil turned her head lazily. "That bottle of medicine hasn't...hmm? Who are you?"
Rhodes stayed by the door, not wanting to crowd her. Lucy stepped forward with her best diplomatic smile.
"Hello! We're Magicians from Fairy Tail. The villagers told us about what happened, you two were poisoned, right? We wanted to check on your condition."
"Oh…" Phil exhaled softly. Her expression dimmed. For a Magician, a failed mission was always hard to swallow.
"I'm fine now. Doru will probably be laid up for a few more days."
Rhodes glanced at the unconscious man. Even by Magician standards, his injuries were severe.
'If he were an ordinary person, he'd already be dead by now.'
Wendy quickly moved to his bedside and began channeling her magic, detoxifying the residual venom and gently mending the fractures.
Phil's eyes widened. "A healing Magic user? As expected of a top-class guild… incredible."
She watched in quiet admiration for a moment, then asked, "Since you've come all the way here, I take it the villagers are safe now?"
Lucy nodded. "Yes. We've treated everyone. The next step is to exterminate those poisonous bees, but we still haven't located their nest. Do you happen to know where they come from?"
Phil thought for a moment. "Their nest should be somewhere in the northern mountains, but I've seen some of them near the river too."
She hesitated, then added, "They seem to use some kind of stealth magic, hiding among the daylilies. When someone gets close, they suddenly swarm out. There are… a lot of them."
Lucy frowned slightly. "Stealth magic…?"
Phil nodded. "Yes. Oh, and one more thing. Do you know the Celestial Spirit of Ursa Major? He's a tough one, a really strong guy."
"Bears should be the natural enemies of bees," Phil said bitterly, "but under the siege of those Giant Bees, even Ursa Major couldn't last long."
"There were just too many," she continued, shaking her head. "No matter how much fire magic I used, I couldn't burn them all. They kept popping out from blind spots, launching surprise attacks. If it weren't for Doru and the Compass Celestial Spirit, I might still be unconscious right now."
"Mr. Doru will wake up before nightfall," Wendy called from the other side of the room. She had just finished her healing spell.
The toxins were purged, the fractures nearly mended, and most of the internal injuries stabilized. The rest would depend on Doru's natural recovery.
Lucy glanced at the bed and happened to notice a ring of Celestial Spirit keys on the bedside table. She hadn't meant to pry, but she recognized them instantly: the keys to Ursa Major, Compass, Canis Minor, and Leo Minor.
Phil looked up. "Thank you."
Wendy smiled brightly. "You're welcome!"
After exchanging a few more details about the mission, Lucy nodded politely. "Then we won't disturb you any longer. Please rest well."
Once outside the hospital, Lucy's cheerful expression vanished. "What should we do now? Those bees are terrifying, like an entire army!"
Rhodes smiled faintly. "Other things might be problems, but numbers certainly aren't one of them."
Wendy and Carla both froze for a second, then traded uneasy looks. Lucy, realizing what he meant, felt a chill creep down her spine. The mere mention of his Worm swarm tactics made their stomachs twist, yet, somehow, it also made them feel… reassured.
As soon as they left town, Rhodes looked around to make sure no one was nearby. Then he opened his hand, summoning three Void grubs. The air shimmered as the creatures began churning out countless soldier units.
Within minutes, an entire wave of blue-violet Voidmites spread through the underbrush, so many that Lucy, Wendy, and Carla didn't even dare to look back.
Seeing their nervous faces, Rhodes sighed. "Fine, fine." He tapped his index finger, signaling the bugs to command the swarm to stay farther behind.
The rest of their journey was peaceful enough. But when they neared the forest where they had first encountered the Three-Headed Dog, they spotted familiar figures up ahead.
Rocker was half-carrying Seemes, both looking battered, while Bacchus was guarding their rear.
From the treeline came a low buzzing, and a dozen fist-sized Giant Bees burst out of the forest, one of them enormous, nearly a foot long.
The swarm charged straight at Bacchus, wings droning like saw blades.
But the drunken mage barely flinched. "Tch."
He lifted his left arm, slicing downward in a silver arc, four bees dropped instantly, thudding to the ground in a neat line.
A flash of movement. His right hand swept horizontally, and five more Bees were struck midair, flung aside like broken arrows. They disappeared into the tall grass.
Only two bees remained: one large, one small. The smaller one hesitated, wings fluttering in agitation. Both hovered, turned toward the forest, then abruptly retreated, vanishing among the trees.
Bacchus blinked, lowering his hand. "Huh?"
Then he turned, caught sight of Rhodes and his team approaching from the path, and immediately scowled.
"Damn it! Those stupid Bees aren't afraid of me, but they're afraid of you?!" he shouted, stomping the ground.
Rocker stopped beside him, panting heavily. "Brother Bacchus… I think they weren't afraid of them."
"What?" Bacchus scoffed, puffing up his chest. "Then what the hell were they..."
He cut himself off as his eyes followed Rocker's trembling finger toward the horizon. His grin froze, then cracked.
"What in the world is that?!"