"Saint Rhodes…" Yukino's feelings were complicated. She wanted to say something, but she could tell he'd only spoken up to help her.
Lucy, however, didn't hold back. "How do you come up with such terrible plans so fast?"
Natsu crossed his arms in mock indignation. "Yeah! That's totally sneaky, no, wait, downright despicable!"
Rhodes shot him a glare. "You're the one who suggested it in the first place. I just refined it into something that could actually work."
"…"
Natsu shut his mouth. Lucy thought about it for a moment, and the worst part was, the plan did sound feasible. She shook her head quickly. No way. It had to be a joke.
But Rhodes' tone was calm. "I'm not joking. If the situation ever calls for it, I'd really do it."
If things reached that point, he wouldn't hesitate to manufacture a threat just to resolve it himself.
Natsu burst out laughing. "Ahahaha! Then count me in!"
"You'd only get in the way," Lucy sighed, though her lips curved into a small smile.
So this was what it meant to be in Fairy Tail, to go that far for your comrades. It was something entirely different from Sabertooth.
Yukino, instead of being shocked, felt deeply moved. "Thank you, Saint Rhodes, Mr. Natsu, and Miss Lucy."
She could feel their sincerity, yet she still couldn't bring herself to accept such a daring plan. Princess Hisui was genuinely kind; Yukino couldn't deceive her like that.
The conversation drifted back to Celestial Spirits for a while until Princess Hisui returned, flanked by guards, carrying the King's decree.
"My father has agreed to proceed according to our proposal," she announced. "In addition, he has ordered a full investigation into the matter of the abandoned Celestial Spirits."
Lucy brightened instantly. "That's wonderful! With your help, we can uncover the truth even faster."
Rhodes added, "Then may I suggest sending word to the Magic Council as well? Have them inform every Guild in Ishgar, all Celestial Spirit Mages should stay alert."
Princess Hisui smiled. "Master Makarov already mentioned that. My father is personally drafting the letter as we speak."
Rhodes chuckled inwardly. If someone were hunting Dragon Slayers or Molding Mages, the King probably wouldn't have cared this much, but because his own daughter was a Celestial Spirit Mage, the matter had become urgent indeed.
Lucy, meanwhile, was fixated on one detail. "Wait… did Master Makarov actually contact His Majesty directly?"
"The old man?" Natsu's voice faltered, dread creeping in.
He suddenly realized that if he hadn't acted so rashly, the Guild would've only needed to rescue Lucy quietly. Instead, his antics had turned the whole thing into a royal disaster.
Rhodes smiled faintly. He knew no one in Fairy Tail would ever truly blame Natsu, but the teasing when they got back was going to be brutal. He could already picture Gray's smug grin.
Princess Hisui explained, "It wasn't direct contact with my father. Master Makarov reached out through Minister Denton, perhaps he feared my father's temper. Still, I heard he was firm in his stance. He pledged his own reputation to vouch for Miss Lucy."
"Master…" Lucy's eyes shimmered.
Yukino was also deeply moved. This was a suspect in an attempted assassination of the princess, yet the Fairy Tail master had vouched for her without hesitation.
She thought of Natsu, who had fought the Knights head-on for Lucy's sake, and Rhodes, who had boarded an airship alone to save them both.
What a chaotic guild.
What a wonderful guild.
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
All the reports on the abandoned Celestial Spirits' attacks against Celestial Mages were finally compiled, and Lucy was formally cleared of all charges.
Natsu, however, was still serving out his "punishment."
Though, truthfully, it wasn't much of a punishment, more like Rhodes turning the week into a training camp straight from hell.
At first, Natsu was completely wiped out, but soon he began to enjoy it.
Even a few of the knights he had injured came to visit once they'd mostly recovered, curious about the monstrous strength of the pink-haired boy who'd flattened them.
They had originally planned to spar with him.
When the knights tried lifting Natsu's custom barbell, they immediately gave up the idea of sparring.
They had to strap on magic-powered strength enhancers just to budge the thing.
Was that kid… really human?
Rhodes had remained at the palace these past few days as well. To guard against further attacks, he stayed on site most of the time, only returning once a day through the Hex Gate to speak with his wife and check in on the Guild.
Lucy, now officially cleared of all suspicion, wasn't in any rush to leave either. She insisted on waiting for Natsu so they could return together.
In the meantime, she wasn't idle. She accompanied Princess Hisui and Yukino to the Royal Grand Library, helping them organize reports destined for the Magic Council and later distribution to guilds across Fiore.
The three young women quickly grew close. Hisui and Yukino found themselves increasingly impressed by Lucy's deep knowledge of Celestial Spiritology.
At one point, Yukino even thought: Maybe Libra and Pisces should belong to someone like Lady Lucy, someone truly worthy of them.
The King's letter to the Council drew considerable attention. The Council's duty was to safeguard the stability of the Magical World, and these abandoned Celestial Spirits had clearly become a threat to that balance.
Worse, no one yet understood what their true intentions were toward Celestial Spirit Mages.
After lengthy debate, the Council decided to notify all guilds first and then invite several Celestial Spirit Mages to cooperate in a formal investigation.
Naturally, the first invitation went to Lucy, the mage who held ten Golden Keys.
Lucy hesitated. "Mr. Rhodes… should I go?"
Rhodes shook his head. "No need. We'll conduct our own investigation. We still have to wait for word from the Celestial Spirit Realm anyway. Once the Spirit King decides how to handle things, we can share our findings."
Lucy nodded, thinking for a moment. "Then how about letting Yukino make the report?"
Rhodes raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? This concerns every Celestial Spirit Mage on the continent. If you handled it, your reputation could skyrocket."
"…"
Lucy blinked. As a Fairy Tail mage, earning recognition across the continent was definitely one of her dreams, she hadn't even realized this could be such an opportunity until Rhodes pointed it out.
Yet, after a pause, she smiled. "Yukino deserves this credit more. I can sense how much she misses her family. As for my wish… if I keep working hard, I'll reach it someday."
Rhodes chuckled. "Then that's settled. Besides, I'm not a Celestial Spirit Mage anyway."
"998, 999, 1000!" Natsu shouted triumphantly, pressing the barbell overhead. "Done! I can finally go back to the Guild!"
With a loud crash, he dropped the barbell. The floor of the guest room cracked straight down the middle.
Natsu froze.
Lucy covered her mouth, grinning. "Natsu, you just broke the palace floor. You know how expensive that kind of marble is, right?"
"I—I didn't mean to!" Natsu stammered, sweat beading on his forehead.