All the Celestial Spirits had withdrawn.
They needed to return to the Star Spirit Realm, to settle accounts, seal the remaining rifts, and ensure no rebellious Spirits ever escaped again.
Only the Celestial Spirit Mages and their companions remained behind.
A considerable number of them gathered around Rhodes, waiting for his direction.
Those who hadn't known him before were still in awe, after witnessing the sheer scale of Ophiuchus's form and the sudden appearance of not one but two mechanical dragons, their impression of the "Ten Wizard Saints" had grown from respect to near disbelief.
Even Lucy, who'd long since grown used to Rhode's calm tone, asked, "What should we do next, Mr. Rhodes?"
Rhodes looked around at the gathered mages and raised his voice so everyone could hear.
"For an incident this large, the Magic Council will definitely come," he said. "And the Pegrandi Kingdom's army probably won't sit still either. So, we wait here."
Before anyone could respond, Erza reached out and grabbed Natsu by the collar.
Natsu blinked, confused. "What?"
Erza smiled faintly. "I just wanted to make sure you wouldn't run off again once you heard about the Council."
"I...Hey! We didn't do anything bad… probably."
Given that half a mountain range had been turned into a canyon, his words didn't sound convincing.
Even if, technically, it wasn't his fault.
Rhodes clapped his hands once, bringing focus back to order. "Those with serious injuries, come to us for healing. Everyone else, please help gather and identify the victims."
At that, even Natsu and Happy fell silent and went to work without complaint.
It was the third day since phatret's plan had begun. By the time Rhodes and the others had arrived, some lives had already been lost.
Though their intervention had saved many, the process of finding and laying out the bodies was heart-wrenching.
Even seasoned mages felt their throats tighten as the number grew, row after row of still forms under starlight.
The count hadn't even finished when Lahar arrived with the Council's Enforcement Unit.
"Mr. Rhodes… this…" Lahar's voice faltered. Nearly two hundred bodies lay before him. Even a hardened investigator struggled for words.
Rhodes gave him a concise, professional report of the entire sequence, how the incident began, and how it ended.
"In short, this mission request was the spark that lit the fire." Rhodes handed over the original job form. "Please send someone to visit Mr. Mirto Stick, and request his cooperation with the investigation."
"I'll arrange that right away." Lahar pulled out a crystal communicator, relaying orders to his subordinates before turning back. "As for the full report, we'll need you and everyone..."
"No problem," Rhodes said. "We'll cooperate fully. If needed, Lucy and Yukino can summon the Zodiac again for testimony."
Then, in a steady voice, he continued, "But everyone's been fighting for half a day, many are injured, others exhausted. Please have your medical and logistics units distribute medicine and food.
"Oh, and there might still be victims unaccounted for. I can summon a few scouts to assist with the search."
"Understood. Please, go ahead."
Rhodes nodded. "Also, contact the major guilds and handle communication with the Pegrandi Kingdom. I sent a few people away earlier, I'll write their names down for you."
Lahar nodded rapidly. "Y–yes, thank you." He hurriedly began issuing new orders, voice flustered but efficient.
By the time his subordinates were all moving, he finally had a moment to breathe, and a stray thought crossed his mind.
The Ten Wizard Saints only have honorary titles, not authority… right?Then why did this man sound more like a high-ranking Council officer than any of them?
And how did he know our workflow better than we do?
As the Enforcement Unit moved about setting up camp and tending the wounded, groups of mages drifted toward the resting area, murmuring quietly.
"As expected of Mr. Rhodes," one said, half-laughing. "He's got the Council's own people dancing to his tune."
"Honestly, he feels more like the Council itself than the Council."
"Guess the Ten Wizard Saints have to know everything, huh?"
Lucy sighed softly to herself. 'No… that's just what happens when you've 'cooperated' with the Council one too many times.'
Natsu, hands clasped behind his head, looked more relaxed than anyone. "This reminds me of when we trashed Phantom Lord."
Gray smirked. ""But the treatment is much better, isn't it?"
Erza watched as Gray's pants suddenly flew off again. She placed a firm hand on his shoulder.
"If you take off any more, you won't get such good treatment later."
"Huh?!" Gray froze.
Erza nodded gravely. "Good. Mostly resolved."
"Not injured, full of energy. I'll give you a thorough check-up when we get back."
"Eh, wait, what do you mean by that!?"
Meanwhile, Rhodes was half-lying on a crate, holding a Council-issued communication crystal, chatting away cheerfully.
"Yeah, the Council's arrived," he said into the crystal. "I borrowed their communication magic. The investigation will take a while, so I don't think we can go home today, unless we sneak off. (turns head) Hey, little brother, don't look so nervous, I'm just joking with my wife, I'm not really running away."
A familiar feminine voice from the other end teased something back, and Rhodes laughed aloud.
"You're still laughing? I'm telling you, I'm sleeping with Erza tonight."
A pause.
"What do you mean, 'then you can rest assured'? Is Erza that unthreatening in your eyes? I'll cheat on you in a minute to prove you wrong!"
Another muffled reply. Rhodes grinned. "Lucy? Lucy's a comedic character, mixing her in with the serious ones would be weird. Tell her to bunk with Natsu and Gray."
"Mm, mm. The Council's food? Not bad, fills you up, but it's nothing compared to home cooking. Tonight I'll try to trick Erza into cooking again."
He chuckled. "Hehe, at most one-tenth as bad as you, you dark Magician."
"Who's calling again? So annoying..."
"Oh, Laki? She can handle her own issues, can't she? Ten more minutes; I'll die if I don't see my wife for a day."
"By the way, how's that Mermaid Heel sister I sent back?"
"Good, good. The Council might question her later; she just needs to tell the truth about what happened."
"You want me to pick you up to play after I'm done here? Ishgar's biggest kingdom still has lots of sights worth seeing."
"Haha, fine, we'll sneak away from the master."
"Then I'll bring some gifts back… maybe ask Lisanna what she wants, ah, forget it, she'll just say dolls again."
"Yeah, yeah, she's my sister now too."
Rhodes was still laughing and leaning lazily against the wall when a polite cough sounded behind him.
He turned, and saw, besides the Council soldier on crystal-guard duty, Lahar, who was standing there looking half-helpless, half-mortified.
The soldier, who had first been wary of Rhodes, now gazed at him with open envy.
Lahar cleared his throat. "Ahem… sorry to interrupt, Mr. Rhodes, but we need to contact headquarters."
"Oh, sure." Rhodes turned back toward the crystal ball and waved. "Gotta give the magic crystal back. Talk later, Mira."
The image shimmered and vanished.
Rhodes set the crystal down and turned with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I took up too much time."
Lahar waved it off. "It's fine, it's fine."
Rhodes glanced at the clock as he walked past, muttering just loudly enough to be heard,
"Less than two hours since their last report and they already need to call headquarters again. Poor workflow… really needs process optimization."
Lahar stood frozen, forcing a polite smile.
He told himself he hadn't heard that.
Not only was his strength inferior, even his organizational ability couldn't compare.
And his reports weren't half as detailed as this man's.
Infuriating.
...
Stones PLzz
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