Fairy Tail: I Don't Want to Be the Guild Master-Chapter 280: The Blue Pegasus Trio

There were many ways to hunt down the rats.

For instance, Murk Wolves used their keen sense of smell to track them directly above ground, swiftly catching any that crossed their path.

If they found a mouse hole, Krugs could tunnel underground to dig the rats out. Meanwhile, Raptors patrolled the skies, swooping down to strike or firing sharp feathers to take out targets from afar.

As for Rhodes and Mira, they sat comfortably atop the Scuttle crab, supervising the operation.

If not for the fact that the surrounding farmland had been devastated by the rat infestation, the scene would have been almost pleasant, a peaceful ride under the clear sky.

Of course, their real job wasn't sightseeing. They were on alert in case any unexpected trouble cropped up.

Watching the scattered progress of their summons, Rhodes muttered, "This feels a little slow."

Mira nodded thoughtfully. "Because the rats aren't as active during the day. Yesterday they were desperate from hunger."

"Hm... Got any good ideas?" Rhodes asked, shifting his gaze toward her.

Mira chuckled, rubbing the soft fur of Warm, who had accompanied them on the journey. "We could use Warm as bait. He's fat and smells nice, very tempting for rats."

"Huh?!" Warm's tiny horns drooped in alarm, his eyes wide with fear.

"Isn't that a bit cruel?" Rhodes said sympathetically.

Warm nudged at Rhodes' arm, desperate for protection. But then he heard Rhodes add lightly, "Besides, there's only so much meat on him. He'd be eaten up before attracting enough rats."

Warm looked like he wanted to cry. He seriously considered returning to the Howling Abyss. It was too dangerous to live in this home!

Mira, giggling, stroked Warm's head to soothe him, and then offered another suggestion. "How about using Satan Soul?"

She meant blasting the area with her demonic transformation's power.

"Better not," Rhodes shook his head immediately. "I already warned the village chief there might be some damage, but I don't want to turn their entire farmland into a crater field."

Mira pouted slightly, but she understood.

"Let's stick with Voidgrubs and do a full sweep," Rhodes decided with a sigh. "As much as I'd love to treat this like a relaxing vacation, the villagers are counting on us."

If it weren't for the risk of contaminating farmland with poison, he would've implemented a full-scale biochemical pest control plan by now.

Though summoning the Voidgrubs was exhausting, he figured he could manage by resting every couple of hours.

The plan was set: unleash the Voidgrubs, and launch a true carpet sweep.

And this wasn't just a figure of speech. It was literally a carpet of writhing worms.

The Voidmites, with their flexible, elastic bodies, easily squeezed into almost every mouse hole. The rats here were big, but the Voidmites were relentless, dragging rats out of their burrows one after another.

Of course, not every Voidmites survived, some were inevitably sacrificed. But in the grand scheme of things, the casualties were minor.

"Ugh, I'm so tired," Rhodes said dramatically, without even trying to sound convincing, before collapsing sideways onto Mira.

Mira caught him easily, wrapping an arm around him, ruffling his hair fondly with her fingers, then carefully smoothing it back down.

Watching the Voidmites energetically bouncing across the fields while lounging in Mira's arms, Rhodes had a strange thought.

'The soldiers are dying on the frontlines, and the general is lounging in luxury... I might have the makings of a tyrant.'

After nearly two hours of hard work, just as Rhodes was about to call for a break, he noticed something strange.

The were vanishing at an alarming rate.

Not just the Voidmites, two Krugs had also been wiped out, their rocky bodies smashed apart and forcibly returned to the Summoner's Rift.

Rhodes immediately sat up, his instincts sharp.

"Careful," he warned. "There's something powerful underground nearby."

"Mm."

Mira's expression turned serious as she scanned the surroundings, ready for anything.

A few minutes later, a heavily-trafficked rat tunnel suddenly exploded outward, sending dirt flying as several stunned Voidmites tumbled out of the ground.

And then, a towering figure leapt out from the crater, landing heavily with a snarl.

It was a Rat King, standing upright, nearly twice the height of an average man. Its bloated body rippled with muscle, a thick, whip-like tail lashed behind it, and its two yellowed front teeth jutted out over a foot long.

"Ha-h—"

The Rat King let out a hoarse, chilling screech.

In response, dozens of rats surged from the surrounding tunnels, swarming toward their leader like a tide.

"There really was a Rat King," Rhodes muttered, more amused than alarmed.

Had it shown up any earlier or later, it might have been a headache, but right now...? The timing was perfect.

"Take it down!" Rhodes shouted.

The Blue Sentinel pounded forward with a thunderous charge, aiming straight for the Rat King.

The fearless Voidmites had already lunged first, blindly following their orders to attack anything resembling a rat. No matter how huge the target was, they didn't hesitate.

Under the Rat King's screech, the rat swarm launched their own coordinated counterattack.

The battlefield once again erupted into a chaotic melee, although thankfully on a smaller scale than yesterday's massive clash.

The Blue Sentinel raised its massive stone fist and slammed it toward the Rat King.

The Rat King reacted swiftly, raising its claws to block.

CRACK!

Stone fragments flew from the Sentinel's body... but the Rat King fared even worse, its massive front teeth snapped clean off, flying through the air along with a twist of its crooked jaw.

Rhodes shook his head with mock pity.

"So weak... it's better not to ask Elfman to take it over?"

Mira gave him a playful smack on the shoulder.

"How can you still remember that nonsense at a time like this!"

But even as she spoke, a second monstrous rat appeared, this one just as large as the first.

It lunged from another direction, its claw striking a Voidgrub squarely.

The Voidgrub was smashed apart instantly, dissolving into magic as it was forcibly unsummoned.

The other two Voidgrubs retreated a few steps, firing dark purple magic bullets in rapid bursts to cover their retreat.

But this second Rat King was nimble.

It zig-zagged, evading every shot, then launched itself high into the air, heading straight for Rhodes himself.

"Another one? And it actually knows basic tactics?"

Rhodes was a little surprised, but not worried. After all, Mira had already activated Satan Soul.

A massive purple-black magic sphere condensed in her right hand, much larger than the ones she'd used the night before, and she hurled it with all her might.

The attack struck the rat's bloated abdomen dead-on, bending its body into a twisted arc midair before it crashed down, engulfed in a violent explosion of magic.

Rhodes watched the blast and muttered,

"Hope they can still find some pieces of it afterward..."

Mira turned back to him with a mischievous smile. "So, how's your personal bodyguard?"

Rhodes grinned without hesitation. "So cool! So, so cool!"

In the glowing light of the explosion behind her, Mira's lipstick gleamed, her face lined with Satan Soul's crackling magic patterns.

Mira laughed and, with a few casual throws, lobbed several more magic bullets into the rat swarm still resisting nearby. After a few quick blasts, she gracefully reverted to her normal form, her sweet smile returning, bright and innocent, as if the fearsome demoness from seconds ago had never existed.

The way she switched styles so easily... it was almost criminal.

Meanwhile, the first Rat King, battered and broken, could barely even stand against the relentless Blue Sentinel. And the leaderless rats soon fell under the unyielding assault of the endless Voidmites.

Victory was firmly in their grasp.

Just then, three figures appeared from the direction where Mira's explosion had blown the second Rat King away.

One of them knelt beside the smoldering crater and clicked his tongue.

"Tch. What a pain. Looks like someone beat us to it."

The shortest of the trio asked, "So what do we do now?"

The tall, dark-skinned handsome man sighed dramatically. "Ugh, no choice. Guess we have to go greet them. But, I'll say this now, I really don't want to introduce myself unless I absolutely have to."

Rhodes squinted and quickly recognized one of them.

"That's Hibiki from Blue Pegasus, right?" The guy who once uploaded a whole 'language package' directly into his mind.

And he vaguely remembered the other two from magazine spreads.

"Miss Mirajane," Hibiki greeted Mira with a dazzling smile, "it's wonderful to see you again. You're even more stunning than last time."

The dark-skinned one flicked his hair coolly and muttered, "Name's Ren. And, uh, just so we're clear, you're very beautiful and all, but don't expect me to fall head over heels or anything."

'A male tsundere?' Rhodes shivered internally. He wasn't ready for this.

Then the shortest member of the trio dropped to one knee dramatically, starry-eyed.

"I'm Eve of Blue Pegasus! It's an honor, Miss Mirajane! May I call you 'Big Sister'?"

It seemed like a habit for these Blue Pegasus guys to completely ignore the presence of other men, as they eagerly crowded around Mira.

Rhodes, veins practically popping on his forehead, felt like yelling,

"Manly!" frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

It was only sheer willpower that stopped him from summoning the Rift Herald right then and there to flatten them.

But Mira simply smiled and leaned casually against Rhodes, intertwining her fingers with his.

"Hello," she said sweetly. "I'm Mirajane from Fairy Tail, and this is my boyfriend, Rhodes."