Everyone stayed up late in the spacious, brand-new guild hall. Even though the strongest team members were off on missions, the likes of Macao, Cana, and Loke were still around, and the atmosphere was bursting with laughter and energy.
Some townspeople, curious about the festivities, came by to celebrate for a bit. But once it got late, they waved their goodbyes and headed home. As much as they admired the spirit of Fairy Tail, they couldn't party with the same wild abandon as the wizards.
Rhodes, who had sworn not to get drunk again after the last time, still ended up completely wasted.
It was all thanks to some troublemakers in the crowd, namely, Macao and Wakaba, who made it their mission to get him drunk. Even Cana joined in with a whole barrel of booze.
"Come on! I'll drink a barrel, and you drink a glass. Cheers!"
What could he do? Rhodes was just too happy tonight to say no.
In the end, everyone collapsed all over the guild floor. With no furniture in place yet, the open space was perfect for crashing out.
Mira helped Rhodes sit against the wall. He clung to her tightly and slurred, "Why're you totally fine...?"
"I'm a little dizzy," Mira said, casually twirling a lock of his hair between her fingers.
"Why're you so drunk?" Rhodes reached for her hand, missed twice, and finally gave up.
Mira caught his hand and chuckled, speaking in a mock-serious voice like she was scolding a child. "I don't know. Maybe it's because I'm a demon." She bared her teeth playfully. "Scared yet?"
"Hehe..." Rhodes giggled drowsily, his eyelids fluttering half-shut. "Then... why're you so pretty?"
Mira puffed out her cheeks in frustration. "Is this guy actually drunk?"
She tugged at his cheek in mock-annoyance, but he'd already nodded off.
And she could tell, it was genuine sleep this time.
Mira smiled softly, leaned in, and planted a small kiss on his lips.
"Ugh, you smell like booze," she muttered with a face of exaggerated disgust. "Keep drinking like this and next time... I'm not letting you in."
Rhodes, still asleep, instinctively leaned closer, wrapped his arms around her waist, and nuzzled into her chest with a contented sigh.
Mira said she didn't like the smell of alcohol, but in the end, she still hugged him back and drifted off to sleep.
The next day—August 28th.
After clearing away the mess from the night before, Rhodes and Mira went to find Makarov together.
"Master, we want to take the day off," Rhodes said politely.
"No," Makarov replied instantly, without even looking up.
"Master~" Mira put her hands on her hips and puffed out her cheeks, clearly expecting a more thoughtful response.
Makarov clutched his chest in mock agony. "Even if the building's done, we just started on the decorations today. If you two vanish, I—I might collapse from overwork!"
He groaned dramatically like he was moments from fainting. It was completely unconvincing.
Then he paused, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Why do you want time off all of a sudden?"
"Because today is the debut of that play Erza and Lucy are starring in," Rhodes explained. "They sent us two tickets."
Rhodes pulled out the tickets and waved them with a grin.
The show was scheduled for the afternoon, and the tickets had been delivered that morning, clearly marked with reserved seating. Honestly, they weren't even sure how Erza and Lucy had gone from being supposed backstage helpers to full-on lead actresses, but that only made it more entertaining.
After working nonstop on rebuilding the guild for weeks, taking a break for some fun felt well-deserved.
"Hmmm…" Makarov rubbed his chin in exaggerated thought.
Letting just two people go out to play didn't feel quite right. But if he let them go, then more might ask for time off and then the decorating work would stall.
Suddenly, a glint of brilliance lit up in the old master's eyes.
"In that case, I hereby declare the entire guild gets a day off!"
Rhodes and Mira blinked. "What?"
"Heh heh heh!" Makarov looked quite pleased with himself. "Everyone's been working hard, take today off! And if you're curious, you can all go to Onibas together and support Erza and Lucy's debut!"
"HURRAH!"
The guild members, who had been dragging their feet moments ago, were suddenly full of energy and excitement.
Erza and Lucy, both head-turning beauties, on stage together? Surely, they'd be playing princesses or noble heroines, maybe even something romantic? Everyone was hyped.
And as for the next month's rent and expenses, well, with the guild's main structure complete and the renovation budget mostly wrapped up, Makarov had promised to pay everyone according to fair market wages.
Rhodes had even put together a detailed ledger tracking each person's contributions, how many hours they worked, which materials they helped carry, and how many bricks were laid.
If this had been a regular construction company, the pay might have been lower. But this was Fairy Tail. Everyone had gone above and beyond, and the payout would be generous.
Thankfully, Phantom Lord had been loaded, and the Magic Council's reconstruction grant wasn't stingy either.
Rhodes and Mira exchanged a look. What was supposed to be a quiet date had now become a spontaneous guild-wide field trip.
But that was Fairy Tail for you.
Still, this wouldn't count as their proper day off. Rhodes made a mental note to take Mira somewhere nice after the renovations were truly complete. And next time, even if Makarov clung to his leg and cried, he wouldn't back down.
Meanwhile, Max spotted Loke trying to sneak away quietly.
"Loke, you're not coming?" he asked with a grin. "I heard Gray's going to be on stage too."
But Loke just gave a flashy pose and said coolly, "Nah, I've got a date today. I've been busy for ages, so I need to spend time with my girlfriends. Later!"
Warren folded his arms, thoroughly unimpressed. "Did he just say girlfriends-plural?"
Max sighed. "That's just how he is…"
Rhodes frowned. Something about Loke didn't sit right with him. It wasn't just the aftermath of a hangover, he'd noticed this weird behavior starting last month.
He leaned over and whispered to Mira. She nodded.
Now that Rhodes brought it up, she realized she'd noticed the same thing. Loke had seemed off lately. If it didn't improve, they'd have to knock him out and drag him to Porlyusica for a checkup.
...
Getting to Onibas was easy. Just hop on the train from Magnolia, it was the very next stop.
A small group from the guild decided to tag along and show their support, including Master Makarov himself.
More than thirty of them piled into a single carriage like a whirlwind. It honestly looked like Fairy Tail had reserved the whole train.
Rhodes quietly tugged at Mira's sleeve, wanting to move to a different car, not for romance, but for safety.
This carriage felt like a time bomb. One wrong word and someone might punch a wall or blow something up.
But it wouldn't be right to ditch everyone, especially if it meant leaving the Master to deal with all the madness alone.
Fortunately, it was only a short ride, and they managed to make it without disaster.
"It's still as bustling as ever," someone remarked upon stepping onto the platform at Onibas.
Cana stretched her arms and grinned. "I want to explore first. There's gotta be some great pubs around here!"
Macao warned, "Don't get drunk before the play even starts."
"You're so uptight," Cana muttered, waving him off.
Makarov cleared his throat and took charge. "Alright, everyone listen up! First, we go to the theater to get tickets. After that, you're free to do what you want, just be back at the theater before the curtain rises."
He already knew Rhodes and Mira had tickets, so they'd definitely sneak off early for a little one-on-one time.
Which was perfect. Once he got everyone their tickets, he could slip off with Cana for a few drinks without anyone bugging him.
No, wait… as guild master, it was his responsibility to look after Cana, a sweet girl with a tragic tendency to get hammered and cause chaos.
Yes, yes… that was definitely his duty as an adult.
Makarov nodded to himself, proud of his clever plan.