Eventually, as dusk approached, Marco went to Mira's house with Lucy and Hisui.
Since he had brought his two disciples along, he couldn't just abandon them to run off with someone else.
Naturally, Mirajane didn't refuse either, as that would seem too deliberate.
After all, her younger siblings were home, so it wouldn't be just her and Marco alone anyway.
Having two extra guests tagging along made no difference.
In fact, Lucy and Hisui's presence as visitors meant Lisanna and Elfman would have companions to play with, which ironically created more opportunities for Mira and Marco to be alone.
'Perfect plan!'
Mira's expression softened into a gentle smile as she looked at Lucy and Hisui, sending an involuntary shiver down both girls' spines.
Although Mirajane had undergone a significant transformation since nearly encountering disaster during their last S-Class Quest—becoming calmer and gentler, no longer radiating such fierce hostility, ceasing her daily fights with Erza, and abandoning her perpetually impatient demeanor—the memories of her past self lingered.
Seeing Mirajane's current gentle face, they couldn't help but envision the sly, delinquent grin lurking beneath that smile.
It was as if behind this serene and proper Mirajane stood a ponytailed version in a tank top and hot pants, fists raised, emanating demonic energy with a sinister "Heh heh heh" laugh.
The thought made Mira's red dress seem glaringly vivid.
"Eek..."
Hisui and Lucy exchanged glances, recognizing each other's trepidation.
Despite outnumbering her, they felt completely overwhelmed—proof they still hadn't adjusted to the new Mirajane.
"Please make yourselves comfortable. I'll prepare dinner."
After entering the house, Mira smiled warmly and instructed Marco to let Lucy and Hisui settle in freely.
With cooking duties calling, she couldn't linger to chat with them.
But her presence wasn't necessary anyway.
Lisanna and Elfman soon peeked out from their rooms, having heard guests arrive.
"Marco-san! Lucy! Hisui!"
The pair cheerfully joined the group, with Lisanna becoming the center of conversation as she was slated to take over Aero's role.
"Hehe, I'm just going to be a receptionist. My cooking skills are terrible, so I definitely won't be handling kitchen duties. If you want good food, come when my sister's on shift. I'm useless for that," Lisanna admitted, sticking out her tongue playfully.
Her responsibilities would be routine—handling mission registrations and similar tasks.
"That's still impressive. It's meticulous work," Hisui chimed in, offering tactful praise.
And she wasn't wrong—with Fairy Tail expanding rapidly and missions piling up, the "receptionist" role was far from leisurely.
This was precisely why Aero chose to stay.
Diligent and responsible, she wouldn't leave until she had fully trained Mirajane and Lisanna.
As Fairy Tail's receptionist, her guild loyalty was unquestionable—she refused to marry until her successors were properly mentored.
Truly touching.
When the topic of Aero leaving the guild to get married came up, everyone couldn't help but sigh nostalgically.
The last time this was discussed was also at Mira's house, when they had joked about Aero not even having a boyfriend.
Yet in the blink of an eye, she was truly getting married and leaving the guild to return to family life.
"Time flies so fast."
Even Marco couldn't help but sigh.
Thinking back now, even Natsu had already been in the guild for over five years.
The image of that wild boy being picked up still felt vivid, and now he had already become the renowned "Salamander."
There was still no news about the "Fire Dragon King" Natsu was searching for, but he had already become known as the "Salamander" among people.
This was one way—perhaps his "Fire Dragon father" would come looking for him after hearing about his reputation.
As they chatted, Marco stood up and left, entering the kitchen where he saw Mira, wearing an apron, carefully handling ingredients.
"Do you need any help?"
After Mira looked up at him in confusion, Marco smiled and spoke.
"No—"
Mira was about to refuse, but Marco had already picked up an apron and put it on, walking over to the sink and starting to help.
"Don't worry, I may not have any talent for cooking, but I'm not completely useless in the kitchen. I can handle assisting just fine, and I've been researching food lately."
As he helped wash the vegetables, Marco spoke.
"Researching food?"
Marco's words made Mirajane pause.
She truly hadn't known Marco had such a hobby, and he really wasn't skilled at cooking—it wasn't that he couldn't cook, but his meals were just ordinary, average at best.
What kind of food could he possibly research?
Marco had never been the type of man with exceptional culinary skills, the kind who could win a woman's heart through her stomach.
Asking him to delve into gourmet cuisine in another world was truly asking too much—he couldn't even recognize all the seasonings in this world.
But even if he hadn't eaten pork, he had at least seen pigs run.
Marco had eaten at restaurants before and watched cooking videos.
Just because he couldn't cook himself didn't mean others couldn't.
"This food research requires your cooperation. I'll provide the general ingredients and describe the approximate taste and appearance of the dish, and you'll be the one to perfect and create it."
Marco raised a finger, explaining his brilliant idea.
With a talented little cook like Mira, it would be a waste not to make use of her skills.
He believed that with Mira's culinary abilities, she could recreate the familiar dishes he had in mind.
"That sounds really interesting!"
Mira's eyes lit up, seeming very interested in the proposal.
She loved cooking, so she didn't think Marco was deliberately making things difficult for her.
Instead, she genuinely found the idea fun.
"I knew you'd be interested." Marco smiled and winked at Mira.
He wouldn't say this project was specially prepared for her, but she should understand.
"If the dishes you describe are all completely bad, I'll get angry."
Mira cutely wrinkled her nose, speaking seriously, as if warning Marco that he'd be in trouble if he dared to mess with her.
It was clear that she was truly looking forward to collaborating with Marco on this project—him sharing ideas and her bringing them to life.
This project should be just for the two of them, right?
"Mirajane!"
While Mira was blushing slightly from her thoughts, an unexpected guest burst into the kitchen, sounding rather irritated.
"Wasn't it agreed that we'd have a cooking lesson today?"
Erza, with her red hair and clad in armor, frowned as she spoke unhappily.
Then she saw both Marco and Mira turn to look at her—Marco wore a puzzled expression, while Mirajane seemed completely frozen, as if she had no memory of the arrangement at all.
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Guys if you like Naruto please read my new fic, 'Akatsuki Odd strategist' it was a comedy fic!