Erza stood with her hands on her hips, glaring furiously—she had been stood up!
They had clearly agreed to continue her cooking lessons today, yet Mirajane seemed to have completely forgotten about it!
She had just returned from a mission and planned to rest for a few days, using the opportunity to learn some cooking to relax.
Instead, she ended up fuming with anger.
Mira had simply tossed her aside and was here studying culinary arts with Marco!
"Oh, right, that was the plan."
Mira tilted her head, the spinning "waiting for network connection" symbol above her head vanishing as she recalled tonight's original arrangement.
Because Marco had suddenly decided to bring Lucy and Hisui over as guests, Mira had indeed completely forgotten about the prior commitment.
"Of course there was!" Erza spoke with exasperation, making it seem as though she was the one being unreasonable.
"Uh..."
Chastised by Erza, Mira felt a bit embarrassed.
After all, this was her fault—she was the one who had stood Erza up.
"Did I come at a bad time?"
Erza glanced at Marco and spoke up.
The two of them chatting and laughing here made her, the latecomer, seem like she was intruding.
But in reality, she was the one who had arrived first!
She had known Marco longer—no, that wasn't the point.
Clearly, she had made plans with Mirajane first—how could she be considered the latecomer?
"No, you came at just the right time."
Hearing Erza's words, Marco immediately responded.
The dialogue felt as though it were etched into his DNA, like some kind of secret code—once he heard the first part, it was hard not to finish it.
Both Mira and Erza turned to look at Marco, waiting for him to continue.
If it was just the right time, there had to be a reason, right?
"Ahem, having three people together is fine too."
Marco coughed dryly a couple of times.
He shifted aside to make room for Erza, gesturing for her to come help with the preparations.
Erza shook her head, pointed toward the door, and fixed her eyes on Marco before speaking with an authoritative tone:
"You go wait outside to eat. In this matter, you're not as skilled as I am. Mira and I can coordinate well—you'll just get in the way here."
Mira: "..."
Marco: "..."
"Alright then." Marco spoke with a laugh, shaking his head helplessly.
He set down the two bell peppers in his hands, wiped his hands on his apron, and complied with Erza's arrangement.
"Actually..."
Mira opened her mouth, wanting to say that she and Marco actually worked together quite well.
But after looking at Erza's serious expression, she ultimately couldn't bring herself to say it—after all, she was the one at fault here.
Marco took off the apron and straightforwardly left the kitchen.
Erza promptly put on the apron he had just removed and got to work—now she felt satisfied.
Asking Mira to leave and leaving just her and Marco to cook was clearly out of the question.
So, having it be just her and Mira instead was acceptable—after all, she was the one who had come first!
Erza was satisfied, but Mira began to feel uncomfortable!
This was worse than having all three of them together—what was the point of it being just her and Erza?
Moreover, watching Erza wearing the apron Marco had just taken off, Mira couldn't help but grit her teeth.
'This bitch!...'
"What's wrong? Let's continue." Erza glanced at Mira, who was secretly gritting her teeth.
Her gaze remained pure, seemingly unconcerned with such trivial matters.
"It's nothing, let's continue."
Mira took a deep breath and regained her smile.
She felt there was no point in getting worked up over Erza, since the latter was too thick-skinned to even notice—and hopefully, she truly hadn't noticed.
...
"Marco-nii? Why are you out here?"
Just as Marco returned to the living room from the kitchen, he caught everyone's attention.
Lisanna asked curiously, putting on a puzzled expression.
However, her curiosity seemed somewhat feigned, as Marco had already noticed the kids hurriedly scurrying back to the living room when he stepped out.
Clearly, when Erza went to the kitchen earlier, these little ones had been peeking and eavesdropping from behind.
Only Elfman remained seated obediently, not driven by gossipy intentions.
"You're all so unreliable."
Marco pointed at the three girls and teased them with a laugh.
They hadn't even bothered to announce Erza's arrival, choosing instead to follow her and indulge in gossip.
"It was Lisanna's idea. I originally wanted to call out a warning."
Elfman suddenly spoke up, looking genuinely apologetic toward Marco.
He hadn't joined in the gossip for this very reason.
When Erza found out the reason and stormed into the kitchen, he had genuinely wanted to warn Marco and Mira-nee.
But Lisanna stopped him, and after a moment's hesitation, it was already too late.
"Elf-nii!"
Exposed so bluntly, Lisanna flushed bright red and cried out in frustration.
She had done it all for her sister's sake—it wasn't targeted at Marco!
Seeing Marco and her sister chatting and laughing so harmoniously, like a young couple cooking together, she thought it might dampen Erza's spirits.
That's why she deliberately kept everyone quiet and let Erza go straight to the kitchen.
It was all for her sister, with no ulterior motives!
Lucy and Hisui exchanged glances, both looking a bit embarrassed.
After all, they were guests at Mira's house and couldn't very well take the initiative, so they had gone along with Lisanna's idea.
Admittedly, to be a bit blunt, they were also curious to see how things would unfold.
Although Marco was their teacher, outside of lessons, he felt more like their older brother.
Hisui and Lucy respected and adored him but weren't afraid of him, so it wasn't surprising they'd make such a choice.
"So, Master, were you kicked out?" Hisui asked softly, feeling a hint of secret delight.
Mirajane and Erza were probably about to engage in a fierce rivalry, pushing Marco to the sidelines.
"Can't be helped. I was in the way."
Marco sighed with a laugh, pretending to be hurt.
But deep down, he didn't mind.
Compared to him being alone with Erza or Mirajane, it was more important for Erza and Mirajane to get along harmoniously.
The gradually improving relationship between Erza and Mirajane brought Marco great relief.
It would be troublesome if they remained at odds.
"Don't worry, Marco-nii, we don't mind you~" Lisanna giggled, trying to curry favor with Marco.
This little one usually appeared cheerful and obedient, but in reality, she was quite cunning—far more so than Mira.
Among the three siblings, she had the quickest wit.
Mirajane and Elfman were both easy to understand, but Lisanna, this little troublemaker, always managed to come up with unexpected antics.
"You're too mischievous, little one."
Marco reached out and flicked Lisanna's forehead, sending her tumbling backward.
She sprawled on the sofa, making exaggerated whining noises, though it was mostly an act.
Marco paid her no mind and instead turned to Lucy and Hisui to discuss serious matters.
"For now, both of you should carefully study the books we've found. I also have a powerful spell called Urano Metria, which I'll organize in the coming days. See if you two can comprehend it."
Marco mentioned Urano Metria, Although Hibiki claimed this magic was extremely complex and could only be mastered through forced infusion via Archieve—simply reading about it wouldn't suffice—this was only because he himself didn't understand it.
One couldn't expect someone who merely uses a database to grasp all the knowledge within it.
Hibiki was merely a user of Archieve; he didn't actually know the spells involved.
Now that Urano Metria was in Marco's mind, he could fully organize it himself—something Hibiki couldn't do.
He simply lacked the ability.
In truth, the knowledge infused by Hibiki through Archieve didn't allow one to instantly master Urano Metria either.
It required extensive practice and a deeper understanding of Celestial Spirit Magic before one could use it proficiently.
In short, to wield the ultimate move Urano Metria, one must first build a solid foundation in Celestial Spirit Magic.
Therefore, Lucy and Hisui's current task was to finish reading the "booklist" before even considering Urano Metria.
Lucy and Hisui both nodded, though they felt a bit overwhelmed.
The number of books to read was already substantial, and this was only a portion of what they needed to find.
Once everything was gathered, it would be more than enough to keep them busy.
Elfman and Lisanna, who were merely listening on the side, shuddered at the thought—they were both struggling readers.
In their hearts, they felt relieved that they were learning Take Over Magic instead.
If they had to study Celestial Spirit Magic, they would truly be doomed.
When Marco first taught them Take Over Magic, he had already noticed this.
But he understood—the upbringing of Mira, Elfman, and Lisanna made it difficult for them to excel in reading.
They simply never had the opportunity.
In contrast, Hisui and Lucy never had to worry about material needs, so they naturally never lacked books or even dedicated tutors.
Everyone has their own strengths, and there's really no point in comparing.
Before long, Mira and Erza finished preparing dinner, and the youngsters eagerly helped serve the dishes.
Lisanna, Lucy, and Hisui paid close attention to the expressions of the two older girls.
Surprisingly, both Mirajane and Erza wore smiles on their faces.
Clearly, they hadn't fought in the kitchen—not even a single argument had broken out.
'When did these two become so close?' Hisui wondered inwardly.
In the past, if Mirajane had stood up Erza like this, the two would definitely have ended up in a big fight.
'Times truly had changed.'
'Everyone was gradually maturing - oh right, except for Natsu and Gray.'
'Those two remained exactly the same as always.'
The dishes were served, abundant and appealing in appearance, aroma, and taste.
Both Mira and Erza had cooked.
It had to be said that Erza had been studying quite diligently - though still far behind Mira's level, her cooking was now presentable and much better than before.
Everyone politely finished all the food, mainly thanks to Marco and Elfman who did most of the eating.
Although everyone was at an age where they were still growing, the girls' appetites couldn't quite match the boys'.
Speaking of growth, Marco couldn't help but glance at Mira beside him.
Since that "Beast King incident," Mira had let go of many burdens, allowing herself to relax considerably.
This psychological change had affected her physically too, with the most noticeable manifestation being that her body had started developing again.
Though it might sound far-fetched, psychological factors indeed influence physical health.
Having resolved her mental issues, it wasn't surprising that Mira was experiencing another growth spurt - though the extent was somewhat exaggerated.
Mira, who had previously been average in that department, had recently shown obvious increases in her breast size.
Given this growth rate and momentum, her potential seemed quite substantial.
What was once joked about as "having great potential" was now actually being realized.
After the meal concluded, everyone went their separate ways.
It could be said both hosts and guests were satisfied - at least superficially.
Erza left happily, though Mira ended up punching her pillow while sleeping that night.
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