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Watching his son's expectant expression, the man felt a mix of emotions. The disappearance of children in the town, and news of dark guild attacks in other places, made it clear that being powerless in this world was dangerous. But becoming a mage was equally perilous. Like the two children from before, so young yet already running from place to place, facing all kinds of dangers. The conflict between these two thoughts made him sigh.
"Gray, do you really want to become a mage?"
"Yes! It seems so cool!" The child, called Gray, had sparkling eyes, his voice full of excitement.
"Becoming a mage is very hard work. Are you sure you can do it?"
"I'm sure! I want to become the strongest mage and protect Mom and Dad!" The black-haired child grinned, a pure, innocent smile echoing in the street.
"Is that so? Well, your mother and I will be waiting then." The man paused for a moment, then smiled warmly and ruffled his son's hair. He then bent down and lifted Gray onto his arm with one hand.
"For now, let me protect you and get you home quickly. Otherwise, your mother will scold us later."
Under the lamplight from the windows, the strong figure strode quickly towards home, the faint sound of a child's cheers in the air.
Meanwhile, Rayn was no fool when it came to directions. He soon followed the driver's instructions and arrived in front of a relatively luxurious three-story building
"This should be it," he muttered, already ringing the doorbell. In a remote town like this, Rayn wasn't even sure if there would be a place to stay. So, he had chosen to come directly to the mayor's house. As the client, they would help solve such matters.
"Coming," a young female voice called out. With the sound of footsteps, a young woman with chestnut hair tied in a single braid hanging in front of her appeared behind the iron gate.
"May I ask who you are?" the young woman asked, looking at Rayn and Kanna with a surprised expression. For two children to show up at her door at this hour was strange. If not for one of them carrying a formidable-looking greatsword on his back, she would have suspected it was her husband's past indiscretions coming to haunt them.
"We are members of the Fairy Tail guild. We've come in response to the request to subjugate a dark guild." Rayn showed her the guild mark on the back of his hand and briefly explained.
Kanna was already starting to sway. During her time here, she had gradually grown accustomed to sleeping. Although it was still early, the sky had completely darkened due to the winter season. For Kanna, it was already time for bed. That's right. Kanna didn't rest based on time, but on the color of the sky. After all, for a long-lived dragon, time was the most meaningless concept. Dark meant bedtime, and light meant playtime. This simple and direct approach was Kanna's way of thinking. Of course, when carrying out missions at night, this rule was somewhat ineffective.
"Fairy Tail... please, come in!" the young woman muttered, then quickly opened the iron gate and invited them in. Although these two looked like children, someone who could wield such a weapon couldn't be too weak, right? With this thought, the young woman didn't doubt them much.
"My husband has been sleepless for days because of this matter. It's so good that you're here!" the young woman said, walking briskly, her tone relieved.
"After all, it takes some time for the request to reach us," Rayn said. A cross-regional request like this took more time than an ordinary one, not just for travel, but also for confirming the mission information.
"Oh, right! My name is Tia. May I know your names?" the young woman asked, as if suddenly remembering.
"My name is Rayn, and this is my partner, Kanna," Rayn said with a faint smile.
"I didn't expect you two to be such mature mages at such a young age."
Since it was just a town building, it only took a few words for Rayn and the others to enter the house. The building was brightly lit, and the fireplace in the middle crackled with burning firewood, making the two who had just entered feel the distinct temperature difference from outside.
On the sofa in front of the fireplace, a man with some gray in his hair turned to look at them. Two children, one of them looking drowsy.
"Tia, who are these two?" the man asked, briefly looking at Rayn and Kanna, his face full of confusion.
"These are the esteemed mages who accepted the request, Rayn and Kanna," the young woman explained to the mayor, then looked at Rayn. "This is the mayor of our town, and also my husband, Rick."
"This is our request form." Rayn took the request form from his pocket and handed it to the young woman beside him, his eyes sizing up the mayor named Rick.
He had bloodshot eyes, distinct dark circles, and messy, thinning hair. Overall, he did look like he hadn't rested well, just as the young woman had said. The magic aura on his body was extremely weak, and his hands, though rough, didn't look like a warrior's. After just a brief look, Rayn had come to a conclusion.
"This is indeed my request. If your name is Rayn, are you the recently famous 'Red-Armed War Ghost'?" After confirming the request form, the mayor quickly walked up to Rayn.
"I'd be happier if you didn't use that title," Rayn said, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
Because he had been short on money before, he had been taking on many missions recently. His high efficiency and excellent ratings had gradually earned him some fame. The reason it was 'excellent' was because there had been many complaints. For example, when he encountered bandits or magical beasts on an escort mission, Rayn would charge ahead and kill all the bandits with his greatsword. For example, the damage to the surroundings during a battle. Although Rayn didn't use magic often, after he swung his greatsword, enemies who could withstand it would inevitably crash into and destroy many things. For those who couldn't, the splattering of blood and flesh, and the extreme visual impact, created psychological trauma for many, which naturally led to many complaints.
As a rising star of the guild, Rayn had also been interviewed by Sorcerer Weekly. And the title 'Red-Armed War Ghost' had spread after that.
"I understand. Have you two had dinner yet? If not, we can prepare some for you," the mayor said, seeing that Rayn didn't like the title. He was a man of the world and changed the subject.
"Then we'll trouble you," Rayn said, not being polite, as he had planned to do this when he came here.
"If you could, please also explain the mission. You know, the request form can't explain everything."
"Tia, I'll leave it to you."
Getting straight to the point made Rick happy. He said a word to Tia and then led Rayn and the others to the dining table.