"Oops~" Lucy covered her mouth, a mischievous grin spreading across her face. "So this is Erza's type, huh?"
She's so cool and dependable in battle or everyday life, but when it comes to romance, she's as pure as a blank page. (==) This must be that "gap moe" thing, right~!
"Oh my~" Mira's voice chimed in like a melodic bell, instantly drawing everyone's attention.
She sauntered over to Roger, placing her right hand gently on his.
A soft, delicate sensation spread from his hand, like the finest jade mixed with the fluffiness of cotton.
Roger froze for a second. Such soft hands… are these really Mira's?
Mira's lips curved into a playful smile as she winked at Erza and Lucy. "Erza and Roger are just ordinary friends~ But me? I'm Roger's official girlfriend~."
…
The guild fell into an eerie silence.
Everyone froze mid-action, as if hit by a petrification spell, standing stock-still.
Someone's cup slipped from their hand, shattering on the floor with a crisp crash that broke the quiet.
The next second— "Whaaaat?!"
A deafening uproar nearly blew the guild's roof off!
Lucy's eyes went wide. "O_O Chaos! Total love triangle chaos!!"
Happy zipped up to the bar counter between the trio, his eyes narrowing to slits, tail swishing mischievously. Covering his mouth with his paws, he stretched out his words in a teasing tone: "They've got a thi~ng~!"
Thwack!
Before he could finish, a fresh lump sprouted on his head.
Happy's eyes spun with stars, his body wobbling like he'd had too much catnip before collapsing onto the counter, out cold.
Erza, stone-faced, pulled back her fist, her gaze sharp as a blade as she glared at Mira. "Since when are you Roger's girlfriend?! Why didn't I know about this?!"
"Oh my~" Mira smiled sweetly, her tone light but with a hint of challenge. "You and Roger are just ordinary friends, right, Erza? It's only natural you wouldn't know about our intimate relationship~."
She raised her right hand, her slender index finger lightly touching her glossy lips. Then, under everyone's shocked stares, she slowly pressed that same finger, faintly stained with pink lipstick, to Roger's lips.
A warm, soft, slightly sweet sensation, mixed with the faint rose scent of Mira, shot through Roger like an electric current.
His single-since-forever brain, utterly unprepared, completely short-circuited.
Mira smirked at Erza, whose eyes were practically shaking, her smile growing smugger. "So, how's that? Now do you get what a girlfriend can do?"
Erza's eyes bulged like saucers, her trembling finger pointing at Mira. "Y-You! You shameless woman!!"
"Oh my~" Mira's smile deepened, as if she'd heard something amusing. "Erza, your definition of shameless is pretty strict, huh~?"
Her finger, still on Roger's lips, moved ever so slightly, teasingly, spreading the faint pink of her lipstick in an even more suggestive way. "This is just a little gesture~ We haven't even had a real kiss yet~."
She dragged out her words, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Erza~ Do you even know what a real kiss is~?"
"K-K-Kiss?!" Erza's mind was instantly flooded with steamy scenes from romance novels. The flush that had just started to fade surged back, her face red enough to rival a tomato.
Her eyes swirled like whirlpools, and after a few seconds, she shot to her feet, shouting to cover her panic. "I-I know what it is! It's just lips touching lips, pressed together all tight!"
"And then… then… the head… it's, uh, like, tangled… t-tangled up—!"
Her voice grew quieter, her face redder, until she was mumbling incoherently, her brain a blank slate replaying only those blush-inducing images.
"Oh my~" Mira raised an eyebrow, feigning surprise as she finally pulled her hand back, twirling a strand of her white hair around her finger. "What you're describing, Erza~ That's not a regular kiss. That's a French kiss~."
"Didn't expect you to know so much, yet so little. Such a pure girl~."
"F-F-French kiss?!" Just hearing the words made Erza's breathing hitch, her vision blurring with double images.
She shook her head violently, trying to banish the chaotic thoughts, clinging to her crumbling composure to avoid losing to Mira. "W-Well, whatever it is, Roger can't be with you!!"
"Oh~?" Mira tilted her head slightly, looking down at her with a sly smile. "And who are you to say that?"
"If you're just an ordinary friend, you don't get to make decisions for him~."
"I-I'm—" Erza opened her mouth, but the words caught in her throat, her face flaming red.
Seeing Mira's smug, victorious expression, she squeezed her eyes shut and shouted with all her might: "I'm Roger's girlfriend!!!"
The guild: "!!!"
She said it! Everyone held their breath, torn between fear of getting caught in the storm and the burning gossip fueling their souls, sneaking glances at the unfolding drama.
"Oh~?" A sharp glint flashed in Mira's narrowed eyes. "If that's the case, words aren't enough. Prove it to everyone."
"Kiss Roger. Right here, in front of us."
"Kiss?!" Erza's brain exploded with a boom, turning into complete mush.
But with her back against the wall, her embarrassment and competitive streak overpowered everything. She blurted out, "F-Fine, I'll kiss him!"
With the resolve of a warrior facing death, she leaned toward Roger, eyes tightly shut, long lashes trembling, cheeks impossibly red, lips slightly puckered.
Seeing Erza's all-in determination, Mira's confident smile faltered, her heart skipping a beat. Wait—she's not actually going to do it, is she?!
"Hold on!"
Just as Erza's lips were about to meet Roger's, he jolted to his feet, leaning back, his voice tinged with obvious panic. "D-Don't you think this is moving a bit too fast?!"
At that, both Erza and Mira let out a silent sigh of relief.
Erza quickly straightened up, turning her face away to hide her burning cheeks, stammering, "W-Well… if Roger says so, then… I guess there's no helping it—"
She crossed her arms, trying to act calm, but couldn't resist a jab at Mira. "I-I mean, it is a bit fast. Unlike some people, I'm a very pure woman!"
Mira chuckled, slipping back into her composed demeanor. "Oh my~ Erza, you're so pure~." She stretched out the word, giving it an entirely different vibe.
Erza's forehead twitched. "What's that supposed to mean?!"
Mira tapped her chin with a finger, her eyes innocent. "Just repeating what you said, Erza. You're the one who called yourself pure~."
"You're definitely not saying it the same way I did!" Erza snapped, stepping forward until their foreheads nearly touched.
"You sneaky, scheming woman!"
Mira pushed back just as hard, her usual sweet smile vanishing, replaced by a fierce, delinquent-like glare. "And you're just a muscle-headed idiot who can't think straight!"
Sparks practically crackled between their eyes, the air thick with tension as a fight seemed imminent.
"Mira-nee," Lisanna's voice cut in just in time, holding up a request form. "There's a job specifically for you. It's a demon-slaying mission."
"Hmph!" Mira shoved Erza back, walking over to Lisanna and taking the request form, scanning it closely. "Eliminate a demon in Raven's Marsh…"
"Raven's Marsh? Isn't that, like, a five-day train ride?" She frowned slightly. "But a demon-slaying job specifically for me? That's a first."
"A specific request?" Lucy, who'd already retreated to Levy's side to avoid the chaos, peeked over curiously. "Jobs can be assigned like that?"
"Yup," Levy whispered. "Named requests happen when a client really trusts a specific mage or thinks their abilities are perfect for the job."
"They also pay way more—sometimes double the usual reward for a job of the same level."
"Whoa!" Lucy's eyes widened in disbelief. "That much?! Mira's gonna make a fortune on this one!"
"Not just that—her magic will grow, the pay's great, and she gets to take down a demon!"
"Exactly. That's why Mira dropped the fight with Erza for now," Levy said with a shrug. "Named requests are rare, maybe two or three a year. Though sometimes they pick the wrong person."
Lucy tilted her head. "Wrong person?"
Levy pointed at Natsu, whose head was still steaming. "Once, someone heard 'Fire Dragon' was super strong and picked Natsu to clear monsters from a ruin."
"He took care of the monsters, sure, but he also blasted the precious ruin into rubble."
"We later found out the client was a historian who wanted the ruin preserved for study." Lucy's mouth twitched. "== Yeah, definitely the wrong guy."
Once Mira left with the request form and Erza stormed off, dragging Roger with her, the guild's tense atmosphere exploded into chatter.
Wakaba slammed his mug on the table, voice dripping with envy. "Damn it!! The two prettiest flowers in Fairy Tail, both snatched by Roger?!"
Macao nodded furiously, clutching his chest. "Exactly! He's got Erza and he's reaching for Mira?! Unfair!"
"Why do the 'Fairy Queen' and the 'Fairy Maiden' both like him?!"
Both men downed their drinks in shared misery, thinking, Why can't that be me?!
Natsu clutched his head, eyes wide, his worldview shattered. "Erza and Mira… both into Roger?!"
"So he's gotta deal with both those monsters every day?!"
His mind conjured a terrifying image: Erza glaring, forcing Roger to eat a plate of ominous purple "food," while Mira smirked, cracking a whip.
"World's end! Monster showdown!!"
Shuddering, he shook off the thought, his eyes full of pity. "Poor Roger… his life's gonna be rough."
Lucy, meanwhile, was buzzing with excitement, lost in the gossip. "A love triangle?! Didn't see that coming!!"
She nudged Levy with her elbow. "Levy, who do you think Roger will pick?"
Levy tapped her chin, frowning thoughtfully. "Honestly… it's hard to say."
"If he picks Erza, Mira won't let it slide. If he picks Mira, Erza might just draw her sword. They've always been rivals, and Roger's stuck in the middle…"
"Sounds like a tough road ahead~."
Lucy's face lit up with anticipation. "So the guild's gonna be a love triangle battlefield from now on?!"
Levy's expression turned serious. "Lucy, it's not that simple. If those two go all out, their fight could level a city."
"If they clash over this, the Master's the one who'll suffer first."
She sighed, shaking her head. "With how quick those two are to explode, any fight would cause major damage."
"And then the Master's desk will be buried under complaints, fines, and apology letters."
Lucy's mouth twitched as she glanced at the Master, surrounded by the guild's chatter. "Being Fairy Tail's Master is no easy job."
---
Time flew, and soon it was the next day.
Roger walked toward the guild, only to spot a grim scene from afar.
The familiar guildhall was pierced by countless massive, icy iron spikes, like a skewered kebab. Walls were crumbling, windows shattered.
"This… Phantom Lord's work," Roger muttered.
He quickened his pace, reaching the guild's entrance just as he saw Lucy standing there, gaping at the wreckage.
"Let's go," Roger said calmly. "Everyone's probably gathering at the guild's backup underground warehouse."
"Roger!!" Lucy spun around, pointing at the ruined guild, her voice full of shock. "The guild's been trashed like this! Someone actually dared to attack us?!"
Roger chuckled. "Lucy, why would you think no one would dare?"
She started counting on her fingers. "Forget you for a second—Erza and Mira alone are insanely strong! Then you've got Natsu, Gray, and everyone else with contracts!"
"With so many powerhouses, who'd have the guts to mess with us?"
"And Fairy Tail's supposed to be Fiore's strongest guild, right?!"
"That 'strongest' title is exactly why some people can't stand us," Roger said, motioning for her to follow as he headed toward the underground warehouse. "Only one group has the nerve and the power to do this: Phantom Lord."