"Jenny, what a coincidence."
When they went out, they happened to run into Jenny again.
This time, she was already dressed in a luxurious long gown, and her bangs had been adjusted, possibly to cover the red mark on her forehead.
This time, Rhode didn't pull out a grenade upon meeting because he didn't have his bag.
"Tonight's show, watch closely, it's going to be the most popular... Humph!"
Halfway through her words, Jenny lifted her skirt and went downstairs, suddenly realizing that Mirajane didn't really care about today's show, so it was pointless to say anything.
Rhode asked, "How hard did you hit her that time? She might hold a grudge for a long time."
"Just a little bit of force," Mira made a gesture that could be considered offensive, "she's just unwilling to accept losing the competition, it's nothing."
The invited guests tonight were not only Mira and Jenny but also some models of slightly lesser fame than the two of them.
Models with outstanding looks were dressed seductively, charmingly, or cutely, each with their own unique style, all seemingly planning to showcase their talents today.
Aside from the models, there were also actors, singers, and others who had previously been featured in Sosala Weekly's promotions, arriving one after another.
Rhode had a simple understanding of the entertainment industry in this world, where there are Magic Crystals specifically used for screening movies, with a high level of popularity.
So excellent movie actors are also highly sought after by many.
Loki was even complained about by an entertainment company for getting physical with a female artist—at least that's what Mira said.
The spacious banquet hall was already set up, with festive decorations as one would expect, and banners like "Celebrating the 15th Anniversary of the Founding" hanging front and back.
At the front of the hall was a semicircular stage, with a big red curtain separating the front and backstage.
Inside the hall were a dozen large round tables filled with exquisite foods and various drinks, but there were no chairs, probably to encourage guests to mingle and socialize freely.
Mira and Rhode entered the hall without causing much of a stir because there were other girls with male companions.
The banquet hall had already formed into various small circles, and only when one saw someone interesting or someone they admired to a certain extent would they temporarily leave their circle to try to say hello.
"Over there are the reporters and editors, mostly quite talkative. Those over there are novelists, there might be some odd ones. And then there are the celebrities over there who might be difficult to talk to..."
Mira carefully introduced a few small groups to Rhode before heading backstage to prepare for her performance.
Rhode couldn't follow her to the backstage because he might be considered a creep and get kicked out.
He wasn't particularly interested in the actors or singers here and planned to find a quiet spot to eat until Mira finished performing.
However, it seemed someone didn't plan to let him remain undisturbed.
"Hello, I'm Reaper Ter, a reporter for Sosala Weekly, are you a Mage from Fairy Tail?"
A man with glasses and a parted hairstyle, a camera hanging around his neck, and holding a notebook, approached Rhode to chat.
Rhode carefully sensed it and found no unusual Magic Power Fluctuation, then cautiously answered, "Yes."
"Great!" Reaper Ter was a bit excited,
"To be honest, I was fortunate enough to visit Fairy Tail a few months ago, but I didn't see you then. Are you a newcomer?"
A fan of our guild? Rhode nodded, "A newcomer, I joined just under two months ago."
"Fantastic! I thought so!" Reaper Ter said excitedly,
"Would you be interested in granting me an interview? Being featured in Sosala could greatly boost your reputation!"
Fame equates to publicly disclosed information.
That's way too unsafe, Rhode thought about declining politely: "I'm sorry, I have no interest in fame..."
"Ah, that's too bad!" Reaper Ter disheveled his hair in frustration,
"I've already been refused seven times today, and if I can't spend the remaining 10,000 J in interview fees, my editor will scold me for not being diligent enough!"
Interview fees?
Does your impressive magazine actually pay the interviewees?
That's not the point; the point is—10,000 J?
Mr. Rhode was short on cash recently.
"Um, I mean, I'm not interested in fame, but I appreciate hardworking journalists like you, so it's not impossible to cooperate reluctantly."
What's so scary about publicly disclosed information, just disclose false information.
10,000 J, that would make a great gift in return.
"That's really... great, thank you so much!" Reaper Ter was overjoyed.
And so, before the celebration started, a simple little interview quietly began.
First were the basic details like name and age, which weren't hard to disclose.
Then it was about Magic.
"I use Summoning Magic, summoning some peculiar animals to assist me in my work."
Rhode summoned Warm for a brief appearance, and Reaper Ter snapped a few photos.
"So cute! May I ask what your level of strength is within the guild?"
"It's hard to compare with veteran members, but among newcomers, I'm definitely the strongest."
There haven't been any new members these past few months, so Mr. Rhode being the strongest newcomer is undoubtedly true.
"That's so cool! The strongest newcomer in the Strongest Guild, it's an excellent headline! The editor will love it!"
Reaper Ter continued with the questions, "That Summoned Beast just now looked merely cute, so what's your strongest Magic?"
"Well, I have to mention the strongest Summoned Beast I conquered last month, the Gorge Swift Crab.
In an extremely dangerous gorge, there's a bottomless river, where lives..."
Rhode exaggeratedly described the habitat of the River Crab, claiming it was a powerful creature he obtained last month, far surpassing all the Summoned Beasts he had before.
Not a single lie was told.
At the end of the interview, Reaper Ter requested to see the mighty River Crab.
Rhode took him to the hotel's courtyard to show it.
Luckily, the River Crab was large enough, ugly enough, with its large pincers, long antennae, and spiky shell looking quite intimidating.
Reaper Ter took several close-up shots of the pincers, and Rhode earned 10,000 J.
"What a great person."
Both the interviewer and interviewee sighed with the same sentiment.
…
The celebration began with a dance by fifteen beautiful women, and the energetic music and spicy dance moves quickly heated up the atmosphere.
Reaper Ter actually wanted to go back and organize his draft, but such an important celebration was not to be missed, so he stayed to entertain Rhode.
However, once the show started, he couldn't focus on Rhode anymore, snapping photos excitedly.
Rhode was a bit worried whether his film would be enough—speaking of which, do they use film or Magic Crystals for their cameras here?
Putting aside his doubts, Rhode kept eating and watching—primarily eating, as he needed to replenish his energy after a day of running around.
In between his ravenous eating, he took time to clap along with the crowd.
After the opening dance, there was a speech from the president, which was basically words of celebration, encouragement, and thanks.
Not knowing the speaker and not caring about the speech, Rhode quietly continued eating.
It wasn't until the speech ended that the stage lights changed, illuminating the central spot, as Mira appeared.
Rhode put down his utensils and wiped his mouth; when it comes to eating, there's no real rush.