Meredy, despite her small stature, forcibly dragged Lucy, who was a full head taller than her, off the bed and pulled her downstairs.
Although Lucy's body was taken along, her soul seemed to have been left behind on that soft bed.
It was only when Meredy dragged her out of the villa and they happened to meet Lucky pushing a cart full of food that Lucy finally regained some energy.
"So fragrant… that's protein."
Having skipped both lunch and dinner, Lucy almost started drooling at the meat aroma coming from the cart. Her sleepiness vanished instantly.
Seeing them come out of the villa, Lucky greeted them with a smile.
"How was it, Lucy? Found your room yet?"
"Mm-hm, a super big room and a huge bed.
But let's not talk about that now, let's eat first!"
Seeing her impatient reaction, Lucky also quickened her pace with a laugh.
"Dinner's ready! I'm starving!"
Kabe grabbed a plate of fried noodles and tipped it straight into his mouth in one motion.
After that, he used both hands at once. Within just a few minutes, more than half the dishes on the table had already disappeared.
Seeing this, the chopsticks Lucy had just raised froze in mid-air as despair slowly crept over her face.
"So fast… I can't keep up at all!"
It wasn't her first time eating with Kabe, so she already knew how terrifying his table combat ability was.
But who could tell her how a guy who had been drinking all afternoon still had this kind of stomach capacity?
Meredy also got annoyed after repeatedly trying to pick up food only to have Kabe sweep entire plates away.
"Damn Kabe! What did you even do all afternoon in the guild?!"
After devouring more than ten plates of food, Kabe's eating speed finally slowed slightly.
"It all digested already. If you can't even grab food, then you deserve to stay short, little brat."
Not only did he steal her favorite dishes, he also mocked her height.
Meredy's anger meter instantly exploded.
"I can't take it anymore!"
She shouted and pointed her right hand at Kabe with a finger-gun gesture, firing a pink beam of light.
"Not again…"
Kabe sighed helplessly, letting the light hit his wrist and form a pink ring-shaped mark.
Fallen Magic: Sin of Emotion.
This was Meredy's ability.
It linked the senses of two people, allowing them to share physical sensations.
But the magic had a condition: the linked party must possess love for the other side.
That love could be romantic, familial, or another form of affection.
Kabe casually leaned back in his chair, shaking his marked hand.
"And then what? You're linking me with who? Lucky or Sorano?"
"Do you think they'll help you prank me?"
Even though Meredy had been explicitly forbidden by Ur from using this trick, she had secretly tried it on him many times before.
But whether it was Mira, Erza, Lucky, or Cana, all of them had firmly sided with Kabe in the end, never allowing her plan to succeed.
He was genuinely curious what she would do now, knowing full well that no one would support her mischief.
Everyone else also turned their attention toward Meredy.
Especially Lucy, who was still completely confused about what was happening.
"Eh? Eh? What's going on? Did they suddenly start using magic?!"
Under everyone's curious, puzzled, amused, and expectant gazes, Meredy slowly raised her left hand, which was also wrapped in a similar diamond-shaped mark.
"Hehe… didn't expect this, did you?"
"You're a bastard who likes bullying kids and always has his eyes on Ur, a total perverted idiot…"
"But you did save me and Ur, and you did protect me while I grew up. That much is true."
"So even though it's embarrassing, I still kind of admire you… Kabe."
If this had been usual times, Meredy openly admitting her feelings like this would have made Kabe laugh with satisfaction.
But now, feeling their senses and emotions tightly linked through the magic, the teasing smile on his face had already disappeared.
For once, he looked genuinely alarmed.
"Uh… can we call a truce?"
"You think so?"
Meredy smiled meaningfully, then reached for a packet of wasabi on the table and swallowed it in one go without hesitation.
"I'm going all in!!"
"Are you insane?!"
Everyone watching revealed looks of admiration at the scene.
And Kabe, unable to stop her in time, could only watch helplessly.
The next instant, an indescribably intense wave of stimulation exploded through their shared senses, blasting through Kabe's entire brain.
"GAAAAH!!!" ×2