Though Sharuru barely came up to Wendy's knee, there was nothing small about the tone she spoke in. Spurred on by her, Wendy screwed up her courage, stepped out from behind the tree where she'd been hiding, and strode toward the mansion with the expression of someone marching to their own execution.
Inside the mansion's hall, Kabe had already noticed the two of them lurking about outside. Just as Wendy reached the door and hesitated over how to announce herself, he turned and spoke directly to the girl and her cat:
"So the two of you from the Cait Shelter have finally decided to come out. I was starting to think you'd stay hidden forever."
"Eep!!"
Neither Wendy nor Sharuru had expected to be called out so suddenly, and the shock froze them in their tracks. Ultear, Jura, Ichiya, and the others all turned to follow Kabe's gaze. Once they got a clear look at the newcomers, Karen couldn't help but blurt out in surprise.
"A child? And a cat? These two are the reinforcements from the Cait Shelter?"
As she said it, she couldn't help frowning. The Cait Shelter's guild master had to be seriously irresponsible, sending a child this young into such a dangerous operation. Most of the others present were thinking much the same thing, and it wasn't that they meant to look down on her. It was simply that Wendy's small, delicate appearance made it hard to believe she had the strength to take part in a mission like this.
While everyone else was still quietly sizing Wendy up, Happy, standing at Natsu's feet, was already staring at Sharuru with hearts practically popping out of his eyes.
"S, so cute!"
With that, he hurriedly untied the little bundle around his neck, pulled out a dried fish, and hopped his way over.
"I'm Happy from Fairy Tail. Want some fish? It's on me."
Sharuru, however, wasn't paying him the slightest attention. Her eyes were fixed on Kabe, her little mouth falling open.
"I, Ishgar's Four Heavenly Kings, the God of Destruction Kabe?! Someone of your standing is actually taking part in this operation too!"
Sharuru, who'd insisted on tagging along because she hadn't trusted Wendy to manage alone, finally felt her nerves settle the moment she laid eyes on Kabe. With a man like this around, even the Six Demon Generals were nothing to be afraid of.
"Is it really so strange that I'm here? This request was put out by my wife in the first place. You two, on the other hand, didn't even know I was the one leading this operation and still had the nerve to show up for something at this level. If anyone here is bold, it's you."
At that, Sharuru's mouth twitched, and in her heart she cursed Guildmaster Roubaul six ways from Sunday.
'That stinking old man. If he'd told me from the start it was this one leading things, why would I have come scrambling all the way out here!'
Just then, Happy, utterly oblivious to the mood, pressed in again, practically shoving the dried fish right up against Sharuru's face.
"What's your name? When we're on the mission later, just stay behind me. I'll protect you!"
Sharuru's mood had already soured, and now saddled with this shameless, pestering cat on top of it, she didn't bother holding back:
"Get lost. Who asked for your protection!"
"Aw, s, she's shy, how cute~~"
Happy had clearly gotten the wrong idea entirely, clutching his chest with a dazed, lovestruck look. Even Lucy couldn't stand to watch anymore and couldn't help chiming in:
"No, I'm pretty sure she just genuinely doesn't want anything to do with you."
But Happy immediately shot back, "Lucy, you're so dense. You don't understand a girl's heart at all."
Lucy: "...Is there any chance you've forgotten I'm a girl too."
With Happy finally off her back, Sharuru hurried over to Wendy, who was still fidgeting nervously, and nudged her leg.
"Don't be shy, Wendy. Go on and introduce yourself to everyone first. It'll be less awkward that way."
"O, okay."
With that, Wendy took a deep breath, stepped forward, bowed a full ninety degrees to the group, and introduced herself:
"H, hello everyone. I'm Wendy, from the Cait Shelter. I can't fight on the front lines, but I'm good with all kinds of support and auxiliary magic. So, so please, don't think of me as dead weight!"
After hearing her introduction, everyone exchanged glances with one another, and in the end it was Kabe who spoke up on behalf of the group to welcome her.
"Welcome aboard, Miss Wendy. As it happens, our joint force was exactly short a reliable support type."
With Kabe leading the way, the others followed suit, some offering welcomes, others giving quick introductions of their own. Feeling everyone's goodwill, Wendy's tense little face broke into a smile at once. She crouched down and, in a voice that was hardly a whisper at all, "whispered" to Sharuru:
"It's such a relief, Sharuru, everyone here is so easy to get along with."
"I told you so. As long as you're a little more confident, nobody's going to go out of their way to make things hard for you."
With that, Sharuru gave the group a small nod of her own.
"I'm Sharuru, Wendy's partner."
Sparing the prickly little white cat a couple more glances and forcing down the urge to scoop her up and give her a good ruffling, Kabe stepped forward out of the group and clapped his hands to draw everyone's attention.
"With Wendy and Sharuru here, everyone taking part in this operation has now arrived. If there's nothing else, I'll go ahead and lay out the specific battle plan for this mission."