Chapter 40: Chapter 40: It's Over, It's Over...

The freshly received salary wasn't even warm in his hands, and Rhodes had to part with two-thirds of it right away to pay for rent.

The remaining disposable amount was just 40,000 Jewels.

Last month, the guild master lent Rhodes 150,000 Jewels.

The fee for Hibiki to tutor him in the common language was 80,000 Jewels, plus there were the medical fees for Ms. Porlyusica's treatment.

The guild master hadn't mentioned that Rhodes needed to pay these back, but he couldn't just pretend not to know.

"I'll pay back 20,000 this month and keep 20,000 as living expenses. If I keep at it like this, I should be able to pay it off in about a year.

But in two months, it will be time to switch seasons, and there will be a lot of new things to buy, so maybe I should save up more and pay it all off later."

Rhodes calculated his debts and income speed, and the pressure immediately surged back in.

"Judging by the combat strength of the Stone Beetle and the Three Wolves, once I get the Toad and the Six Birds, I should be able to handle low-difficulty missions.

Considering the possibility of unexpected situations, it's better to play it safe and wait until I have either the red or blue buff before taking on missions...

And it's best to team up with others."

Motivated by his salary, Rhodes came up with a short-term plan that balanced urgency with caution.

Actually, after getting certified by the guild master, Rhodes was already allowed to take on many missions. He just didn't feel secure and wanted to train for another month or two.

In the tavern, Macao, trying to cool down, drank a few extra glasses of cold beer, and his voice got a bit loud:

"Wakaba, did you secretly get a divorce?"

"How could that be?" Wakaba said, puzzled, "Why would you say that?"

"Because I haven't heard you complain about your wife for several days," Macao replied, thinking he had solid reasoning.

Speaking of which, Wakaba was even more puzzled:

"For some reason, my wife's been treating me particularly well recently, like when we first got married...

Aside from her dressing a bit dowdy and putting on some weight, there's really nothing to complain about."

Macao burped, then took a few more gulps:

"Curse it, I thought you and I were both in the same unhappy marriage boat, but now you're suddenly so happy!"

"What do you mean unhappy marriage?" Cana cut in,

"Didn't your wife divorce you because you were always working and never cared about the family?"

"I'm a man, isn't earning more money to support the family my duty!" Macao argued, his face flushed, then his voice fell,

"And I've changed! Now, I don't just work all the time; I also take care of Romeo... Damn it, I want a happy marriage too!"

Seeing Macao's drunken state, Cana knew he'd had too much, so she didn't bother arguing with him.

She cradled her small cup of wine, looking longingly at the large barrel of liquor in the corner...

Hmph, he's always drunk like that, yet he tells me to drink less.

Drunk Macao was still pestering Wakaba, "Come on, tell me, how did you do it?!"

"I already said I don't know!"

Rhodes glanced at Mira and signaled with his eyes—it was all thanks to her.

Mira just smiled silently.

Seeing Macao not letting up and ready to go on a drunken rant, Cana reminded him, "Did anything special happen recently?"

"Something special... A little over a week ago, we had an encounter with a robber, maybe that scared her?" Wakaba said. "You guys know about that, right? The robber was caught by Rhodes and Mira."

To thank Rhodes, Wakaba had also mentored him for several days... The vast experience of this long-time guild member had been greatly beneficial to Rhodes.

He even told Rhodes which issues of Sorcerer Weekly were the most worth looking at.

Completely useless information!

Rhodes immediately decided to remember it and sell that intel to some other perv in the future.

Macao still wouldn't stop pestering.

Wakaba, feeling exasperated, eventually resorted to dealing with the problem physically.

...

After work, Rhodes took a stroll around the household goods store.

He originally planned to buy some mosquito repellent but ended up buying a mosquito net instead. Repellent had to be bought again when it ran out, while a mosquito net could be used for a long time—a money-saving tip from Rhodes.

On his way home, Rhodes remembered Mira's reminder from earlier: tomorrow was the opening day of Honey Sweets House, and he needed to bring the vouchers.

So, Rhodes turned around and headed for the clothing store.

The money was not saved after all.

After leaving the clothing store and walking a few steps, Rhodes turned again and entered the barber shop.

Today, not only did he fail to save money, but he had to spend even more.

The sound of scissors snipping echoed above his head, and tufts of hair fell to the ground.

Rhodes stared at his reflection in the mirror, calmly wondering if he was actually moved, or if he had just lost his mind.

It wasn't too hard to determine.

The real question was—what did Mira think of him? From her perspective, if she had to label him, it would probably be: Newcomer, companion, occasionally needs taking care of, a bit more obedient than Natsu and the others, trains diligently... and so on.

After counting for a while, Rhodes realized he was probably just like the other guild members—Mira had a basic liking towards him.

At most, it was because they worked together every day, often chatted, and were a bit more familiar with each other.

Rhodes sighed—still a long way to go.

It did give him a bit more motivation to train harder though.

...

The next morning, Rhodes stretched, hit the punching bag a few times, and loosened up his body before washing up and getting ready to leave.

He told himself not to overthink it at this stage, just to act as usual and interact with Mira as normal.

Yet his body was honest—he changed into new clothes and spent a good while fixing his hair in front of the mirror.

After finishing the usual morning tasks in the tavern, they both went out.

Fortunately, the guild master was around today, and Sally and Izu had also come to help part-time, so Mira and Rhodes could leave for a while without worry.

Aside from Laki's scorching gaze making Rhodes a bit uncomfortable, everything was fine.

From the way Laki looked, Rhodes could tell that the gossip-loving Mira was now also the subject of gossip.

Today, Mira wore a beige dress, its hem just covering her knees.

Because the sun had been rather unkind since the morning, she also wore a sun hat, adorned with a large pink bow, giving her a youthful vibe.

Rhodes hadn't noticed it much earlier, but now he realized Mira's head just reached slightly above his shoulder.

They were pretty compatible height-wise—no, no, no.

As they walked side by side, a faint fragrance drifted over from beside him.

If it were before he transmigrated, Rhodes would have thought it was the smell of shampoo, cosmetics, or perfume.

But he'd read in magazines about many magic products available for women—magic that could change the color of clothes at will or magic that could emit different floral scents.

Rhodes wasn't sure if Mira used any of these, but... her outfit looked great, and the fragrance was really nice too.

Mira seemed to be in a good mood. "Got a haircut?"

"Yeah, it's been almost a month since I last trimmed it."

Saying it was on purpose felt a bit embarrassing, so he came up with a reasonable excuse.

He also wanted to know what she thought and casually asked, "Does it look okay?"

Mira tilted her head, looking for a few extra seconds. "It suits you well. You look more handsome."

"Really?" Rhodes smiled. "Thanks."

Great... Even though he knew full well that this compliment was probably just out of politeness, the joy in his heart still overflowed uncontrollably...

It's over, it's over...