บท 138: Chapter 138: Me? Fairy Strategist?

Sunflower Village, also called Suenflor Village, is located northeast of Magnolia, not far from the Grand Clova Canyon near the border of the Kingdom of Fiore.

However, the client for this mission was not the village chief of Sunflower Village, which is closest to the bandit lair, but a joint request from several nearby villages and towns.

A small village alone could not sustain the appetites of dozens of bandits, so nearby villages and passing merchants also became their targets.

The surrounding villagers, unable to bear the harassment, pooled their money to hire mages to eliminate the bandits.

This should have been the responsibility of the city guard, or even the border garrison. However, Fiore, being a permanently neutral nation, has a weak military—perhaps due to a prolonged period of peace or the prevalence of magic, resulting in ordinary troops being poorly regarded and lacking combat power.

Maintaining city security on a daily basis is manageable for them, but taking on bandits in the mountains is more than they can handle.

Especially with these bandits holed up in such a rugged mountain area.

With no other options, the villagers could only turn to the mages of the recognized guilds.

At this time, the three mages who accepted the commission had just paid for the carriage ride and found an inn in the town.

"The innkeeper said there are only two rooms left today," Rhodes said. "There's no helping it; I'll take one room, and you two can share the other. How about that?"

Alzack and Bisca's faces instantly turned as red as lanterns.

"Share... share a room? Th-th-this..." The two of them stuttered, their heads practically steaming.

The two had been getting along well during the journey, no longer deliberately keeping their distance. However, suddenly being told to share a room was clearly more than they could handle.

"Hahaha..." Rhodes couldn't help but laugh.

It took them a while to realize that it would be more reasonable for Alzack to share a room with Rhodes, right?

"Hey, Rhodes! How can you joke about something like this..." Bisca started angrily, then quickly became embarrassed.

Alzack added, "Y-yeah, exactly."

"Hahaha, sorry, sorry," Rhodes tried to control his laughter. "Cough, let's just put our luggage away for now."

The three of them put their things in the rooms and headed out to meet the client.

As soon as they stepped out of the inn, Rhodes put on a serious demeanor.

"Even though we've talked about it before, let's formally introduce our magic again.

First, there's my summoning magic. I can summon various beasts... Their specialties are... Then there's my takeover magic, where the current forms include...

In short, reconnaissance is my responsibility, and during the battle, feel free to let me know if you need me to cooperate with anything."

Alzack and Bisca were a bit stunned. While they had some understanding before, they hadn't paid too much attention.

But hearing it all laid out like this, Rhodes' abilities seemed incredibly versatile.

Reconnaissance, transportation, searching, defense, retreat, close combat—even poison attacks—and he was currently working on learning how to fly...

Didn't he know nothing about magic when he first joined the guild?

Could someone really grow to this level in just four months?

"Don't just stand there, it's your turn."

"Oh." Alzack came to his senses, pulling out the pistol at his waist and twirling it skillfully.

"I'm skilled in Bullet Magic. Using this gun, I can shoot tranquilizer rounds, flash rounds, smoke rounds, electric rounds, explosive rounds, and whirlwind rounds. Alleyways and complex terrain are my ideal battlegrounds."

With his gun in hand, Alzack was a completely different person. When talking about his magic, his confidence shone through, and his aura became incredibly attractive.

Bisca was obviously the one captivated by it.

After waiting for three seconds, Rhodes reminded, "Bisca, your turn."

"Right. I use Requip Magic, similar to Erza. If her magic is called 'Knight,' then mine should be called 'Gunslinger,'" Bisca said, placing her sniper rifle on her shoulder, looking just like she did that day on stage.

"My combat style is to switch weapons based on different environments and needs. If I have a specialty, it's that I prefer to defeat enemies from as far away as possible."

Rhodes nodded. Although they both used magic firearms, one specialized in reloading and was good at mid-to-long-range combat, while the other specialized in swapping guns and preferred ultra-long-range sniping.

This mission was well chosen, perfectly suited for these two to cooperate. No wonder he and Mira picked it out together.

The three went to meet the client, but unfortunately, they weren't able to get much more useful information.

After asking some questions, Rhodes only learned the general direction of the bandit hideout and that they might have some magical items.

The rest would have to be discovered through their own investigation.

Alzack watched as Rhodes summoned river crabs and shadow wolves, saying, "I can help with concealed reconnaissance too."

Bisca added, "Disguises and concealment aren't an issue for me either."

"Hold on for now. We're in the search phase, so once we find their base, we'll talk."

Rhodes opened his bag, taking out a map and pen. He connected to the river crabs' perspective and quickly recorded the general terrain, observing for dangerous plants or poisonous insects and marking convenient paths.

After a moment, he took two books out of his bag and handed them to Alzack and Bisca. "Take these—just in case."

The two had complicated expressions. Pulling out a local map was one thing, but he even brought magic books.

Such thorough preparation.

They watched as Rhodes marked ambush points on the map, wrote lines of valuable terrain information on the paper, and noted possible ways to use it.

Bisca marveled, "It's like you're a 'Fairy Strategist.'"

Alzack seemed unfamiliar with the title. "What's that?"

"It's a title given to the First Master, Mavis," Bisca recalled. "She was a genius who used her extraordinary intellect to analyze information, devise the best plans, and lead her comrades to victory.

"I heard the guild has experienced many great battles, and every time, it was her tactics that led to success. That's why everyone called her 'Fairy Strategist.'"

Alzack was astonished. "Isn't that exactly what Rhodes is doing now? I think I heard Gray complaining once that Rhodes casually pulls out plans that are a foot thick—just reading through them would exhaust anyone."

Bisca nodded. "That's why I said Rhodes is like the Fairy Strategist of our generation."

"That's an exaggeration! Gray's spreading rumors about me again?" Rhodes sighed, realizing he was constantly being gossiped about.

"The First Master could remember all of the enemy's information in her mind, analyze their forces, magic, and strategies, even simulate battles in her head.

"She could perform massive calculations to predict all possible outcomes and guide everyone toward victory step by step—a true genius.

"As for me, I can only write things down on paper and make a few simple battle plans, dealing with enemies who aren't that smart. Compared to the Fairy Strategist, I'm far off."

Rhodes had heard Levy tell the story of First Master Mavis, and he knew his own abilities well. The biggest battle he'd commanded was a 5v5 team fight...

Well, not quite. The largest battle he'd participated in was something called "Republic's Glory."

But that wasn't even real commanding, and with his meager intellect, how could he compare himself to the human supercomputer that was the First Master?