The two of them dragged their legs, which felt as heavy as lead, for a day and a half before finally arriving at a bald little hill. The setting sun stretched their shadows long, and even their breath carried the scent of hot sand and dust.
"Let's rest for a night. Tomorrow morning, we'll go beat up the Stone Titan."
Riyao wiped the sweat from his brow and casually pulled a seed from his backpack, tossing it onto the ground by his feet.
With a flash of pale green light, a thick plantain tree instantly rose from the ground. Its large, fleshy leaves swayed in the wind, looking completely out of place against the surrounding grayish-yellow hills.
Mirajane looked at the abrupt plantain tree, raising an eyebrow and curling her lip, her eyes overflowing with disdain and confusion. "We're eating this at night? Are you sure I won't get diarrhea?"
"Haha... Just a seed I grabbed at random! I'll swap it for another one." Riyao scratched his head and quickly reached into his backpack to grope around, pulling out a new seed and tossing it out.
This time, tender white and green sprouts emerged from the soil, rapidly growing branches and leaves. In the blink of an eye, it was covered in golden-yellow pears, and a sweet fragrance instantly drifted through the air.
He plucked two pears and threw them to Mirajane, then pulled out some rock-hard dry rations and handed them over. "Have some of this first. When we get back, we definitely need to get some beef jerky to carry. Gnawing on these crappy rations is making my teeth ache."
"Riyao, when we get back, you have to treat me to a good meal!" Mirajane took the rations and broke them into small pieces, putting them into her mouth one by one. Her cheeks puffed out slightly, making her look just like a little hamster storing food.
Riyao chewed his rations and suddenly leaned in close to her. His dark, bright eyes curved into crescents, and he even winked intentionally. "I can treat you for a lifetime if you want."
The tips of Mira's ears turned bright red in an instant, followed by a pink flush on her cheeks. She raised the hand holding the rations and punched him hard on the shoulder, her voice carrying a hint of coquettish anger. "What are you talking about! You rogue! Believe it or not, I'll knock you flat in a minute!"
Riyao clutched his shoulder and shook with laughter, his eyes sparkling like a fox that had successfully stolen some candy.
(*´Д`)つ))´∀`)
This sentiment was likely clear to everyone in Fairy Tail.
Mirajane felt her whole body heating up from his laughter. She quickly looked down and fiddled with the corner of her clothes, changing the subject. "By the way, are there any requirements to participate in the guild's S-Class Trial?"
Riyao pulled a ceramic pot from his backpack and set it over the campfire. A pale blue magic circle appeared on his hand, drawing water to fill the pot.
He plucked a few pears, broke them into small pieces, and tossed them in. Then he grabbed a handful of goji berries and red dates... sprinkled them in, and picked up his firewood stick to stir.
He shook the stick. Perfect for home or travel, for killing or arson, and it even handled a small self-cleaning function. Otherwise, how could it be called the stick of one's dreams?
"Doesn't it say you have to complete a certain number of requests? I heard that before every trial, everyone in the guild works extra hard to take on requests," Mirajane asked curiously, watching the bubbles gurgling in the pot.
Riyao scooped up a spoonful of the sweet water and tasted it. His brow relaxed as he indulged in a bit of humblebragging. "That? That's just the old man's screening threshold to see who's serious about aiming for S-Class. Honestly, if you're truly powerful, no one forces you if you don't want to be ranked. I didn't want to be S-Class at first; it's a huge pain."
"As for why so many people participate in the selection every time, it's purely for bragging rights."
Mirajane looked up and stared at his face for a long time, as if trying to measure the thickness of his skin. Riyao felt uncomfortable under her gaze, so he reached out to touch his cheek and intentionally pinched his voice to sound shy. "Oh my, I know I'm handsome, but don't stare at me like that~"
→_→
Mirajane rolled her eyes hard and said crossly, "The thickness of your skin is probably greater than the shell of a Stone Titan!"
Riyao chuckled. He extended his arm with his forearm facing up, and used his other hand to crumble some brown sugar. The fine bits of sugar slid down his forearm and into the pot, and a sweet aroma instantly filled the air.
He clapped his hands, his tone full of complaints. "The pay for S-Class requests is high, but the danger is also great. The most annoying part is those idiots in the Council. Every now and then they issue disgusting requests with pathetic pay, and if anything goes wrong, they shift all the blame onto our guild!"
Mirajane scooped up a spoonful of sweet water and took a sip. The sweet taste relieved the dryness in her mouth. She took out a flatbread, broke it into pieces to soak, and asked indistinctly while chewing, "Then what if the requests issued by the Council are very dangerous?"
Riyao patted his chest proudly. "That's why the old man is very strict about controlling this. If someone's strength is even slightly lacking, it won't do. Even if every request is completed perfectly, he'd rather leave the guild's S-Class positions vacant than let everyone become S-Class and face such dangerous missions."
"Yes, yes, yes, you're the best. You're the strongest in the whole guild, alright?" Mirajane rolled her eyes, chewing on the softened flatbread, her response as perfunctory as it could be.
Riyao didn't notice her mood at all and continued, "If you work hard for another two years, you'll probably be able to take the S-Class Trial. That girl Erza is likely getting close too..."
Before he could finish, Mirajane suddenly punched him on the shoulder, much harder than before. She glared at him, her cheeks puffed out. "Huh? Why bring up that idiot! Why compare me to her!"
Riyao shrunk his neck and quickly changed the subject, leaning in with a grin. "Alright, alright, I won't mention her! How about it? Do you want Senior Riyao to give you some pointers? I know Take Over Magic inside out. Even though I don't use it, my theory is absolutely solid!"
Mirajane punched his shoulder again and sighed, her fingertip stirring the sweet water in the pot. "It's no use. Satan Soul is too hard to control. Right now, I can only partially take over body parts. I don't know how long I'll have to practice before I can achieve a full-body Take Over..."
Riyao gave a crooked smile and slapped his thigh loudly. "Don't worry, tomorrow I'll let you experience the feeling of a full-body Take Over!"
Mirajane suddenly looked up, her face turning bright red instantly. She reached out and pinched his thigh, giving it a hard twist, and roared, "You rogue! Why did you slap my thigh!?"
Riyao hissed in pain and quickly waved his hands to explain. "Ow, ow... let go for a second. Tomorrow I'll use magic to assist you. I can let you experience a full-body Take Over for a short time. It'll be somewhat beneficial for your future practice."
The two of them messed around for a while until the sweet water was gone and the campfire gradually died down. Riyao packed up the cookware and crawled into his sleeping bag, wrapped up like a silkworm cocoon, only his head sticking out as he waved to Mirajane. "Neither of us needs to keep watch tonight. Sleep peacefully." Having said that, he yawned, and within two minutes, rhythmic snoring could be heard.
Mirajane lay in her sleeping bag, listening as his snoring gradually leveled out.
She listened closely and found that this little hill was eerily quiet. There were no insects chirping, no birds calling, and not even the sound of the small magical beasts that should be in the distant desert. There was only the rustling of the wind blowing through a few scattered stalks of withered grass. Many social magical beasts in the distance didn't dare to step foot near the hill.
She muttered a few things to herself, but she was too tired to keep her eyes open. Before long, she also fell into a deep sleep.