Mira placed the dishes on the table one by one and shouted, "Everyone, dinner's ready!"
Right after, Erza came in with a tray, setting the dishes in place.
Since their return, the two had been busy with these chores. Everyone had been taking exams since the morning and battling all afternoon, so many didn't even have a chance to eat lunch.
Rhode glanced at Erza. Although she was wrapped in bandages from head to toe, she wore a swimsuit with an apron, which was quite attention-grabbing.
Really, who taught her how to dress like that?
Mira looked down at her own plain dress, pondering whether she should take a peek at Erza's wardrobe sometime.
Despite being extremely shy, she always ends up wearing very enticing and bold outfits.
She wasn't exactly jealous, Mira realized deeply that Erza didn't see the men in the guild as men at all.
She sat next to Rhode, feeling as if a long time had passed since they sat this close together.
Rhode felt the same, though unfortunately, both had lots of bandages, making it inconvenient to get any closer.
The night snack event remained lively, feeling almost like a small banquet.
Not far away, Precht was wrapped in bandages like a mummy, and beside him lay the unconscious Zankuro and Bruno.
Ultear and Melty hadn't returned yet, Judee had disappeared, Rastillos had turned to charcoal, Hua Courtyard and his Cursed Doll had their necks twisted, and Azuma had become part of the forest...
The ordinary members were demoralized. Comparing the lively atmosphere in the Fairy Tail tent, Precht suddenly thought he might prefer such an atmosphere more.
...
After the night snack, Rhode asked, "Is there any more food?"
Mira promptly replied, "Still hungry? I'll cook more."
"Not for me," Rhode held Mira's hand and walked out with her, "I thought I'd take something good to visit the First Generation."
He didn't quite understand the current state of the First Generation.
When the Fairy Radiance was handed over to him earlier, Rhode thought there might have been an intent left through magic.
But at that time, the First Generation communicated through him with the Second Generation...
Rhode felt that the First Generation might now be a ghost or in a state similar to President Robin Lu of the Cat Transformation Inn.
If that's the case, visiting her and bringing some food might make the First Generation happy, right?
Mira nodded, "Indeed, a visit is warranted."
Suddenly, Rhode remembered something and conjured a wreath, placing it on Mira's head.
Mira touched it with her hand, smiling.
This person, even during such an important exam, still finds time to do these things.
"Tsk, tsk... being young is great," Kildas commented as he returned to see Rhode and Mira busy making food, with Mira wearing a wreath on her head.
Mira chuckled, "I saved some for you too, it's still warm."
Kildas marveled, "That Mira has become considerate."
Mira put on a stern face, "It seems you're not hungry at all, just let Kana have it all."
Kildas's face fell, "Awww~~~"
Kana laughed, watching her unreliable father.
Rhode's attention was drawn to the two people the father and daughter had brought back. He recognized the one with long black hair as the former Evaluator, Ultear, but he didn't know the pink-haired little girl.
But obviously, she was from Demon Heart.
"Both of these are the Seven Dependents," Kana casually introduced, then asked, "Is Gray inside?"
"Yeah," Rhode nodded.
Kana strode in, "Gray, come out for a moment."
"Huh?"
"There are two people you might want to see."
"What?" Gray, urged by Kana, saw Ultear's face and immediately froze, "Ul…? No… who are you…?"
Surprise and doubt crossed Gray's face; this woman looked too much like his master, Ultear.
Wendy, Lucy, Lisana, Jubia, Kana peeked out from the tent, forming a neat row by the entrance.
Seeing the two beauties, alarm bells rang in Jubia's mind as she bit her clothes to stop herself from making a sound.
Gray-sama's charm was so great it attracted even enemies? It felt both happy and sad.
Ultear's expression was somewhat sad, "My name is Ultear, I am Ultear's daughter. You… probably didn't know I even existed."
Beside her, Melty looked at Gray with a hidden, murderous glare.
"You..."
Ultear calmly said, "In fact, we met long ago, on Garna Island."
As she spoke, she transformed into a masked elder, then reverted.
"Ah! It's her!" Lucy exclaimed from behind.
Gray turned back, while Rhode and Mira also turned to look at her, and the group peeking through the door.
Lucy, covering her mouth, ducked back into the tent, and others also sheepishly withdrew, scolding Lucy with their eyes.
Squatting down, Lucy raised both hands to admit her mistake.
Only when the conversation resumed outside did they quietly peep again.
Gray snapped back to reality and asked, "If you're Ultear's daughter, why do such things with Leon? You should know the ice that sealed Dailola is Ultear, right? Yet you used Moon's Drop!"
"Yes, I know," said Ultear, "At that time, I pretended to be Jellal's subordinate, nominally under his orders to infiltrate Leon."
"Leon's goal was to test his own strength, but Jellal's aim was to see if Dailola's power could be harnessed for himself.
"But actually, I was sent by Demon Heart to pretend to be Zeref's ghost, to entice Jellal into completing the Tower of Paradise, and infiltrate the Council with Jellal.
"So back then, the goal was to explore if there was a key to resurrect Zeref.
"Of course, I also intended to use President Hades, with Demon Heart's power, to achieve my own desires..."
"..." Rhode and Mira exchanged glances.
They both felt a bit dazed. Infiltrating Demon Heart with her own intent, sent by Demon Heart to Jellal's side, infiltrating the Council with Jellal, then infiltrating Leon's side for the Moon's Drop plan...
Just how many layers of identity does this woman have?
Rhode counted on his fingers, this seemed more complex than a spy thriller.
"You..." Gray couldn't comprehend why Ultear's daughter would do such things.
"I also didn't know what I wanted then, maybe to truly kill Ultear, or to prove Ultear was wrong, to prove everything she did was meaningless, maybe..."
Ultear added a sentence she wasn't sure about herself:
Maybe there was a one in a ten thousand chance the Moon's Drop could revive Ultear when releasing Absolute Freeze.