Rhodes barely had time to enjoy his freshly received salary before two-thirds of it vanished into thin air—straight into rent payments.

What was left? A grand total of 40,000 J.

He sighed.

At least I don't have to worry about a place to sleep… for now.

His mind quickly drifted to the financial hole he was in.

The 150,000 J loan from Master Makarov last month. The 80,000 J he promised to pay Hibiki for common language lessons. Medical fees for the times Ms. Porlyusica patched him up.

Technically, the Guild Master never asked him to pay for the last two, but how could he just pretend he didn't know?

Rhodes made up his mind.

"I'll return 20,000 J this month and keep the rest for living expenses. If I keep this up, I can pay everything off in a little over a year… but with the seasons changing soon, I'll need to buy new clothes and supplies. It's better to save a bit more first and pay back larger chunks later."

That plan seemed reasonable, but then another thought struck him.

"If I wait to summon a Red Brambleback and Blue Sentinel, and add Gromp and the Raptor Camp, I should have enough summons to handle lower-level missions. But… it's best to play it safe. Maybe I should team up with someone first?"

After all, he was technically allowed to accept jobs now. Master Makarov had signed off on his ability.

But Rhodes wanted to train a little more before jumping into actual guild missions.

"Just another month or two."

Meanwhile, inside the guild's tavern, a half-drunk Macao was loudly venting his frustrations over ice-cold beer.

"Wakaba, you sure you didn't secretly get divorced?"

Wakaba raised a brow.

"What? Of course not. What kind of nonsense is that?"

Macao leaned forward, voice slurring.

"It's just weird, man. You haven't complained about your wife in days!"

Wakaba scratched his head, genuinely puzzled.

"Now that you mention it, she has been treating me really well lately. It's almost like when we first got married."

Macao slammed his mug down.

"That's it! That's the dream! What's your secret?! Spill it!"

At this point, Cana—half-listening while sipping her wine—couldn't help but interject.

"Macao, didn't your wife leave you because you only cared about work and ignored your family?"

Macao's face turned red instantly as he snapped back:

"Hey! I was working my ass off to provide for my family!"

Then, after a brief pause, his tone softened.

"But, yeah, I've changed. I take care of Romeo now, and I don't just focus on work." He groaned, slumping over. "Damn it, I just want a happy marriage too!"

Cana took another slow sip from her cup, side-eyeing the large beer barrel in the corner.

"This guy tells me to drink less, but he's drowning in booze every night."

Rhodes, sitting nearby, caught Mira's eye and subtly gestured toward Wakaba.

"This is your doing," he silently implied.

Mira simply smiled, saying nothing.

As Macao kept pestering Wakaba for answers, Cana threw out a suggestion:

"Think back. Did anything unusual happen recently?"

Wakaba thought for a moment before snapping his fingers.

"Oh! A week ago, my wife got caught in a robbery. Maybe that shook her up?"

He shrugged.

"You know, the one Rhode and Mira stopped."

Rhodes blinked.

He remembered Wakaba had given him some personal training afterward as thanks. That was useful.

Well, except for the part where Wakaba also taught him which issues of 'Sorcerer Weekly' were the best.

"Completely useless information. But, maybe I can sell that info to the guild's perverts later."

...

After finishing work for the day, Rhodes headed to the general store for a simple mission—buy mosquito repellent.

Yet somehow, he ended up buying a mosquito net instead.

"A repellent runs out eventually, but a net lasts forever. That's the smarter investment."

This was his secret strategy for saving money.

Rhodes was about to head home when he remembered Mira's reminder:

Tomorrow was the grand opening of Honey Dessert House.

That meant, he needed to look presentable.

So, without hesitation, he walked into a clothing store.

Then, a few minutes later, straight into a barbershop.

Not only did he fail to save money today, but he even ended up spending a little extra.

The rhythmic snipping of scissors echoed above his head, strands of hair falling in clumps.

Rhodes stared at his reflection in the mirror, contemplating whether he was simply moved by the moment or had completely lost his mind.

It wasn't hard to figure out the answer.

The real question was: How did Mira see him? From her perspective, if she were to put a label on him, it would probably be something like: newcomer, guildmate, someone who occasionally needed looking after, more obedient than Natsu and the others, hardworking, diligent… and so on.

After listing everything, Rhodes came to an unfortunate realization—he was probably no different from the rest of her companions. Just a fellow guild member she had a basic fondness for.

At most, they had gotten closer due to working together every day and chatting frequently.

Rhodes let out a small sigh.

There was still a long road ahead. But hey, at least he had a bit more motivation to train harder.

...

The next morning, after stretching and throwing a few punches at the sandbag to wake up his muscles, Rhodes washed up and got ready to head out.

He told himself not to overthink things—just act normal, like always.

But his actions betrayed him. He changed into new clothes and spent a few extra minutes fixing his hair in front of the mirror.

After wrapping up his morning shift at the guild tavern, he and Mira left together.

The only thing that unsettled Rhodes was Laki's gaze.

The way she looked at him made it painfully clear—Mira, who usually gossiped about everyone else, was now the subject of gossip herself.

Mira had chosen a light beige dress today, its hem just grazing her knees.

With the sun being particularly relentless since morning, she wore a wide-brimmed sun hat adorned with a soft pink ribbon, adding a youthful and elegant touch to her appearance.

Rhodes had never really paid attention before, but now he realized—Mira was only a little shorter than him, just reaching his shoulder.

Their height matched pretty well. No, stop that thought!

As they walked side by side, a faint fragrance drifted toward him.

Before his reincarnation, Rhodes would have assumed it was the scent of shampoo, lotion, or perfume.

But after reading through Sorcerer Weekly, he knew there were all sorts of magical beauty products—spells that could change clothing colors on a whim, charms that emitted floral fragrances, and even enchantments to maintain a fresh, breezy aura.

He wasn't sure if Mira used any of those, but her dress looked beautiful, and her scent was really pleasant.

Seemingly in high spirits, Mira glanced at him and asked, "Did you get a haircut?"

"Yeah," Rhodes nodded casually. "It was getting a bit long since I hadn't cut it in almost a month."

Of course, the real reason was her, but admitting that would be way too embarrassing.

Instead, he tested the waters and asked nonchalantly, "What do you think? Does it look okay?"

Mira tilted her head slightly, observing him for a few seconds before smiling.

"It suits you well. I'd say you look even more handsome."

Rhodes felt his heart skip a beat.

"Really? Thanks."

Oh no.

Even though he knew she was probably just being polite, the warm feeling in his chest was impossible to suppress.