"Rayne, you must never become that kind of man!"

Rayne could almost picture a dignified, domineering woman glaring at Gildarts with utter disdain.

Ddraig had hosted countless individuals—beings of all kinds.

This shouldn't have been an issue.

But Rayne was different.

Not only did his personality suit her tastes, but his potential was in a league of its own.

She really didn't want this host of hers to turn into that kind of person.

So much so that she even dropped her usual "brat" nickname for him.

"I know, I know."

Rayne found Ddraig's reaction oddly amusing and responded silently in his mind.

With a polite nod to the elderly woman beside him, he took Konan's hand and followed the two ahead.

"Rayne, when are we going back to the guild like that?"

Konan's eyes sparkled with excitement as she watched the split-open street, clearly fascinated by this unconventional way of returning to the guild.

"Haha~ Let's not. Ddraig would be furious."

Rayne chuckled, brushing off the idea casually.

"Hmm… Why?"

Konan knew Ddraig was the dragon sealed inside the Magic Item, but she didn't understand why he'd be angry.

"Probably because it's… immature."

Their quiet conversation continued until Konan finally gave up on the idea, and they arrived at the guild's entrance.

"Hey, kid, why'd you follow us all the way here?"

Gildarts stopped in front of the guild and turned to study Rayne and Konan curiously.

He'd noticed them trailing behind him earlier—especially the strange aura coming from the little girl.

At first, he thought they were just passing by, but now it seemed there was more to it.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

The moment he asked, Gildarts noticed Laxus shooting him a weird look.

"Tch. Not only are you a sleazy old man, but you only pay attention to women."

The blond teenager scoffed, then ignored them both and strode into the guild.

"…?"

Gildarts scratched his stubbled chin, puzzled, before turning back to Rayne.

The black-haired boy simply raised the back of his hand as he walked past—revealing the familiar black guild mark.

"Ohhh~ A new member, huh? No wonder I didn't recognize you."

Gildarts stroked his beard, grinning without a hint of embarrassment.

"What's your name, kid?"

He stepped forward, slinging an arm out to drape over Rayne's shoulders—

But Rayne sidestepped smoothly, avoiding the gesture.

"I'm Rayne. This is Konan. Pleased to meet you, Mr. Gildarts."

It wasn't that Rayne disliked Gildarts—he just didn't trust the man's control over his Crush Magic.

The last thing he wanted was to accidentally get shattered into a pile of Raynes.

Sure, he wouldn't die, but the experience would be… unsettling.

Plus, Konan was with him. Normally, it wouldn't matter, but if he got split into multiple versions of himself, the little girl would definitely get ideas.

"Haha~ 'Mr. Gildarts' is way too formal! We're guildmates!"

Gildarts wasn't offended—he knew his own quirks and realized he'd forgotten himself earlier.

"Is the kid a new member too?"

His gaze shifted to Konan, curiosity still burning in his eyes.

That strange feeling from before hadn't faded.

If they'd just been passing by, he could've let it go. But now that they were in the same guild, he couldn't ignore it.

"Yeah."

Rayne nodded, leading Konan inside.

"Gildarts is finally back!"

"This mission took way longer than usual. Surprising."

"You know how he is—probably got distracted chasing women."

"That's very likely."

As soon as Gildarts stepped in, the guild's attention immediately zeroed in on him.

With all the commotion outside, they'd already guessed who it was.

Before Gildarts could ask anything else, the others dragged him off to drink.

Rayne glanced around—Wakaba wasn't there, only Macao and the others.

Ignoring the crowd, he headed straight for the counter, where Laxus was already waiting.

"You two finished faster than I expected."

Makarov eyed Rayne, raising an eyebrow.

He'd assumed this mission would take them much longer—enough time for the two to get used to each other and ease the tension.

Yet they'd returned in just a day.

At least they seemed slightly less hostile now.

His plan hadn't been entirely wasted.

"Guild Master, here's proof of the completed request."

Rayne handed over the mission confirmation.

As for the reward, he and Laxus had already split it back in Oak Village.

"Hmm. What did you run into?"

Makarov noted the details but also caught the faint scent of blood on the boy.

Clearly, they had encountered Dark Guild members.

"The children were being…"

After settling Konan onto a stool, Rayne took a seat and began explaining.

Laxus stayed silent, not interrupting.

"Lyall… Uses a flute to manipulate minds and summon rats…"

Makarov muttered, piecing together the clues before landing on a notorious Dark Guild.

**"You might've faced the Rat Catchers—a Dark Guild that specializes in kidnapping and selling children."**

Their members weren't overwhelmingly strong, but their erratic movements—snatching a few kids in one place before vanishing to another—made them a headache for the Magic Council.

Their reputation was vile, yet no one had managed to wipe them out.

Until now.

"I'll file for the bounty reward with the Council."

Makarov grinned.

Dark Guild extermination requests always came with hefty payouts, open to any guild that succeeded.

"Thank you, Guild Master."

Pleased with the unexpected bonus, Rayne nodded—then added:

"Guild Master… I want to learn your Giant Magic."