In truth, the potential sleeping inside Mirajane was genuinely astonishing.
She was like a sponge that looked completely dried out—like there wasn't a single drop left to squeeze—yet if you gripped it hard enough one more time, you could still wring out an unbelievable amount of water.
"Huff… huff…"
Right before her mana was about to run completely dry, the girl clenched her teeth until they practically cracked.
Her wings snapped once, and her speed surged. She forced herself through the last stretch—barely completing fifty full laps around the forest before her final sliver of mana vanished.
Thud.
The instant her transformation dropped, she toppled face-first into the soft grass, too exhausted to move even a finger.
"Not bad. Barely a pass."
Shane watched Mira collapse into a puddle and nodded in satisfaction.
Then he walked over and, without the slightest hesitation, slung the sweat-soaked girl over his shoulder.
The motion was so practiced it was like hauling a sack of rice. He simply carried her home.
"Big sis?!"
Lisanna and Elfman, who'd been waiting at home for dinner, had no idea Mira had nearly lost control again.
And Shane had no intention of mentioning it—no point worrying them for nothing.
So when the two of them saw this familiar "over-the-shoulder carry," they didn't panic at all. They just exchanged a look, realization dawning.
They assumed their sister's hellish training had started up again.
…Which, to be fair, was exactly Shane's plan.
To prevent Mira from losing control again, starting that day he designed a training schedule that could only be described as inhumane.
It followed one core rule:
If she had any extra mana left, she must maintain full "Satan Soul" Take-Over at all times.
Mira wasn't just required to keep that form during physical conditioning—she also had to learn to do fine, delicate work while in that violent state, like cooking, threading a needle, and even braiding a straw dummy's hair.
The results were incredible. Mira's control over Satan Soul improved visibly by the day.
But the process itself…
"Shane, you devil!! Pervert!! Inhuman monster!!"
Every evening, the forest east of Magnolia would echo with a girl's shrill, energetic curses.
…
Watching that fiercely competitive girl grimace and swear nonstop—yet still grit her teeth and push through anyway—Shane couldn't help laughing whenever he told Erza about it at home.
"She's got way more grit than she used to."
In the living room, Shane idly flipped through a Sorcerer Weekly magazine Erza had bought, speaking casually.
But Erza, sitting beside him, was distracted.
She held a letter in her hand, brows knitted, gaze unfocused.
These past few days, little Kagura had been writing to her constantly—letters full of clingy greetings, sword-training questions, and tiny day-to-day worries.
Looking at Shane—who'd somehow gotten the wild, unruly Mira to behave, and was starting to look more and more like an actual "master"—Erza hesitated… then finally asked:
"Shane."
"Um… how do you be a teacher?"
"If your student hits a bottleneck, or gets sulky because training is too hard… what's the best way to talk to them?"
"Hm?"
Shane immediately brightened. These days he'd been getting a serious "teacher" high, and right now he felt like he'd been born for education.
"That's easy!"
He set the magazine aside, sat up straight, and put on a grand 'passing-down-wisdom' expression.
"With students—especially the talented-but-stubborn type—you've gotta keep it simple and brutal!"
"In four words: physical suppression."
"If they don't listen, you crush them with strength."
"If that doesn't work? Increase the training load. If they don't even have time to rest, they won't have the energy to sulk."
"And if even that doesn't work—use provocation. Hit them where it hurts!"
"…"
As Erza listened to this extremely street-martial-arts theory, her brows drew tighter and tighter.
"You… teach Mira like this?"
She stared at him in disbelief.
"With Mira's blunt, explosive personality… she actually listens?"
"Yeah!"
Shane, who was also a first-time serious teacher, didn't see the issue at all. He nodded confidently.
"It works great! She's super obedient! Look how fast she's improving!"
"…"
Erza covered her face in pain.
She felt like she'd asked for nothing.
This guy's way of doing things was, as always, spectacularly unreliable.
That kind of brute-force teaching would never work on sensitive, delicate Kagura.
She'd be better off asking Chairman Makarov—who dealt with a whole guild of unruly brats every day.
Having decided that, Erza couldn't sit still anymore.
"I'm going to the guild."
She sprang up and rushed outside.
At the door, she still turned back to scold him:
"Shane—treat Mira a little more normally! Don't bully her too much!"
"Yeah, yeah, got it."
Shane answered casually, not absorbing a word.
Come on—Mira's growth rate was basically a rocket. That proved his method worked.
And Erza clearly didn't have time to argue.
After getting advice from Makarov, she not only wrote Kagura a long, detailed reply about sword technique—she even made a special trip to the Tower of Paradise to train Kagura hands-on for a few days.
She was more devoted than a real big sister.
…
Meanwhile, Shane finally got the good news he'd been waiting for.
A remittance slip arrived from Nuso's trade association.
"Four million seven hundred thousand J?!"
Staring at that string of zeros, Shane sucked in a sharp breath.
According to Nuso's letter, the sword had been bought by a high-ranking member of an old, established mercenary guild.
Those mercenaries didn't fight with magic, but they had powerful bodies and refined weapon skills, and they craved a top-tier blade that could conduct magic and cut steel like paper.
Shane had confidence in his craft—but he hadn't expected a price like this.
It was daylight robbery!
Still stunned, after finishing the next month's "quota," he specifically told the messenger to warn Nuso not to fleece customers too hard—slow and steady wins the long game. He didn't want the market to collapse.
Nuso's reply made him laugh and groan at the same time:
"Demand exceeds supply. More is better!"
Even so, Shane—who understood "scarcity marketing" perfectly—refused to increase production.
Rare goods stayed valuable. One weapon per month kept the business stable.
Over the next two months, a spear with a penetration enchantment and a straight blade with enhanced sharpness sold for 3.8 million and 4 million J respectively.
Not only did Shane completely pay off the guild's ten-million debt—his personal stash even started to grow.
…
With no need to grind commissions just to repay debt, and with massive monthly income rolling in, Shane started getting lazy again.
"So bored…"
In the guild hall, he lay sprawled on a table like melted slime, counting the wood grain for entertainment.
Erza was busy being a "remote mentor," always writing letters or running around, with no time for him.
And as for his "good student"…
Shane lifted his eyelids and glanced at the chaotic center of the hall.
"Hey, Natsu!"
Mira—fully in Satan Soul—had one boot planted on a table. She held Natsu by his scarf with one hand, grinning arrogantly.
"You scream about challenging me every day—this is all you've got?"
"And Gray! If you're watching, then WATCH—don't strip in front of Lisanna, you exhibitionist!"
WHUMP!
Her demon wings snapped once.
With one hand still gripping Natsu's scarf and the other grabbing Gray by the waistband, she tossed both "future pillars of the guild" into the air like trash—
BAM! BAM!
Two loud impacts, and they were neatly embedded head-up in the ceiling, only their limbs dangling helplessly.
"Hmph. Pathetic."
Mira dusted her hands, smug as could be.
Ever since she'd fully mastered Satan Soul—stopped leaking toxin gas, and could keep her rational mind even in normal conditions—her delinquent "white-haired demon" nature had completely surfaced.
She'd practically replaced Erza's old role in the guild as the one who disciplined Natsu and Gray.
The difference was: Erza did it to enforce rules.
Mira did it because she loved accepting challenges…
…and loved the thrill of crushing people.
"Mira."
Shane finally couldn't watch anymore and called out lazily.
"Uh…"
Her wild grin cut off instantly.
Her demon wings stiffened, and she muttered, "Okay," in a small voice.
Purple light flashed. She dropped out of Take-Over and walked over obediently.
She still looked a little unsatisfied, but under Shane's gaze, she settled down.
"Right hand." Shane held out his hand.
Mira didn't hesitate—almost like a conditioned reflex—she offered her right hand for him to check.
"Left hand."
She offered the left, too.
Shane squeezed her slender palm, feeling the soft, springy texture returning after de-Take-Over, confirming there were no signs of mana runaway. Only then did he nod, satisfied.
"Good control. Go play."
As a bonus, he scratched under her chin like he was teasing a cat.
"…Okay."
Mira yanked her hands back, cheeks red, and bolted away.
The scene left Natsu and Gray—who'd just managed to yank their heads free from the ceiling—staring so hard their jaws nearly hit the floor.
"T-that… that's the 'Demon Mira' everyone's been talking about lately?!"
"She's… she's that obedient?!"
Wakaba, pipe in mouth, looked like he'd seen a ghost too.
They had no idea what Mira had lived through.
Without Erza's restraint, Shane's training had been basically lawless.
Mira had no choice but to grit her teeth and endure, silently storing power until she could one day overthrow Shane's "tyranny."
Shane ignored the baffled looks around him and began calculating in his head.
"Mira's already way stronger than Natsu and Gray."
"For that last 'companion' slot… there's no point picking one of those two idiots."
"Might as well just pick Mira."
Just as he was about to act on it—
"Ahem."
Makarov strolled over with his hands behind his back.
He glanced at the "master and student" who'd just been holding hands, looking… conflicted.
In the end he shook his head, threw the weird thoughts away, and spoke seriously:
"Shane. There's a named request for you."
"Huh?"
Bored out of his mind, Shane immediately perked up and sat up straight.
As one of only two S-Class mages in the guild, he did occasionally get direct requests. He'd turned most down before because of all the chaos, but now he was free—might as well see what it was.
"It's from the very famous Heartfilia financial group."
Makarov placed the request form on the table.
"They're coming to Magnolia to negotiate a big deal."
"And they specifically requested you—supposedly the one known as…"
He grinned.
"Fairy Tail's laziest S-Class mage—to be their personal bodyguard while they're here."
The old man clearly didn't know Shane's prior connection to the Heartfilias. He even winked.
"Well? The pay is very generous. Interested?"
~~~
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