Chapter 76
Juvia had been under a great deal of pressure lately.
She had lost both parents at a young age and spent the following ten years living entirely alone.
To put it simply...
Juvia was desperately starved for affection!
Because of the endless rain surrounding her, she had experienced almost no kindness from anyone throughout her childhood.
The only thing that had kept her going all those years was her faith in a brighter future.
She had always believed that one day, she would meet the prince destined for her, fall hopelessly in love, get married, and build a warm, happy family together.
Every dream Juvia had about life revolved around romance.
Romance was her life!
To win at life, one first had to win at love!
That was Juvia’s guiding principle.
With her personality, she had always been destined to fall in love at first sight with the first boy who showed her genuine kindness.
So when Marshall accidentally entered her world and pulled her out of that lonely prison, Juvia immediately marked him as the one.
Marshall was unquestionably her prince.
Her prince might still be a little young at the moment, but Juvia could wait!
And while she waited, she could remove a few potential rivals from the board.
When it came to gathering romantic intelligence, Juvia considered herself a professional.
Unfortunately, while compiling her Research Report on Marshall’s Many Big Sisters, she encountered the greatest challenge of her life.
There seemed to be... slightly too many rivals.
That wasn’t necessarily a problem, though.
The greater the competition, the more it proved that Juvia’s choice had been correct. Anything truly valuable would naturally be in high demand.
If anything, having more opponents only strengthened her fighting spirit.
After completing the initial observation phase and identifying every potential "enemy," Juvia decided it was time to take the initiative.
The most complicated romantic battles often required the simplest methods.
She started with Erza.
...
"Erza, do you like Marshall? How much do you like him?"
Erza paused her sword training and wiped the sweat from her forehead before answering with a bright smile.
"Oh? Why are you suddenly asking that?"
"Of course I like Marshall. He’s like a real little brother to me."
"If it weren’t for him, I might never have escaped the darkest period of my life. He’s an incredibly special person to me."
"Then once Marshall grows up, would you ever consider dating him?"
"D-Dating him?!"
Erza froze.
Her face flushed bright red as her hands began flailing helplessly, and her eyes practically turned into spirals.
"What are you talking about?! We’re like older sister and younger brother! How could that possibly—"
She suddenly looked at Juvia in realization.
"Wait. Does this mean you like Marshall?"
"In that case... please take good care of him!"
Juvia silently evaluated her.
[Erza — Threat Level: One Star. Small fry!]
Leaving the thoroughly flustered Erza behind, Juvia moved on.
Someone who couldn’t even understand her own feelings wasn’t worthy of being called a rival!
...
Next, Juvia visited Mira’s home.
Mira was in the kitchen preparing lunch for her younger siblings.
"Mira, do you like Marshall? How much do you like him?"
Mira paused with the soup ladle still in her hand.
She set it down and turned toward the guild’s newest member with a faint, knowing smile.
"My, why would Juvia ask something like that?"
Her eyes narrowed playfully.
"Could it be that you’ve taken a liking to our Marshall?"
"Yes. In a few years, Juvia intends to begin pursuing Marshall properly."
"I’m currently identifying my competition."
"...Ahahaha. You’re surprisingly bold, Juvia."
Mira’s smile remained pleasant, but a dangerous light flashed through her eyes.
"I won’t go easy on anyone who sets her sights on our Marshall."
"Juvia understands. Thank you for your time!"
She turned and left with a grave expression.
Mira was a capable opponent.
However, she was also a coward who lacked the courage to openly admit what she wanted.
Nothing Juvia couldn’t handle.
[Mira — Threat Level: Three Stars. Manageable!]
...
After that, Juvia found Levy reading in the guild library.
"Levy, do you like Marshall? How much do you like him?"
Levy slowly lowered her book.
She removed her glasses.
Her gentle smile disappeared, and the harmless air surrounding her vanished with it, replaced by a frighteningly sharp presence.
"So this day has finally come."
She regarded Juvia coolly.
"Some stray cat appears out of nowhere and already dares to swagger before the lady of the house?"
Alarm bells rang throughout Juvia’s mind.
Her romantic instincts were screaming at her.
This was a genuine opponent!
"What do you mean by that? Since when did Marshall have a ’lady of the house’?"
"Hmph. How long have you even known him?"
Levy folded her arms.
"Do you know his habits? His interests? What foods he likes or how he spends his free time?"
"You know absolutely nothing about him, yet you came here to interrogate your senpai."
"Don’t you think you’re being incredibly presumptuous?"
’Stay calm, Juvia!’
’This is the enemy’s strategy!’
’If Juvia allows Levy to control the conversation now, she’ll always hold the advantage!’
’Damn it! Blue-haired girls really are the strongest enemies!’
"Senpai?"
Juvia refused to retreat.
"Until Marshall grows up, all of us are standing at the same starting line!"
"Juvia doesn’t believe she’s fallen behind any of you!"
She pointed dramatically at Levy.
"Levy, from this day onward, we are romantic rivals!"
"Juvia formally declares war!"
"How childish."
Levy put her glasses back on.
"You still haven’t understood the real issue."
"Our conflict means nothing. The only thing that matters is whom Marshall himself prefers."
"Wasting energy on irrelevant people is nothing more than a pointless distraction."
She reopened her book.
"You may leave. We have nothing else to discuss."
"You—!"
Juvia gritted her teeth.
She hated to admit it, but Levy was indeed a formidable opponent.
"Just you wait! Juvia will be the one smiling at the end!"
After delivering her final threat, Juvia fled.
She knew she had lost this round.
Her first serious confrontation had already been this difficult, but she refused to lose heart!
[Levy — Threat Level: Five Stars! Extremely Dangerous!]
...
The final person Juvia intended to investigate was Cana.
She considered Cana the most dangerous rival of them all, because Marshall clearly treated this particular sister with greater care than the others.
Juvia didn’t know that this was partly because Gildarts had once saved Marshall’s life.
The special treatment alone was enough to put her on high alert.
When she failed to find Cana in the main guildhall, Juvia followed her romantic instincts toward the stairs leading to the second floor.
She sensed Cana nearby and Marshall was with her!
Juvia silently transformed into a damp, slime-like puddle and hid in a shadowy corner to spy on them.
"Cana, you’re not allowed to drink anymore."
Marshall stood before her with his hands on his hips.
"You’re already drinking this much now. At this rate, you’ll grow into a complete alcoholic!"
"If you keep this up, I’m genuinely going to get angry."
"...I didn’t drink that much. I only had a few bottles..."
Cana wilted beneath his glare.
"Fine, fine. I’ll stop. I’ll listen to you Marshall."
[So unfair! Juvia wants Marshall to scold her too!]
Juvia angrily bit down on her handkerchief in the darkness.
"Marshall..."
Cana leaned closer.
"Since your big sister is being so obedient, will you promise me something too?"
"Of course."
"In the future... please don’t leave me."
"What are you talking about, Cana?"
Marshall looked at her helplessly.
"I’ll always stay by your side. We already promised each other that, remember?"
"Hehehe... That’s right. We did promise..."
Cana’s smile trembled.
"But someday, you’ll meet a girl you truly like and find your own happiness."
"When that happens, your big sister will only become an annoyance..."
Her eyes began to water.
"Even then, please don’t chase me away, all right?"
"I-I’ll leave by myself. I won’t cause you any trouble..."
She sniffled.
"Your big sister won’t get in your way..."
"...Cana, you’re drunk."
"I’m not drunk! I can still drink!"
Cana raised an empty bottle.
"I’ll be perfectly fine on my own! Bring me another one!"
Unable to watch any longer, Marshall teleported away with Cana.
The damp little "slime" hiding in the corner blinked several times.
’Huh?’
’Did the opponent Juvia thought was strongest just eliminate herself?’
’So Cana genuinely thinks of herself only as his older sister?’
Juvia’s face brightened.
Wonderful news!
She hurriedly added a new entry to her notes.
[Cana — Threat Level: Zero Stars. No action required!]