A short while earlier. After Éclair had become Silent Magician's apprentice, but before Fairy Tail launched its full-scale attack on Grimoire Heart.
Lucy had just finished a request and was free, relaxing in the guild hall.
"Lucy, you seem quite busy lately," Éclair said, bringing her a glass of juice.
"Everyone's been working hard to get selected for the S-Class Trial. I may only be a newbie, but since Chase-nii said what he said, I thought I'd be a little proactive too," Lucy said, thanking her and taking the juice.
"I see. No wonder those guys have been so crazy lately, even fighting over requests," Momon said, jumping onto the table, looking at the quiet hall with a look of sudden realization.
"Hey, Lucy, is being a mage interesting?"
Éclair suddenly asked, looking at the guild emblem on her arm, curiosity and longing flowing deep in her eyes.
Before, she had detested mages and avoided such things. But after spending so much time in the guild, influenced by Fairy Tail's unique atmosphere, she had begun to feel a sense of anticipation.
Especially after coming into contact with Silent Magic!
"Hmm... how to put it. Sometimes you get super nasty clients, you have to follow all kinds of rules, and you might end up working for nothing because of an impulsive idiot teammate."
Lucy recalled her experiences since joining Fairy Tail and said with a smile, "But you also get to see lots of interesting things and unexpected developments. It's full of mystery and unknown. It's a super interesting experience~"
Hearing Lucy's description, the longing in Éclair's eyes grew even stronger. "I see..."
"How's your Silent Magic practice going, Éclair? Once things calm down, let's go on a request together!" Lucy said enthusiastically.
Aside from genuinely being happy for Éclair's change in attitude, her tone also carried a barely detectable hint of smugness.
Who would've thought I'd reach the stage of taking a newbie out on a request!
"Can I really?!" Éclair perked up immediately. Then, she dejectedly lowered her head again, lacking confidence. "But my Silent Magic is still far from Master's standards. Right now, I can only do as much as making Macao and the others unable to use magic."
In her eyes, the old slackers who spent their days at the guild waiting to die didn't seem very strong.
"That's okay. We can start with—wait, what did you say? Making Macao and the others unable to use magic?!" Lucy's expression instantly lit up.
It was understandable that a newbie like Éclair didn't know how strong Macao and the others were, but she knew. Those guys would be core pillars in any ordinary guild!
In such a short time, without anyone noticing, Éclair had already become this strong?!
If she had Éclair's help...
Lucy's eyes darted around. She grabbed Éclair's hand and, without any shame, clasped her hands together in supplication. "Please, Éclair! You have to help me!"
Scene shift.
The hybrid-powered sailboat carrying the participants sailed quietly across the vast sea.
Due to the ocean currents and unique environment, the sea around Tenrou Island was hot year-round. Even though it was now winter, the sun overhead was still scorching.
Unable to bear the heat, almost everyone had changed into sexy swimsuits and... hard-to-look-at shorts.
Lucy was sprawled on the wooden table, completely drained, mumbling about wanting ice cream. Beside her, Happy had turned into a cat-shaped strip drying in the sun.
The others were in similar states. The momentum to absolutely become S-Class that they had shown before departure had completely vanished.
The water-made Juvia, staring at Gray's naked body, said she was feeling hot. Elfman was yelling his catchphrase "A man!" The two brothers-in-misery, Natsu and Gajeel, were dry heaving nonstop.
Cana, who valued competitive advantage more, sat next to Éclair, trying to subtly pry information out of her.
Others might know nothing about Éclair's background, but she, as a drinking buddy of Macao and Wakaba, knew a thing or two.
Lucy and Éclair's combination was not to be underestimated!
Unfortunately, Éclair was tight-lipped and didn't reveal much.
This left Cana quite frustrated.
Time slowly passed in agonizing anticipation.
Finally, the silhouette of Tenrou Island appeared on the horizon.
The listless group instantly perked up, remarking on the strange shape of the guild's sacred ground.
"Now, let me explain the first part of the trial."
Makarov, wearing a flashy pair of board shorts, made his dazzling appearance. He pointed toward the rising smoke on the shore of Tenrou Island and began explaining the rules.
First, participants had to reach the shore where the smoke was rising. There, nine teleportation magic arrays would transport them to exam paths scattered across the island.
The nine paths consisted of four "Intense Combat" paths (fighting against a current S-Class mage), four "Battle" paths (two teams encountering each other), and one "Quiet" path (an unobstructed passage with no fighting).
It was impossible to know in advance which path you would get. So, the first test was a measure of combat ability and one-ninth luck!
Without giving them much time to think or analyze, Makarov, noticing Freed's earlier maneuvers, waved his hand with a mischievous grin. "Well then, I hereby declare the trial officially open!"
"Huh? It's starting now?"
"The ship hasn't even docked yet!"
"Haha! Getting a head start is great! Let's go, Happy! Let's go choose our path!"
"Aye~!"
Happy grabbed the smug Natsu and flew off. Then, predictably, the man and cat crashed headfirst into a magical wall inscribed with glowing words.
"Don't worry, Natsu. The array will dispel in five minutes," Freed said.
Freed and Bickslow, one with dark wings sprouting from his back and the other riding his puppet squad, had gotten ahead and were flying straight toward Tenrou Island.
Gray, Cana, and the others trapped on the ship strongly condemned this almost cheating behavior, running to Makarov to complain. But it was useless.
Just then, someone had already slipped through the magical wall.
Levy's team, proficient in word magic, and Elfman's team, familiar with Freed's arrays, had managed to exit.
Unfortunately, they weren't generous enough to completely unravel the array for their competitors. They only opened a path for themselves, leaving the helpless Natsu and others on the deck frantic, shouting about how despicable it was.
Whoosh, whoosh.
The magical wall flickered again, immediately drawing the attention of the remaining people.
"Wait, how is Lucy getting through?!" Cana was startled.
"Isn't Evergreen Elfman's teammate? Why is she carrying her through the air? No, there are two Evergreens?!" Gray was completely dumbfounded.
"If I'm not mistaken, that's Gemini transformed. They obtained Evergreen's information on cracking the array," Loke revealed the truth.
"That's exactly right. We'll be going on ahead then~" Lucy said, smiling back at everyone.
This demonstrated her growth. Faced with a sudden, time-sensitive situation, she had immediately thought of a viable way to break through.
As her teammate, Éclair was being carried by Momon to fly. Technically, Momon was both a Fairy Tail member and Éclair's "magical" creation. So, it didn't violate the rule that participants could only choose one partner.
"That bastard Lucy! How selfish! At least take me with you!" Natsu pounded on the magical wall.
"A scheming Lucy feels so strange. Hey, Natsu, you don't think she'll actually become an S-Class, do you?" Happy said, displeased.
"Shut up, you damn cat! I can hear you!" Lucy's loud voice echoed from the distance.
The five-minute time limit passed in an instant.
The several groups of participants who had fallen far behind scrambled to catch up, using their various abilities to charge forward.
By this time, Lucy, who had arrived early, had already chosen her preferred letter. She, Éclair, and Momon walked along a narrow, dimly lit path.
"So, Lucy, why did you choose G?" Éclair asked curiously.
"Because G stands for 'Good'! Since there's only one path without fighting, this is the most likely option!" Lucy smugly congratulated herself on her cleverness. "See? There's a big advantage to getting here early~"
"Is that so? But I feel like the master wouldn't specifically set it up that way..." Momon said, looking worriedly toward the dark depths ahead. "He did say this is a test of combat ability and luck."
"It's fine, it's fine. If it's just luck, mine's always been pretty good!" Lucy said, confidently patting her chest.
During the past week, aside from training with Éclair, she had also considered scenarios like running into other competitors or, worst of all, coming across Chase-nii. She had specially devised combat plans for those situations.
She certainly couldn't win in a direct fight. But if it were a card game challenge, the card nerd would no doubt accept. Best case, she would win. Worst case, she would have Éclair look for an opening to launch a surprise attack, fully utilizing her teammate's strengths. Maybe she'd even have a chance!
Having fought her way here, she wasn't about to surrender!
Having gained the early advantage at the start of the first trial, Lucy's confidence was now soaring.
"Is that so?" Éclair said, looking skeptical.
She had her doubts about the "luck" part.
Before they knew it, the narrow path suddenly opened up.
Fireflies, emitting specks of starlight, danced around them, illuminating the environment.
Lucy's every nerve suddenly went on alert. The confident smile at the corner of her mouth froze.
An invisible, terrifying oppressive pressure came from all sides, making it hard for her to breathe.
Vaguely, she thought she saw a figure standing at the end of the path.
Fireflies flew past, illuminating the prominently displayed sign that read "Intense Combat." They also revealed the true identity of that figure.
"G-G-G-Gildarts?!?!" Lucy was so shocked her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Her expression was as exaggerated as if she had seen a ghost.
"Yo. Didn't expect it to be you, Lucy." Though a bit surprised, Gildarts, stationed there, still smiled and raised his hand in greeting.
It's over. It's all over...
In despair, Lucy collapsed to her knees.
Her judgment hadn't been wrong. With Chase's involvement, the letter "G" as an Easter egg did indeed have a special meaning.
It just wasn't "Good," the letter of good luck. It was "Gidarts"!
***
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