On the upper island of the Tenrou Tree, in an open area where tree roots intertwined.
Inside a simple tent made of large tree leaves stood a stone platform, from which two stone pillars extended. A faint golden light flickered between the pillars.
This was the end of the second round, the grave of the first master, Mavis!
"Which team will overpower the others, collect all the landmarks, and find this place? Or will someone discover the loophole in the rules and be the first to arrive within the time limit? I'm really looking forward to it..." Makarov sat cross-legged, quietly guarding beside Mavis's grave. A flicker of rare nervousness showed in his eyes.
Though he was the head examiner for this S-Class Trial, he was also the guild's parent. Naturally, he hoped the participants would perform excellence, and at the very least, not have a disappointing year with no one advancing like last time.
"Time's almost half gone! You've got to give it your all, you little brats!"
Makarov glanced at the ever-evolving countdown magic screen and secretly clenched his fist.
As Lucy had guessed, finding Mavis's grave early, without collecting all the landmarks, was within the allowed rules for passing.
While judgment, execution, planning, and control over a complex environment were indeed the main content of this round, being able to think outside the conventional box and directly hit the core of the problem from a different angle was also commendable.
Fairy Tail mages had always been free. They would not, and should not, be bound by superficial rules, accepted common sense, or rigid concepts.
Only then could they go further on the path of magic!
Thus, there were actually two ways to pass the second round. Either achieve something conventionally impossible for ordinary people, or step outside the norm and find the correct direction.
Satisfy either one, and you would be granted the title of guild S-Class mage!
Ding.
Just as he was thinking this, a magic crystal on Makarov's wrist, used for internal communication within the exam team, suddenly glowed.
"Master, Lucy and Gray's teams are heading your way. Their intention is very clear," Carla's voice came through.
As the observer and recorder for this trial, her magic tablet displayed the locations of all the teams.
"Lucy and Gray, huh..." Makarov was a bit surprised, not expecting those two to be the first to discover the trick. "What about the other teams?"
"Cana is facing off against Freed and Elfman. A fight should break out soon," Carla, flying in the air observing the situation, reported honestly. "Natsu's team is still at the southern landmark. For some reason, they've been sitting there for a long time, and they don't seem to want to take the tablet either."
"Got it. Thank you."
Makarov nodded slightly, cutting off the connection to the magic crystal, and looked up at the clear, cloudless sky.
Was this year's S-Class mage going to be decided between Lucy and Gray?
The old man, who had just been worrying about no one advancing, was now looking sad, starting to fret again.
It wasn't that he didn't approve of Lucy and Gray. It was just that no matter who ended up advancing, it would surely cause an uproar within the guild.
The next few months are probably going to be restless...
"The magic here feels even denser than below," Lucy said, walking through the tangled, intricate forest, carefully feeling the magical particles in the air.
"There's not much time left. Let's hurry and find the first master's grave," Éclair reminded.
"Though I can't fly as far as Happy and Carla, I can still provide some aerial vision for you, Lucy!" Momon volunteered, fluttering his yellow wings.
"Thanks, Momon. But when it comes to searching for a grave on this island, I have a much more efficient way!" Lucy smiled mysteriously. She spun a golden key between her fingers as she pulled it out. "Open, Gate of Virgo, Virgo!"
Ding dong~
A Celestial Spirit array appeared. Virgo, in her maid outfit, hands bound by chains, walked out. She placed her right hand on her left chest and bowed slightly to Lucy. "Princess, you called for me?"
"That's right, Virgo. I need you to help—"
Before she could finish, Virgo interrupted. "In the depths of this desolate, uninhabited forest, using barbed vines to whip my body... truly fitting of you, Princess. A top-tier punishment~!"
The girl's expression was excited, her glittering eyes filled with longing.
Her cool, aloof onee-san demeanor instantly vanished from her first appearance.
Éclair and Momon exchanged a glance. They silently took a half step back, looking at Lucy with very strange eyes. We didn't know you were that kind of person!
"It's not!" Lucy quickly jumped in to shred the bad mental images they were imagining. She turned to Virgo and, spitting everywhere, shouted, "Who would specifically call you out to do something so baffling?!"
"I understand, Princess. You prefer it to seem unintentional," Virgo said, her expression adorably ditsy as she quietly handed over a barbed thorn.
"I'd never do it even unintentionally!" Lucy kicked the thorn away. "And when did that even appear in your hand?!"
"W-wonderful, Princess! Please, by all means, kick it again!" Virgo turned her rear toward Lucy.
Seeing this, Éclair and Momon moved even farther away.
Lucy: "..."
After a earnest explanation.
Virgo finally understood the current situation. She twisted and burrowed underground, beginning to search for the first master's grave at the top of the Tenrou Tree island.
Time quietly passed as they waited.
The climate on Tenrou Island was comparable to scorching summer. Just as Lucy, who hated the heat, couldn't take it anymore and wanted to find a place to take a bath, Virgo happened to return.
"Princess, I found it. The grave is in a sunken basin at the island's center," Virgo said, pointing out the specific location.
"Really? That's great!" Lucy's sluggish spirit instantly revived.
Éclair, meanwhile, looked curiously at Virgo's maid outfit, which was still completely clean. After digging underground for so long, she didn't even get a speck of dirt on her?
Magic really is an amazing thing.
"So, Princess, can you punish me now?" Virgo was still fixed on the whipping.
"I can't thank you enough! Okay, okay, you can go back now~" Lucy didn't hesitate for a moment. She decisively closed the Gate of Virgo.
"Lucy kind of seems like a bad woman who burns bridges after crossing them," Momon said, taking over Happy's role as the quiet complainer.
"Anyway, let's hurry up and go!"
Lucy, her thoughts already drifting to the promotion settlement screen, turned a deaf ear and said with enthusiasm, "S-Class mage, here I come!!"
"Sore wa dou kana!"
The sudden voice startedled Lucy, who had just been about to step forward.
"Ice-Make: Prison!"
Then, a cold chill came from the side. Wherever it passed, even the overgrown earth was frozen into an incredibly smooth sheet of ice.
It all happened so suddenly that by the time Lucy and her team snapped out of it, they were already trapped inside a solid ice prison.
"Gray? Loke? What are you doing here?!" Lucy grabbed the bars of the ice prison and exclaimed.
"Lucy, thanks for pointing out the right way to pass. Once I become an S-Class mage, I'll buy you a drink," Gray said, sliding quickly across the ice.
"Sorry, Lucy. I promised Gray," Loke said, his face apologetic.
"Who wants you to buy me a drink?! Following us like that is way too low! Cowards! If you've got any guts, don't run! Let's settle this one-on-one!" Lucy yelled.
"The S-Class Trial is ruthless like that. You only have yourself to blame for being careless and not noticing us," Gray said.
Not being Natsu, he wasn't provoked. Instead, he sped up toward the first master's grave.
Just then, flames erupted from another direction.
"Mada mada! Fire Dragon's Wing Attack!!"
Natsu descended from the sky. The exploding flames melted the ice, blocking Gray and Loke's path and forcing them to jump back.
Now it was Gray and Loke's turn to be shocked. "Natsu? How are you here?"
Had he already taken out Freed and the others?
No. He didn't have the light pillar from a landmark tablet!
"Aye~ The first master is a super nice person! She just told us where the grave is when we asked~" Happy said, flying down.
"The first master told you? That's against the rules!" Gray immediately retorted.
"W-wait. Is that really the most important issue right now?" The corner of Loke's mouth twitched. He couldn't believe Gray had seamlessly connected that comment.
The first master, who had been sleeping for who knows how many years, took the initiative to reveal the location of her own grave?
Even as a Celestial Spirit, he found this a bit too disturbing.
"That's what I should be asking, you bastard Gray and you bastard Loke! What are you doing here?!" Natsu demanded loudly.
"Those two bastards followed us here!"
Having broken free of the ice prison, Lucy quickly caught up, glaring angrily at Gray and Loke.
"Yo, Goldilocks. You're here too," Natsu said, instantly changing his tune.
His extremely sensitive nose had, of course, already smelled Lucy's scent.
"What kind of lousy nickname is 'Goldilocks'?!" Lucy snapped.
"Congratulations, Lucy. You've officially been recognized by Natsu as someone worthy of competing with," Happy explained, spreading his paws.
Lucy: "Is that something I should be honored about?!!"
"Still, I never expected the second round to end up like this," Gray said, walking out slowly. His gaze, filled with fighting spirit, swept over Natsu and Lucy. "Enough talk. Let's settle this!"
With that, he crossed his hands, ready to use his Ice-Make magic. Cold air swirled around him.
If the old man hadn't announced that Natsu was disqualified, that meant he was still a competitor.
And in this three-way standoff situation, bypassing the other two to "backdoor" the goal was no longer possible. Time wouldn't allow it either.
"An S-Class mage is going to come from the strongest team, huh? Hehe. I'm fired up!" Natsu was not to be outdone. His surging magic power into transformed flames, gushing waves of heat.
"Bring it on, you two!"
Influenced by their momentum, Lucy, for once, got herself boiling. She pulled out her Star River Whip.
BOOM!
Three powerful magics, each occupying a corner, clashed across the distance, kicking up gale-force winds, filled with a sense of urgency and tension.
At this moment, there were only ten minutes left until the end of the S-Class Trial!
***
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