Lower level of Tenrou Island, western coast.
"How strange. Apart from the southern area, where Chase and Gildarts were fighting, why is there no sign that anyone's been here either?" Freed, Bickslow, Elfman, and Evergreen looked confused, uncertain as they collected the landmark tablet.
After joining forces to defeat Cana and Lily's team and snatching the tablet from her, the entire trial had suddenly fallen into a strange, eerily quiet atmosphere.
As the time remaining in the trial dwindled and the red light pillars in the south and west remained motionless, they, who had planned to "wait for the rabbits," had ultimately chosen to take the initiative.
They had even prepared themselves to be ambushed. But the entire way, they had only been accompanied by Tenrou Island's wild beasts. As for the competing teams of Natsu, Lucy, and Gray... not a single hair of them was seen!
"Whatever those guys are plotting, once we get the remaining southern tablet, the truth will surely come to light," Evergreen said confidently, pushing up her glasses.
There was another thing she didn't say out loud: And that will be when I help that idiot Elfman take you down!
"I have a feeling things aren't that simple," Freed said, his brow furrowed.
Leaving aside Lucy for the moment, with Natsu and Gray's personalities, how could they have made no move by now? And there had been no announcement that they had been eliminated.
"Let's do as Ever says. Time is short, we can't overthink it," Bickslow said in a deep voice.
Like Evergreen, there was a scheming glint in his eyes. He was secretly figuring out how to eliminate Elfman.
The members of the Thunder God Tribe knew each other all too well!
"A man! Only one step left to become S-Class!" Elfman shouted loudly.
The innocent guy had no idea about the conspiracy lurking beneath the ostensibly harmonious alliance. He just thought, since they were all comrades, they would honestly fight it out for ownership of the four tablets, as agreed.
In principle, that made sense. But his upright personality had already cost him dearly many times.
The good news was, Evergreen seemed to actually like that about him.
The bad news was, this time, he wouldn't get to eat that loss.
"The trial has ended successfully. The winner who has emerged from this brutal competition—"
Colorful fireworks exploded in the sky. Makarov's following announcement made the four, who had been rubbing their hands together, freeze on the spot, dumbfounded.
"What?! The trial is... over?!"
"Wh-what a joke! Don't we have all the landmark tablets?!"
"Lucy? S-Class? What the hell is going on!!"
Southern side, the shattered offshore beach.
"The guild's new S-Class mage is... Lucy Heartfilia!"
Chase and Gildarts, locked in battle, paused. They almost simultaneously stopped the Ultra-Magic they were about to throw in each other's faces.
"Wahaha! She actually did it! Way to go, Lucy!"
Having processed Makarov's announcement, Chase's expression immediately lit up. He couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Though he had great confidence in Lucy herself, the other participants were no pushovers. And the trial process was fast-changing. Any small accident could affect the entire outcome, leading to a completely different result.
So, he was actually a bit surprised that Lucy had managed to stand out and claim the S-Class title.
Or rather, it didn't quite feel real.
Thanks to the original story, the stereotyped image of Lucy being unlucky, abused, and frustrated was just too deeply ingrained!
"I'm screwed..."
In stark contrast to Chase's loud, cheerful laughter, Gildarts propped himself up on his hands. His dejected, sorrowful negative emotions materialized around him, denser than Hades's Underworld Magic.
His first thought was of the bet he had made with Chase.
Running naked around Magnolia wasn't a big deal. He could just close his eyes and dash.
But putting on a sexy maid outfit and doing public activities like sweeping the streets and helping old ladies cross the road, all in front of his guildmates and the entire town...
The Fairy Tail's strongest mage, who wouldn't bat an eye at the Black Dragon, felt like the sky was falling.
Chase certainly wasn't going to miss this opportunity to kick a man when he was down. He walked over and patted Gildarts on the shoulder, encouraging him. "Don't worry, Gildarts. I'll definitely drag Natsu and the others along to cheer you on~"
The exhilarating three-hour fight had been a blast, and he had also gotten some new cards to drop, just as he'd wanted.
Seeing that Gildarts had completely lost his fighting spirit, he gave up on the idea of continuing to fight and deciding who was "Fairy Tail's Strongest Mage."
Truth be told, when both held nothing back and used all their trump cards, the answer to who was stronger had already become quite clear.
Upper island of Tenrou Island.
"No way. Did the old man sneak off to drink some bootleg liquor during the trial?" Gray's head was buzzing. He couldn't process it. "Lucy is right there!"
"Dammit, dammit, dammit! Tell us, Lucy! What dirty trick did you use to bribe the old man?!" Natsu was even more unable to accept it. He ran over, grabbed Lucy by the collar, and shook her vigorously. "Money? Gravure magazines? Don't tell me it was your looks!"
"How could Lucy be an S-Class mage? No way, absolutely no way! I must be dreaming!"
In the end, he was even starting to lose his mind.
This just showed how obsessed he was with becoming S-Class.
Unfortunately, there was only one promotion slot. Reality was cruel like that.
POOF~
White smoke appeared. Natsu's hand grabbed at nothing.
When he looked again, "Lucy" had vanished. In her place were two simply-drawn, small blue figures, constantly waving their limbs.
Jamie: "Wiri wiri. What a rude man."
Mini: "Rude and brainless. No wonder you lost to Lucy-sama~"
"Gemini? Since when?!"
Gray finally realized the fundamental issue. He also understood why Loke had suddenly urged him to hurry to the first master's grave.
The Lucy who had been fighting them... was actually Gemini in disguise!
A short while earlier, about ten minutes back.
After Gray had trapped Lucy in an ice prison and charged toward the first master's grave, only to run into Natsu who had just arrived...
With the help of Éclair's Silent Magic, Lucy had successfully broken free from the ice prison.
Watching Natsu and Gray start fighting without a word, she immediately realized that getting entangled with those two monsters would be endless. And if she stayed out of sight for too long, they would likely notice her.
So, her eyes darted around. A cunning, treacherous plan emerged.
Use Gemini, who could perfectly copy her appearance, her aura, and even use Celestial Spirit magic, to draw their attention and delay Natsu and Gray. Meanwhile, she would quietly bypass the main battlefield and take a longer route to the first master's grave.
To prevent the sharp-nosed Natsu from sensing anything strange, Lucy had even endured the disgust and covered herself in the sap of Tenrou Island plants!
For a girl who loved beauty and was a bit vain, this was truly going all out.
Fortunately, her efforts paid off handsomely.
Gemini successfully delayed Natsu and Gray. Loke and Happy were also distracted by Éclair and Momon's small talk. Her backdoor plan was a great success!
"AAAAHHHH! I got tricked by that bastard Lucy!"
Having learned the whole truth, Natsu clutched his head and let out a Fire Dragon's Wail to the heavens.
"How embarrassing!"
Gray sat down weakly on the ground, covering his face, sinking deep into depression.
He and Loke had planned to ambush Lucy at the end and claim the S-Class title without breaking a sweat. Who would have thought the real fool was him all along?
***
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