Chapter 557: The exam begins!
"Wendy, use Troia," Rhodes’s heart still wasn’t hard enough.
"Okay," Wendy obediently cast the spell.
"I’m revived!" Natsu jumped up. "You guys, let’s settle this!"
The deck instantly became noisy, with Natsu yelling here and there, acting as if he wanted to take out everyone before landing on the island.
Rhodes picked his ears. "I regret it. Next time, I’ll still let him lean over the railing and puke. At least it’ll be quieter."
Some of the group were noisy, some were quietly waiting, and some were wandering around.
As the sailboat steadily moved forward, the weather became hotter and hotter.
Except for Gray, everyone else was wearing less and less clothing.
They gradually transitioned from winter clothes to summer clothes.
Rhodes almost thought he had reached the Grand Line, feeling that the ship hadn’t traveled very far, yet the weather had changed so drastically.
The most exaggerated part was that even after changing into swimsuits and beachwear, it was still unbearably hot.
If the old gentlemen in the guild were here, they would probably be very Happy.
Wendy and Levy aside, Lucy, Cana, and Evergreen were all experts.
Lisanna, though not as good as her sister, also had astonishing talent.
Rhodes especially missed Mira at this moment.
He also missed the many different styles of swimsuits Mira kept in the corner of her wardrobe.
However, he quickly lost that mood. The Master only said it would be hot after departure, not that it would be this hot.
"Gray, some ice!"
Gray refused. "No, a little ice would melt immediately."
"Then make more."
"I need to conserve my magic power."
Rhodes felt like he was hit by his own boomerang. "I’ll buff you!"
"Still no." Gray himself was almost heat-struck, but he refused to make any ice to cool down.
Except for Natsu, the fire-element Magician, almost everyone present was too hot to have any energy.
The most puzzling was Juvia. In such hot weather, she was still dressed so thickly, even wearing a thick hat, yet she wasn’t sweating at all.
Is it because water has a higher specific heat capacity?
So hot that even physics knowledge popped into his head. Hmm, his brain was probably half-damaged already.
After finally enduring this scorching sea area, Rhodes spotted a small black dot in the distance.
As the ship slowly approached, the outline of Tenrou Island appeared in Rhodes’s eyes.
It was less like seeing an island and more like seeing a large umbrella.
An exaggeratedly tall tree stood like a giant umbrella over the small island, its canopy looking only slightly smaller than the coastline from a distance.
"Little brats," Makarov stood high up, wearing a Hawaiian shirt, beach shorts, and flip-flops, holding a small fan in his hand.
Carla stood beside him, not much shorter than the Master.
She had requested the Master to bring her because she was worried, and her current temporary status was ’Examiner’s Assistant’.
Actually, there wasn’t much for her to do.
"That’s Tenrou Island, the testing ground for the S-Class Trial, and also the resting place of our guild’s First Master, Mavis Vermillion."
Makarov’s voice carried over the wind as the guild members gazed at the island looming in the distance. A towering, majestic tree shaded the entire island like a guardian spirit, its canopy stretching wide across the horizon.
"This island is home to many rare creatures and hidden dangers," Makarov continued. "There are even rumors... that fairies have been spotted here."
Everyone’s eyes lit up with a mix of awe and anticipation. Mest, trying hard to suppress his excitement, kept his expression composed.
Clearing his throat, Makarov raised his voice, "Listen closely. I’m going to explain the rules of the first stage of the exam."
Everyone straightened up immediately, eyes sharp and ears attentive.
"You see that rising smoke over there? That’s from the bonfire lit by Gildarts, Erza, and Mira. Over the past two days, the three of them have constructed nine separate paths starting from that point. Each team must choose one of those paths and make it to the end."
He paused, letting the tension settle before continuing. "Naturally, there will be obstacles along the way. Of those nine paths, three are guarded by Gildarts, Erza, and Mira themselves. The remaining six intersect in pairs, so you’ll have to defeat any opponent you encounter to advance."
Levy’s face turned pale with worry. "So... if we run into Gildarts, we’re doomed, aren’t we?"
"Not necessarily," Lucy chimed in thoughtfully. "If Cana runs into him, he might hold back a bit."
Then she frowned. "Actually, never mind. He might just crush everyone for fun."
Loke crossed his arms with a grin. "And if Rhodes, Elfman, or Lisanna face off against Mira, there’s a decent chance she’ll go easy on them too..."
Makarov raised an eyebrow and replied coolly, "I won’t deny the possibility. But you don’t need to worry too much. The S-Class mages handling this stage are expected to show a certain amount of... leniency."
Happy raised his paw hesitantly. "But... I can’t picture Erza going easy on anyone."
Everyone nodded silently. It was hard to forget how seriously Erza took snowball fights, usually ending with someone being buried under a pile of snow or nursing broken ribs.
"I just—" Natsu started to speak, but before he could finish, the effect of Troia wore off. His face turned a sickly shade of green, and he collapsed against the railing.
"So weak, Fire Dragon," Gajeel sneered, looking disgusted.
Makarov chuckled. "It’s fine if you think it’s unfair. This exam was never designed to be perfectly balanced."
Levy clutched her notebook nervously. "That means at least three teams will be eliminated in the first round... but possibly up to six?"
She did the math in her head, her face growing gloomier by the second.
"Ghihi~ Isn’t that awesome?" Gajeel threw his arm over her head, laughing. "No matter what path we take, we’re in for a fight!"
Although the opponents might be strong, Gajeel believed that after being disciplined by the Mountain Dragon and diligently training, he should be able to handle them.
The stronger the opponent, the sweeter the victory!
"Did everyone hear that clearly?" Makarov’s voice boomed with energy. "Then, the exam begins!"
At moments like these, you could really see that Natsu wasn’t as dense as he seemed. He just preferred punching over thinking.
"Ha...Happy!"
"Aye, sir!"
The moment the Master’s words left his lips, while the others were still wondering why the ship hadn’t even docked yet, Natsu, still seasick and pale, shot into the sky with Happy, aiming for the island.
"AHAHAHA! We’ll be the first!" Natsu whooped in triumph.
That victory cry only lasted a few seconds.
BAM!
He smacked straight into an invisible wall.
A cluster of glowing runes suddenly lit up along the ship’s railing, forming a barrier in midair. Dark purple-black characters shimmered like ghostly flames, stopping Natsu dead in his tracks.
"A magic barrier? Freed’s doing!" Lucy shouted, eyes widening.
Everyone recognized it instantly. This was Dark Écriture, Freed’s specialty. Once activated, even Makarov himself couldn’t force his way through the spell for a short time.
"Dark Écriture: Wings!"
Freed swiftly carved glowing runes onto his own body, and with a flash, a pair of black, bat-like wings sprouted from his back.
"Apologies," he said calmly, lifting off the deck. "I need to go first. Bickslow, let’s..."
Before he could finish, he felt a firm tug on his ankle.
Looking down, he saw Rhodes gripping him with a dragon-like claw, his right arm transformed and glowing faintly with magic.
At some point, Rhodes had donned a pair of plain glasses, and with exaggerated precision, pushed them up the bridge of his nose with his left hand. "You’ve been skulking around the deck for a while now. If you don’t open a door for us, you’re not going anywhere either."
Wendy, standing beside him, had also put on a matching pair of glasses. She adjusted hers slightly and gave Bickslow a sharp, silent glare.
She looked like a strict hall monitor from a magical academy.
Freed: "..."
This wasn’t in the script.