"Take this!" A blue-haired youth yelled as he sent a palm attack at Bryan who flung himself to the side. As the blue-haired boy's palm struck the ground, it transformed that patch of earth into solid ice.
"Seriously! What is it with you?" Bryan yelled and shot a glance to his sides.
At his left, Carl was entangled with a bird who possessed similar ice powers with its master, the one who was fighting Bryan currently. The two beasts had transformed into giants and were fighting like primordial beasts, ripping feathers and scales from their bodies.
To his right, Lucy and Ragna were engaged in a fight of their own. A snake with venomous abilities and a really strong body was thrashing around, destroying the flora and fauna with each movement.
"DIE!" The blue-haired boy raised his hand and a blinding blue light shone from his palm.
'Okay, now you've pissed me off.' Bryan roared and a red fire appeared in his eyes and he shot a beam of concentrated fire straight at the boy.
….
"Why would you eat food from a stranger? Apples keep the doctor away but not witches." Lucy chuckled at Bryan's story.
Bryan had just narrated the infamous tale of Snow White to her to pass the time. Perhaps it was because the other beasts subconsciously sensed the strength of Ragna and Carl, they avoided them.
'Well, its not like beasts like the one we fought are crawling everywhere.' Bryan shifted from Lucy's smiling face and looked at the sky.
"Where did you read it?" Lucy interrupted his thoughts and he looked down.
"Somewhere far from here." He was suddenly struck by a sense of nostalgia and a mysterious emotion rose in his chest. It wasn't exactly sadness but…
'I can't put a name on it. Still, I miss that place.' He loved his current world. And even if he was given the chance to go back, he wouldn't.
"But if I could just make a round trip…" 'But that would be asking for too much.'
"Bryan?" Lucy stopped and placed her face in front of Bryan in an attempt to startle him. However, Bryan just kept on walking and as a result, their foreheads slammed into each other.
"Ow!" Bryan held his held and squatted as Lucy stood frozen.
'What was that? A pole?' As a result of being contracted with an earth-type beast, Lucy's forehead was as thick as a boulder.
'Wait, why the hell am I trying to analyze it?' Bryan glared at Lucy with upturned eyes but that only increased the duration of the petrification.
'What the hell is that? CUTE!!!' on the outside, Lucy was still able to keep her cool. On the inside however…
'Wait, was he always this cute? All he had to do was look at me with those eyes that are shimmering like diamonds. Is a human really allowed to be this overpowered? I really want to take him home and raise him. Wait, calm down, me. This isn't like you.' After a brief panic moment, Lucy recovered to her normal self and coughed.
"Ahem. Sorry about that. Are you injured?" she extended her hand and Bryan took it and glared at her.
"Yeah, no thanks to you."
"I said I'm sorry." Lucy frowned and repeated.
"I know. I was just joking. I'm not that weak, you know." Bryan dropped the angry face and smiled mischievously.
"You…" Lucy trailed off as she heard rustling noises. In an instant, the team went from lax to guarded as the two humans and two beasts entered combat mode.
"Damn it! Who the hell thought it'd be a good idea to hold an exam here! Those goddamn idiots." A blue haired boy cursed with emotion as he walked in front of them.
'He's dangerous.' That was Bryan's and Lucy's thought as they looked at the person who had just arrived.
"Excuse me, would you mind telling us who you are?" Bryan asked as he tightened his grip. There wasn't a rule about harming other examinees so there was a chance he could be an enemy.
'Huh? Is that you, Bryan?" the blue haired youth's eyes widened as he looked at Bryan, leaving the latter confused.
"Excuse me, do I know you—" before Bryan could finish talking, the boy punched at Bryan and a handful of ice formed and shot towards the two of them.
"Finally! Do you know how long I've been waiting for this day? You finally got a tamed beast so I don't need to go easy on you." Contrary to his cool appearance, his expression was nothing but fiery and ice creeped out from beneath his feet and enveloped the surroundings.
"You know him?" Lucy asked as she got ready to fight and Bryan shook his head.
"Why would I be friends with such an idiot?" Bryan ignored the tugging at the back of his mind as a trail of fire linked him and Carl and the latter transformed.
As the three of them were about to clash against each other, the earth rumbled as a gigantic snake burst out of the ground and screeched at them.
'Seriously? A beast at this time?' Bryan clicked his tongue and wanted to propose a ceasefire when the blue haired boy leaped at him, ignoring the new threat.
'That amount of ether… it's a Tier 5 Elite!' Lucy stomped her feet and leaped into the air as Ragna lumbered towards the snake.
"Bryan! We'll hold him off just focus on knocking some sense into that boy!" Lucy wanted to join in but the newcomer didn't seem that interested in anything except Bryan at the moment.
"Beast Call." Lucy muttered as a layer of earthen armor formed around her body and she raised her fist and slammed it into the head of the snake.
"What in Hades is your problem? We have a much bigger threat to deal with!" Bryan yelled as he and the other boy exchanged blows as their beasts became entangled with each other.
"Who cares!? Do you know how long I've waited for this moment, Bryan!?" a crazed look appeared in the boy's eyes as his flurry of attacks denser.
'Tch!' Harold dodged the icicles and frozen air launched at him as he calmly analyzed his opponent. Well, not so calmly.
'From the density of his attacks, he's most likely a Tier 4 Elite – the same as Lucy. But his element is a natural counter for mine and vice versa. In order to win, I need a powerful attack capable of breaking his defenses.'
Bryan had a skill that upped his attack power; the only problem was that there was a high chance the other boy had one too.
'I just need to make him use it.' Luckily, when it comes to skills that involved chance and probabilities, Bryan had the perfect one.