Chapter 142: The Exam Begins
"Wow, there are so many people taking the exam this year."
"Yeah, usually it's only one or two. This time, there are five."
"And they're all amazing, so strong. You really can't beat any of them. No wonder you weren't chosen. My condolences, brother."
"Waaah! Don't say it! Don't say it anymore!" The guild member who hadn't been selected began to cry even louder after being "comforted" by his friend.
"But with so many people this time, the result probably won't be decided by a single battle."
"True. I'm looking forward to seeing what the trials will be."
While the adults were discussing the exam, the younger members were having their own discussion.
"Why didn't Gramps let me participate? Erza and the others get to go!" Natsu shouted, looking indignant.
Gray, standing beside him, gave him the straight answer. "Because you're not strong enough. The Master doesn't think you're ready, so he didn't let you participate."
"Damn it! I'm definitely going to participate next time! Happy, let's go train!" With that, Natsu ran out of the guild. The two-year-old Happy flew after him, chirping, "Training! Training!"
Watching Natsu leave, Gray turned to Lyon with a look of dissatisfaction. "You're so lucky, getting to participate so soon."
"That's because my strength is sufficient. As for you... you're still a little lacking!" Lyon said smugly, wagging his index finger.
Gray's anger was immediately stoked, and he was about to challenge Lyon to a duel, but Ultear placed a hand on his shoulder, stopping him. She then said to Lyon, "Do your best. This exam won't be easy. The people you're competing against are all very strong."
"Mhm. I'll do my best." Lyon's expression also grew serious. Of course, he wanted to succeed on his first try, but the other participants were all incredibly powerful. All he could do was give it his all.
"Just try not to lose too badly, Lyon," Gray, having been calmed down by Ultear, couldn't help but say with a taunting tone.
"Hmph. Of course I won't."
On the other side, Yukino was cheering for her sister. "You can do it, Sorano!" She then turned to Erza. "You too, Sister Erza!"
"Mhm! You both have to do your best!" Wendy added, nodding from the side. The two little ones wanted both of their big sisters to win and become S-Class wizards.
"You're the one who needs to watch out, Erza. Don't lose!" Sorano said to her, full of challenge.
"Of course not. I will give it my all!" Erza replied with a serious face.
"Mira-nee, you can do it!"
"You've got this, Sis!"
Lisanna and Elfman were cheering for Mirajane, who had an excited smile on her face. "Of course! I will succeed!" She then turned to Erza. "Let's settle this during the exam!"
"No problem, Mirajane. Just don't go crying when you lose!"
"You're the one who'll be crying!"
In an instant, the atmosphere between the two became fiery. But considering the exam was about to start, they both managed to rein in their fighting spirit, snorted, and turned away from each other.
"You've got this, big brother!" Kagura said, encouraging Simon.
He smiled and nodded, but then added, "I can only do my best. The others are all very strong. My chances aren't great."
"As long as you do your best, that's all that matters."
"Mhm, I know. I will. Kagura, come train with me a little more."
"Okay."
Simon and Kagura left the guild and headed for the training ground. The other S-Class candidates also began to leave, one by one, to make their final preparations.
Soon, three days had passed.
Early in the morning, the guild members were all gathered. The participants, in particular, were all fired up and ready to go, just waiting for Makarov to take them to the exam site.
"Where's Noah? Hasn't he come back yet?" Makarov asked Ultear.
She shrugged. "I haven't seen him these past two days. Didn't he go to set up the site?"
"But it shouldn't take this long. Where on earth did he go? If he's not back soon, we'll have to contact him."
Just then, a figure appeared beside Ultear. It was Noah. "Sorry, sorry! After I finished setting up the exam site, I reinforced the island a bit. Then I found two sunken chests of books at the bottom of the sea nearby and got completely engrossed in reading. I set up a camp right there and just remembered that we have an exam today."
Noah pressed his hands together in apology. Makarov just waved his hand. "Since you're here, hurry up and take us to the exam site."
"Mhm. Everyone, follow me." Noah saw that the guild doors were already locked, meaning everyone was planning to go. He waved his hand, and the entire guild was instantly teleported to the island he had prepared.
They were now on a sandy beach. In front of them were five wide paths, each covered in magic formulas, that extended towards the forest in the center of the island. Far in the distance, five corresponding paths could be seen emerging from the other side of the forest.
Makarov clapped his hands, and when everyone was looking at him, he stepped to the side, revealing Noah. "Alright. Noah will now explain the content of the upcoming exam."
Seeing all eyes on him, Noah got straight to the point. "You've all seen the five paths here, and the five paths over there. The rule of the first trial is to start from one of these five paths, enter the forest, and then re-emerge from one of the five paths on the other side. You will be scored based on the order you finish: the first person gets 5 points, and so on, down to the last person, who gets 1 point."
Everyone understood immediately. The content was quite simple. It was just a race, right?
"But it's probably not that simple," Erza said calmly. After all, this was an S-Class trial.
"Of course. To increase the difficulty, I've placed a number of traps along the way to hinder your progress. Also, your attacks will not be able to hit the person next to you; I've set up barriers between the paths, but you can still see and hear each other. There are no restrictions on the use of magic, but you cannot use any other magic items, with the exception of Erza's Requip. Does anyone have any other questions?"
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