Route H
"Pfff-ugh!"
"Mest!! You're awake! Thank goodness!"
Wendy said with a worried face.
"Ugh... were those two really that strong? But for the sake of succeeding my master, I won't lose!! Bring it on, Gray!! Loke!"
Mest stood up and shouted, but saw that the area in front of him was empty.
"Um... it seems we've already lost. While you were unconscious, Mest, Gray and the others moved on... it's because I'm useless... even though I wanted to do my best..."
Wendy sobbed pitifully.
Mest looked at Wendy and said, "No, it's okay. More importantly, are you hurt?"
Wendy nodded.
"Yes!! First stage cleared!!"
Gray clenched his fist, looking very happy.
Loke said, "If Natsu and Freed get eliminated in the first stage, the rest will be easy."
Although Natsu was a bit unreliable, his strength was publicly recognized as great. Besides being strong, Freed was also a pain to deal with. Both were major rivals for their group.
"Don't say such stupid things. Since when has the path to S-Class ever been easy?"
Gray saw things clearly; even without Natsu and Freed, becoming S-Class would be extremely difficult.
"I get it. In truth, even I find it hard to believe we beat Mest just like that."
"Come to think of it, was that guy always that weak? I can't remember. Have I ever fought him before? Who was his partner last time?" Gray asked, looking at Loke.
Loke tried hard to remember, but finally looked confused. "...Who was it again?"
"Why can't I remember at all! My memories of Mest are all blurry."
Gray was a bit irritated; this feeling of missing memories was very annoying.
"Gray! Loke!!"
Just as the two of them came out of the tunnel exit, they saw several people already waiting there.
"Are these the only ones who cleared the first stage?!"
Gray was a bit surprised; the number of people was a bit low.
Makarov walked over. "Now, is everyone here?"
"Cana and Lucy defeated Freed and Bickslow in a 'Battle' route and cleared it."
"What—?!"
Gray jumped in surprise. Freed and Bickslow were incredibly hard to handle. He had fallen at Bickslow's hands before.
"Natsu and Happy passed Gildarts' trial and cleared it."
"No way—!!"
Gray couldn't believe it even more. Passing Gildarts' stage should have been impossible.
"Levy and Gajeel were very lucky and passed through a 'Quiet' route. Cleared."
"Heh!"
Levy gave a proud peace sign. She hadn't expected to be so lucky and pass the first stage so easily. This gave her the courage to try for S-Class.
"Gray and Loke defeated Mest and Wendy in a 'Battle' route and cleared it."
Gray scanned the surroundings. "Did Juvia fail?"
Just as he turned around, he saw Makarov with his mouth wide open in a face of total collapse.
"W-W-What is it?! Master, why that face?!"
"Juvia and Lisanna ran into that person. That female knight who absolutely never holds back."
"Ahhh!!"
Hearing this, Gray couldn't help but offer a silent prayer for Juvia and Lisanna. He had been beaten by Erza since he was a kid and knew exactly how terrifying that woman was.
"Then only Elfman and Evergreen are left."
"If we use the process of elimination, the remaining route is..."
Several people did the math. Kael's figure flashed through everyone's minds, and the expressions on all their faces froze.
"How pitiful."
Several people offered a silent prayer for Elfman and Evergreen.
Every one of Kael's transformations was beyond terrifying.
"Well! This stage is a test of luck, too!"
If your luck was bad enough to run into Kael, defeating Kael was completely impossible.
"Wait a minute!!"
"We passed!"
Evergreen walked over while supporting Elfman.
"No way—!!"
"How could you possibly defeat Kael?!"
Everyone couldn't believe they could defeat Kael. If those two could beat Kael, you could just make both of them S-Class right now.
"Uh... we lost... but Kael said I passed..."
Elfman was a bit ashamed. After all, passing after losing was indeed a bit embarrassing.
"Now that makes sense!"
Hearing this, the group actually breathed a sigh of relief. If Elfman and Evergreen had defeated that monster Kael, they wouldn't have known what to do.
Makarov coughed lightly. "Ahem. Anyway, congratulations on clearing the first stage. The second stage of the exam begins now."
"The rules for the second stage are as follows: Find the grave of the First Master, Mavis. The time limit is six hours. As long as you find it, you pass."
"What?! It's that simple!"
Hearing Makarov's words, everyone felt this trial was extremely easy. The island was only so big, and six hours was enough to search the whole place thoroughly.
The corners of Makarov's mouth curled up slightly into a wicked smile. He thought to himself: Simple? If it were really that simple, it wouldn't be an S-Class Mage exam.
Soon, everyone began to move. Time to find things was very precious.
"What is this?!!"
"Lucy, run!!"
A massive crocodile-like monster was chasing Lucy and Cana. The two of them ran for their lives while the crocodile monster chased them just as desperately. Lucy cried in a total breakdown.
"What kind of island is this?!"
"Am I... going to die here..."
Gajeel and Levy hid behind a rock. A massive monster twenty meters long walked past them. The two didn't dare make a single sound.
"If I have what it takes to be an S-Class Mage, this stuff is nothing!!"
"You're clearly just forcing it!"
Gray and Loke were also running away, followed by a flock of giant monstrous birds.
"Don't block my path to the exam!!"
Flames swirled around Natsu's fist as he knocked down a massive monster with a single punch.
"Whew!"
Natsu wiped his sweat. He couldn't take being chased by this monster anymore and fought back. Honestly, this thing was pretty tough; it took him a while to knock it down.
Happy said, "Now that's the real Natsu! Let's keep going!"
"No, wait, Happy."
Natsu immediately grabbed the monster's mouth and pulled its eyelids. "Where is the First Master's grave?! Tell me!!"
Happy's eyes widened as he complained, "Hey! You're actually talking to him!!"
"I don't know."
"It actually answered!!!"
Happy was stunned. This monster actually knew how to speak human language.
"There are no clues at all. How are we supposed to find it!"
"It seems like it's harder than I thought."
Natsu and Happy were both a bit worried. There were monsters everywhere on this island, and with the dense forest, searching was going to be a real pain.
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