SWDnovel Chapter 323 Fierce Battles in Various Examination Venues
Chapter 323 Fierce Battles in Various Examination Venues
Chapter 323 Fierce Battles in Various Examination Venues
The dilapidated underground ruins, like the remains of a giant beast forgotten by time, lie quietly deep in the moist soil of Sirius Island.
The brick and stone walls, covered with moss and tree roots, are haphazardly arranged and have long lost their original order. The air is filled with the smell of damp earth, the stench of decaying wood, and a sense of desolation that has settled over the years.
On the mottled wall, one can occasionally glimpse a faint, dark red emblem remnant through the gaps in the moss.
That's right, this is the former site of the "Red Lizard" mage guild, which has been extinct for many years. It was also the first guild that Mavis, the first guild master of Fairy Tail, joined. It was destroyed by the "Blue Skull" mage guild, which was also a mage guild at the time, leaving behind this ruin that silently tells the story of the past.
"Hahaha! I knew it! Route E is definitely Erza!"
A loud laugh broke the long-standing silence of the ruins. Natsu stood in a relatively open corner of the ruins, clenching his fists with immense excitement, his eyes burning with blazing flames.
Opposite them, on a low wall protruding from the ground, Erza, dressed in her usual armor, held a sharp longsword, her gaze low and somber.
Her long, crimson hair, adorned with pure white flowers, fluttered slightly due to the airflow caused by the rising heat, perfectly highlighting the fairy queen's sarcasm and majesty.
"Huh? That's weird. Why do I have this feeling that if we follow the normal script, we definitely won't run into Erza?"
Harpy frowned, his small cat face filled with confusion and a hint of pessimism.
On the way here, he was still complaining that since Natsu thought the E route represented Erza, why did he waste his precious once-a-year opportunity to encounter Erza? It was almost the same as losing his qualification for the assessment on the spot.
Natsu's reasoning at the time was that there was no point in becoming an S-class mage without defeating Erza.
And then, Erza actually appeared!
Happy couldn't tell if this was Natsu's incredible intuition or just a stroke of incredible luck (or bad luck?), but the facts were undeniable, and he sincerely and regretfully comforted him, "Thanks for your hard work, Natsu."
"What are you talking about, Happy? It hasn't even started yet!" Natsu asked, confused.
"Love is over."
Harpy remained silent, simply focusing on packing his luggage.
"Oh? You seem quite pleased to have met me, Natsu." Erza swung her longsword, her calm tone filled with an invisible pressure.
Natsu's fist and palm collided, sparks flying, and he said matter-of-factly, "Of course! Isn't the purpose of the S-rank assessment to defeat you?"
If Lucy were there, she would definitely say: "You idiot, did you even listen to the president explain the assessment rules?!"
"Speaking of which—"
Erza wasn't surprised at all by Natsu's answer, and her magical energy surged rapidly. "It feels like it's been a long time since I've seriously given you a beating, hasn't it?"
The last time the two officially agreed to fight was back in the time of the "The Magic Flute" incident.
In order to meet Chess's challenge head-on, Erza simply punched Natsu's soul figure out of the ground with one punch.
"Hmph, after a week of intensive training, I'm much stronger than before!" Natsu's lips curled up, displaying great confidence.
Happy, who was silently packing his luggage, turned around and couldn't help but remind him, "Natsu, didn't you notice that Erza said she'd beat you up, not that it would be an equal battle between a challenger and an examiner?"
"What?! You bastard Erza, how dare you look down on me?!" Natsu's expression changed instantly, and he glared angrily at Erza.
It's kind of adorably silly.
Erza paused for two seconds, then nodded expressionlessly: "Yes, Happy is right."
"Damn it!!" Natsu was even angrier.
"If you don't want to be looked down upon, then show me your so-called strengthening."
A flash of magic light appeared, and Erza donned the Flame Emperor Armor, sporting a twin-tail hairstyle.
It's worth noting that the pure white flowers that Chase gave seemed unaffected by the costume change, still hanging on his bangs, becoming the perfect embellishment for the red and black armor, and standing out prominently.
"Wow! I'm fired up!!"
Completely oblivious to this insignificant change, Natsu let out a low shout and unleashed a burst of crimson flames several times hotter than usual.
The flames contained incredibly dense and concentrated destructive energy. Wherever they passed, the surface of well-trained muscles developed dragon scales, and the surrounding rocks melted into fire and water at a visible speed.
The temperature in the entire underground ruins suddenly rose!
Perhaps influenced by Erza's disdainful attitude, Natsu activated his strongest Destruction Dragon Mode right from the start!
"I see. So you've fully adapted to Gandora's dragon power." Erza slowly lost the ease on her face.
It must be admitted that Natsu is indeed very strong in this state. Although not by much, even she felt a pressure that she had never experienced in the previous civil war.
The twin swords of Emperor Yan held in his hands shimmered with light and transformed into the Ice Sword of the Sea King and the Spear of the Thunder Emperor.
"That's right, Erza, just let me defeat you!"
"Destroying Flame Dragon's Crushing Fist!"
Natsu couldn't hold back any longer and charged out, his Destructive Fire Fist clashing violently with the Ice Lightning energy. The explosive shockwave instantly leveled the entire underground ruins!
The examination venue is located near the shore of Tianlang Island.
This place is completely different from the dark and oppressive underground ruins. The view is open, the sea breeze carries a salty smell, and the waves crash against the golden sand, stirring up white foam.
Boom!
A dark purple storm suddenly exploded, sending Abbagrim flying backwards and crashing heavily onto the rocks on the beach with a cry of pain.
Elfman, standing next to him, was already covered in injuries and looked quite disheveled.
Despite the excruciating pain, he still forced himself to run over and help Abbagrim up, looking at the dark demon slowly descending from the sky with a look of despair.
"Are you serious, Mira?"
Whether it was good luck or bad luck, this pair, just like in the original story, ended up in the examination hall guarded by Mira.
"Don't forget I'm the examiner now. Even Elfman won't go easy on me."
Mira, having received the soul of Satan, laughed more terrifyingly than a true demon. "Or perhaps it's precisely because it's Elfman that there's even less reason for her to hold back!"
As you can see, like Erza, she also wears blooming purple flowers on her head.
It's so hard to get a gift like this from a card dealer, so of course we had to show it off to our friends. The two of them, in perfect unison, cast some kind of magic spell on the flowers that would never wither.
"In that case, it's okay to throw a punch at Mira just this once, right?" Elfman clenched his fist.
After what happened to Lisanna, he made up his mind to become a man capable of protecting his family, even at the cost of his life.
So from the moment he started, he found it difficult to overcome his instincts and fight Mira with all his might.
Sensing her younger brother's growing fighting spirit, Mira smiled with satisfaction: "That's good."
She realized this, which is why she deliberately emphasized her role as an examiner and that she would not go easy on anyone.
Even if Elfman goes all out, the probability of clearing the game is infinitely close to zero.
These words were too hurtful, and after thinking about it, she ultimately decided not to say them.
"Wow! What a man!!"
Having received permission, Elfman no longer suppressed his anger, roaring to the sky like a beast freed from its invisible chains, "Mixed Reception - Holy Beast King Belfast!!"
The Beast King's horn grew from its forehead, and its sturdy stomach shimmered with black light, making its already robust body appear even more imposing and domineering. Its strong and powerful jet-black wings were slightly spread, raising a cloud of sand.
Compared to his forced takeover of the Seven Kin of Purgatory in order to protect Lisanna during the battle, after this period of special training, Elfman has fully mastered the power of the Gale Beast Belfast.
By combining the training guidelines formulated by the Black Mage, he was even able to incorporate some of the Beast King's knowledge into them, achieving a perfect state that combined strength, speed, and defense!
"Is this Elfman's full power? That's a bit unexpected—" Mira's beautiful eyes narrowed slightly, her expression becoming more serious.
Having only spent a week on Sirius Island, she clearly hadn't expected Elfman to grow so much.
Just as I was marveling at this, a wild and violent aura swept over me.
Elfman clenched his fist, which was covered in black armor, and threw a violent punch that carried with it turbulent air currents.
Mira chuckled softly, took a step forward against the strong wind, and chose to confront Elfman head-on.
boom!!
The Holy Beast King Fist and the Satan Fist, which were completely disproportionate in size, collided in mid-air, creating a shockwave that seemed to tear the beach apart.
The moment their eyes met, the siblings almost simultaneously changed their moves, letting out a low shout as they launched a rapid and fierce barrage of attacks at each other.
Bang bang bang!
The sonic booms echoed continuously; the power of a punch thrown by a human body was comparable to a large-scale magical clash!
No, this is a fight between demons and monsters!
Unfortunately, the evenly matched situation did not last long. Even with his full strength, Elfman was no match for Mira and quickly fell into a disadvantageous position, struggling even to defend passively.
As Mira delivered a powerful kick to his abdomen, Elfman's tough black armor reached its limit and shattered into countless fragments.
The tons of damage transformed into excruciating pain that instantly spread throughout his body. The severely injured Elfman bent over as if he had reached his limit, but an inappropriate smile appeared on his lips.
"Now, Abba!"
The moment she finished speaking, Abba Grin leaped out from the blind spot behind her, and a petrification magic circle appeared in her pupils as she removed her glasses.
However, Mira was already prepared and immediately closed her eyes, the violent energy ball rapidly condensing in her outstretched palm.
Seizing the fleeting opening, Elfman steadied himself and delivered a powerful side punch to Mira's abdomen.
Splash!
Mira, struck hard, was sent flying backward and landed in the distant sea.
"Yay! It worked!"
Elfman and Abba Greene embraced each other with overwhelming joy.
"Only Laxus and the Thunder Gods can call me Abba. Who gave you permission to call me that?"
Less than a second after the physical contact, Abba Grin, her face flushed, pushed the large man off her and pointed angrily at the hill flattened by the energy blast in the distance, saying, "And what's more, how dare they use me as bait! Getting hit by that thing can kill you!!"
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she raised her smooth feet and shoved them wildly at Elfman's body.
"Aha, ahaha, after all, my opponent is my older sister, I have no chance if I don't do this." Elfman scratched his head apologetically.
"Well, whatever, I did defeat Mira, so this time it's over."
boom!!
A towering column of water suddenly exploded, interrupting Abba Greene's unfinished words. The two instinctively looked up and were immediately startled, their expressions turning into memes. They then hugged each other tightly once more.
A dark purple magical energy filled the field of vision like a volcanic eruption. Under the influence of this terrifying power, the wind howled and the turbulent sea was boiling violently!
At the center of the magical storm, Mira, who had received the demon god Halphas, stood high in the sky, her red lips slightly raised, revealing a cruel smile that Elfman and Abbagrim thought was something only a demon could have.
"You defeated me? The S-rank assessment isn't something you can just easily pass~"
In another examination venue, in the underground space of the strangely shaped rocks, the plaque with the character "斗" (dou, meaning "fight") is clearly visible.
The two pairs you encounter here are Fried and Biguslo and Levy and Gajeel.
"I never expected that the opponents I would fight would be you—"
Fried drew his rapier from his waist and pointed it at the two people who appeared opposite him. "The guild master was right after all. This really is a test of luck."
Because they were the first group to arrive at Sirius Island, Fried and Biguslow had more time to discuss their strategy than the others.
After learning that the assessment would involve skirmishes, the two decided that if they encountered Kana or Lucy, whom they had injured in the civil war, they would go easy on them and pretend to be defeated, thus making up for their past mistakes.
Levy, who was petrified at the start of the civil war, didn't have this concern. As for Gajeel...
I would feel absolutely no psychological pressure to beat this guy up!
"Heh heh, so you're just accepting your bad luck because you know your opponent is the invincible me?"
Gajeel clashed his fists together, letting out a distinctive, cold laugh. "You two have a higher level of resolve than I thought!"
"Um, I think you misunderstood what Fried meant—" Levy covered her forehead, looking slightly embarrassed.
Even though I'm the contestant, why does Gajeel seem more excited than me?
"Confidence is good, but if you get too cocky, you'll get a really bad beating later." Biguslo spread his arms wide.
It arrogantly sticks out its tongue, which is emblazoned with the Fairy Tail crest.
The six puppets hovering behind them repeated, "They're going to get a really bad beating, they're going to get a really bad beating."
In a way, Biggleslow and Gajeel are actually the same kind of people: in other anime, they would be proper villains. "Enough talk, let's just start fighting." Freed brandished his rapier.
"That's what I think too!"
With only fighting on his mind, Gajeel burst out laughing.
Then, with a "thud," his head slammed directly into the transparent wall, the sound crisp and loud.
This guy must have a really hard head; anyone else would have been dizzy and seeing stars from that blow.
Metaphorical metaphor.
It was as if a switch had been flipped, and the surrounding ground instantly lit up with densely packed spell characters.
The power of complex and ever-changing rules then spread out, like an invisible lock, binding Gajeel and Levy firmly in place, unable to move.
Although it was only about a minute, that time difference was enough for Fried to set up some simple spell traps in the examination room!
"As expected of Fried, he won this match with ease!"
Bigelow prematurely declared victory, manipulating six puppets into an attack matrix aimed at the desperately struggling Gajeel, "Puppet Beam Cannon!"
The cyan beam shot out directly, but just a second before it was about to hit, Gajeel suddenly broke free of his restraints.
"Iron Dragon Staff!"
boom!
The steel rod shattered the light cannon into countless scattered points of light that vanished without a trace.
"How is that possible? The spell has failed?" Bigus was slightly surprised.
Even Fried, standing next to him, showed a look of dismay.
"Did you incorporate magical runes from Mr. Dark Magician's world into the spell you used?"
Levy held up the quill that shimmered with magical light and smiled, "Sorry, I happen to know a little about it too."
"Hehe, well done, little one!"
Gajeel's fighting spirit surged, and iron dragon scales appeared on his body under the influence of surging magic.
"I see. So the hastily set-up traps were useless against you—" Fried sighed softly.
They encountered Levy, the only contestant besides Lucy Cana who knew the spellbook.
From this perspective, their luck doesn't seem to be that great.
So·
Let strength determine the final outcome!
"Forbidden Language - Darkness!!"