At sunset, the eight people gathered again on the beach.
Besides Ace's group, which had obtained four emblems, Erza and Gray had one, and Mirajane and Elfman had three.
Natsu and Cana, however, had bad luck; they had run into Erza and Gray, and the outcome was obvious.
Even Ace hadn't expected someone to be eliminated in the first round.
"The first round is over," Master Makarov's voice rang out again. "Those holding emblems will advance."
Natsu pounded the ground in frustration.
Cana was actually sadder than Natsu, but she still patted his shoulder.
"There's always next year."
"Next, the second round." The Master's voice suddenly turned serious.
In the sky, the grid of light flickered violently, projecting a huge, holographic 3D map that clearly displayed Tenrou Island's terrain: the central mountain range, the circular jungle, the eastern swamp, the western stone forest, the northern snowy peak, and the southern beach, with details precise down to every stream and cave.
On the map, six golden dots of light were scattered in various places—the six who had advanced.
"This is the 'Hunting Battlefield'," the Master's aged voice carried a murderous chill. "The golden circle shown on the map will shrink over time. Within the circle, you may move, fight, and form alliances."
As his voice fell, a massive golden circle of light, covering the entire mountain range, suddenly lit up at the peak of the central mountains on the map.
"The initial safe zone covers the entire island. But in one hour—" the Master paused, "—the circle will begin to shrink, with the mountain peak as its center. In the end, only an area with a diameter of one hundred meters will remain."
"And outside the circle..." the Master's voice dropped low. "...This year's three S-Class mages—Gildarts, Laxus, and Mystogan—will act as 'Hunters' and hunt freely. Those defeated by them will also be eliminated."
"Finally, the team still standing within the circle when it shrinks to its smallest size will be this year's S-Class Trial—Winner."
The entire area fell silent.
This was no longer a simple test of strength, but a cruel competition for survival.
Not only did they have to deal with the pressure of the shrinking environment and competition from other candidates, but they also had to evade—or confront—those three monstrous S-Class mages.
Gray's face turned pale.
He had once seen Gildarts pulverize a mountaintop with a single punch.
Erza's grip on her sword tightened slightly, but her eyes burned with fighting spirit.
"Three hunters..." Lisanna's voice trembled. "This is so cruel..."
"So we must either regroup as quickly as possible, or... seize an advantageous position." Ace stared at the holographic map.
The circle starting from the entire island meant there was ample time to move initially.
But as time went on, the safe zone would get smaller and smaller, and encounters would be inevitable.
On the map, the six golden dots of light began to move.
Some headed for the mountain peak, some slipped into the jungle, and some went straight for the swamp—clearly, everyone was vying for a favorable position.
"Ace-nii, what should we do?" Lisanna looked at him.
Ace took a deep breath and pointed to a spot on the map. "We're going here."
He was pointing to the stone forest in the west.
The area was filled with stone pillars, making the terrain complex and easy to defend but hard to attack.
It was also located relatively close to the center of the circle, meaning less pressure from the shrinking zone in the early stages.
More importantly—
"There's a network of natural caves under the stone forest, which can be used for hiding or ambushing. And the stone pillars can partially block lightning, which gives us some advantage against Laxus," Ace analyzed quickly.
"Gildarts's Crush magic would be too destructive to the underground caves, so he might not force an attack. As for Mystogan... if he's really here, nowhere is safe, so we might as well choose terrain that's advantageous to us."
"Okay." Lisanna trusted him unconditionally.
"Let's go."
The two of them and the beast rushed into the jungle, speeding toward the stone forest.
Behind them, the golden circle on the map flickered slightly and began to shrink at a speed barely perceptible to the naked eye.
The hunt had begun!
The holographic map floated somewhere in the forest, with Master Makarov standing beneath it, looking up.
Beside him, three figures quietly appeared.
On the left, Gildarts yawned, his short red hair sticking up messily.
He wore a tattered cloak and had a wine gourd hanging from his waist.
He scratched his head. "Do we really have to play with these brats? I don't know how to hold back, you know."
On the right, Laxus had his hands in his pockets.
He had spiky blond hair and wore a fur-collared coat, a scornful arc on his lips.
"It's good to clean out the trash early. Old man, we're not responsible if we kill or cripple them, right?"
In the center, Mystogan stood silently.
His entire body was wrapped in dark robes, and he wore a hood that covered his face, revealing only his jaw.
Five strangely shaped magic staves floated behind him, rotating slowly.
At Laxus's words, he merely nodded slightly in response.
Makarov glared at Laxus. "No killing, and no crippling. This is an exam, not a slaughter."
"Tch, boring," Laxus scoffed.
"Well then..." Gildarts took a swig of wine and grinned. "See you on the hunting ground in an hour?"
Mystogan turned, stepped into the shadows, and vanished without a trace.
Laxus's body flashed with lightning, and he transformed into a serpent of electricity that streaked across the sky.
Gildarts shook his head and walked slowly toward the jungle. "Young people these days are so impatient."
Makarov gazed at the slowly shrinking circle on the map and the seven moving dots of light, muttering to himself.
"Children, let this old man see... just how far you can struggle in this hunt."
"Fairy Tail doesn't need flowers raised in a greenhouse. What it needs... are true mages who can spread their wings in a storm."
The golden circle silently shrank by an inch.
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As you can guess, slight difference between this fic and canon, in canon Mystogan become S class after Erza and Mirajane in X782, here he make it in X779.