Fairy Tail: Collapsing Stars

Chapter 455: What S-Class Exam? I’m Mainly Here to Lie Down and Win!

Inside Lucy's rented apartment...

The beautiful blonde girl quietly leaned against the edge of the white ceramic bathtub, her snow-white and straight legs freely stretched out in the warm bathwater, then quietly drawn back. The girl simply wrapped both arms around her legs, resting her face above her knees, her face filled with melancholy.

"Leo that guy said that he would definitely help me win the Fairy Tail Guild's S-Class Mage Promotion Trial this year, allowing me to become the only S-Class Mage this year!"

"And in the end, isn't it still only me who got excluded?!"

"Leo really is unreliable! He's simply an idiot..."

"Hmph, Natsu that guy is even more of an idiot, so stupid! He actually misunderstood the Guild Master's meaning and ended up forming a team with that rude 'Desert King' Ajil!"

"And Brandish, that hateful woman! Once I return to the Heartfilia Estate, I'll definitely drag Michelle along and properly condemn Brandish for her despicable behavior today!"

"Brandish actually abandoned me, her childhood friend who grew up together with her, for the sake of victory, and chose a stronger teammate?! Damn, what a snobbish woman!"

Even though Lucy was alone, she still lay in the bathtub, continuously muttering to herself.

At the same time, while Lucy complained about her friends, she tightly wrapped her arms around her legs, and the small bathroom was filled with the girl's loneliness...

Then, on the other side...

"Y-you bastard! What did you do to us?!"

Dimaria was half-kneeling inside the ice cream shop. At this moment, her forehead was covered in sweat, her snow-white skin giving off a faint pink hue. She used all her strength to raise her flushed little face and looked at the young man before her who seemed like a 'saint,' questioning him.

Dimaria knew that the young man before her named Larcade Dragneel was one of the former Spriggan 12, and could be considered their senior, except that he had disappeared for several years for some unknown reason...

Therefore, Dimaria had not been careless. The moment she saw the young man, she immediately became vigilant. Unfortunately, Dimaria had still underestimated the young man's strength. Or rather, Dimaria suffered because she did not understand the young man's Magic, and thus Larcade caught her off guard, ultimately causing both her and Brandish to be defeated and fall victim to Larcade's despicable Magic...

"Yeah! What did I do to you?"

"Girl, I think you shouldn't ask me this question, but yourself. More precisely, ask your body. Your body will tell you all the answers..."

Larcade smiled as he looked at Dimaria, as well as Brandish, who had rolled her eyes, stuck out her little tongue, lost consciousness long ago, collapsed on the ground, and continued twitching. He asked Dimaria in return with a chuckle.

"Y-you bastard!!"

Dimaria was drenched in sweat at this moment. She really wanted to use her Time Magic to take Larcade down in one move.

But unfortunately, the constant feeling of 'pleasure' coming from her body at this moment made it completely impossible for Dimaria to concentrate and activate her Magic.

"Alright, Dimaria! It's time for you to depart..."

Larcade looked at Dimaria, who was continuously relying on the bloodline of her god to forcibly keep herself from fainting, and revealed a faint smile. He, Larcade, had seen many people with powerful wills. And then? Before his immense pleasure, no one could maintain their sense of self...

Larcade extended his palm and gently placed it on Dimaria's head. Immediately afterward, he injected all the white light emanating from himself into Dimaria's body through the top of her head.

"Ah~"

For a moment, Dimaria felt that pleasant sensation of happiness crazily surging into her body from the outside. Unable to help herself, she cried out loudly. Immediately afterward, Dimaria's body rose and fell violently, and in the end, even the resolute Dimaria could not help opening her mouth and sticking out her tongue. Then her eyes rolled back, and just like Brandish, she collapsed on the ground, losing consciousness.

Thus, the Dimaria and Brandish team was completely wiped out!

Unfortunately, they did not even manage to use the Magic they had mastered before being completely wiped out...

After Larcade had taken out Dimaria and Brandish, the two who could be called BUGs and posed the greatest threat to him and 'Death God' Bloodman, making them the quasi-winners of this year's Fairy Tail Guild S-Class Mage Promotion Trial...

'Death God' Bloodman finally arrived late and entered the ice cream shop.

"Dimaria, Brandish, you two were careless!"

'Death God' Bloodman shook his head as he looked at the fallen Brandish and Dimaria.

If Dimaria and Brandish had gone all out the moment they saw Larcade, then presumably the ones lying on the ground now would not be Brandish and Dimaria, but Larcade...

Unfortunately, there were no ifs!

Because Dimaria and Brandish only became Spriggan 12 after Larcade was taken away by Selene, the two girls did not understand Larcade's Magic. Bloodman had precisely taken advantage of this information gap to catch Brandish and Dimaria off guard. Of course, they only had one opportunity. If they failed, it would be dangerous...

After all, whether it was Brandish's Magic or Dimaria's Magic, both possessed powerful instant-kill abilities and were extremely troublesome.

"Alright, Bloodman! Capture these two girls!"

Larcade sat on a chair inside the ice cream shop and cheerfully spoke to Bloodman.

Clearly, this team was led and centered around Larcade.

"Magic Barrier Sea! Prison!"

Bloodman did not waste words. After hearing Larcade's words, he immediately manipulated his Magic Barrier Particles, imprisoning Dimaria and Brandish.

"Once a week has passed, after the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial the Guild Master mentioned begins, I will naturally release you! Don't resent me. I don't want to attack comrades like you either. This is all for the sake of becoming an S-Class Mage and catching up to the footsteps of our Emperor, the great Zeref..."

After capturing the two girls, Bloodman did not forget to mutter to himself and add that line, expressing his attitude.

After all, even 'Death God' did not want to be retaliated against by the two girls afterward. That would be very troublesome...

"Hehe..."

Larcade was disdainful of this. He believed that Bloodman's behavior of attacking someone, then repenting and explaining afterward was truly unnecessary.

"Boss, two bowls of shaved ice!"

Larcade turned toward the owner of the ice cream shop and called out softly.

"Coming~"

The shop owner had witnessed everything that had happened before his eyes. He did not dare ask, nor did he dare say anything.

Hadn't he seen that all these people had the symbol of the Fairy Tail Guild tattooed on their bodies?

Clearly, none of these people were good people!

On the other side...

Inside the bushes outside the town of Magnolia.

"Wahl, you felt it too, right?"

"Mm, I felt it! Hehe, interesting..."

Mystogan and Wahl Icht were talking about something as they advanced.

"Buzz!"

Accompanied by a rumble, countless characters flew up, forming walls one after another that completely surrounded Wahl Icht and Mystogan.

"This is a script?!"

Mystogan looked at the transparent walls of text before him and almost instantly distinguished what exactly the Magic before his eyes was.

"That's right, this is a script..."

"Sorry! You have already entered the trap I set up!"

"Although attacking while someone else is chatting and completely defenseless is an extremely shameful and despicable act! But in order to obtain victory in this year's S-Class Mage Promotion Trial, and in order to get closer to Lord Laxus, I have no choice but to act..."

"But don't worry. This isn't an offensive-type script, nor is it a script that makes you kill each other. I simply hope that you can stay inside the script and have a good rest. About one week of rest should be enough..."

Just as Mystogan was looking thoughtfully at the walls of text before him, Freed, holding a Western sword, walked out from the bushes beside them and spoke softly to Mystogan.

"That's right! Right now, you have already fallen into Freed's script. You should know, right? In this world, scripts are absolute! So I advise you all to surrender immediately! Otherwise, my babies won't be able to resist attacking you~"

Bickslow and the eight dolls he had created also walked out from the bushes on the other side.

Yes, Bickslow's strength was also far stronger than in the original work at this moment. He could already freely manipulate eight dolls to fight for him...

Just like this, Freed and Bickslow completely surrounded Mystogan and Wahl Icht from the front and back.

"I see. So this is a trap you set up beforehand?"

"If it were someone else, there really is a possibility that you could take them down! But unfortunately, you chose the wrong opponents..."

Mystogan, caught between Freed and Bickslow, remained calm. There was not the slightest trace of worry on his face. Even though he was currently imprisoned within Freed's script, he still remained completely unperturbed, as if everything was within his grasp.

"Hmm?!"

After hearing Mystogan's words, the expressions of Freed and Bickslow both changed, and vigilance arose in their hearts.

"Mystogan, stop wasting your effort! Although Laxus told us to be careful of you, saying that your strength is extremely powerful and not inferior to his! But scripts are absolute. Once inside a script, even Laxus cannot break free!"

After exchanging a glance, Freed and Bickslow vigilantly watched their surroundings while speaking coldly to Mystogan, who was trapped inside the script.

"Is that so? If I were you, I would take a good look around you and see whether the enemy has laid down any traps!"

Mystogan merely smiled faintly in response.

"Buzz!"

Precisely as Mystogan finished speaking, a rumbling sound immediately rang out.

Beside Bickslow and Freed, who were watching Mystogan with vigilant eyes, crimson Magic Circles immediately lit up.

"This is..."

Bickslow and Freed were shocked. They discovered that at some point, seven staffs had been set up around the two of them by Mystogan!

"Damn it!"

The instant he discovered those staffs, Freed immediately gripped his Western sword, seemingly intending to write something down as a script.

"Too late!"

Mystogan, who was trapped inside the script, directly used his hands to manipulate the Magic staffs outside the script and activated the Magic.

"Buzz! Buzz! Buzz! Buzz..."

In an instant, green, red, yellow, white, black, blue, and purple—seven layers of Magic staffs—rose up like a pagoda, surrounding Freed and Bickslow.

"Escape..."

At the critical moment, Freed finally finished writing the script on his own body. Precisely as Freed finished writing the script, the light of the Magic Circles immediately filled the entire world.

"Sevenfold Magic Circle! Nihility!"

Immediately afterward, Mystogan's calm voice slowly sounded in Freed's ears.

"Boom!!"

Illusory light instantly swallowed Freed and Bickslow.

A moment later...

When the light dispersed, Freed and Bickslow were already crawling on the ground in an extremely miserable state.

"In an instant, it actually plundered all the Magic Power inside our bodies! Is this the strength of Mystogan recognized by Laxus?"

Freed and Bickslow looked miserably at the mysterious man who could still attack them despite being trapped inside the script, speaking helplessly.

"They didn't get taken down?"

As for Mystogan, who was trapped inside the script by Freed, when he saw that the Magic he had invented based on the Superdimensional Space Magic Phantom, specifically designed to plunder other people's Magic Power and stamina, had failed to completely take down Freed and Bickslow, his brows immediately furrowed slightly. It seemed that this Magic still needed further improvement.

Originally, according to Mystogan's calculations, Freed and Bickslow, after being hit by Nihility, would collapse on the ground and need seven days to recover their strength. But unfortunately, Mystogan's calculations had gone wrong. He had underestimated the perseverance of Freed and Bickslow...

"I have to admit, we underestimated you, Mystogan!"

"With your strength, you really are just as Laxus said, powerful and invincible!"

"But unfortunately, you also underestimated us. We successfully endured your follow-up attack, while you and your teammate will probably remain trapped inside my script..."

"But rest assured. One week from now, after the Guild Master summons all of us S-Class candidates at the guild, this script will automatically disappear..."

Freed stood up from the ground, dusted himself off, and looked at Mystogan as he spoke softly.

"..."

Mystogan was somewhat silent after hearing Freed's words.

"Freed, Bickslow, it seems you two have misunderstood something..."

"I wonder, when did you develop the misconception that my Magic can only be used once?!"

Mystogan stood inside the script and asked Freed and the others.

His Magic did not rely on his own Magic Power. Instead, it was released through the Magic Power contained within the Magic Crystals embedded in those staffs, and the Magic Crystals stored enough Magic Power for Mystogan to release Nihility at least ten times...

As for Mystogan, he merely stood inside the script and manipulated those staffs. Moreover, he did not rely on Magic to manipulate the staffs either, but rather on the telecommunication signal device invented for him by Wisdom.

"What?!"

After hearing Mystogan's words, Freed and Bickslow were immediately shocked.

The two vigilantly looked at the surrounding staffs, but this time the staffs did not light up.

"He's bluffing?!"

At this, Freed and Bickslow exchanged a glance, and they confirmed that Mystogan was bluffing.

"But just in case, let's dismantle those staffs!"

Freed thought for a moment and decided that he should still clear away the staffs around them that posed a huge threat, to prevent these staffs from suddenly attacking them. After all, no one could say what other methods Mystogan had.

"Don't misunderstand. After you dodged my first attack, I no longer wanted to attack you!"

"But that doesn't mean others won't attack..."

Just as Freed and Bickslow were about to act and clear away the staffs Mystogan had arranged around them, Mystogan finally spoke once again.

"Hmm?!"

Mystogan's words caused Freed and Bickslow to stand in place in slight astonishment.

At this moment, they were puzzled. It was one thing for Mystogan to be able to attack them, because Mystogan had prepared measures outside the script beforehand, but Wahl Icht had been trapped inside the script by them! Or could it be that Wahl Icht had also prepared measures around them?!

Freed and Bickslow exchanged a glance. Their years of experience as partners meant that they could communicate through their eyes without needing to say anything. At this moment, neither of them relaxed their vigilance.

"It's finally my turn to act..."

Wahl Icht looked at Bickslow and Freed and smiled.

"When did you all develop the misconception that scripts are absolute?"

Wahl Icht imitated Mystogan's emphasis as he spoke, taking out his Magic Barrier Particle Elimination Device.

"Idiot! Scripts being absolute is common knowledge in the Magic world!"

Bickslow stared blankly at the device in Wahl's hand. He did not know what the device was for, but that did not stop him from informing Wahl of the importance of the script's absolute nature.

"Buzz!"

However, in the very next second, just as Bickslow firmly believed that scripts had to be absolute, accompanied by Wahl Icht activating the Magic Barrier Particle Elimination Device in his hand, a huge hole was opened in Freed's script by Wahl.

"Absolute? There has never been such a thing as absolute in this world..."

"So now, I have successfully come out! As for you two, how about you accompany me and have a good fight?"

Wahl Icht rolled his neck.

Then he revealed a ferocious grin toward Bickslow and Freed.

"Damn it!"

Freed and Bickslow stared wide-eyed at the shattered script. They knew that trouble was about to arrive.

At the same time...

Evergreen, Elfman, Lisanna, and Juvia gathered in the town of Magnolia.

"Brother Elfman, are you planning to fight me right now?"

Lisanna looked at her brother warily and asked.

"No! Evergreen and I came to form an alliance with you!"

Elfman shook his head upon hearing this and explained to Lisanna.

"Lisanna, you should also know that there are simply too many monsters in this year's S-Class Mage Promotion Trial!"

"Our strength is simply far too inferior compared to those monsters. Only forming a group is our sole way out!"

Evergreen put one hand on her waist, while holding a small folding fan in her other hand to cover her beautiful face. She raised her chin and explained to Lisanna and Juvia in a tone that sounded much like a command.

To be honest, if Evergreen did not wear glasses, she could also be considered a beauty...

"Mm..."

Lisanna slightly furrowed her delicate brows after hearing Evergreen's words.

To be honest, she did not like Evergreen's attitude when speaking, but Lisanna also knew that, in fact, Evergreen had no malicious intent...

After Lisanna thought for a while, she finally nodded. She believed that what Evergreen said indeed made some sense.

"Of course, besides us, I also invited Bickslow and Freed~"

"As long as the six of us join forces, no matter how you look at it, there will definitely be a place for us in this S-Class Mage Promotion Trial!"

As Evergreen spoke, she snapped open the folding fan in her hand, an excited smile spreading across the corners of her mouth.

"Good!"

When Lisanna heard that Evergreen's alliance also included Freed and Bickslow, she immediately nodded vigorously. With Freed and Bickslow joining them, their chances of victory had increased somewhat.

Of course, it wasn't as though they had no conditions either...

"Forming an alliance is no problem! But you must help us deal with one person!"

Lisanna looked at her brother Elfman and Evergreen as she spoke.

"Oh?!"

Evergreen raised her brows upon hearing this, wondering whom Lisanna would ask them to deal with.

One had to know that with their Thunder God Tribe team, together with Elfman, Lisanna, and Juvia, even if they were dealing with S-Class Mages such as Laxus and Erza, they could still entangle them for a period of time...

"This person is..."

"Lucy Heartfilia!"

Just as Evergreen was wondering whom Lisanna would ask them to deal with, she heard Lisanna calmly say the enemy's name.

"Uh..."

Evergreen was completely stunned upon hearing this. Wasn't it just dealing with Lucy? Did they really need so many people to act? She alone would be enough, wouldn't she?!

"No problem! But before dealing with Lucy, come with us to the woods outside the town and meet up with Freed and Bickslow!"

"Only by meeting up with them can we reduce our risks to the lowest! Otherwise, we could also be hunted by others at any time. Don't lose the big picture over a small matter..."

Evergreen spoke to Lisanna and Juvia.

"Good!"

Lisanna and Juvia exchanged a glance, then nodded in agreement without even thinking.

After all, Lucy was inside her rented apartment and could not go anywhere. Even if they went to deal with Lucy a little later, there would be absolutely no problem...

"Very good~"

Evergreen revealed a faint smile at this.

"Without further delay, let's go to the woods outside the town and meet up with Freed and Bickslow!"

Seeing that they had reached a consensus, Evergreen spoke to everyone.

"Let's go!"

Thus, Evergreen, Elfman, Lisanna, and Juvia instantly formed a large team and headed toward the woods outside the town.

At the same time...

"Wahl Icht, unfathomable!"

Inside the woods outside the town of Magnolia, Wahl Icht held one defeated Freed and Bickslow in each hand and casually threw them onto the ground. Before his consciousness completely disappeared, Freed looked at Wahl Icht and spoke in shock, then rolled his eyes and completely lay on the ground.

"Too weak! Really too weak..."

Wahl Icht looked at Bickslow and Freed and sighed helplessly. With Freed and Bickslow's strength, they could not arouse even the slightest bit of interest in Wahl.

"Wahl, reinforcements are coming from behind. Four in total!"

Just as Wahl was lamenting the weakness of Freed and Bickslow, Mystogan seemed to have sensed something and spoke to Wahl beside him.

"Oh, interesting. Leave all four of them to me!"

Upon hearing this, Wahl immediately revealed an excited expression. He looked forward to fighting stronger opponents, as this would allow him to obtain more data. Especially when fighting enemies, it was easiest to discover his own shortcomings. Find his shortcomings, then improve himself—this was Wahl's purpose.

"Alright..."

Mystogan would not stop Wahl from evolving himself. After hearing Wahl's words, he merely nodded lightly, indicating his agreement.

However, in a place neither Mystogan nor Wahl Icht had noticed, a majestic eagle was flying through the sky, taking in the entire situation of the town.

"Reporting to Boss!"

"Right now, Mystogan and Wahl's team has just defeated Freed and Bickslow's team. Next, they will probably clash with Evergreen, Elfman, Lisanna, and Juvia as well. The winner will most likely still be Mystogan and Wahl..."

That eagle was incredibly mysterious. It actually possessed its own intelligence, and at this moment, it seemed to be communicating with someone else.

"Received your transmission, Aquila! From now on, continue monitoring them. I'll find a way to lure Mystogan, after he deals with Evergreen and the others, to the shaved ice shop to deal with Bloodman and Larcade..."

Before long, a hoarse voice came through the eagle's earpiece.

"Understood, Boss Leo!"

The eagle immediately nodded upon hearing this, then continued circling above the town of Magnolia.

Inside a teahouse in the town of Magnolia...

Leo, the Celestial Spirit of Leo, was wearing a pitch-black suit and quietly sitting inside a private room. A chessboard was placed before him, with countless chess pieces on it.

"Right now, the strongest team, Dimaria and Brandish, has already been defeated!"

"Freed and Bickslow have been taken out by Mystogan, and next Evergreen's and Lisanna's teams will also be eliminated!"

"Then Mystogan will be guided by me to deal with Bloodman and the others. When the strong clash, only one will remain! If Mystogan doesn't intend to use his full strength, then there's an eighty percent chance Bloodman will emerge victorious!"

"At the same time, Natsu is currently fighting Gray! Then, having either Natsu or Gray finish off whichever side wins the battle between Mystogan and Bloodman, using the strongest Fire Demon END or Ice Devil Slayer Magic to deal with the two demons, Bloodman and Larcade, is the best choice..."

"By then, of the thirteen teams from the Fairy Tail Guild participating in the S-Class Mage Promotion Trial, I'm afraid not even half will remain! Without a doubt, this year's victory belongs to Lucy Heartfilia..."

As Leo spoke, he gradually revealed a crazed smile.

"Boss, it's done! Right now Gajeel and Levy's team, Cana and Kagura's team, Lyon and Mest's team, and Wendy and Jacob's team have already encountered each other..."

Just as Leo was calculating and planning to kick all the teams out of the Fairy Tail Guild's S-Class Mage Promotion Trial, another voice sounded in his ear.

"Very good~"

Leo smiled at this. His goal had never been to kick out a few teams, but to kick out every member of every team except Lucy. Everything was for Lucy's victory.

"Ah!"

On the other side, Magnolia Town, pedestrian street, intersection...

Lyon and Mest's team, Levy and Gajeel's team, Kagura and Cana's team, and Wendy and Jacob's team came from four directions and ultimately, by an extremely strange coincidence, ran into each other...

For a moment, all eight people who had come from the four directions of the intersection were frozen in place.

Precisely when the eight people met, the atmosphere gradually became heavy.

The eight people standing in the east, south, west, and north all remained in place without moving. They were all wary of everyone else, vaguely confronting one another.

"Good afternoon, everyone~"

In the end, Jacob, who was the strongest among everyone, was the first to speak. As a gentleman, Jacob revealed a friendly smile toward the people coming from all directions and greeted them.

"Let's join forces and take out this Spriggan 12 first!"

At the same time, Kagura, Cana, Gajeel, Levy, Lyon, and Mest reached an agreement the moment Jacob spoke. They planned to join forces to take out the strongest first, then continue their internal struggle.

A bloody storm was about to unfold in Magnolia Town...

"Hehehe~ hehehe~"

On the other side, inside Lucy's rented apartment.

Lucy was wrapped in a white towel and sitting beside the bed. While swinging her snow-white little feet, she hummed a little tune, holding a hair dryer in her hand and continuously drying her long hair that was like golden silk.

It seemed that the events in the town had absolutely nothing to do with Lucy.