Fairy Tail: Collapsing Stars

Chapter 457: After Ten Years, You Finally Revealed Your Tail!

As Natsu unleashed an earth-shattering amount of magic power, endless flames soared into the sky!

While burning countless mountains, that terrifying dragon power was like a massive stone falling into a lake, causing countless ripples to spread across the previously tranquil surface…

"Ahahaha!"

"I'm actually this strong?!"

Natsu looked at the snowy world that had vanished beneath his single punch and laughed loudly with one hand on his hip.

"Ah, my head is spinning!"

After laughing, Natsu immediately fell to the ground with a "thump," apparently fainting from exhaustion after running out of power.

"This Natsu looks like an idiot. Who would have thought he had this kind of strength?!"

Beside Natsu, 'Desert King' Ajeel widened his eyes. Originally, under the combined suppression of Gray and Invel Yura's ice magic, he and Natsu had gradually been forced into retreat and were suffering terribly. Yet suddenly, Natsu had exploded with power, unleashing an amount of magic power from his body that no ordinary human should possess. In the blink of an eye, he had defeated Gray and Invel with a single attack…

As Ajeel recalled the moment Natsu had unleashed his magic power, cold sweat continuously appeared on his forehead. That terrifying power felt as though he were facing top-tier combatants like Irene and Ewen…

Terrifying!

At the same time…

Inside Natsu's body, within the Mindscape, endless magma covered the ground. Inside an active volcano, a crimson dragon was bathing leisurely in magma that was over a thousand degrees hot.

"That idiot Natsu! He actually recklessly activated the power I left inside him!"

"But this also means that Natsu's strength has grown to the point where he can use the power of the Fire Dragon King, right?"

"Hehe, putting everything else aside, Ewen really does know how to teach children!"

"Whether it's Natsu, or the children of Iron Dragon Metalicana and Sky Dragon Grandeeney, they're all far stronger than the children of Shadow Dragon Skiadrum and White Dragon Weisslogia!"

"Hehe, though I suppose that's simply fate, right?"

"Speaking of which, Natsu unconsciously used my magic power. If that's the case, that guy will inevitably take action! I'm really looking forward to it!"

The crimson Fire Dragon King soaked in the magma of Natsu's Mindscape while muttering to himself.

At the same time, the Fire Dragon King seemed to sense something. Through Natsu's body, he looked toward a certain mountain peak on the continent of Ishgar…

Mount Zonia.

A pitch-black figure was lying atop the towering mountain, narrowing his eyes. It seemed as though he was sleeping, yet also as though he were deep in thought about something…

Until he sensed that fierce dragon power, carrying endless heat.

The pitch-black figure finally opened his eyes.

He no longer dwelled on the past.

Instead, he rose from the ground, exposing his mountain-sized body beneath the blazing sunlight.

As the giant beast stood up from the ground, all the birds and beasts on Mount Zonia seemed to sense something. One after another, they fled in terror in all directions!

"ROAR!!"

Immediately afterward, a roar like thunder spread out from the summit of the mountain.

"Ten years! Nearly ten years…"

"You've finally shown your tail! This time, I'll definitely catch you! Then I'll tear you into pieces!"

The pitch-black beast roared toward the sky in near madness.

Who knew what he had experienced over these years?

Every holiday, there would inevitably be bait emitting dragon power wandering around him.

One after another, endlessly.

Just like mosquitoes in summer, buzzing and buzzing, buzzing and buzzing, making an endless racket…

Did that bastard who sent a bunch of dragon-power-emitting bait to fly around him every holiday really think he had nothing to do?

Did he really think he was that free every day?

From X774 to X778, he had spent enormous amounts of time every year investigating the source of that dragon aura.

Unfortunately, every time he thought he had finally found the source of the dragon aura, it turned out to be bait!

But this time would be different.

This time, his keen instincts told him that the terrifying dragon aura was different from before.

This time, it was much denser!

Dragon power of this level was absolutely impossible for mere bait to possess…

Thinking of this, the pitch-black beast stopped wasting time.

He spread his enormous wings and flew toward the sky.

His only objective was to eliminate those damn dragons.

And this beast, who had fallen into endless madness upon sensing the aura of a dragon, had an extremely famous name.

His name was 'Black Dragon King' Acnologia!

"Little Blackie has started heading toward Magnolia Town!"

"Looks like the S-Class Mage exam needs to begin soon too…"

The birds created by Ewen through Addition Magic had been circling around the great 'Black Dragon King' Acnologia all this time.

His purpose was to keep the black dragon under his control.

Now that Little Blackie had begun moving, Ewen decided to add another log to this year's S-Class Mage exam!

"Buzz~ Buzz~"

The Lullaby, the work of that genius young man who had been captured by Ewen and the others and was being used as Magnolia Town's loudspeaker—also known as the 'Cursed Song'—suddenly began glowing with a brilliant crimson light.

At the same time, floating screens suddenly appeared before all the surviving candidates of the Fairy Tail Guild's X784 S-Class Mage exam.

The screen displayed a pitch-black room.

Inside the room sat a handsome young man with orange-yellow short hair, wearing a suit.

"Kehehehe, those idiots from the Fairy Tail Guild have completely fallen into my calculations!"

"As expected, the wisdom of mortals cannot compare with the eternal stars! The final result of this battle has already been decided! No matter which one of these idiots wins in the end, their stamina will probably be completely exhausted by then!"

"At that time, as long as I personally take action, I'll definitely be able to defeat these idiots with ease. That will guarantee Lucy's victory in this year's S-Class Mage exam! I really am too clever…"

"Hmph hmph, I imagine those fools are still fighting desperately right now, while I, the great me, can simply sit back and enjoy the fruits of their labor at the teahouse on Road Thirty-Two, West District, Magnolia Town!"

"Ah, honestly, this feeling of effortlessly controlling this year's grand S-Class Mage event is truly wonderful. After the S-Class Mage exam ends, I can simply pin the blame on that stupid girl Lucy!"

"Yes, there can only be one victor, and that is me, the great Leo of the Leo Celestial Spirit…"

Immediately afterward, the handsome young man with orange-yellow short hair, whose eyes were covered by a mosaic, suddenly adjusted his position and turned his face toward the camera, speaking with incomparable arrogance.

At the same time, his voice was transmitted throughout Magnolia Town by Lullaby using its magic.

"Huh?!"

For a moment, all the candidates of the Fairy Tail Guild's S-Class Mage exam who had been fighting desperately simultaneously froze.

Everyone looked toward the recording before them.

But that wasn't the end.

The recording continued playing…

Again and again, as though it were afraid it hadn't angered the Fairy Tail people enough!

"Stop, Brandish! We have something more important to do…"

Larcade clasped his hands together, looking like a saint who knew neither anger nor joy.

If not for the veins already bulging on his forehead, it would truly have been difficult to tell from his expression alone that he was currently furious.

"I have never seen such an arrogant Celestial Spirit…"

"It's been four hundred years. Has the Celestial Spirit World become this unruly now? Does the Celestial Spirit King know about this?"

'Death God' Bradman heard Larcade's words and withdrew the two scythes behind him, his brows tightly furrowed.

Bradman had lived in the Alvarez Empire for nearly four hundred years. It wasn't as though he had never encountered the king among the Celestial Spirits.

Bradman had to admit that the ancient, unchanging king who was eternal like the stars was indeed overwhelmingly powerful.

Even their great master, the legendary Dark Mage Zeref, might not have been able to defeat that king.

But there was a prerequisite.

That was in the Celestial Spirit World.

In the human world, because the summoner's magic power was insufficient, the great Celestial Spirit King could barely use any magic. He was even restricted by his summoner and could only rely on ordinary physical attacks. As a result, even the great Celestial Spirit King could not display much strength, and even 'Hades' Mard Geer could contend with him for a while.

Therefore, even the Celestial Spirit King did not dare to behave so arrogantly in the human world. He would remain as low-key as possible…

But today, something that opened Bradman's eyes had happened.

The Celestial Spirit King himself wasn't even being arrogant yet!

One of the soldiers under the Celestial Spirit King was already outrageously arrogant!

Therefore, Bradman decided to personally help that guy who called himself Leo, the Leo Celestial Spirit, loosen his muscles and bones a little!

"Let's go! Let's head to the teahouse on Road Thirty-Two in the West District and properly meet that Leo, the Leo Celestial Spirit~"

Larcade spoke as he took the lead and walked toward the western district.

"Mm…"

Bradman lightly nodded and followed behind Larcade.

"Saved…"

At that moment, as Larcade and Bradman left, Jacob, whose clothes were tattered and whose entire body was covered in wounds, finally breathed a sigh of relief and collapsed onto the ground.

"Huff, huff, huff…"

"I wonder how Wendy is doing right now?!"

Jacob's chest rose and fell continuously.

His stamina was almost completely depleted, yet Jacob was not particularly concerned about his own condition.

His heart was filled only with concern for his teammate, Wendy Marvell.

After all, compared to his own situation, Wendy's strength was weaker, while she had more opponents. Moreover, the average quality of those opponents was considerably higher than those on his side…

After all, the only person who truly posed a threat to Jacob was Kagura.

As for Larcade and Bradman, whom Jacob encountered afterward, he could only consider himself unlucky.

"Get up!"

Jacob summoned every ounce of his strength to stand.

His forehead was covered in sweat.

Even though he was seriously injured and could barely walk, he still wanted to drag his broken body toward Wendy…

"Thump~"

However, the moment Jacob stood up, his vision suddenly went black.

The next second, his consciousness gradually faded.

"Damn it, I still can't hold on!"

"Sorry, Wendy! Looks like I really can only accompany you this far!"

Jacob muttered to himself before immediately collapsing to the ground and fainting.

At the same time…

On the eastern side of Magnolia Town.

Wendy had already been wrapped in countless pieces of iron and ice, forming a cocoon.

Only her adorable little face remained exposed…

"Waaah, Mr. Jacob, I failed!"

Wendy was trapped inside the cocoon, completely unable to move.

With her strength, even with Charle's support, she was still no match for Gajeel, Lyon, and Mest together.

"What do you think about this?"

Mest, Lyon, and Gajeel had naturally also seen the video Ewen had deliberately broadcast.

Therefore, Mest turned toward Lyon and Gajeel and asked.

"What else can we do? Go take down the bastard who tried to use us!"

Lyon and Gajeel unexpectedly reached an agreement.

Their only objective was to make that bastard who had tried to use them pay the price!

"I understand…"

Upon hearing this, Mest immediately understood what Lyon and Gajeel meant.

Without wasting any words, he immediately placed his arms over Lyon and Gajeel's shoulders.

"Buzz!"

With a flash, the three of them instantly disappeared from where they stood.

Almost in the blink of an eye, Mest, Gajeel, and Lyon appeared outside the entrance of the teahouse on Road Thirty-Two in the West District.

"Hehe, what a coincidence, everyone~"

"I didn't expect you guys to arrive too…"

At almost the exact same moment Mest and the other two teleported to the teahouse, Larcade, his hands clasped together like a saint, also arrived nearby.

Beside Larcade was 'Death God' Bradman, dressed in a black trench coat.

"These two guys are strong!"

Mest, Lyon, and Gajeel trembled as they looked at Larcade and Bradman.

They could sense the powerful strength possessed by the two men.

"Everyone, since you're all here, come out!"

"This is where our final battle will take place…"

Larcade clasped his hands together.

Facing the wary Mest and the other two, he merely smiled.

In Larcade's eyes, Mest and the other two were merely minor characters.

The truly powerful people were his fellow members of the Spriggan 12.

"There are more people!"

At the same time, Mest, Lyon, and Gajeel were stunned after hearing Larcade's words.

Their senses had detected no one else nearby.

"Buzz~"

As soon as Larcade finished speaking, a ripple of water-like light appeared.

Mystogan and Wall Eehto appeared before everyone.

"Huff~"

On the other side, amid a gust of sand, 'Desert King' Ajeel also appeared before everyone.

"Looks like the few of us are the ones left in this year's S-Class Mage exam, right?"

Larcade clasped his hands together and asked Ajeel, Mystogan, and the others.

"What? Are you saying Levy and the others have all been taken out?"

Gajeel and the other two were shocked upon hearing Larcade's words.

"Buzz!"

Mystogan remained as taciturn as ever.

He lightly waved his staff.

A magic circle immediately appeared beneath him.

The next second, a group of unconscious mages appeared in the middle of the street.

They were none other than Freed, Bickslow, Evergreen, Elfman, Lisanna, and Juvia…

At this moment, all six had their magic power sealed by Magic-Sealing Stone and were wearing sleep masks.

Unless the masks were removed, they would probably remain asleep indefinitely.

This also happened to prove that these six had already been taken out by Mystogan and Wall Eehto.

"Mm~"

Larcade looked at the six unconscious people and revealed a faint smile.

Then he lightly nodded toward 'Death God' Bradman beside him.

"Boom!"

After receiving Larcade's signal, Bradman immediately summoned an endless black ocean.

The oceans were all composed of Barrier Particles.

Ordinary people inside these oceans would only become weak in all four limbs and be unable to escape…

As the black ocean appeared, five bound girls appeared before everyone.

The five girls were Brandish and Dimaria, whom Larcade had taken out right from the beginning, as well as Kagura, Cana, and Levy, who had just been defeated by Larcade and Bradman.

At this moment, the five girls' clothes were tattered, revealing plenty of skin, although Brandish and Dimaria's original outfits had already been rather provocative to begin with…

Just like those captured by Mystogan and Wall Eehto, these five beautiful girls also had Magic-Sealing Stone cuffs around their wrists to prevent them from recovering their magic power.

"Levy…"

Gajeel clenched his fists as he looked at Levy, who had been captured.

"Mest…"

At the same time, Lyon nodded toward Mest.

"Understood!"

Mest vanished in a flash.

Several seconds later, when Mest returned, he brought the captured Wendy with him, as well as Jacob, who had fainted after exhausting his power.

"Clink~"

At this point, 'Desert King' Ajeel seemed to understand what everyone was doing.

Everyone was gathering and checking the eliminated candidates to prevent a loophole like Lucy's previous strategy, in which she had not participated in the battle and simply waited to reap the benefits.

Thus, Ajeel lightly snapped his fingers.

Immediately afterward, the ground before him transformed into countless fine grains of sand.

Three figures slowly emerged from the sand.

They were Gray, Invel Yura, and Natsu…

"I remember that you and Natsu were a pair, right?"

"How did you end up taking out your own teammate?"

Lyon looked at Natsu, who had fainted in Ajeel's quicksand, and asked in confusion.

"He fainted on his own…"

Ajeel glanced at Lyon before explaining indifferently.

At this moment, Ajeel's mind was still filled with the scene of Natsu's power explosion.

That scorching flame had been like a blazing sun!

Ajeel was very confident that if Natsu could explode with that kind of power again, then there would be no need to continue the Fairy Tail S-Class Mage exam!

Because there would only be one winner.

That would be Natsu Dragneel…

Regarding this, Ajeel could only say that Natsu truly lived up to being His Majesty Zeref's younger brother.

His strength was indeed formidable.

"Ajeel took out three!"

"The Mystogan team took out six!"

"We have two…"

"Larcade and the others took out five!"

"In other words, sixteen people have already been eliminated from this year's S-Class Mage exam!"

"And there are currently eight people here!"

"That makes twenty-four altogether."

"Counting Lucy, who is hiding inside the building, it seems everyone has finally gathered!"

Mest swept his gaze around before beginning to count the numbers.

In the end, Mest lightly nodded.

The number he calculated matched the number of people present.

"Next is the final…"

"Lucy, stop hiding! We know you're inside this building. Hurry up and come out!"

Mest looked at the teahouse before him and shouted with a cold laugh.

"BOOM!!"

At the same time, as Mest's voice fell, everyone else's gazes also landed on the teahouse.

For a moment, overwhelming pressure descended upon the seemingly ordinary teahouse.

"…"

Inside the teahouse, Leo's expression became incredibly ugly.

He carefully peered through the gap in the window, looking at everyone outside.

"What the hell?!"

"Isn't this basically setting me up?!"

After confirming that all the remaining S-Class Mage candidates who still possessed combat ability had gathered beneath his building, Leo was filled with despair.

He wrapped both hands around his forehead and stared at the scene before him in horror.

"That video wasn't leaked by me at all!"

"Those words weren't even spoken by me…"

"What kind of idiot would mock other people and then reveal his own address?!"

"Most importantly, these people actually believed it! And they still claim they aren't idiots?!"

"But right now, they all think Lucy and I are inside this teahouse. If that's the case, then I still have a chance of winning. As long as I hold them back here, Lucy can survive. In the end, victory will still belong to me…"

Thinking of this, a strange light appeared in Leo's eyes.

Yes.

Sacrificing himself did not matter.

As long as Lucy could be the last one standing, it would be his victory.

Therefore, Leo lightly jumped from the teahouse window and landed in the middle of the Fairy Tail Guild mages.

"You finally came out, Lucy!"

Ajeel looked at Leo, frowned, and shouted coldly.

Yes.

Ajeel had absolutely no idea what Lucy looked like.

He simply had no interest in people who were too weak…

"This isn't Lucy!"

"This is Leo…"

Lyon and the others looked at Ajeel, who had mistaken the wrong person, and broke into cold sweat.

So this guy didn't even know what Lucy looked like?!

"Everyone…"

"You came to the wrong place!"

"Lucy isn't in the teahouse behind me at all. She's currently at home taking a bath!"

"If you don't believe me, go to Lucy's apartment and see for yourselves!"

Without hesitation, Leo directly sold Lucy out.

"Don't joke around! Although I'll die if I fail to help Lucy win this S-Class Mage exam…"

"But if I fight these people here right now, I'll die immediately! Whether I die in the future or die right now, I can still make that choice…"

Leo's lips curled upward.

At the same time, he apologized to Lucy in his heart.

"Sorry, Lucy! It's not that I don't want to help you. It's just that I'm too weak and there's nothing I can do…"

As the disciple personally favored by Gildarts, the scumbag Leo immediately chose to betray his master for his own benefit!

"I don't believe you!"

However, just as Leo proudly waited for everyone to head to Lucy's apartment and settle the score with her, what greeted him were the contemptuous gazes of everyone.

"Leo, you really think we're idiots!"

"You think that after falling for your trick once, we'll fall for it a second time?"

"Take him out, then rush inside and take out Lucy!"

After discussing it briefly, everyone's objective was almost instantly decided.

One could clearly see just how much Leo was hated!

As everyone reached an agreement, countless magic circles immediately lit up across the streets of the town!

"Hey! W-wait a second…"

Leo looked at the magic circles one after another, cold sweat covering his forehead.

Why weren't these people following the script?!

Wasn't he doomed now?!

"Desert Sandstorm!"

"200-Millimeter Positron Cannon!"

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

"Ice-Make: Saint Dragon Dance!"

"Fivefold Magic Circle: Miko Kagura!"

"Pleasure!"

"First Curse…"

In an instant, countless spells bombarded Leo.

In the blink of an eye, Leo and the teahouse behind him were blasted into the sky.

"What the hell?!"

Leo flew hundreds of meters into the air before crashing heavily onto the ground.

He lay there, staring at the Fairy Tail Guild's S-Class Mage candidates who had unleashed such brutal attacks against him, the corners of his eyes twitching incessantly.

"Too weak!"

"At this level, there's no way you could possibly defeat us!"

"Damn it, the teahouse was destroyed too! The guild master is definitely going to criticize us later."

"Hurry and search for Lucy. See if she was defeated by us…"

Everyone exchanged remarks while rapidly searching through the ruins.

However, the teahouse seemed to have been cleared out by Leo long ago.

Apart from Leo, there was no one else inside.

"Looks like Leo wasn't lying to us. Lucy really is at her apartment!"

"Let's go take out Lucy…"

After searching the building and discovering that there was no one inside, everyone finally believed Leo's words.

"I told you! I told you!"

Leo lay on the ground, looking at the mages with tears in his eyes.

He was utterly helpless.

He had clearly already told them where Lucy was.

Why did no one believe him?!

"Let's take out this Celestial Spirit first, then go deal with Lucy…"

'Death God' Bradman spoke as he pulled out the two scythes behind him and walked toward Leo.

From Bradman's posture, it was obvious that he intended to deliver Leo a fatal blow and send him back to the Celestial Spirit World.

"This is bad!"

Leo looked at Bradman walking toward him step by step, cold sweat covering his forehead.

Just sensing the murderous aura that Bradman was unconsciously releasing made Leo shudder.

Too strong.

Bradman before him was far too powerful.

He was overwhelmingly stronger than Leo…

"What are you going to do to my Celestial Spirit?!"

Just as Bradman reached Leo and prepared to deliver the fatal blow, a whip rapidly lashed toward Bradman and wrapped around his wrist.

"You're… Lucy!"

Leo looked at the golden-haired girl radiating light all over her body.

His eyes moved slightly before his voice trembled as he called out her name.

"Lucy!"

As Lucy entered the battlefield, all the mages were stunned.

Apparently, none of them had expected Lucy to actually interfere in this battle.

After all, every single person here was actually stronger than Lucy.

"You finally came, Lucy!"

"Now retreat in defeat!"

Bradman looked at Lucy and sneered.

In his eyes, Lucy's strength was simply not worth worrying about.

"Full Heaven…"

Facing Bradman's mockery, Lucy remained expressionless.

She even revealed a faint smile as she calmly began chanting.

As Lucy chanted, countless points of starlight suddenly illuminated the area around her.

"This is…"

"Not good!"

For a moment, whether it was Bradman or the other mages, everyone's expressions changed.

"…Count the countless shining stars. Reveal my true form, all shall be under my command. I am the master of all stars. I command you to open the gate to the wilderness. All eighty-eight stars of the heavens, shine! Starry Sky Arc!"

Lucy chanted incredibly quickly.

Almost in an instant, her ethereal voice completed the entire incantation of Starry Sky Arc!

The next second, countless stars filled the sky.

Immediately afterward, eighty-eight dazzling rays of light descended from the heavens and struck Bradman's body…

"AAAAH!!"

Bradman let out a scream before being blasted away by Lucy.

"Lucy's magic power is actually this strong?!"

"She can actually take down Bradman?"

"Even if Bradman was careless, there's no way Lucy's magic power alone should have been enough to take him down, right?"

The scene before them shocked everyone present.

This was the first time they had learned that such enormous power was hidden within Lucy's small body.

"Leo!"

After taking down Bradman, Lucy looked toward Leo lying on the ground and smiled.

"Lucy…"

Leo looked at Lucy before him and smiled as well.

His smile was extremely happy.

"It ends here!"

However, before Leo and Lucy could continue their heartfelt reunion, Mest's figure appeared before Lucy.

He punched Lucy directly in the stomach.

"Urgh…"

Lucy's eyes immediately became unfocused.

She knelt on the ground and lost consciousness.

"Big Brother Leo, we did our best…"

Before Lucy collapsed, she spoke to Leo in an extremely faint voice, almost like a self-muttering whisper.

"Don't worry! You two did very well. From here on, just let them fight! Our mission is over…"

Leo looked gently at the unconscious 'Lucy' and spoke softly in his heart.

"Hm hm~ Hm hm hm~"

At the same time, inside Lucy's apartment, Lucy, wrapped in a white towel and wearing earphones, was holding a pen and writing furiously.

It seemed as though everything happening outside had absolutely nothing to do with her.

"Now that 'Lucy' has been taken out and everyone has gathered together, it's time to begin the final battle…"

Leo lay on the ground with the corners of his mouth raised.

Everything was proceeding according to his plan.

"Buzz…"

Just as Leo lay on the ground smiling, he suddenly felt a wave of drowsiness.

Then he fell into a deep sleep…

"So sleepy! Is this magic?"

Apart from Leo, everyone else also began feeling an overwhelming wave of drowsiness.

Ajeel frowned.

Even he felt his eyelids becoming extremely heavy.

As for Mest, Lyon, and Gajeel, they had already collapsed onto the ground and fallen asleep.

In a brief moment, Ajeel immediately realized that someone had secretly used magic on them.

"Stop!"

Ajeel waved his hand.

A sandstorm immediately formed, transforming into a towering tornado that swept toward the side.

"Don't be so impatient! As long as I stop, you won't fall asleep. Bradman that idiot was tricked. Right now, only the two of us working together can deal with Wall Eehto…"

Larcade, the culprit behind everyone falling asleep, looked displeased as he faced Ajeel's sandstorm.

Nevertheless, he remained calm.

White light enveloped his body as he forcibly endured Ajeel's sandstorm.

At the same time, Larcade stopped his magic.

"Hmph!"

After sensing the drowsiness in his heart disappear, Ajeel also stopped attacking.

Just as Larcade had said, they should not be fighting each other right now.

Compared to their internal battle, dealing with Mystogan and Wall Eehto was the most urgent and important matter.

"Strange. Why haven't the others awakened?"

At the same time, after confirming that Larcade had stopped using his magic, Ajeel looked toward Gajeel, Mest, and Lyon, the three people Larcade had knocked down.

Yet even after Larcade stopped, the three showed no signs of waking up.

"Hm?!"

Ajeel frowned and looked unhappily toward Larcade.

Although he did not care whether Gajeel, Mest, and Lyon woke up—in fact, taking them out here would even benefit him—he disliked being deceived by Larcade.

A person who deceived him could not possibly cooperate with him.

"This has nothing to do with me. I didn't do anything…"

Feeling Ajeel's sharp gaze, Larcade helplessly raised both hands, putting on an expression as though he were also a victim.

"Hm?"

Ajeel frowned deeply.

"They won't wake up. At least not before the exam officially begins."

Just as Ajeel was frowning, Mystogan, holding a staff resembling a drumstick, spoke coldly.

"Looks like you did it!"

"Ajeel, I'll leave Larcade to you. You go deal with Wall Eehto!"

Ajeel spoke as he charged toward Mystogan before Larcade could say anything, intending to engage Mystogan in an earth-shattering battle.

"Okay~"

Larcade watched Ajeel charge away.

He knew that whatever he said would fivebe meaningless now.

Thus, he could only seek out Wall Eehto, whom he was not particularly suited to fight.

"ROAR!"

At the same time, a dragon's roar seemed to roll across the sky!

And the preliminary round of the Fairy Tail S-Class Mage exam had also entered its final stage!