Chapter 282

Chapter 282: Chapter 282

After speaking with Makarov, Marshall felt considerably more at ease.

Since the Master was confident they had a way to deal with the Second Master, Marshall was perfectly happy to stay out of the fighting and focus on his own work.

Makarov could be surprisingly devious when he wanted to be.

He had deliberately chosen not to tell the S-Class candidates that Grimoire Heart was planning to invade, apparently intending to spring that little surprise on everyone once the enemy actually arrived.

There was, however, a reason he could afford to be so confident.

Tenrou Island was Fairy Tail’s sacred ground, and according to Makarov, the island’s very existence was tied to a powerful Super Magic.

Anyone bearing the Fairy Tail guild mark would not die while on the island.

In other words, they would be fighting on the safest home ground imaginable.

Marshall had no idea why Precht, who should have known that secret just as well as Makarov did, had still chosen to launch a direct assault on Tenrou Island.

Could it be that the Second Master had never actually intended to kill Fairy Tail’s members?

Makarov didn’t know either.

But he trusted the children of his guild, and with Tenrou Island’s Super Magic acting as a safety net, winning the coming counterattack didn’t seem especially difficult.

Even so, neither Marshall nor Makarov became careless.

Between the two of them, they prepared every contingency they could think of.

Anything that could reasonably be arranged in advance, they arranged.

...

Two days later, aboard the ship carrying Fairy Tail toward Tenrou Island...

Gray was wearing nothing but his underwear, sprawled bonelessly across a chair.

"IT’S SO HOT!"

He dragged a hand across his face.

"Isn’t it supposed to be winter?! Why the hell is it this hot?!"

"That’s just what the climate around Tenrou Island is like," Bickslow complained. "It stays hot here almost all year. More importantly, Gray, can’t you make some ice or something so the rest of us can cool down?"

He jabbed a finger toward the other side of the ship.

"Look at the girls’ side, then look at us! Do you have any sense of teamwork?!"

Over in the women’s section, Envy had used Magic to create what was practically a miniature frozen wonderland.

The girls were comfortably lounging around in autumn clothes, enjoying cool air and frost while the men roasted on the other side of the deck.

The two areas looked like completely different worlds.

"Get lost!" Gray snapped. "The exam starts soon. I’m not wasting Magic Power just to keep you idiots comfortable!"

Nearby, Natsu was picking his nose despite still wearing his usual scarf in the sweltering heat.

"You guys are pathetic. You can’t even handle a little warmth? I don’t feel hot at all. If anything, it’s pretty cool."

"SHUT UP, FIRE-BREATHING BASTARD!" several voices shouted at once.

Gray suddenly stopped.

"Wait."

He stared suspiciously at Natsu.

"Why aren’t you seasick? Aren’t vehicles your greatest enemy?"

"Hehe."

Natsu grinned proudly.

"I asked Tiny Wendy to fix me up before we left. That Wendy’s way more useful for this kind of thing. The regular Wendy gets motion sickness herself now."

By "Tiny Wendy," Natsu meant Sloth.

She could use Sky Magic but didn’t possess the side effects that came with Dragon Slayer Magic, so correcting the imbalance in Natsu’s sense of equilibrium was effortless for her.

At this point, Fairy Tail effectively had three Wendys!

A big one.

A little one.

And another one somewhere in between.

Fortunately, their sizes were different enough that nobody seriously confused them.

Gray’s expression twisted in jealousy.

"Damn it! You even get special treatment like that? That’s completely unfair! I demand that Natsu be banned from receiving assistance from Marshall’s Apostles!"

"What?!" Natsu’s eye twitched. "You ice idiot can’t even survive a little heat and you want to complain about me? You wanna fight?!"

"Bring it on!"

So much for Gray conserving his strength.

Within seconds, he and Natsu were brawling at the stern of the ship.

Makarov sat nearby fanning himself, perfectly content to watch the entertainment.

Marshall still hadn’t sent the signal yet, so the old man was in no hurry to inform the children that their S-Class exam was about to be interrupted by a Dark Guild invasion.

"Oi, Gramps."

Gildarts wandered over.

"You’re awfully calm about this. Letting all these kids walk straight into danger doesn’t really sound like you."

Makarov had already informed every S-Class Mage about the situation in advance, so Gildarts understood the plan perfectly.

In fact, he had originally objected.

As far as Gildarts was concerned, there was no reason to expose the younger members—especially Cana—to unnecessary danger when he could simply deal with the enemy himself.

He only agreed after Makarov explained the Super Magic protecting Tenrou Island.

Even then, he remained somewhat dissatisfied, which was why he’d wandered over to tease the old Master.

"A chick that never experiences wind and rain will never learn how to fly," Makarov replied calmly.

"This is a good opportunity for them."

He glanced toward Gildarts.

"Besides, we’re a guild. You can’t keep thinking that you have to solve every problem alone. Try trusting your companions once in a while."

Gildarts sighed dramatically.

"You think I don’t want companions who can fight beside me? Nobody can keep up with me~"

He gave a carefree whistle.

"These kids have it much better than I did. So many talented people their own age growing up together. Back in my day, I was just too invincible."

Gildarts stared wistfully toward the horizon.

"Ah... invincibility. What a lonely existence~"

"I never noticed."

Makarov kept fanning himself.

"Marshall seems to handle it just fine. He has far more friends than you ever did."

"DON’T MENTION THAT DAMN BRAT! Just hearing his name irritates me!"

Gildarts’s expression changed instantly.

He constantly suffered from the uneasy feeling that Marshall was circling around his precious daughter like a particularly dangerous pest!

The problem was that he couldn’t exactly announce that he suspected a fourteen-year-old brat of harboring designs on Cana without sounding ridiculous.

As a result, simply being around Marshall tended to leave him frustrated.

Nobody understood better than Gildarts that Marshall had never been an innocent little angel, even when he was small.

Unfortunately, nobody believed him!

Makarov gave him a sideways glance.

"Jealous?"

"I AM NOT!"

See?!

Even the Master misunderstood him!

Gildarts felt profoundly wronged.

That was one reason he was actually looking forward to the coming battle.

He needed somewhere to vent all the frustration that had built up lately!

Enough time had passed since his return for his injuries to heal completely, and the Blink Magic Device Marshall had made for him had even improved his combat capabilities beyond what they had been before.

Right now, Gildarts was in peak condition.

As far as he was concerned, dealing with Grimoire Heart’s Vice Master would probably take one punch.

That was also why he still thought he could simply handle this entire incident himself.

Gildarts had never met Precht. The Second Master had left Fairy Tail before Gildarts even joined the guild.

But Gildarts had always believed that if he tried hard enough, there weren’t many opponents in the world he couldn’t defeat.

And for Cana?

There was nothing he wouldn’t do.

...

Before long, the ship reached Tenrou Island.

The moment they docked, Makarov raised an arm and called out to everyone.

"Kids! Come help unload!"

"Unload?"

Several people wandered over, only to stop and stare at what was being carried out of the hold.

"What is all this?"

"A stove?"

"A barbecue grill?"

"Iced fruit?"

Natsu scratched his head.

"Gramps, what exactly are we doing here?"

Makarov grinned.

"Before the exam begins, we’re going to relax a little."

He swept one arm toward the beach.

"Let’s have a beach party on the island first! Come on, everybody, get to work!"

"OOOOOOOH!"

"THE OLD MAN’S THE BEST!"

"LONG LIVE THE MASTER!"

"This is amazing! We actually get benefits like this during the exam?!"

"Hahaha! I’m taking pictures and posting them in the guild chat. Everyone who stayed behind is going to die of jealousy!"

The candidates immediately brightened.

Nobody had expected the S-Class Trial to include something this pleasant.

Everyone eagerly pitched in, carrying equipment and ingredients out of the ship’s hold.

Then they discovered that the beach had apparently been prepared in advance.

Pavilions.

Sun umbrellas.

Beach chairs.

It looked less like an examination site and more like a proper vacation resort.

Strangely enough, once they were actually on Tenrou Island, the heat felt much less oppressive than it had aboard the ship.

Before long, everyone was enthusiastically setting up the party.

Gildarts scratched his head.

He knew the coming battle probably wasn’t going to be especially difficult, but still...

Wasn’t everyone relaxing a little too much?

Cana wandered over and sighed as she watched the preparations.

"I didn’t know the exam had something like this planned too."

Then her expression turned regretful.

"Marshall really missed out by not coming."

Gildarts immediately cheered up.

"Hahaha! Forget that brat!"

He grabbed Cana by the shoulders and enthusiastically pushed her toward the beach.

"Come on, come on! Let’s go play the watermelon-splitting game. Leave him out of it~"