Chapter 600: The last test, exciting...
Blue sky, white clouds, and the rising sun.
On the top of the mountain, the winter wind brings a hint of freshness and coolness.
It should be very cold at high altitudes, but now it feels a little warmer under the sunshine. This mixture of cold and warmth sweeps away everyone's hangover fatigue.
Looking into the distance, the mountains are high and the water is far away. The Darus Mountains that were destroyed yesterday are still in ruins, but the warm winter and crystal morning dew are injecting invisible vitality into it.
The third day of the assessment.
The third level is the final battle.
As the person who set the questions for the last level, Makarov circled out a piece of land on the top of the mountain and used rock magic to build a huge place similar to a colosseum. It was surrounded by stands, which were slightly higher so that all changes in the middle could be clearly seen. In the middle was a square arena divided into hundreds of small grids. Except for the grids at the four corners which were slightly larger, the rest were generally the same and divided into four colors: red, yellow, blue and white.
In the stands, looking at the arena below, Kira fell silent.
"Why... does this look so much like Ludo? No no... or is Monopoly closer?"
Kira was puzzled by this and asked Makarov, "President, what is this thing for? Is it like a rule of stepping on a trap and then being punished?"
"That's about right...you'll know in a minute!"
Makarov narrowed his eyes and gave Kira a mysterious smile, "Today's test will definitely be very interesting! Hahaha..."
Kira curled his lips: Still interesting? Isn't this just a popular tabletop game on the market? It has long been eliminated by my "Fairy Tail Killer". Only you old people still miss it...
Makarov didn't see Kira's expression, otherwise he would have been unwilling to accept his old age.
Seeing that almost everyone was there, Makarov jumped down, walked to the center of the chessboard with his short legs, and then began to announce the assessment rules in front of everyone.
"Ahem... Today is the last day of the S-rank test. There are currently four candidates left for this test. They are Natsu, Gray, Lucy, and Juvia. The above four will take their supporters Kira, Ultear, Brandish, and Gildarts to take the final test!"
Kira looked at the four people who were about to take the test. Natsu and Happy were chatting; Levy, Wendy, Erza, Mira and Cana were cheering Lucy on; Gray and Juvia were cuddling together.
The interpersonal relationships among the four people are clear at a glance.
"It's the last day now. Do the supporters have to join the battle too?" Gray asked curiously.
"Of course!"
Makarov seemed to be in a good mood: "Since you are a supporter, of course you must support to the end! Didn't we have a similar rule last year that asked you to find companions? This is to test your tacit understanding and cooperation with the guild members!"
"The rules of the test are as follows: four candidates start from the four starting points and move towards the end point, and four supporters start from the end point and move towards the starting point. The eight people take turns throwing points and order their teammates to move forward a corresponding number of steps based on the points."
"Tossing points depends entirely on luck and skill, you can't cheat with magic!"
"After arriving at the location, if there are people from other teams on it, you need to fight, and the loser will return to the starting point and start again; otherwise, randomly draw a card from the deck in my hand and execute the contents!"
As he spoke, Makarov raised the cards in his hand, took out a card and showed it to everyone, reading out the content on it: "Take three steps back, and increase the number of steps forward by one on the next turn."
“That’s probably the content.”
"Also, if the color of the grid you are in is the same as the color you represent, you can change a card, but each person only has one chance!"
"Tsk! It's such a hassle!"
Gajeel complained indignantly. He hadn't recovered from the negative state of being defeated by Natsu yesterday. "If you ask me, tests should be free-for-alls! If that's the rule, I'll definitely be the winner!"
Hearing this, several people around him gave him a laughing look.
“Hmm…”
“Yes, yes, yes…”
"I trust you."
Gajeel: “…”
Could you guys be a little more perfunctory?! Do you think I'm an idiot with low emotional intelligence like Natsu?
Thinking of this, Gajeel couldn't help but glance at Levy not far away, and then glanced at Natsu who was talking to Happy about something, feeling indescribably depressed.
Just wait and see, dragon! There will always be something I can surpass you in!
"So, the team that reaches the destination first will be the winner of this assessment, right?"
Makarov put his hands on his hips and laughed: "That's not the case!"
“Eh??!” Everyone was stunned at the same time.
"Since the first two levels were too easy, some of you cheated and got through without receiving the proper level of difficulty. I have decided to increase the difficulty of this level!"
Everyone turned their eyes towards Lucy and Juvia upon hearing this.
Lucy: “…”
Juvia: “???”
Couldn't you just call us by name?
Seeing everyone's reactions, Makarov seemed to feel a little embarrassed, but he really couldn't let the guild have another wizard like Kana who seriously lowered the S-level.
"Ahem... This isn't a special attack! It's just that if we just play a board game, luck will inevitably play a big role, and some people might not accept it, so we have to examine their strength!"
"As an S-class wizard of Fairy Tail, no matter how lucky you are, you must have wisdom and strength!"
Kira and others nodded, accepting Makarov's explanation.
"Listen carefully! After both of you on the same team reach your destination, I will give you a test. The first candidate to complete this test will be this year's S-class wizard!"
Hmm? In this case, it is not so important to be the first to finish the game... although being the first is also important.
"Also, if no one can complete this test , then no one will be promoted to the guild's S-class wizard this year!"
Doesn't sound like an easy test!
"I thought it was something else, but it turned out to be just a test! I was scared to death..."
"No problem, old man! We accept it!"
"Let's get started! I can't wait!"
“Ahh… This looks like trouble…”
"President, since this game has nothing to do with the final test, why do we need to build a chessboard? Wouldn't it be more convenient to just make one and play with chess pieces?"
Everyone was silent again.
Yes, why not make a chessboard? What's the point of making such a big track?
Makarov was silent for two seconds: "This is to test your physical strength!"
Everyone: “…”
The look on your face... you clearly just came up with this excuse, didn't you? ! ! You're not old and you think it's too troublesome to make a small chessboard, so you just use magic to make one? !
"Ahem... And this way everyone can see clearly, ensuring the fairness and openness of the assessment!"
Here it comes! Familiar tactic cough! Every time the old man does this, it proves that he is guilty!
The chessboard is very large, with the squares arranged in the order of red, yellow, blue and white. You enter the track from the four corners and move towards the center in a spiral. The center is the finish line.
But the most important thing is that there are one hundred squares of each color, which means there are four hundred squares in total!
What does 400 squares mean? A flying chess piece only has 50 squares! Its length is about eight times that of a flying chess piece!
The dice are wooden cubes with a side length of 30 cm. Each person carries one, and the points range from one to six. Roughly speaking, it will take about a hundred throws to complete the task. Not to mention that there are various unknown tasks and the rule of 'one dies immediately when encountering', so the number of throws will be even higher.
Is this something that people can endure?! If the dice weren't hollow, these people would have given up on the test long ago! Otherwise, just throwing a hundred or so solid wooden dice would tire them to death!
The only thing to be thankful for is that there are no rules like "you have to roll a six to take off" or "three sixes for an explosion".
As expected, the red team is Natsu and Killer; the yellow team is Lucy and Brandish; the blue team is Juvia and Gildarts; and the white team is Gray and Urrutia.
"Could it be that the president chose this color based on the image of each of them?"
Kira stood at the finish line and complained.
Gildarts beside him laughed a few times and said, "Maybe... The president didn't rest all night yesterday in order to design the content of the assessment!"
"He's old, it's a relief that he can hold on..."
After everyone has repeatedly confirmed the rules, the game begins!
