Exam-ing

Ed hurled a kunai toward the small island with all his strength. It traced a perfect arc through the air and landed by the island's shore.

Ed waved to Makarov on the boat and Cana in the sea. "Then I'll be going on ahead~" A flash of golden light appeared, and Ed vanished from the boat, reappearing on the island's shore.

"That's totally cheating! Master! You're obviously going easy on Ed! Do you two have some shady deal going on? You gave him special treatment, didn't you?!" Cana had been miserably swimming through the sea when she suddenly saw that Ed had already reached the island. Her whole mood instantly soured as she loudly complained to Makarov.

"What nonsense are you talking about?! This concerns the S-Class Mage examination. How could I possibly go easy on anyone? All I can say is that Ed's magic is far more convenient than your card magic."

Makarov calmly glanced at Cana. "Besides, the examination has already begun no matter what. Are you sure you still want to stand here discussing whether I went easy on him?"

"Tch!" Cana had no other choice and could only continue swimming.

On the other side, Ed successfully arrived on the island. Looking up, he saw a high slope in the distance. It seemed like he could get a view of the island's overall layout from there. With that in mind, Ed headed straight for the slope and took in the island's rough appearance.

The island was not large. A lush green hill stood in its center.

The hill had gentle slopes and was covered in dense trees. At its base stretched a continuous forest.

The woods were far from quiet. Every so often, the roars of magical beasts could be heard, along with flocks of startled birds taking flight.

There was also a small river that seemed to flow down from the mountain, though its source could not be seen from here.

"So I just need to deal with the magical beasts first, right?" Ed took a deep breath and did a few chest stretches to warm up. "Sorry, Cana, but I'll have to make this a wasted trip for you. I already promised Mira that I'd pass the S-Class examination this time."

Once he had finished warming up, Ed took out a Flying Thunder God Kunai again and threw it forcefully toward the forest.

His figure flickered continuously as he traveled, and Ed soon reached the edge of the forest. Listening to the roars coming from within, he charged toward their source without hesitation.

Before long, Ed saw a wild boar rampaging through the woods. "A pig-type magical beast, huh? It looks pretty thick-skinned..."

The moment Ed finished complaining, the wild boar seemed to hear him. It immediately turned and launched a furious charge in his direction.

Ed casually tossed a kunai above the boar, then gathered magic power in his hand. A Rasengan instantly took shape.

Flying Thunder God: Second Stage! A golden flash appeared, and Ed instantly emerged above the boar's head. He slammed the Rasengan directly into its skull. Magic power erupted, kicking up a cloud of dust. When the dust settled, the boar was dead beyond any doubt.

Ed looked over the boar's body and noticed a rope tied around its neck. Several red slips of paper hung from it. He took one down and unfolded it, finding a single sentence written on it: Come find me. I am beneath the stars.

"What the hell, is this some kind of puzzle? Isn't every place beneath the stars?" Ed weakly complained as he looked at the message. Remembering Makarov's words that two clues would be enough to find the location, he figured the key must lie in the other slip.

"Red, huh... Anyway, I should find some more magical beasts." Ed put away the slip and resumed searching for prey.

Cana finally swam to shore. Before she could even catch her breath, a loud Hibiki echoed from the distant forest. "Damn it, Ed's already started fighting! Tch... Swimming over took way too much time. Hah... I'm exhausted... Anyway, I need to head over there first." Panting heavily, Cana forced herself onward and walked toward the forest.

Meanwhile, Ed used Flying Thunder God to travel rapidly and had already found a second magical beast. It looked like a giant ape. "Oh! An old friend! Isn't that Vulcan?!"

Looking at the familiar monster, Ed spotted the rope around its chest as well. The slip attached to it was golden. "Hmm... Could it really be separated by hair color...? Gold should be Laxus... Then red is Erza? Does that mean I still need to keep looking?!"

Ed felt somewhat helpless, but he could not let it go. Who knew whose clue the next magical beast would carry? "This time, I'll try this!"

Ed threw out a Flying Thunder God Kunai as usual, then activated the Second Stage and appeared directly before Vulcan. He placed both hands at his sides as magic power gathered in them. Golden spheres formed in his palms, and he thrust them forward.

Twin Rasengan! The two Rasengan struck Vulcan's body at the same time. The powerful magic erupted with the force of a miniature typhoon, and the doubled impact sent Vulcan flying. It crashed through a stretch of trees and collapsed, its fate unknown.

Ed quickly stepped forward and took the slip from its body. It read: The stars cannot be seen overhead.

Ed stared at it in confusion. "What is this supposed to mean? One is beneath the stars, and the other can't see the stars overhead. What are these two doing? Tch. The one beneath the stars is hard to say, but Laxus's location is probably either underground or in a cave, right?"

After thinking it over, Ed felt that was probably what it meant. Still, while he could search based on that one clue, it would be far too troublesome. He should find more magical beasts first.

Having reached the edge of the forest, Cana heard another huge Hibiki from deep within the woods. "Another one? Is Ed really moving that fast? Tch, this is starting to feel dangerous again..." Without taking time to rest, she headed deeper into the forest, trying to find magical beasts carrying clues.

As for Ed, the commotion from defeating Vulcan had been rather large and seemed to attract several magical beasts. Seeing shapes hiding among the surrounding trees and catching the faint stench in the air, Ed thought for a moment before decisively taking action.

"Since you're all here, don't just stand around watching. Come play too~, Majestic Destroyer Flame!" Ed took a deep breath and spewed out a sea of fire. The flames engulfed the surrounding forest, forcing the magical beasts hiding inside to leap out one after another to escape the blaze.

"I've never gotten to experience setting a mountain forest on fire before. This time, I finally get to enjoy it~" Ed showed no sign of nervousness as he watched the three magical beasts surround him.

Seeing the red, gold, and red slips on their chests, Ed calculated, "Now I've got both of them gathered at once. Then there's no need to wait. Let's get started. If things go smoothly, I might even finish the examination before nightfall!" Ed drew a kunai and charged straight at them.