"The rules are the same as in previous years!"
Makarov continued:
"Every candidate must choose the guild member you trust most as your partner and travel together to Fairy Tail's sacred ground-Tenrou Island-to undergo the trials!"
"I choose Happy!"
Without hesitation, Natsu chose his blue flying cat as his partner.
"Idiot! How can a cat count as a partner?!"
Gray scoffed, only to find himself torn between Juvia, who had been pursuing him relentlessly, and Loke, who was also quite strong.
At odds with the lively atmosphere around her was Cana, sitting alone in a corner of the bar, pouring rum down her throat, glass after glass.
She looked at the playing card in her hand, a trace of dejection in her eyes that she could not hide.
To see her father, Gildarts, the guild's strongest mage who stayed away from home year after year, and to fulfill her promise with him, she was determined to pass this S-Class exam!
But...
She looked around. Most of her powerful guildmates already had partners or were candidates themselves.
Unable to find a sufficiently strong partner, she sank into deep anxiety.
Inside the villa on the outskirts of town, Ye Chuan also sensed the festive commotion at the guild through his [Observation Haki].
He merely shook his head disdainfully, utterly unmoved.
"An S-Class mage? What's the point of fighting over an empty title like that?"
Just then, Robin returned from shopping and approached him, holding an ancient map of Tenrou Island and information about it.
"Captain."
Excitement befitting an archaeologist sparkled in Robin's deep, beautiful eyes.
"I found some very interesting material."
"Fairy Tail's so-called sacred ground, Tenrou Island, is itself a floating island formed from ultra ancient magic, suspended above the sea!"
"More importantly..."
"According to historical records, not only is