A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

"Sorry, but take this!"

"Marcus, you bastard! You actually launched a sneak attack?"

……

[Trigger the game trap; hit all targets to escape!]

"It's a piece of cake for us."

Whoosh—Bang! Bang!

After the gunshots, Alzak and Bisca blew the smoke from their gun barrels, and the trap was deactivated.

Because there are so many types of traps, you can occasionally encounter a type that suits your skills.

……

[Triggering a decryption trap and solving the mystery will reveal information about the exit!]

"We're really good at deciphering things!"

"Lucy, Levy, it's up to you two!"

"Like this...like that..."

[Correct answer, hint received: The exit is a crystal ball!]

"Great! We've finally made progress!"

"A crystal ball? I think I've seen it before, but I don't know if it's still there..."

……

The preliminary rounds were originally planned to last for two hours, but from the start of the preliminary rounds to Kira's appearance, a total of one hour passed. After that, in order to speed up the competition, only 30 minutes passed before the maze began to give hints.

If there aren't enough people to complete the level by the end of the time limit, the system will automatically select the person closest to the finish line to fill the remaining thirty spots.

[Time remaining in the qualifiers: 30 minutes]

Chapter 143: The Preliminary Rounds End

10 minutes later……

A flash of light appeared, and a figure emerged from the maze's exit.

Looking around at the audience, Mistgang said in a voice only he could hear, "I see, it seems that crystal ball is the exit."

He then looked at Kira, who was watching the show from a distance, and silently walked over and sat down next to him.

"I didn't expect you to be the first one out. I thought it would be Lucy, who's good at decryption."

“It was all luck,” Mistegon said. “When I bumped into the crystal ball, I thought it was another trap…”

"That's part of strength too!"

As they were talking, several more figures emerged. It was Mira and her brother. They had just witnessed Mystergang being teleported out, and since no traps had been triggered, they dared to give it a try.

"Great, Elfman, we're out!"

"The way my sister went all out was so manly!"

Mira smiled without saying a word and happily sat down next to Kira.

Three minutes later, Laxus emerged with the Thunder Legion. Transformed into lightning, he had no worries about being trapped or damaging the maze. He touched and scraped around here and there, quickly finding his target.

Two minutes later, Lucy came out with a group of people.

Natsu roared, "Finally out!"

"Damn Kira, I'll get you!"

"Forget it, you can't beat him anyway..."

"Thanks to Lucy this time!"

"Hehehe...it's alright..." Lucy said modestly, but secretly she was delighted: 'So, you guys finally have a day when I carry you to new heights!'

"Lucy seems to be very happy!"

Hearing Mira's words, Kira nodded and said, "After all, carrying the whole team single-handedly is such a glorious achievement! It's incredibly satisfying!"

Soon, the 30 minutes were up.

Clang clang clang—!

The bell rang, signifying the end of the preliminary rounds. At this point, only about twenty people had successfully escaped the maze, and the remaining ten would naturally be selected from those closest to the finish line.

Bang!

Under the thick smoke, the maze transformed into a cube-shaped box that could be held in both hands, and all the people inside fell out, some sitting, some lying down, in rather unseemly positions.

"It's finally over! Those two hours were torture!"

"Damn it! I haven't even gotten six sixes yet! My luck was just about to turn!"

"I clearly saw the crystal ball just now, but then I was teleported to another place. Damn it!!"

"The preliminary rounds have successfully concluded. A total of 20 people escaped the maze and will qualify for the final rounds. The 10 people who were closest to the finish line at the end will also participate in the next round!" Dispel said into the microphone. "Magicians who did not pass the preliminary rounds should not be discouraged. They can try again next year."

"The following is the list of those who passed the qualifiers: Kira, Mistgan, Mira, Elfman, Laxus..."

"These thirty people will participate in the later stages of the competition. Congratulations!"

The audience cheered!

"This kind of competition is so tiring!"

"I'm fired up!"

"Natsu, is he still energetic?"

They still need to rest; we can't let the participants compete continuously, can we?

This whole week has been a joyful time.

The guild celebrated that night.

"Kira, you bastard! You've turned adorable Levy into a little pig! Unforgivable!"

Levy shyly pulled Jett and Dorael aside, saying, "Please don't talk about this anymore!"

"Huh? You don't like Levy anymore now that she's a pig? Is that all the affection you two have for Levy?"

Kira countered with a quick grab.

"No...no way! I'll love Levy no matter what she becomes!!"

"Exactly! Levy looks cutest when she's turned into a little pig!"

Levy: "..."

Kira: "Two idiots!"

Gray watched this scene with amusement: "These two have been completely fooled..."

"Mirasan's bunny girl outfit is so pretty...hehehe..."

"Oh dear, this is so embarrassing~"

Erza roared angrily, "Which bastard made me do this thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle?! Step forward and tell me!"

"If we can't find anyone, why not just blame it on Kira?"

"Huh? Why are you so nervous? Was it you?"

"My punishment was alright, 200 push-ups were too easy!"

Are you a monster?

"Damn it! Why did it end so quickly? I didn't even get six sixes!"

Natsu excitedly ran up to Laxus and asked, "Laxus, what is your punishment?"

"Shut up!" Laxus said, his face darkening and suppressing his anger. "You're so noisy and incessant!"

The three members of Thor's crew surrounded him, remaining silent and simply watching the scene. They knew Laxus was in a bad mood today; after all, it must be incredibly embarrassing for someone like him to wear a high school girl in public.

The three exchanged a glance and decided that none of them would tell anyone about it, but there were so many spectators watching during the qualifiers.

Now, they can only hope that the audience focused on other people at the time, or that the two hours would allow them to forget Laxus's disgraceful behavior.

Why are you so angry?

Kira walked over and pulled Natsu away: "He's probably just tired from playing today, don't worry about him. The dungeon has a recording function, I have it all here, in a few days..."

Kira walked further and further away, his voice growing louder and louder.

Fred, Biguslow, and Abbagrien exchanged a glance: 'Kira, that guy, is definitely doing this on purpose!'

The effect was very useful. Laxus is now bursting with rage and can't wait to get into the final battle and vent his anger.

Natsu asked, "What will the preliminary round be like tomorrow?"

"Didn't you say before that we would be divided into several teams?"

"If possible, I would still like our team to work together, since we have better teamwork."

While eating fish, Happy mumbled, "I heard from the president and Dispel that they'll try their best to break up people who frequently team up!"

“I think so too,” Kira nodded, expressing his thoughts: “If it were me, I would make the six teams as evenly matched as possible, so that the competition would be more interesting.”

"Huh? Strength? How do you even calculate something like that?"

"Assessing based on magic power and spells should be achievable with the president's knowledge."

Lucy clasped her hands together in prayer: "May the Celestials protect me, please don't let me face Kira, Laxus, Erza..."

"If we want to ensure the combat strength of each team, we S-class members will definitely be assigned to different teams. I, Laxus, Erza, Mystogan, and Mira will each lead a team."

"That makes sense... So what about the other team?"

Natsu chuckled, "Of course it's me!"

Gajeel said unhappily, "It should be me, shouldn't it!"