A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

Seeing the barely suppressed elation on Natsu's face, Gray was so surprised he could hardly close his mouth, and shouted, "You bastard, don't be so happy!!"

"No one could possibly defeat Gildarts, could they?"

"No...maybe there is one?"

The people who were speaking silently turned their gazes toward Kira on the stage.

Noticing their gazes, and adhering to the idea that "to kill someone, you must destroy their spirit," Kira gave them a sinister smile: "Back in my day, I had it all! I only had one S-class mage as an opponent!"

"And now? You guys have to deal with a full five S-rank mages! If Mystogan hadn't gone back to Edolas, you'd have one more enemy! It might get even harder from now on!"

Since the assessment process is different every year, and there have been instances in the past where one person faced multiple examiners, they did not think there was anything wrong with Kira's words.

Some people who were unaware of the inside story, upon hearing Kira's words, even thought that the examinee would have to face all the S-class mages at the same time, and were almost terrified.

Kira's nonchalant remarks left the audience both anxious and angry.

"This guy! I'm so annoyed!!"

"But he was telling the truth..."

"But then again, Kira is pretty amazing to have earned the S-class mage qualification under Gildarts! And he was only 12 years old back then!"

Knowing that the assessment wouldn't be against all S-class mages, but only against one of them, Lucy breathed a sigh of relief.

But the thought of facing an incredibly strong group of guys made her, the guild's second-best critic, nearly bulge out of her skin: "So that means, unless I defeat one of those five, no one can become an S-rank mage?!"

Behind her, Warren said helplessly, "Now you understand that this is the real challenge, right?"

Another minor character commented: "I don't think they'll show their full strength... especially Kira, he's quite easy to talk to..."

"Kira? From what I know of him, he should be..."

Lucy imagined the scene of the contestants encountering Kira:

Kira grinned wickedly at the contestants: "As long as you pay enough, I'll consider you the winner. How about that? Simple, right? You don't want to miss your chance to become an S-class mage, do you?"

Before him, the contestant and his partner offered up all their possessions, crying and pleading, "This is all the savings we've accumulated over the past year, please let us win!"

Kira took it with one hand, his face breaking into uncontrollable maniacal laughter: "Hahahaha!!! Since you sincerely begged me, I'll mercifully let you win!"

Beside them were Erza, Mira, Laxus, and Gildarts, all unharmed, as well as the other test takers whose faces were not visible, but who lay on the ground, unable to fight any longer...

Thinking of this, Lucy gave an awkward laugh: "Uh... how should I put it? Maybe he really is the easiest one to beat..."

"don’t worry!"

Just then, Kira shouted, "If you run into me, as long as you bribe me enough, I might go easy on you!"

"Eh eh eh!!!"

"They actually said this so openly?!"

"A devil! This guy is a devil! What should I do? I'm so tempted!"

"Are you stupid? You weren't even selected for the assessment, what are you so interested in? Besides, you don't have any money!"

"Oh yeah..."

Just then, Natsu suddenly roared, interrupting the surrounding chatter: "Stop joking! Since it's an exam, we should show our true abilities and compete fairly!"

"like!"

Lucy looked speechless: "I knew it would turn out like this..."

"Oh?"

Hearing Natsu's words, Killer raised an eyebrow. "Really, Natsu? Even if we encounter me or Gildarts, it's okay if we go all out?"

"When...uh...uh..."

Gray quickly covered Natsu's mouth: "Don't say things like that! Idiot!"

Laxus, as always, contradicted Kira: "Don't worry! I won't hold back for anyone!"

"Even Philid is the same? What a pity, he admires you so much..."

Hearing Kira's familiar teasing of Laxus, Erza said seriously, "This is a crucial guild assessment, how can we go easy on them!"

"Ha ha……"

Erza's words sent a jolt through everyone except Natsu, who had been repeatedly defeated yet still persevered.

"I don't know why, but I feel like encountering Gildarts is better than encountering Erza..."

In fact, everyone knows that if they really use their full strength, the chances of these people winning are extremely slim. So, it is enough to gain their "approval". As for how to do it, everyone has their own set of judgment criteria. Anyway, it won't be the money Kira mentioned!

So nobody took Kira's comment about "bribing to let the water flow" to heart.

Everyone knew perfectly well that, based on the personalities of the examiners on stage, only Erza would not hold back at all. If they encountered Erza, they would undoubtedly lose. There was nothing that could be done in that situation, since luck is also a part of strength.

Amid the commotion, Maklov delivered the final point of the ceremony: "The eight chosen individuals, along with their partners, must gather at the port of Harugion within a week. That's all!"

Chapter 290 Star Spirit Secrets

After the conference ended, everyone in the guild dispersed.

Several members of the assessment team gathered together to discuss the selection of their respective teams, while Kira sat on the side, openly listening in.

Of the eight people this time, apart from Cana and Filde, the rest were participating in the selection for the first time. Even Juvia, who was rated S-class in Phantom Assassin, had never participated in a similar assessment before.

After a brief conversation, Kira exclaimed, "As expected... Fairy Tail is still the strongest! Only those who have gone through such rigorous selection deserve the title of S-class!"

"Oh?! I never expected Kira to say something like that!"

"Idiot! He means that precisely because of this, he, as an S-rank guild member, is far stronger than the so-called S-rank members of other guilds!"

"Hehe...I see..."

Soon, after some discussion, the contestants present determined their respective partners.

As expected, Natsu chose Happy. Even though Happy himself didn't have much fighting power, their years of getting along had made the two of them an unparalleled duo in the guild.

Gray's partner is Loki, and the two made a promise last year, so he came all the way from the Protoss to fulfill his final promise as "Loki".

"Didn't you say before that the Guild Wars would be the last time you appeared as Loki?"

"I'm sorry, Lucy! But this was all agreed upon beforehand!"

At this moment, although Rocky was wearing a black suit and tie in Leo's image, he was still using his original hairstyle, which made him look a level less attractive.

"Just like last time, I also created a door to use my magic, so you don't need to worry! But... I really didn't expect you to be able to collect all the Zodiac keys. With them around, even if I'm not by your side, I can't guarantee your safety!"

Kira spoke up, "You have to thank me for this! I contributed two-thirds of these keys! And I haven't even paid back the money yet!"

Lucy looked exasperated: "Okay, okay! You big creditor!"

"Speaking of which, the Celestial Spirit Realm has existed for so long, your resources must be very abundant, right? If that's the case, you, as members of the Zodiac, must be quite wealthy as well, right?"

Upon hearing Kira's question, Loki chuckled and shook his head, replying, "That's not actually the case! Everything in the Protoss Realm, including resource allocation, is managed by the Protoss King."

Kira looked utterly disappointed: "So that's how it is..."

"Furthermore, the Protoss realm has its own social system. Although we are special Protoss, it doesn't mean we are all wealthy! We also need to abide by certain rules regarding income and expenditure!"

Rocky's words immediately piqued Kira's interest, and he looked at Rocky with shining eyes: "Oh? Tell me more?"

"Simply put, the stronger the Protoss, or the closer the relationship with the contractor, the higher the income."

Seeing that everyone looked eager to understand, Loki had no choice but to bite the bullet and continue explaining: "You all know that how much power a Celestial Spirit can unleash depends heavily on the magic power of the mage, right?"

"Uh-huh……"

"But in reality, the longer a Protoss lives, the stronger they become in their respective magic. For example, Horologim of Horologim and Crooks of Crooks are both Protoss who have lived for a very long time. In comparison, the existing Zodiac signs are all their juniors."

Rocky's words made Kira realize something: No wonder Clockwork was able to save Lucy so many times, and it could succeed in any crisis. It turns out that it has lived long enough, so its protective ability is strong enough!

Kira stroked his chin for a moment, then asked, "This isn't surprising... Are you trying to say that you, the most unique 'Zodiac' group in the Protoss world, are poorer than two old men?"

"Unfortunately, that's how it is!"

Rocky nodded with a dark expression and said, "As you all know, the 'Zodiac Star Spirits' are different from other Star Spirits; their keys are unique! But in reality, we also have our own racial divisions!"

"The so-called 'Zodiac' is actually a collective term for the twelve important positions in the Protoss realm, and we are the most outstanding Protoss selected from our respective races!"

"I think I understand what you mean!"

Kira interrupted Loki, analyzing, "So, this is something like a hereditary position such as 'General' or 'Knight Commander,' where the previous 'Zodiac Celestial Spirit' retires, and the most outstanding Celestial Spirit from a fixed group inherits the title, right?"

"That's right! Although the lifespan of the Protoss is much longer than that of humans, the Protoss realm has existed for an unknown amount of time. Even the current Protoss King is not the first one. The first generation of the 'Zodiac' Protoss have long since died. The twelve existing Golden Protoss are all successors. The oldest among us is Caprico, and he is only a little over 100 years old."

Kira grinned slyly, his eyes gleaming with mockery as he said, "And you, Rocky? You must be at least several decades old! Well, so you're an old man too! This is what they mean by 'don't judge a book by its cover'!"

“The lifespan of a Protoss is several times that of a human! If you convert that, I’m not even 20 years old yet!” Loki chuckled, then his eyes turned into hearts as he leaned closer to Lucy and said gently, “Lucy! Even if you live to be 100, I will still be your immortal knight who protects you!”

Lucy forced a stiff smile: "Hehe... thank you so much..."

"Several times... You really are an old man! You used to be with so many girls..."

Before Kira could finish speaking, Loki interrupted him, saying, "You... are you never going to stop?"

“Alright, alright…” Kira waved his hand and asked again, “Then what is the truth behind the so-called ‘the stronger the Celestial Spirit Mage, the stronger the Celestial Spirit can unleash its power’…?”

Loki answered directly: "The power of the Celestial Spirits comes not only from their own cultivation, but also largely from the stars they govern. The more magic a mage has, the more stellar power we can mobilize, and the stronger we can be!"

Hearing what Rocky said, Kira's long-standing doubts were partially resolved.

He had been thinking that even if a Celestial Spirit's strength depended on a mage's magical power, there should still be a range. But what is the average human lifespan? Aside from a few special cases, a normal mage might not be able to unleash their full power in their entire life. Doesn't that mean that all Celestial Spirits are never at their peak?

Furthermore, it's no wonder that Lucy's Celestials didn't recognize Zeref and the demons he created; it seems they hadn't ascended to the throne hundreds of years ago. Not to mention, the Celestial King, the ruler of a realm, had fallen to the point of being an enemy of Hades; it turns out that He wasn't the first one either.

"Now I understand!" Kira clapped his hands together, suddenly realizing, "I never thought there could be such a setting!"

After discussing the history of the Protoss, the group returned to the topic of their partnership.

With Natsu and Gray's partners chosen, Juvia, Elfman, Freed, and Levy have also been assigned partners: Lisanna, Abrams, Biggleslow, and Gajeel, respectively. Only Cana and Mester, who are not currently present, remain unassigned.

……

Hope Hut at night.

Under the bright white light, Kira sat at his desk, one hand supporting his chin, the other constantly twirling a pen as he wrote and drew on his open notebook.

As he flipped through all the things he had written over the years about Fairy Tail, he recalled the details of the "Tenrou Island Incident" in his mind.