A magic merchant infiltrating Fairy Tail

"Ah, that's true..."

"Oh dear, the old man was simply ruined by alcohol and women, otherwise he wouldn't have bald patches and be so short at his age."

"Nonsense! Gildas, you're slandering me again! I'm a respectable man!!"

A decent person? Nobody would believe that!

Brandish couldn't help but chuckle.

Makarov's face instantly turned red with embarrassment.

This sneer, half contemptuous and half mocking, left the guilty old man speechless with shame.

"Alright, President."

Kira clapped his hands, seemingly to comfort him, "We know you've put a lot of effort into it. After all, designing different assessment rules every year for decades must have been incredibly difficult for you. We can understand if you occasionally come up with a less-than-ideal assessment rule!"

Makarov: "..."

"Moreover, with the first and second generation of rules as shining examples, it's only natural that you'd be outdone..."

That's enough! Stop talking! I'm not comforted at all!

So the assessment was suspended not because you guys were too rough, but because my rules were poorly designed?! You're all right, and I'm the only one who's wrong, is that it?

I'm tired. Let's destroy it!

"My back is starting to hurt again..." Makarov said dejectedly, then turned over and hid under the covers, remaining motionless.

Good heavens! How old are you to still be throwing a tantrum?!

Everyone stared at each other, and the air fell silent for a moment.

"Never mind, let's go out first..." Mavis sighed and said.

Gildas nodded: "That's good, the old man is about at that age anyway."

"that??"

"Uh...it's nothing, First Generation, you don't need to understand!" Under Augustus's two murderous gazes, Gildarts couldn't help but shrink into his cloak.

As the group gradually left, the tent finally became quiet.

A few seconds later...

Makarov threw off the covers and sat up straight, showing no sign of straining his back.

He sighed in relief, then heard a faint voice from outside: "Still saying you weren't ruined by wine and women..."

The old man's face immediately darkened: "These brats!!"

Rage +1 +1...

……

The next day, the weather was fine and sunny.

"In light of yesterday's incident, the judging panel, the alternates, and the supporters have unanimously decided that yesterday's assessment is invalid, and the third assessment will be re-tested today."

"Huh?!" ×N

"I thought I could go home today..."

"It's all Kira's fault for knocking down the mountain yesterday, that's why we had to stay an extra day!"

"Why blame me? It's clearly because everyone has been using too much magic around here these past two days that the mountain structure has become unstable..."

"No! I think it's purely because the president's assessment rules are flawed!"

"That makes sense..."

Just then, Lucy suddenly raised a fair, smooth, and well-maintained hand, looked at Makarov standing on the boulder, and asked, "So how will the third test be conducted? Will it be the same as yesterday? Or will there be new testing rules?"

A hint of desolation flashed across Makarov's expression: "The third stage of the new S-rank assessment will be designed by Auguste!"

"Oh oh oh!!!"

"That old man who looks really powerful?! I heard he's mastered a lot of magic and is very knowledgeable. The levels he designs must be really interesting, right?"

"Lord August is the head of the Twelve Shields, the strongest man in the empire besides the Emperor! He'll definitely be able to design an interesting test!"

"I actually think he's better than your emperor..."

Makarov froze, staring wide-eyed at the group of kids below in disbelief, inwardly roaring, "What's wrong with you all?! Can't you see how pathetic I am?! Doesn't anyone feel sorry for me being kicked out of the design assessment team?!"

"President!"

"I am here!!"

At that moment, Makarov's voice rose by eighty decibels.

I knew it; there would be someone who could see my wisdom…

"If you stand on it again, you might strain your back!"

"..."

Chapter 611 Inner Struggle? I, Kira, never resort to such underhanded tactics!

This place is now in ruins because Kira destroyed a mountain yesterday.

Various oddly shaped and sized stones and broken trees were scattered haphazardly on the ground, occupying the area of ​​several mountains, and there was also a pile of dust taller than a person, which was the shattered and unrecognizable mountain body.

The group worked together to clear a space to serve as the venue for the final assessment of the day.

Augustus, holding a magic wand, stood in the center of the examination hall, with Natsu and the others standing opposite him, looking like a teacher and students having an outdoor class.

August's hands were very steady. Although his skin was wrinkled with age, he had a strength that was not what one would expect from an old man. He didn't shake at all when he held the magic wand.

His gaze was gentle, like that of a kind old neighbor, yet it carried a hint of sternness, making him more imposing than even the strictest lecturer in the school.

With his pale long hair, upright posture, and extraordinary temperament, Auguste exudes erudition and elegance, inspiring admiration in all who see him.

"The rules for this final stage of the assessment are as follows:"

"The four candidates will each play a match against the other three. The winner will get 2 points, the tie will get 1 point, and the loser will get no points. The one with the highest score will pass the assessment."

"So, the supporters don't participate in the war?" Gray asked.

"Yes!"

August nodded. "In my opinion, the supporters have already provided you with enough help in the first two assessments. After all, this is your assessment, and you need to work hard on your own."

Upon hearing this, Gray felt much more at ease.

Of the remaining four supporters, Kira is undoubtedly the strongest, Gildarts is second, and Brandish's magic counters Ultear's, so in a team battle, his chances of winning aren't actually high. But since today's assessment only tests the candidates, his confidence has grown!

In terms of strength, I'm no less than Natsu, Lucy, and Juvia!

"Listen to this, President! This is how an excellent examiner should set questions!"

"Stop talking nonsense! You bunch of brats!!"

Makarov, his face dark with rage, shoved his large face right in front of Gray's and roared, spitting in his face, "I've worked so hard for the guild for so many years, and now you're complaining about the questions?! You should know, I'm the guild leader!!"

"Yes...yes...you should rest a bit today, Third Hokage!"

Mavis walked over with a smile, gently patted Makarov, who was several heads shorter than her, and softly comforted him.

"The first generation?! Waaaaah... I'm suffering so much!!"

Thinking of his life of military service, which ended in disgrace, Makarov couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow, and tears streamed down his face as he was overcome with grief.

However, instead of feeling sorry for them, people felt...so embarrassed.

Of course, there are also people who feel neither sorry nor embarrassed, but are full of envy, and that is August.

'I want my mom to pat my head like that too! Too bad I'm too short!! That wretched Makarov, he can so shamelessly snuggle in his mother's arms, it's just... I'm so envious!!!'

Just as August was about to rush forward and pull Makarov away, shouting "Mother is mine," a voice interrupted his wild thoughts, preserving the old man's image.

"What if there are two or three people with the highest scores in the end?"

"Ahem... So the winner is the one who wins in their head-to-head battle!"

August seemed to have anticipated this situation. After regaining his composure, he quickly answered the questions, "For example, if Natsu and Gray both score 4 points in the end, then the winner of the 'Natsu vs. Gray' match will be chosen; if they tie, then no one will pass!"

"The same applies to situations where three or four people have the same score. Unless you can outperform the other three, you will not be able to become an S-class mage this year!"

"Eh...that's really strict!"

As August explained the rules, the surrounding crowd immediately began to discuss them.

"However, this method is much simpler and clearer than the president's assessment!"

"As expected, a real man should decide the outcome through this kind of battle!"

"If we use a scoring system for one-on-one matches, we'd have to play six games, right? Playing them simultaneously should reduce the time..."

"Speaking of which, if this is how the assessment is conducted, then the allocation of magic power becomes very important!"

As experienced S-rank test takers, Erza, Mira, and the others immediately realized the most important thing to pay attention to in this test and promptly reminded Lucy.

Lucy, being quick-witted, immediately understood after hearing Erza's words: "Indeed... each person needs to fight three times. If they expend too much energy in a battle they are destined to lose, resulting in insufficient magic power and losing a potentially victorious test, their final score will drop..."

"That's right!"

August suddenly said, "Since Natsu and Lucy already fought yesterday, they don't need to fight today. Their scores will be automatically counted! That means Natsu gets 2 points and Lucy gets 0 points."

"Eh?!?!?!"

"Didn't you say yesterday's doesn't count?"

"Isn't that unfair to Gray and Juvia?"

"We lost the first game..."

Lucy frowned, her face downcast, her blond hair drooping listlessly at her temples. She hadn't expected that her battle with Natsu yesterday would be included in the calculations.

"Well... I was never going to beat Natsu anyway..."

Wendy and Erza stepped forward to comfort them, saying, "Actually, this is for the best. With one less match, you can be in better shape to face Gray and Juvia."

"Gray and Juvia... I doubt they could beat them either..."