Chapter 159: Small Punches

"I guess it might be a regular maze, or perhaps we'll be asked to find specific items. It could also be a test of our survival skills using the harsh environment there.

If it's more complicated, it could test all those things at once, maybe even add a battle royale rule where only the 'survivors' qualify to advance. But since we don't have many participants, that might not be necessary."

In fact, the first thing that came to Rhodes' mind about such an environment was the Chūnin Exam's Forest of Death in that neighboring fiery anime studio.

But such a brutal tournament system didn't really fit with the guild's ethos, so it probably wouldn't be like that.

Cana couldn't understand how Rhodes came up with such harsh rules. She felt relieved that the previous exams hadn't used such methods.

"The first round shouldn't be that complicated, right?" she said.

"Yeah, I also think the latter option is unlikely, but we still need to consider the possibility of our teammates becoming our opponents," Rhodes replied. "Tomorrow, let's start gathering some intel on the other participants and their partners—especially Mest. I don't know anything about him, and being unprepared can easily put us at a disadvantage.

We should also figure out how to handle each team or even take on all teams if it comes to that.

Plus, the terrain of Clover Canyon is important. I'll give you the materials I organized from my previous trip there tomorrow—luckily, I didn't lose them."

"Um... okay," Cana nodded absentmindedly. Did the first round really require this level of preparation?

"Since you said the first round wouldn't be too hard, I think just preparing these things is enough for now," Rhodes said. "We'll think more about it once we have more intel."

Just these preparations... just?

Cana felt dazed—oh, Rhodes' Common Tongue wasn't great; he must have used the wrong word again, right? It had to be that.

"The biggest trouble is still the second round. Although there may be some special rules, we still won't be able to avoid fighting the S-Class wizards head-on."

Rhodes felt uneasy about this round. He had never seen Mystogan or Erza fight at full power, but the memory of Laxus easily toying with Natsu was still fresh.

Plus, after Natsu ate lightning, there was that instant when Laxus got serious—the oppressive aura from him at that moment was unforgettable.

If Mystogan and Erza got serious, they were probably on par with Laxus. Facing any one of them would be tough.

"Do you think we could bribe Mira to slip some laxatives into their food on the day of the test?"

"Rhodes, I'm right here," Mira said.

Rhodes looked at her. "So, will you help?"

Mira tilted her head. "On a normal day, I could consider it, but not for the exam."

What do you mean, on a normal day it's possible?! Elfman broke into a cold sweat. Had his sister just said something really dangerous?

"Then we'll need to come up with other tricks. I need to gather more information about them so I can come up with a reliable strategy to get us through."

Rhodes thought for a bit and added, "But we can't place all our hopes on trickery. The proper way is for us to combine our strengths and fight our way through.

So, these next few days, we need to boost our strength as much as possible—every bit counts. It'd be best if we could come up with a big move."

"Got it." Cana didn't care much about whether it was the proper or improper way—she just wanted to pass the exam and gather the courage to speak to Gildarts.

She pressed on. "So, what about the third round? How do we prepare?"

"No need to prepare anything." Rhodes replied. "The third round should be a 'comprehensive application question.' As long as we have the abilities to pass the first two rounds, the third round shouldn't be too big of a hurdle.

The more flexible or experienced we are, the more advantages we'll have. I think you're good in that regard.

At most, we need to think about whether there'll be any rest time before the third round—whether we need to conserve our strength… okay, forget I said that."

Facing three S-Class wizards, they probably weren't in a position to conserve strength. They'd just have to figure it out if they made it that far.

Worst case, they'd try to delay things by chatting with the Master or asking questions.

Rhodes laid out all the possibilities, and they could fill in the details later.

Cana felt that her thoughts had suddenly become much clearer. At least she now knew what to prepare during these seven days.

Picking Rhodes as a partner was definitely the right choice.

"Mira-sensei, any suggestions?" she asked.

"It seems like there isn't much else to suggest." Mira thought of how she had charged through her exam without much special preparation, only adding a little extra training before the exam.

"But I called you 'teacher.'"

Mira rubbed her wrist. "Then stand still, and I'll show you a neck throw."

"Spare me... huh?" Rhodes thought about the neck throw move for a moment and hesitated.

Although it might hurt a lot, maybe the risk was worth taking.

"Hey!" Rhodes got a punch to the chest—it didn't really hurt, and he even started laughing.

Mira turned her head away, refusing to look at him. She felt like he was plotting something mischievous.

Cana suddenly felt like maybe picking Rhodes wasn't such a great idea after all.

"Alright, let's train. Finish today's basic routine, and then start with regular combat practice."

The crescent moon cast its silvery light down, reflecting off the thin layer of snow in the guild courtyard.

Four people, each with their own purpose, silently practiced their moves.

It might have been a beautiful scene to watch, but being part of it felt awful to Rhodes.

The temperature wasn't cold enough, and there wasn't enough snow, leaving the ground wet and slippery.

When fighting, lifting a foot would easily kick up mud, and if unlucky enough to fall, it'd be even worse.

Rhodes tried to persuade Mira to use her influence for personal gain. "Mira, can the guild allocate some funds to build an indoor training ground?"

"We don't have the budget for that right now, and it's not easy to change the current layout."

Mira thought about it; she didn't like stepping in mud either. "Maybe I'll ask Laki tomorrow to lay down wooden flooring in the courtyard?"

They had done that before to use it as a sparring ring, but it didn't last long before getting damaged.

After that, Rhodes hadn't had the nerve to ask Laki for help again. Plus, having wooden flooring made it hard for his Stone Beetle form to use earth tunneling.

But considering the current situation, it might be a good idea to lay it down again.

The next day, all the S-Class exam candidates except Cana were absent.

It seemed everyone had plans to do some special training.

Rhodes frowned. "This isn't good. It seems like we're not the only team planning to cram for the exam."

Cana sighed. "I think they're just doing regular training, not thinking that far ahead."

Plus, they were all first-timers, without the experience she had… this was the first time Cana felt like having multiple attempts wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

Rhodes wasn't in the habit of underestimating his opponents, and everyone in the guild had their strengths, so he definitely couldn't afford to do so.

"Don't let your guard down. Go find out who their partners are. I'll go check the guild's records for any information on Mest."