Chapter 400: Crossing the Finish Line, The Race Concludes!
"Haha!" Sorano laughed out loud, thoroughly amused by Noah's helpless expression.
Ultear broke into a warm smile as well.
"Noah and Laxus really do have a great bond," Wendy noted with a sweet smile, watching the two powerful mages bicker from a few paces behind.
"Mmhmm!" Yukino and Meredy nodded in absolute agreement.
"You girls have a pretty great bond yourselves," Ultear pointed out, smiling back at them.
"Hehe!" Wendy and the others giggled, blushing slightly at the compliment.
Listening to their cheerful chatter, Noah shifted his gaze forward. Thanks to his enhanced vision, he easily spotted Erza and Mirajane running side by side further up the path.
As they ran, both women suddenly leaped backward in perfect unison. A split second later, a glowing Jutsu Shiki barrier erupted from the dirt right where they had been about to step. If their reflexes had been even slightly slower, they would have plunged right into the trap.
"A Jutsu Shiki?" Erza narrowed her eyes, glaring at the glowing magical script.
"Did Freed set this up?" Mirajane guessed, scanning the trees.
"Exactly!" Freed announced, stepping out to stand proudly atop a nearby boulder. "As expected of Erza and Mirajane! Your situational awareness allowed you to spot the trap. However..."
Before he could even finish his villainous monologue, dozens of ethereal swords materialized in the air around him, every single blade hovering inches from his throat.
Down on the path, Mirajane slowly pulled back her raised fist, looking genuinely disappointed that she didn't get to punch him.
"The sin of disrupting my running pace is exceptionally heavy. Now I have to find my rhythm all over again," Erza lectured the trapped rune mage. Then, she noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. "Mirajane, don't you dare sneak off! Damn it!"
Leaving Freed completely trapped in a cage of swords, Erza immediately bolted down the path to chase after her rival.
"Erza! Let me out! Are you listening to me?!" Freed shouted in a panic, but Erza completely ignored him, totally focused on catching Mirajane.
Watching the scene unfold, Noah couldn't help but smirk. Of all the people Freed could have tried to trap, picking Erza and Mirajane was a terrible idea. They might not know how to cast Jutsu Shiki themselves, but Noah used Archive magic and runic arrays around them all the time. They had picked up more than enough tricks to counter or bypass standard traps. Freed's barrier had been totally useless, and now he was the one stuck.
Still, it was probably for the best that Erza struck first; otherwise, Mirajane would have undoubtedly punched Freed into the stratosphere, which would have been a lot worse for his health.
"What are you smiling at?" Laxus asked, noticing the smirk on Noah's face.
Ultear and the girls looked over curiously as well.
"Just saw Freed get completely owned by Erza and Mira up ahead," Noah laughed, practically glowing with amusement.
Laxus immediately scowled. Freed was a core member of his Thunder Legion, while Erza, Mirajane, and Noah were notoriously tight-knit. Seeing his subordinate get effortlessly handled by them definitely bruised his pride. He half-suspected Noah was taking pleasure in this just to get back at him for freeloading on his trap-free path.
"Oh, Jet has already reached the summit. He's incredibly fast," Noah noted. Calculating Jet's overall speed against the distance to the mountain peak, Noah activated his magic. Intricate golden magical arrays materialized over his eyes, radically enhancing his vision.
Looking toward the distant peak of Mount Ibel, he spotted Jet scrambling to the top, snatching one of the marked White Dragon scales, and immediately blazing a trail back down the mountain.
"Yeah, his speed is the real deal," Laxus admitted. Excluding a select few monsters in the guild, Jet's raw velocity was legitimately impressive.
"Should we speed up a little?" Meredy asked worriedly from the back.
"No need. Maintain your own rhythm. We still have more than half the race left, so there's no reason to rush. You don't use speed-enhancing magic like Jet, so trying to copy his pace will only exhaust you," Noah advised her.
"Got it, Noah," Meredy nodded firmly, keeping her breathing steady.
"WAAAAAAH!"
A chaotic chain of terrified screams rapidly approached from behind, prompting everyone to look over their shoulders.
"I'm falling! I'm falling! Put me down! This is terrifying!"
Lucy was currently being carried princess-style by her Celestial Spirit, Virgo. The spirit was sprinting at a frankly terrifying velocity, blowing right past Noah and the others as she carried her master down the track.
As they zoomed by, Noah clearly saw comical tears flying from Lucy's eyes and the sheer, unadulterated panic plastered across her face.
"Is Lucy... going to be okay?" Wendy sweatdropped.
Yukino, however, watched the retreating Celestial wizard with awe. She was somewhat envious; she didn't possess nearly enough raw magical power to sustain a summon for high-speed travel like that.
"Lucy really is something else. She doesn't have a shred of that spoiled rich-girl attitude," Laxus nodded approvingly. When he had first learned about her aristocratic background, he had expected her to be an arrogant nuisance. Instead, she had completely assimilated into Fairy Tail's chaotic family without a second thought.
"Yeah, Aunt Layla and Uncle Jude raised her well," Noah smiled warmly.
Just then, Happy came puffing up the trail from behind.
"Looking good, Happy! Keep it up!" Noah cheered him on.
Happy, utterly desperate to maintain his breathing rhythm, didn't dare speak. He simply gave a determined nod and kept pushing his little legs.
Noah wasn't surprised that the Exceed had caught up. When a large group runs together, their collective pace naturally drops to accommodate everyone. Happy, running entirely on his own, was actually maintaining a slightly faster average speed.
Slowly but surely, Happy pulled ahead of Noah's group and continued down the trail.
"Carla, Happy is actually running faster than we are," Wendy noted.
"Mmhmm," Carla replied, a faint, proud smile tugging at her lips. Seeing her fellow Exceed push himself so hard brought her genuine joy.
As Noah's group maintained their steady jog, several other guild members eventually passed them, while those with worse stamina fell behind.
The hours blurred together, and soon it was late afternoon. The group found themselves jogging alongside a dense forest bordered by a rushing stream.
"Oh my! Oh my goodness!" Juvia's distressed voice bubbled up from the river, physically moving downstream with the current.
"Was that Juvia?" Wendy asked, blinking in confusion.
"As expected of a Water Mage. She tried to heal her exhaustion with the river and ended up accidentally assimilating her physical body into the current," Carla sighed, shaking her head.
"Huh?!" Wendy, Yukino, and Meredy shrieked in panic.
"Is she going to be alright?!" Meredy asked frantically.
"She'll be fine. Juvia will reform herself soon enough," Sorano assured the younger girls. Noah nodded in agreement; it was just a clumsy mistake on Juvia's part, nothing dangerous.
A few minutes later, Gray came sprinting up from behind.
"Did Juvia come this way?" Gray asked. His feelings toward her were complicated, but not seeing her around made him genuinely anxious.
Ultear, running just behind Noah, didn't say a word. She simply pointed a finger toward the stream.
Gray followed her gaze and spotted Juvia's translucent, watery silhouette completely merged with the rushing river.
"Are you kidding me?!" Gray gaped.
"Gray-sama!" Juvia cheered, completely thrilled to see him, but her watery form was immediately swept further downstream by the rapids.
"I'm going on ahead!" Gray announced, picking up his pace to chase after the river.
"Right," Noah nodded as the Ice wizard blew past them.
Noah and the others stuck to their comfortable pace. Night eventually fell, and they finally arrived at the base of Mount Ibel. Several faster guild members had already secured their White Dragon scales and were making their descent.
Picking up the pace slightly, Noah's group hiked to the summit, grabbed one scale each, and immediately began the long journey back toward Magnolia.
Normally, everyone would be asleep right now, but they were Fairy Tail mages. Pulling an all-nighter for a competition was practically second nature. The wild, screaming energy from the start of the race had died down, replaced by silent, gritty determination under the moonlight.
Time flew by. The moon dipped below the horizon, and the blazing sun breached the horizon, bathing the world in golden morning light. By this point, the vast majority of the racers had crossed the halfway point on the return trip.
"Haha, well this is getting interesting," Noah chuckled, his ears twitching as he ran.
"What is it?" Ultear asked, slightly confused.
"It sounds like someone is coming up from behind extremely fast," Wendy realized, her Dragon Slayer hearing picking up the heavy, rapid footsteps.
Laxus nodded in confirmation.
"Let's clear the path," Noah ordered, casually stepping to the side of the dirt road.
Though a bit puzzled, the rest of the group faithfully followed Noah's lead and moved out of the center.
A split second later, a sheer blur of kinetic energy blasted past them, violently overtaking the exhausted Fairy Tail members scattered along the path. The sheer wind pressure generated by the runner's speed sent several wizards tumbling helplessly into the dirt.
Because Noah's group had preemptively stepped aside, they were completely unaffected by the gale.
"Was that Jet? Why was he all the way in the back?" Sorano asked, bewildered.
"It's obvious. The idiot took a nap halfway through and is only just now making up for lost time," Laxus sighed, shaking his head at the speedster's arrogance.
A few moments later, Happy came trudging up the path.
"Oh, Happy caught up again," Sorano smiled.
Seeing Noah and the others, Happy gave a tired but determined nod and kept pushing forward.
"Let's pick up the pace, everyone. We're almost at the finish line," Noah declared.
The group nodded, breaking into a faster run. They easily bypassed the groaning mages Jet had knocked over, caught up to Happy, and matched his pace as they closed in on Magnolia.
Golden Archive arrays materialized over Noah's eyes and ears once more, allowing him to monitor the absolute frontrunners. He had a strong feeling that the finale of this race was going to be wildly entertaining, and he absolutely refused to miss it.
"I will not let you win! Requip!"
Erza and Mirajane were running neck-and-neck when Jet came roaring up from behind them. Refusing to lose her lead, Erza triggered her magic.
Her sleek athletic gear vanished, instantly replaced by an insanely bulky, fluffy white rabbit mascot suit. Two massive rabbit ears flopped wildly in the wind as she began aggressively hopping down the road.
"A rabbit suit?!"
"Is she seriously trying to sprint in that?!"
Up ahead, Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel noticed Erza's bizarre transformation. Feeling the pressure, they gritted their teeth and pushed their aching legs faster.
"Huh? She isn't catching up?" Natsu looked over his shoulder in utter confusion. Erza was hopping furiously, but she wasn't closing the distance at all.
"Turning into a rabbit literally made her slower."
"I guess she wins on physical appearance alone."
"I honestly had no idea she cared this much about looking cute."
Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel couldn't help but offer their deadpan commentary as they kept running.
"Haha! Erza, I'm going on ahead!" Mirajane laughed, easily pulling away from the struggling rabbit and closing in on Natsu's group.
"Ha!" Hearing Mirajane's taunt, Erza's competitive rage flared. Pushing through the massive aerodynamic drag of the fluffy costume, she explosively increased her hopping speed and miraculously caught right back up to the barmaid.
"Hold it right there, all of you!" Jet roared, finally bridging the gap.
Hearing his voice, Mirajane and the Dragon Slayers tensed up. Biting down on their exhaustion, they poured every last drop of their remaining energy into a brutal final sprint.
Because the leading five were now pushing beyond their physical limits, Jet couldn't actually overtake them. He was forced into a desperate, six-way dead heat.
"They've entered Magnolia! Finally! Jet has caught up to the leading pack! First place will be decided among these six titans!"
Noah could clearly hear Jason's screaming commentary echoing from the city's loudspeakers. The six frontrunners were locked in an absolute bloodbath for the crown.
"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu ignited his palms behind his back, using the jet propulsion to violently blast himself forward.
"Don't screw with me!" Jet roared, pushing his magic to the absolute breaking point.
"Requip!" Realizing the bunny suit was a terrible idea, Erza instantly swapped back to her aerodynamic sports gear.
"Haaa!" Mirajane exhaled sharply, pushing her physical strength to the limit. Her signature white ponytail whipped wildly behind her.
"Hah!" Refusing to be outdone, Gray and Gajeel dug deep, sprinting like absolute madmen.
"Wait! Natsu's thrusters are out of fuel! The flames have died! Has the Dragon Slayer lost his chance at victory?!" Jason shrieked into the mic.
"GAAAAAH! No way in hell I'm losing like this!" Natsu screamed at the top of his lungs, relying entirely on raw, unadulterated willpower as he pumped his arms and charged forward.
"Wooooow! As expected of Natsu! He's matching the frontrunners on pure, terrifying guts alone!" Jason cheered enthusiastically.
"HAAAA!"
The six mages roared, tearing through the final stretch of the city streets until Magnolia Park—and the finish line—finally came into view.
"First place is MINE!" all six of them screamed simultaneously.
"Gah!!!"
Suddenly, Natsu's toe caught on a slightly raised cobblestone. He violently wiped out, instantly taking down Erza, Mirajane, Gray, Gajeel, and Jet in a massive, tangled dogpile just inches away from the finish line.
"AHHHH! An unbelievable, catastrophic crash right at the absolute end!" Jason screamed, completely losing his mind.
At that exact moment, Noah and his group jogged into the park.
"And now, making an incredibly cool, composed entrance, it's Noah and Laxus! Oh! Oh! Happy, Carla, Wendy, Meredy, and Yukino are right there with them! They are making their final push for the finish line!" Jason announced as the crowd went wild.
Noah, Laxus, Ultear, and Sorano exchanged a knowing glance. Without saying a word, the four older mages subtly dialed back their speed.
This allowed Wendy, Meredy, Yukino, Happy, and Carla to pull out in front.
"Go! Go! Go! The finish line is right there!" Jason encouraged, while the massive crowd of Magnolia citizens screamed in support.
Fueled by the cheers, Wendy and the girls broke into a final sprint. Happy and Carla pushed their little legs as fast as they could beside them.
"Happy...?" Natsu groaned from the bottom of the dogpile, watching in complete disbelief as his blue partner effortlessly jogged past his broken body toward the ribbon.
Just inches from the finish line, Wendy, Meredy, and Yukino exchanged a silent, telepathic look. Smiling, they intentionally slowed their pace by a fraction of a second, perfectly synchronizing their final steps with the Exceeds.
Together, the five of them broke the ribbon.
"CONGRATULATIONS! You are all tied for first place!" Jason bellowed into the microphone.
"Wendy, you didn't have to hold back for me," Carla huffed, crossing her arms despite her heavy panting.
"Don't say that! We all crossed together, so we're all first place!" Wendy beamed, crouching down to pat her friend.
"Very well," Carla sighed, though a genuine smile finally broke across her face.
"Mmhmm!" Yukino and Meredy nodded vigorously, completely overjoyed. Winning alongside their best friends was the perfect outcome.
"Awesome! I'm number one!" Happy cheered, throwing his paws into the air.
"An excellent run, all of you," Master Makarov praised, stepping up to congratulate the victors.
"Congrats!"
"Great job, Wendy!"
"You were awesome, Yukino!"
"Don't forget Meredy! She was amazing too!"
The crowd showered the five winners with endless applause.
"They've crossed the line! The ultimate champions of this year's 24-Hour Endurance Road Race are Wendy, Yukino, Meredy, Happy, and Carla! History has been rewritten! COOL! COOL! COOL!" Jason screamed, utterly ecstatic.
"Gah..."
Untangling themselves from the dogpile, Erza, Mirajane, and the others slowly stood up. They stared at the celebrating victors, completely dumbfounded.
"We seriously got passed by that many people..." Gray muttered.
"...beaten by three little girls," Gajeel groaned.
"...and two cats," Natsu finished, his soul practically leaving his body.
Surprisingly, Erza and Mirajane just smiled. If they had to lose, losing to Wendy and the younger girls was an outcome they were perfectly happy to accept.
Noah finally jogged up to the finish line. Reaching out, he grabbed Erza's hand with his left and Mirajane's hand with his right, dragging both women across the line with him. Laxus, Ultear, and Sorano casually strolled across right behind them.
"Why are you two just standing there zoning out?" Noah asked, dropping their hands and looking at them in exasperation.
"Haha..." Mirajane and Erza laughed awkwardly, suddenly realizing they had been so shocked by the crash that they hadn't actually finished the race.
"WOOOOOO!"
Suddenly, a terrifying, thunderous war cry echoed down the street. A massive, desperate stampede of Fairy Tail members was charging wildly toward the park.
"What the hell?!" Natsu yelled.
"Of course they're sprinting!" Gray realized.
"Nobody wants to suffer the Master's Punishment Game!" Gajeel yelled.
Before the three of them could even react, the stampede violently ran them over, trampling them right back into the dirt.
"Gah! Stop stepping on me!"
"Ow! Ow! OW!"
Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel screamed in agony as dozens of boots stomped across their backs.
"Unbelievable! The entire mage legion used the distraction to cross the finish line all at once!" Jason narrated over the chaos.
"Gray-sama, hurry up!" Juvia called out from the safe zone.
"Natsu, get up!" Lucy yelled.
"Come on, guys, hurry!" the rest of the guild cheered.
"Crap!"
"We're doomed!"
"Stop telling us to hurry!"
Covered in dusty boot prints, Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel scrambled to their feet, absolutely desperate to avoid last place.
"Are you kidding me?! Top speed!" Jet roared, activating his magic to rocket across the final few feet.
"JET!" Natsu, Gray, and Gajeel weren't stupid. In a moment of pure desperation, all three of them violently lunged forward and tackled the speed mage.
Carried by Jet's momentum, all four of them tumbled across the finish line in a tangled, chaotic heap.
"They crossed! They crossed! Four men tied for absolute dead last!" Jason announced at the top of his lungs.
The entire guild stared in stunned silence at the pathetic pile of brawlers. Nobody had expected the race to end in a four-way tie for the Punishment Game.
~~~
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