The final list of participants for this S-Class Promotion Exam was decided jointly by Makarov, Marco, and the other S-Class wizards.
Just as Mirajane had said, in order to avoid accidents and reduce everyone's exhaustion, the number of participants in this exam wasn't very large—but everyone on the list was among the guild's elite.
"Natsu, Gray, Lucy, Hisui, Freed, Gajeel, Juvia, Evergreen, Bickslow, Elfman, and Cana."
After reading out the list, Marco let out a sigh.
They called it a shortened roster, but in truth, it was hard to find a reason to exclude any of them.
The few who had made great contributions and drawn a lot of attention in the recent battle obviously had to be included.
The exam was being held in the first place largely to promote them.
But the others hadn't performed poorly in that battle either. If they were simply barred from participating, it would definitely cause dissatisfaction.
Marco's eyes lingered on Cana's name. Compared with the others, Cana's performance in that battle had only been average.
But the merit she had accumulated over time was simply too great. She had already participated in the S-Class Promotion Exam several times.
For that very reason, she worked hard year after year, taking missions and piling up accomplishments, all because she was afraid of being cut from the list.
Her obsession with reaching S-Class really ran that deep.
After thinking it over, Marco decided to include Cana after all.
If she were left out, she would probably be crushed!
Of course, Cana also wasn't one of the absolute core fighters in the Grand Magic Games, and that was another important reason behind Marco's decision.
"You really don't need to worry so much. A few days ago, I talked with several guild masters, and they all had some ideas about reforming the Grand Magic Games. It seems the king is also not too satisfied with the current format."
Seeing that Marco, Erza, and Mirajane were all a bit troubled, Makarov stepped forward and once again became the guild's steady pillar.
A few days ago, he had already discussed the Grand Magic Games with several guild masters.
"Reform? How?" Gildarts asked curiously.
He was very interested in the Grand Magic Games, though he still hadn't seen this newest, much larger-scale version in person.
"First rule: remove the rank restriction on participants."
That first sentence instantly solved the problem Marco and the others had been worrying about.
The original Grand Magic Games did not allow S-Class wizards to participate.
After all, the Grand Magic Games had originally evolved out of Fairy Tail's own S-Class Promotion Exam, gradually growing from that model.
Now that the event had reached this scale and level of attention, it wasn't surprising at all that it would be further reformed.
And removing the rank restriction would definitely make the competition much more exciting.
"That's a good thing! That means we can participate too!" Erza said excitedly.
That way, there would be no need to worry about Natsu, Gray, and the others underperforming.
With them—the S-Class wizards—taking the field, Natsu and Gray wouldn't even need to carry the burden.
Actually, this Grand Magic Games was supposed to be Natsu and Gray's last one anyway.
Once they were promoted to S-Class, they would have been restricted from entering in the future.
But now that rule was about to change.
"Would they... really agree to something like that?"
Mirajane looked astonished.
She truly couldn't understand how the other guild masters could possibly agree to allowing S-Class wizards to compete.
Even with the current rank restriction in place, Fairy Tail had already won the championship several years in a row.
If the restriction were lifted and their S-Class wizards were added on top of that, then what were the other guilds even supposed to do?
"At that point, they'd all just be competing for second place."
Even Marco couldn't help sighing.
He didn't quite understand it either.
The old rule obviously weakened Fairy Tail, since by now everyone should already know just how powerful Fairy Tail's S-Class wizards were.
Lifting the restriction was basically unsealing Fairy Tail.
"Is it possible they've simply accepted reality completely? They've already acknowledged that Fairy Tail is number one, and the reason they're lifting the restriction is so they can compete for second place instead. After all, some guilds' S-Class wizards are still very competitive."
Gildarts offered a new perspective, and honestly, it made a lot of sense. It was the kind of idea that made things suddenly click.
"That actually does seem possible. Some guilds' S-Class wizards are clearly stronger than others. When it comes to fighting over second place, they'd definitely have a real shot."
Marco also came to the same realization.
Fairy Tail, as the final boss, was unbeatable to the others whether their S-Class wizards were restricted or not.
But if their own S-Class members could enter, that would absolutely help them in the fight for second place.
"From the king's tone, it sounds like any reigning champion that wins three years in a row will directly become the final boss of the Grand Magic Games. They won't have to participate in the qualifiers, group stages, or elimination matches. They can just wait for the challengers to fight it out, and then face the winner directly."
Makarov continued, making Marco and the others exchange glances.
So they were basically banning Fairy Tail outright?
Sit back and watch the whole event, conserve energy, then show up only for the final?
"If that's really the case, then it has both advantages and disadvantages."
Marco frowned.
A dynasty team that won three straight championships would directly become the final boss, sitting on the throne and coldly watching the challengers battle it out before kicking the winner aside in the final.
It was definitely cool and stylish.
But there were also risks.
For example, they might rest too long without fighting and grow rusty, while the challengers, battling their way through round after round, might build momentum and get into peak condition.
"It sounds pretty interesting, though."
Erza, on the other hand, liked the new mechanism quite a bit.
She thought it sounded fun.
They would only need to fight strong opponents instead of battling their way up through every stage.
As for getting rusty, that wasn't much of a concern. They could always train among themselves.
"It is interesting."
Marco nodded.
He didn't deny that the format sounded fun. And in the face of overwhelming strength, whether the opponent had built momentum or not didn't matter much anyway.
No matter how much they powered up, they still wouldn't be able to cause much trouble for Fairy Tail.
"In that case, we can hold the exam properly this time without worrying so much. There's no need to hold back the announcement of the results either."
Gildarts cracked his knuckles.
His standards had always been strict, and being told to rein them in a little for this exam had been frustrating for him.
Now there was no need to hold back anymore.
"Then should we add more names to the list?"
Mirajane tilted her head.
Since they no longer had to worry so much, there was no longer any need to cut down the roster.
It wouldn't matter if more people joined the exam.
"No need. These people are just right. Adding others would only be making up the numbers."
Makarov shook his head. The reason he hadn't mentioned all this earlier was because he felt the roster itself had no real problem.
Everyone who should be included was already there. After being streamlined, the list actually looked more reasonable.
If there were too many people, it would just become messy.
"Then let's go with this." Marco nodded.
He also felt that Fairy Tail's future S-Class wizards would most likely be promoted gradually from this group.
Everyone on the list was talented and among the guild's standouts.
As for the rest—aside from a few who were still quite young—many might not necessarily have the potential to grow to the S-Class level.
Of course, that wasn't something that could be stated too absolutely.
Someone might stumble into an extraordinary opportunity.
Someone might suddenly achieve an epiphany. In the world of magic, all you could really say was that anything was possible.
Maybe seven or eight years from now, someone among them would grow strong enough to reach a level close to where Natsu and Gray were now.
And that alone would be enough to qualify them for S-Class.
"Let's start making arrangements."