Chapter 559: Rhodes’ Guide to Punching Around Armor
"Everyone’s gone... What should we do now?" Carla looked at Wendy’s fading silhouette and still couldn’t shake her unease. She felt like she needed to stay busy to distract herself.
Makarov stroked his beard and replied, "First, help carry the medical supplies and food to the camp. Then we’ll wait for them at the finish line of the first stage."
Gildarts, Mira, and Erza had already set up tents on the island, a small base where the examiners could rest and eat in between.
Carla obediently grabbed a box and floated beside the Master. "Do you know who Wendy will face?"
Makarov chuckled. "I’m actually hoping she and Rhodes run into Mira. That would be... entertaining."
"But they fight every day already. It’s getting old," Carla said flatly, clearly unimpressed.
"No, no, no, it’s not about the fighting," Makarov said, wagging a finger. "With Rhodes’ personality, I bet he’ll try to conserve his strength. He’ll probably come up with some kind of sneaky plan to deal with Mira. And then..."
He broke into a sly grin. "Then Mira will be furious and spend the next few days chasing him down for revenge! With any luck, they’ll be too busy with each other to bother me! Ah ha ha ha!"
"..."
You really are a sly old fox, Carla thought, completely exasperated by the entire guild. "So... they picked Mira’s path?"
"Sigh." Makarov let out a long breath. "Unfortunately, they chose..."
"Erza," Rhodes interrupted.
"What?" Wendy blinked. She didn’t catch what he said.
"The Scuttle Crab spotted her ahead," Rhodes explained. "Erza’s waiting for us."
As he spoke, he casually returned his glasses to his re-equip space, storing Wendy’s for her too.
Just in case they needed them later, it wouldn’t do to have them broken in a fight.
"Miss Erza..." Wendy murmured nervously.
But after thinking about all the sparring she’d done recently, her anxiety slowly began to ease.
Right now, her top priority was to protect herself... and support Rhodes as best she could.
Rhodes told her to stay just half a step behind him, and the two began walking forward, quietly observing the terrain through the crab’s vision.
The place Erza had chosen looked like an ancient stone temple. The crumbling walls were chipped and weathered with age. Moss and ferns crept across every surface, and thick tree roots had burst through parts of the ceiling, hanging like ropes from above.
Erza had already noticed the awkwardly scuttling crab. From that alone, she knew who her opponents were.
A small smile tugged at her lips. She didn’t bother attacking the scout, just waited patiently in place. At the same time, she kept a subtle guard up in case of ambush.
Technically, exam takers weren’t supposed to ambush the examiners...
But this was Rhodes we were talking about.
When facing someone like him, caution was never wasted.
To her surprise, though, Rhodes showed some rare respect for the exam’s formality. He didn’t burrow through the floor or try any underhanded tricks. Instead, he strode openly into the ruined hall, boots crunching on old stone.
"It really is you two," Erza said warmly, a hand resting on her hip. "I must say, this is just what I was hoping for."
"For me, running into you isn’t exactly the best outcome," Rhodes said honestly. He had been hoping to face a weaker opponent, something less of a headache.
But then he remembered something and added, "Didn’t we still have an unfinished match between us?"
"Yes," Erza said with a calm smile as her armor shifted into her signature Heaven’s Wheel Armor. "I believe we agreed a long time ago to settle things with a duel."
"Too bad we’re in the middle of an exam. I’m not planning on having a proper one-on-one with you today." Rhodes casually patted Wendy’s head, making it clear it would be a two-versus-one situation.
"That’s fine. Those are the rules of the exam after all," Erza replied with a glint in her eye. "You’re even allowed to use your favorite swarm tactics."
She had half-expected to see not Rhodes himself, but a crawling mass of purple insects come rushing into the room first.
Not that she was scared of them, it would just be incredibly gross.
"No swarm tactics this time," Rhodes replied. He had considered it for a moment, but worried that collapsing the entire dungeon might trap everyone inside. That would be a bit much.
"Summon: Bkue Sentinel."
With a swirl of magic, the massive blue Golem appeared at Rhodes’ side. The blue buff hovered around both him and Wendy.
"Before we start, a quick question," he said. "Is this place sturdy? It’s not going to fall apart if we trade a few blows, is it?"
"Don’t worry," Erza replied. "As long as you don’t start smashing the ceiling, it should hold up just fine."
Then, without warning, countless flying swords shimmered into existence around her. "Heaven’s Wheel: Bladeworks!"
A barrage of nearly a hundred blades shot through the air toward Rhodes, Wendy, and the Golem.
Erza was familiar with how Rhodes fought. As long as that lumbering Golem was present, he could use his magic freely and without consequence. The Golem was a priority target.
Wendy, too, wasn’t someone she could ignore. Her support and enchantments made her a serious threat. If she wasn’t dealt with early, taking down Rhodes would be a nightmare.
"Take Over: Mountain Dragon Soul!"
In an instant, Rhodes transformed. Scales of stone and earth coated his body as he slammed a clawed fist into the ground.
A thick stone wall erupted upward, rising from floor to ceiling. It shielded all three of them, Rhodes, Wendy, and the Golem.
The Scuttle Crab quickly scuttled to the side, curled into a corner, and disguised itself as a clump of moss. From there, it continued feeding visual information to Rhodes.
The first dozen blades clanged loudly as they struck the wall and embedded themselves. The rest, guided precisely by Erza, aligned perfectly and began hammering away at a single point.
Stone shattered. Debris flew. Piece by piece, they were forcing a hole through the barricade.
But Erza didn’t stop there. With two swords now drawn in her hands, she began circling around to flank them.
Rhodes tapped Wendy’s shoulder, guiding her a few steps away from the point where the flying swords were focused. The Golem tilted its bulky head, then lumbered after Wendy with slow, heavy steps.
Wendy raised her hands toward Rhodes. "Speed Boost, Bania! Strength Boost, Arms! Defense Boost, Alma!"
Her chanting speed was still average, and she had only managed to apply three enhancement spells when Erza had already closed the distance.
"Crown of the Shattered Queen!"
Instead of dodging, he charged straight at Erza.
"Heaven’s Wheel: Triple Threat!" Erza swung both swords at once. Twin arcs of silver light converged from different angles, aiming directly at Rhodes.
But in this moment, Rhodes was fully clad in his Mountain Dragon form. His scales were reinforced by Wendy’s defense spell and further amplified by the Crown of the Shattered Queen. The multicolored light flickering across his body was his assurance that he could take the attack head-on.
The twin blades struck his left forearm, creating only shallow grooves across the earthy yellow dragon scales.
He completely ignored the hit and continued charging. In the next second, his right fist lashed out, aiming straight for Erza’s abdomen.
Rhodes, being considerate, avoided striking her armor directly. He was worried she’d have to pay for repairs. So he deliberately aimed for a spot not protected by her metal plating.
The Heaven’s Wheel Armor had its weaknesses, and such an elegant waistline was simply too tempting not to exploit.
"Ah—!"
Erza hadn’t expected Rhodes to tank her full assault and still launch such a brutal counter. With a sharp cry, she was sent flying, smashing into the wall behind her in a cloud of shattered debris. She collapsed to the ground, coughing slightly.