"Brother-in-law, could I…"
Lisanna's Animal Soul offered even broader Take Over potential than Elfman's. Seeing her brother's leap in power, she naturally wanted the same.
"Not yet. Train harder." Takeshi patted her head with a smile.
Nine-Tails' force was perilous, even a sliver could rob most people of consciousness.
Lisanna pouted. "Stingy brother-in-law."
Smack!
Mirajane flicked her forehead. "It's for your own good. Behave."
She turned to Takeshi. "All right, Takeshi, Gray—off you go. Erza's fighting. Lisanna and I will watch Elfman."
"Sure. He's just drained, he'll be back on his feet soon."
There was no real need to watch, but teammates showed up for each other.
[Next up: the third match of today's Grand Magic Games.]
[Team Fairy Tail A's Erza Scarlet vs Blue Pegasus's Jenny Realight!]
Takeshi and Gray left the infirmary.
Takeshi said, "Gray, you head to the arena first. I need to hit the restroom, I'll join you in a bit."
"Mm."
Gray nodded and left without a second thought.
At the same time, Bacchus stepped out of the infirmary, his whole body wrapped in bandages. Though his injuries were worse than Elfman's, his mental fatigue was light, so he was basically fine.
But the moment he exited, a black hood came flying toward his face.
"Who?!"
Bacchus tried to fight back, only to discover the stranger's power dwarfed his own by an order he couldn't even quantify. For the first time in his life, he was utterly helpless.
As a rain of punches fell, Bacchus howled in agony until he blacked out again.
When he came to, he'd been stripped naked and dumped in the street, a ring of onlookers already gathering.
The incident rocketed Bacchus onto the front-page headlines that very day.
The case would remain an unsolved mystery, yet everyone knew there were only a handful of Mages in Fiore who could reduce Bacchus to a punching bag and he'd offended one of them that very day.
Goldmine of Quatro Cerberus summed the matter up in one word: Deserved.
With a mouth like Bacchus's, a lesson had been long overdue.
Grand Magic Games Arena.
"I can't believe Jenny's opponent is Erza." Hibiki's face twisted in resignation.
Ren tried to stay upbeat—purely for morale's sake. He'd seen Erza's swordplay back when they'd fought Oración Seis.
"Erza-nee…"
Eve gazed at Erza in pure adoration. He'd loved strong, older women since seven years ago and had never wavered.
Ren corrected him, "Technically, you should be calling her 'little sister' now."
Eve had been sixteen then. Seven years later, the still-boyish-looking youth was twenty-three.
"No way! She'll always be my big sister."
["Fairy Queen" Erza was already famous seven years ago, whereas Jenny's claim to fame was as Fiore's top gravure model. Whose strength will prevail?]
[The match begins!]
Full Body Take Over: Machina Soul!
"Erza, don't assume I'm just Fiore's number-one pin-up girl. My power—"
Fairy Dance: White Lotus!
Erza's form flickered and in a blink, she was in Jenny's face.
"Wait, I haven't finished—"
Boom!
Jenny hit the ground, out cold.
[Match over!]
[Winner: Erza Scarlet of Team Fairy Tail A!]
Hibiki turned to Ren. "What was it that you were saying?"
"…"
Ren was speechless.
Jenny's magic wasn't bad. She wouldn't have been picked for the Grand Magic Games otherwise. But she spent most of her time on publicity stunts.
Erza, on the other hand, lived and breathed combat. The gap was obvious. Seven years might have dulled others, yet Erza looked anything but rusty.
"As expected of Erza-nee." Eve's eyes sparkled as he watched her.
The Fairy Tail section of the stands erupted in cheers.
The result surprised none of them. Time could strengthen others, but it hadn't weakened Erza.
Her base stats had always been exceptional. While others had fallen behind in strength, Erza had only lacked magic power.
Give her enough magic power and her strength would skyrocket.
Mermaid Heel.
"Such lightning-fast swordplay!" Risley exclaimed in shock.
Millianna smiled. "Erza's swordplay is amazing, but Takeshi's is even better."
Back at the Tower of Heaven, she'd watched Takeshi duel Ikaruga and completely outclass her.
"In swordsmanship, Kagura's still the best." Araña insisted.
The strongest swordsman she'd ever seen was Kagura. She refused to believe Takeshi could surpass her.
"We'll know who's superior once we cross blades." Kagura spoke calmly.
In raw power, she admitted she fell short. Takeshi's bout with Jura yesterday proved he was Fiore's top Mage.
But swordplay was another matter. Until they actually fought, speculation was meaningless.
Still, she studied Erza a moment longer. That strike had been exquisite swordsmanship.
[Only one bout remains on the second day of the Grand Magic Games.[
[Today's final match: Kagura Mikazuchi of Mermaid Heel VS Yukino Agria of Sabertooth!]
[Another beauty showdown!]
Sabertooth.
Frosch asked Lector, "Who do you think will win?"
Lector puffed up. "Isn't it obvious? Yukino. How can you not see that, Frosch?"
"Frosch thinks so too."
Orga folded his arms. "Hey, things look bad. If we drop this one, Master's gonna blow."
"Not just blow—he'll detonate. Too many wild cards: Takeshi of Fairy Tail, plus Sting bombing the event segment today. Our score's tanked. And now Yukino's up against Kagura."
Rufus regretted provoking Takeshi, yet who could resist testing the legendary Mage?
The fallout was ugly—he'd scraped one measly point only because Takeshi had targeted Raven Tail. Left alone, he'd have bagged eight and they'd be at eighteen now. The Guild master would still be mad, but not nuclear.
"Tch!"
Sting clicked his tongue, knowing they were right.
Yukino tried to cushion the blame. "No, Sting was just unlucky. Had he known the event would be on a moving vehicle—"
Sting cut her off. "None of that matters. You know why you're here."
"To fight without tarnishing Sabertooth's name and to win."
Mermaid Heel.
"Go, Kagura!" Millianna cheered.
Beth added, "Win for me too."
Kagura strode toward the arena. "Don't worry. I've already seen where my blade must go."