Generally speaking, the growth trajectory of ordinary mages is a fairly smooth curve. To try to catch up with a seven-year gap in three months was, to be honest, a rather unrealistic idea.
Every mage gradually became stronger by honing their physique and magic power little by little, and developing and perfecting their magic.
But for the group of people on the Tenrou team, it wasn't a question of whether they could do it, but a goal that they had to achieve.
After all, each of them wasn't an ordinary mage. Their outstanding talent, coupled with battles that had pushed them to the brink of despair but had broken through their limits, gave them the confidence to achieve this goal.
But, as expected, the unexpected still happened.
Including the pre-competition preparations and travel time, everyone only had two and a half months to train, which could be said to be a race against time.
Even with such a tight schedule, the group actually went to the Celestial Spirit World to play during the special training camp.
What kind of place was the Celestial Spirit World? It was a different space where time wasn't synchronized with reality at all.
By the time they returned from the Celestial Spirit World, two months had already passed. When Drake arrived, he saw a group of people who had turned into black and white statues.
It might have been possible to make up for the gap in three months, but with only a dozen days left, it was more realistic for them to just lie down.
What else could Drake say? He had forgotten that they would still pull off this kind of stunt.
The only exception was Lucy. The extent of her growth, after forming contracts with all twelve Zodiac Celestial Spirits, shocked even Drake.
The result was that she was the only one who was full of energy among a group of black and white statues. Not only that, but she was also smugly smirking at Natsu.
Now that things had come to this, normal methods wouldn't work. He could only give them a cheat like in the original plot.
So Drake contacted Ultear and asked her to forcibly open the Second Origin for everyone.
He didn't know if Ultear had expected this situation long ago, but she appeared before everyone as soon as Drake contacted her, and helped everyone complete the development of the Second Origin.
As for the side effects of being in so much pain that they couldn't move their bodies, that was what they deserved.
Although things had taken a somewhat tortuous turn, everyone still completed their predetermined goals.
But before setting off to participate in the Grand Magic Games, Fairy Tail still had to hold a selection competition for the participating members within the guild.
The content of the competition was - Magic Battle Royale!
In the mountainous area near Magnolia, all those who wanted to participate in the competition scattered into it, and everyone except themselves was an opponent.
The competition would continue until the final five were decided, who would be the participating players in this Grand Magic Games.
Although the form of the competition was simple, it tested not only the players' combat abilities, but also their search, survival, strategy, and even luck.
Apart from the people participating in the competition and the few people acting as rescue teams, the others were in the guild watching the competition through surveillance magic.
Drake didn't compete with everyone for the spots, and sat on the side sipping his juice while watching the live broadcast. What he was watching was naturally Natsu's situation.
Natsu twitched his nose, using his excellent sense of smell to find his opponents.
There was no way Natsu, that iron-headed idiot, would have any strategy. Although he really wanted to get a spot in the competition, he was now one hundred percent searching for the strongest people in the competition venue.
And this kid definitely believed that even if he fought the strongest opponent, he could still win in the end.
Drake sighed. Natsu's personality was indeed worrying. But it was precisely because of this belief that Natsu had defeated one seemingly unbeatable enemy after another. This might be where Natsu's strength lay.
In the light screen, a smug smile appeared on Natsu's face. It seemed that he had found his target, and then he moved quickly.
"Laxus, let's have a match!"
Drake slapped his forehead and sighed. Natsu really knew how to pick his opponents.
As a former S-Class mage, Laxus was already a powerful mage who had developed his Second Origin on his own.
In the original plot, if it hadn't been for Natsu's plot armor and the fact that Laxus hadn't regarded him as an enemy at all in his heart, Natsu wouldn't have been able to win against Laxus.
And after being beaten up by Drake several times and finding his true self, Laxus had also grown a lot while wandering outside.
Laxus hadn't participated in the previous training camp, which meant that he had spent these two and a half months cultivating steadily.
Apart from Gildarts, Drake, and Stella, there were few people in the guild, not even Erza, who dared to say that they could win against him.
Then everyone in the arena saw the red flames and yellow lightning soaring into the sky. Then, after a short time of confrontation, the lightning suppressed the flames.
No one was surprised by this, but Natsu, who they thought would be eliminated, escaped.
With Natsu's personality, he wouldn't escape even if he couldn't win. Fortunately, he had Happy, who had a relatively clear head, by his side.
Happy directly carried Natsu, who was shouting to continue fighting, and flew away from Laxus, which prevented him from becoming the first person to be eliminated.
In battles that weren't about winning at all costs, the little blue cat always had a flexible bottom line, and wouldn't let Natsu act foolishly.
While Natsu and Laxus were fighting, the others also met their opponents.
The Black and White Dragons met the Thunder God Tribe, and defeated them, eliminating the trio. In terms of tacit understanding, the Black and White Dragons, who could launch a combined Dragon Slayer Secret Art, were indeed a cut above the rest.
Gray eliminated Elfman. Elfman, who had taken over the Beast Soul, couldn't break free from Gray's ice seal.
Kagura and Erza ruthlessly eliminated the Sky Sisters, and then faced each other head-on, and hadn't decided a winner yet.
Both women were mages who specialized in swordsmanship. There was no gorgeous magic, just blades intersecting, wanting to decide a victory.
Cana and Lucy put on a show of what plastic sisterhood was like, attacking each other without any politeness.
Like the previous pair, their magic was of the all-around type, and they placed particular emphasis on tactics during battle. Various cards and Celestial Spirits appeared one after another, forcibly turning the battle into a turn-based game.
He didn't know if it was to avenge Levy, but Gajeel fought quite seriously. Juvia also wouldn't give up the opportunity to participate in the competition with Gray, and her resistance was quite strong.
Speaking of which, the two came from the same background, and usually had a good relationship in the guild, but they were actually fighting each other for a man/woman. They were truly a typical case of forgetting righteousness for the sake of lust.
Drake shook his head while sipping his juice, and couldn't help but sigh that the atmosphere of the guild had been corrupted.
As for Makarov, he was having a headache right now.
Although the form of the competition had solved many problems, he seemed to have forgotten one thing.
Although the competition venue was a barren mountain, it couldn't be destroyed too severely. But not long after the competition had started, the battles had ravaged that area beyond recognition.
He really couldn't imagine how big of a mess would be left after the competition ended!
Cold sweat couldn't help but flow down Makarov's forehead. That area shouldn't have any major problems... right?
Regarding the destructive abilities of Fairy Tail's problem children, Makarov had to admit, even if he didn't want to, that he should have the utmost confidence.
__________________
For more advance chapters visit patreon.com/bars45.
For 10$- All advance chapters.
"Schedule"
Monday - Friday - Update 3 Chapters a Day
Saturday - Sunday - Off