"Mermaid Heel, Kagura wins!"
"Yay! Kagura-chan!"
Millianna immediately pounced and wrapped Kagura in a hug.
"Don't get so close."
Kagura's tone was firm… but she allowed Millianna to rub their cheeks together before letting go.
From the sidelines, Beth whispered to Risley, "Kagura's getting more approachable lately."
Risley nodded.
"Yeah… pretty sure that's Millianna's doing. Never underestimate a cat lover's persistence."
Arana gently objected, "No, no. It's obviously because of Simon."
Up on the commentary platform, Lahar let out a quiet sigh. "What a pity."
Chapati blinked. "Mr. Lahar, are you perhaps a Shining Sun supporter?"
"No," Lahar chuckled. "I simply appreciate Tyrant's fighting style. If his tools could write and trigger spell formulas instead of magic circles, the result might have been different."
Rhodes very nearly laughed.
'If tools could instantly activate Freed-style runes, I'd be the first to request one for the guild. We'd have permanent "Absolute Defense" around Magnolia.'
Unfortunately, that type of magic simply required prep time. No amount of technology would bypass that.
"Next match: Blue Pegasus' Eve versus Fairy Tail Team B's Juvia!"
Even though Blue Pegasus was hopelessly behind in points, Ichiya still placed a hand dramatically on Eve's shoulder.
"Good luck, my dear Eve!"
"Yes, Ichiya-sensei… but;" Eve's smile trembled.
He knew Juvia's reputation. As a former Council employee, he knew exactly how terrifying the 'Four Elements' had been.
Hibiki leaned over. "Why not try calling her 'Sister'? It might improve your odds."
Eve covered his face. "You don't need to tell me, I'm already planning to."
On the Fairy Tail side, no one had much advice to give.
Wendy worried on Eve's behalf, Blue Pegasus had always treated them kindly.
She opened her mouth to ask Juvia to show mercy, but;
Rhodes, anticipating disaster, cut in first:
"Go on, Juvia. Gray is watching."
Juvia's expression changed instantly.
"The water of Juvia's love… will overflow! Juvia will absolutely win for Gray-sama!"
Wendy closed her mouth.
"Mr. Eve, if you get seriously injured, I'll heal you."
"Both contestants, prepare, match start!"
Pumpkin Man scurried away.
Eve brushed his golden bangs aside and flashed a perfect Blue Pegasus smile.
"Miss Juvia, I..."
He didn't finish.
Because a tsunami, easily taller than the stadium walls, was already crashing toward him.
A horrified bead of sweat rolled down his temple.
"T-this is too much, isn't it?!"
This was no "friendly match attack." This was city-evacuation-level magic.
With no other choice, he threw up both hands.
"Snowman! White Safe House!"
Snow exploded outward, forming into a four-meter-tall snowman, and then a domed igloo enveloped him.
The wave slammed into it.
The igloo shattered instantly, but it did succeed at reducing the overall impact before the flood swallowed the snowman whole.
The arena transformed into a shimmering artificial lake.
Juvia stood atop it lightly, graceful, serene, a water spirit given form.
Pumpkin Man silently prayed the arena's drainage system didn't collapse.
'Now I understand why Fairy Tail always made the news…'
Underwater, the snowball cracked open and Eve burst out, gasping.
"Miss Juvia, again?!"
Unfortunately, her answer was another colossal wave.
Eve turned to run, but behind him was another wave.
Ha. Ha. Ha.
His smile twitched into despair.
Blizzards, snowfall, cold snaps, his magic excelled at area control, not negating an ocean slamming into him repeatedly.
After ten painful seconds, Eve floated face-up like a dead fish.
"I… surrender."
Lucy felt a chill crawl up her spine.
"Juvia really is getting more and more absurd…"
Gray nodded thoughtfully, then asked Lucy,
"With what Aquarius said, can Juvia beat her?"
Lucy puffed out her cheeks helplessly.
"I seriously don't know. If Aquarius and Juvia fought, I have no clue who'd win, but I do know the one who'd suffer would be me."
On the arena lake, Pumpkin Man had already announced the winner.
Eve, still wringing out his drenched hair, looked at Juvia with a pained expression.
"Miss Juvia… couldn't you at least let me finish one sentence?"
Juvia froze.
"Because..."
She couldn't say it.
'Because Gray-sama was watching!'
One Lyon was already trouble enough. If yet another handsome Blue Pegasus pretty boy approached her, Gray-sama might misunderstand, thinking she was some kind of flirt!
Luckily, she won decisively. Gray-sama would definitely recognize her strength.
She turned, heart pounding, searching for Gray's gaze, and saw Gray and Lucy laughing and chatting.
Lucy looked disappointed. Gray seemed to be comforting her.
Juvia's pupils shrank.
No, this is exactly how romances begin.
Lucy in emotional distress, Gray-sama gently consoling her, and then..
A dramatic imagination sequence instantly bloomed in her mind:
Mini-Drama Inside Juvia's Brain
Lucy (leaning against Gray's shoulder, clasping his hand): "Gray, please marry me. Forget about Juvia."
Gray (gazing tenderly): "Okay. I've already prepared names.
If it's a boy, Cyle. If it's a girl, then Graylu."
"No, no, Juvia!!"
Because she heard Mira was pregnant recently, Juvia's imagination now fast-forwarded directly to naming children.
Eve opened his mouth to add something, but suddenly sensed a frightening aura.
The sky darkened. Air pressure dropped. The water began to swell.
He wisely flipped and swam for his life.
Pumpkin Man, paddling for dear life on a rubber raft, yelled, "Juvia! The match is over! Please return to the waiting area before the weather system collapses again!"
Gajeel squinted.
"What's that idiot rain woman doing now?"
Rhodes instantly realized the danger.
He teleported over to Team A and grabbed Gray by the shoulder.
"Say something. Anything. Quick. How did Juvia do?"
Gray blinked, confused.
"Huh? Juvia's amazing. Why are you...?"
"That's enough."
Rhodes made a shushing motion, drew a sigil in the air, and flicked it toward the lake.
A pulse of amplified sound magic, enhanced with Mavis's illusion technique, hit Juvia directly.
Gray's voice echoed in her head, magnified dozens of times:
"Juvia is amazing… amazing… amazing…"
The weather changed instantly.
Every drop of water in the arena evaporated like a magic trick. The ominous clouds burst like bubbles, leaving a perfect blue sky.
Pumpkin Man's raft dropped from floating to scraping the arena floor with a soft thump-thump, sending him bouncing twice. His pointy hat flopped sideways.
"Wha...WHAT in the world is going on?!"