When it came to Water Magic, hardly anyone in the audience had ever seen anything like this.
The twin torrents unleashed by Aquarius and Juvia roared like two floodgates thrown open at once, swelling the water sphere itself as if it were going to burst.
Yet facing the combined assault, one crashing down from above and one rising from below, Minerva didn't even flinch.
She simply tipped her body backward, elegantly inverted herself in the water, spread her arms wide, and a shimmering, prismatic sphere of warped space unfolded around her, swallowing the attacks whole.
"If this is your limit," Minerva said lightly, "then this young lady will be taking first place with ease."
The colored orbs in her hands detonated outward.
The blasts surged toward Juvia and Aquarius simultaneously.
"Mm—!"
Juvia's Water Stream Ascending Aura shattered instantly under the impact, and the force sent her body rippling apart into a stream of misty water. She scattered, merged into the surrounding currents, and stabilized herself just in time.
Aquarius fared better, she crossed her arm and conjured a dense water shield, blocking the wave with a sharp hiss.
"Water Flow Slash!"
Having recovered her form, Juvia fired a barrage of razor-thin blades of water. Even in the water sphere, they cut with terrifying speed.
"Hehehe. Let's try this."
Minerva flicked her wrist, and swapped positions with Lucy.
"—!"
Lucy froze in shock, but she had prepared for this exact trick.
"Open! Gate of Aries!"
A pink-haired sheep girl materialized in a swimsuit, raising her arm timidly.
"F-Fluffy… I'm sorry!"
A huge cushion of soft, pink wool blossomed in front of Lucy. The water blades sliced into it, only to sink harmlessly inside, completely neutralized by Aries's heavenly softness.
Juvia let out a breath of relief. This was no time to worry about a romantic rival.
Aquarius's body twisted gracefully as she hurled her urn behind her.
Six spiraling water tornadoes erupted around Minerva, converging inward with tremendous pressure.
"Hmph."
Minerva merely swapped places again, dropping Juvia right into the center of the spiraling vortex.
Juvia's body instantly liquefied, turning transparent as she spun with the funnel, but remained perfectly unharmed.
"My, what an unusual body."
Minerva's fingers curled into a claw.
"Then how about this?"
A strange, translucent sphere snapped shut around Juvia.
Inside, steam erupted violently.
Minerva had superheated every drop of water within, turning the interior into boiling water.
But Juvia slid out of it easily, completely unscathed.
"If it's about boiling water," she said, "Juvia can also do that!"
Her water body surged forward, dragging an enormous current of bubbling, boiling water behind her as she charged Minerva.
"This is getting boring." Minerva pointed lazily.
"You're out."
"What?"
Juvia blinked, and the scene around her warped.
No Minerva. No water sphere.
Instead, five eliminated contestants stared at her from the sideline seats, all still in swimsuits.
And Juvia's massive plume of boiling water was hurtling straight toward them.
If that hit, someone could be horribly burned.
"Everyone, run!" Juvia shouted.
She was too close to stop it in time.
"Move!"
Risley, the round, plump member of Mermaid Heel, threw herself at the others.
To be blunt, she rolled into them like a bowling ball knocking over four pins.
The other four girls yelped as they were sent flying away to safety, leaving Risley as the closest target.
The boiling water splashed across the floor with a violent hiss.
Juvia landed, instantly shifting back to human form and forcefully reversing the remaining hot water, trying to pull it back.
Steam filled the arena like fog.
But Risley hadn't escaped completely, her calves were splashed.Her skin flushed an alarming red, the surface swelling as blisters threatened to form.
"Miss Risley!"
Juvia immediately summoned cool water, pouring it over her legs in panic.
"Juvia is so sorry! She didn't mean to, Juvia would never...!"
"I..I know…" Risley winced, closing one eye.
Her plump cheeks twitched in pain, but she forced a smile anyway.
"It's just a burn, nothing serious. Don't underestimate… hnn… durable, plump people."
Sherria rushed over at once.
"Please endure it just a moment, Heal!"
A soft green glow surrounded Risley's calves. Her tightly drawn expression slowly loosened as the pain eased.
Jenni let out a breath of relief.
"Thank you, Miss Risley. Really."
Even the usually aloof Viya bowed her head politely before glaring at Minerva, irritation simmering in her eyes.
"That woman did it on purpose, didn't she?"
"That was way over the line," Jenny huffed. "No way that was an accident."
"Miss Lucy…"
Juvia looked anxiously toward Lucy inside the water sphere, worry softening her voice, she even used an honorific, which was rare for her.
Minerva's lips curved into a sneer.
"How pathetic. So many people in the water, and you still only managed to hit one."
That was nearly enough to make several of the eliminated contestants explode on the spot.
Pumpkin Man and the staff hurried over, waving their arms frantically.
"Ladies! Please refrain from interfering with the match!"
Lucy stared at Minerva in disbelief, mixed with something sharper. "Why would you do something like that?"
"Do what?" Minerva tilted her head, expression smug. "This young lady merely eliminated an opponent. I have no idea what you're accusing me of."
"Miss Risley is seriously hurt!"
"That just means she's too fragile," Minerva said coolly. "If it were me, I'd defend perfectly. Only the weak complain."
Lucy inhaled sharply, and finally understood.
Minerva wasn't just competitive.
She was cruel.
Lucy tightened her grip on her keychain until it shook.
"I will defeat you," she said, slowly, clearly. "Someone who casually harms others isn't strong at all."
For a fraction of a second, something in Minerva's face cracked.
"Don't get ahead of yourself!! Who do you think you're lecturing?!"
Before Lucy could blink, a kaleidoscopic space snapped shut around her.
Her limbs instantly turned heavy, as if molten lead filled them, dragging her down.
Minerva twisted her palm.
Bubbles rose within the distorted space, then began to heat.The water around Lucy shimmered, ready to boil.
"Fluffy, here you go!!"
Aries flung a dense ball of pink wool, shoving Lucy out of the danger zone.
"You annoying sheep!"
Minerva fired a spatial shockwave point-blank.
BANG!
It struck Aries square in the back, sending her spinning.
"Close Gate!" Lucy cried desperately, key flashing. Aries vanished just before the damage could become severe.
She didn't pause.
"Open, Gate of Gemini!"
A whirl of light, and Gemini materialized, immediately morphing into Lucy's identical double.
The two Lucys stood back to back, eyes closed, hands interlocked as their magic flared in unison.
"Oh ruler of the heavens, open the celestial path, summon forth the stars—!"
Minerva's eyes narrowed.
"That spell…!"
She thrust out her hand, sending a crushing shockwave straight at Lucy, but Aquarius darted forward, clutching her urn under one arm and throwing out her free hand.
"That little girl is my contractor!" Aquarius roared. "Back off!!"
A massive surge of water burst from her palm, clashing against Minerva's spell to buy precious seconds.
"Annoying mermaid."
Minerva's expression iced over. She clapped her hands sharply, and a multi-layered spatial shell snapped shut around Aquarius.