Three days passed in a flash.
Onibus Arena.
At this moment, Onibus Arena was bustling with activity. In the past three days, countless spectators from all over Fiore had gathered, all eager to witness this exciting showdown.
"Wow! It's Fairy Tail!"
"Fairy Tail is here!"
Makarov led the Fairy Tail members to the outside of the arena.
"The one with the long white hair is Mirajane! She's even more beautiful in person than in the pictures."
"Is that the 'Fairy Queen' Erza in the armor?! She's so beautiful and cool!"
"Where's Salamander? Who is the famous Salamander?"
"Wow! It's Loke!"
Many girls cheered upon seeing Loke. Compared to Mages like Erza and Natsu who rarely showed their faces, Loke, who often starred as male leads in various movies, was much more popular.
As for Takeshi, he had made a huge name for himself, but hardly anyone knew him, and even fewer knew he was from Fairy Tail.
Just then, the crowd stirred again.
"It's Phantom Lord! Phantom Lord is here!!" Someone in the crowd shouted.
"Phantom..."
The Fairy Tail members all looked grim upon hearing the words Phantom Lord.
A moment later, Jose arrived with his guild members.
The moment the two sides met, tensions immediately flared. The two guilds were already on bad terms, and this time, Fairy Tail's building had been destroyed by the other party. This despicable act of raiding their home made the Fairy Tail members wish they could wipe out their opponents right then and there.
"Jose..."
Makarov's eyes narrowed slightly. If there was anyone with the deepest affection for the guild, it was undoubtedly Makarov. That guild protected the children within it as they grew, and now it had been destroyed. He wished he could give them a good beating.
Jose said, "Oh my... It's been a long time, Makarov. The last time we met was at a meeting six years ago. I had a bit too much to drink then."
"Cut the nonsense, Jose. What is the meaning of this?"
Jose feigned ignorance, asking, "What meaning? Oh! Makarov, you mean about the guild? My apologies. It was a member of my guild, trying to apprehend a criminal. Who would have thought the criminal would escape into Fairy Tail, and as a result, accidentally..."
"Gajeel! Come over and apologize!"
The crowd parted, and Gajeel, dressed in black with long black hair, walked over, feigning innocence as he said, "I'm sorry. It was all my carelessness. I didn't think such a dilapidated house was actually Fairy Tail. If I had known, I should have destroyed it even more thoroughly, hehe."
"You bastard!!!"
The Fairy Tail members were instantly enraged, all wanting to rush over and beat Gajeel.
Erza and Takeshi quickly stopped the guild members.
Erza shouted, "Don't fall for his provocation! When we get to the arena, we'll teach him a good lesson and let him know the consequences of provoking Fairy Tail."
"The consequences of provoking Fairy Tail? I'm so scared."
"Hahahahahahaha!"
The Phantom Lord members all laughed wildly, while the Fairy Tail members' faces were all incredibly grim and unsightly.
Jose chuckled lightly. "Heh heh, my apologies, Makarov. The children in my guild don't have very good tempers. I'll make sure to educate them properly when we get back. Well then, we'll see each other in the arena."
After Jose finished speaking, he led the Phantom Lord members towards the arena. As the Phantom Lord members passed in front of the Fairy Tail members, they one by one made faces and provoked the Fairy Tail members, greatly annoying them.
"Damn it! I'm going to kill those bastards!" Natsu shouted.
He was about to make a move, but Elfman and Gray quickly held him back. This was not the time to be provoked by those guys. If they made a move, it would be counted as a dispute between guilds.
Makarov said with a grim expression, "Later, beat those Phantom Lord guys severely for me. Make them regret ever coming into this world."
"Yes."
It was the first time the Fairy Tail members had heard Makarov say such words. It seemed he was enraged by Phantom Lord.
The Fairy Tail members also entered the arena.
"So many people!"
Lucy was somewhat surprised to see the spectator stands filled with people. It was her first time seeing so many people gathered together.
"Aye!"
The group hadn't expected Takeshi's single suggestion to attract so many onlookers. There must have been over a hundred thousand people.
"Huh, what is that over there?!"
Everyone looked forward, only to see many people in the opposing stands waving the Phantom Lord Guild flag.
Lucy asked doubtfully, "Are those people Phantom Lord's cheerleading squad?"
Mirajane shook her head and said, "No, those are all members of Phantom Lord."
"What?!!"
"Members?! There are already over a thousand people, aren't there? Does Phantom Lord have that many people?!"
Lucy was startled by this.
Were there not too many of them? Fairy Tail was also considered a relatively large Mage Guild, but it only had a little over 100 members.
Erza explained, "Phantom Lord is a very aggressive guild. Normally, a Guild only operates in one town, but Phantom Lord opens branches in other guild towns."
"Through malicious competition and a series of other tactics, they ruin the other guild and then monopolize the resources of the entire city."
"Six years ago, they even tried to open a branch in Magnolia Town. It was Master who taught them a lesson at the meeting, which caused their plan to expand in Magnolia to fail. It was from that time that the two guilds began to be on bad terms."
Lucy's eyes widened. "What? That's too much."
"That's Phantom Lord's style of doing things, which is why we dislike them."
Makarov scoffed, "Hmph! They just love playing these petty tricks."
To be honest, he felt a bit regretful. He should have arranged for some people to be cheerleaders.
"Welcome everyone to Onibus Arena! I'm your commentator: Jabadi!"
"Next up is the battle of the century between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord!"
"These two guilds are evenly matched. The leaders of both guilds are among the Ten Wizard Saints of the Ishgar continent, and they also have many S-Class Mages under them!"
"People often discuss who the strongest Mage Guild in Fiore is! Today, the opportunity to get the answer has finally arrived!"
"Today's showdown will determine who the strongest guild in Fiore is!"