Chapter 299: Flying Up
[Currently in third place, we have the team led by Jura Neekis, who holds the title of the Ten Wizard Saints. Can Lamia Scale lead their team to the top?]
Chapati Lola's voice boomed through the lacrima sound system, echoing across the massive coliseum.
The five members of Lamia Scale took the stage, their expressions stoic and focused. The cheers from the audience grew significantly louder, acknowledging the sheer presence of Jura, who was widely considered a strong contender for the champion title.
[Next up, currently ranked second, is the team composed entirely of female members. They managed to reach second place in the Grand Magic Games, which is packed with powerful competitors. Is this due to the favor of the God of Fortune, or their own inherent strength? Mermaid Heel!!]
Led by the stoic Kagura Mikazuchi, the five members of Mermaid Heel entered the arena in a unified formation. Cheers erupted constantly from their dedicated fan base.
Almost everyone present could see that Mermaid Heel's overall team strength was somewhat lacking compared to the titans of the tournament. Only Kagura possessed the truly overwhelming, gravity-defying power necessary to stand at the absolute pinnacle.
[Finally, the guild that has held the top spot ever since the Grand Magic Games preliminaries began, and was once called the strongest guild seven years ago! Can they continue their winning streak today and claim the ultimate championship? Fairy Tail enters the arena!!]
Boom——————!!
With the highly anticipated entrance of Fairy Tail, the cheers from the audience seats were incredibly fervent, shaking the very foundations of the stadium.
It was a stark, almost unbelievable contrast to the beginning of the tournament. On the first day, there had been very few cheers, and mostly boos, from the audience.
After all, seven long years had passed since the incident on Tenrou Island. The general public had long forgotten Fairy Tail's past glory, even going so far as to think that Fairy Tail was nothing but a pathetic relic of the past, the weakest guild in all of Fiore.
But over the following days of the tournament, everyone in that guild had demonstrated immense, monstrous strength.
Ren had completely overpowered Jura, the Ten Wizard Saint, in a display of unmatched magical dominance. Erza had cleared the nightmarish Pandemonium event solo, fighting one hundred monsters to the bitter end.
Laxus had single-handedly defeated the entire five-member Raven Tail team, exposing their master's dark plot in the process. Natsu had taken on two opponents at once and utterly crushed Sabertooth's Twin Dragons.
Even Gajeel, although he technically lost a match due to a ridiculous game of rock-paper-scissors, had previously been dominating Rogue Cheney without breaking a sweat.
"Ren! Wipe them all out!!" Macao and Wakaba screamed from the stands, tears of joy streaming down their aged faces.
"Laxus!! Show everyone your heroic spirit!!" The Raijinshuu cheered wildly, waving massive banners.
"Erza!! Show them the power of Fairy Tail's strongest female Mage!"
"Natsu!! Go for it!! Burn them to ash!" Romeo shouted, his voice cracking with sheer excitement.
"Gajeel!! Scare them to death with your fierce gaze!!"
The members of Fairy Tail in the audience seats shouted loudly, their pride completely restored. Their voices blended together into a symphony of absolute faith in their comrades.
Gajeel glared back fiercely upon hearing his specific cheer, his metallic studded eyebrows twitching in sheer annoyance. "My eyes aren't fierce at all, damn it!!"
[Now, let's carefully explain the rules for the final day's grand Survival Battle: the designated combat area is the entirety of Crocus's streets.]
Mato, the Pumpkin Head mascot, took over the commentary, his oversized mask bobbing energetically.
[Members of each guild will be scattered throughout the expansive city area, awaiting action. The citizens have been evacuated, leaving the streets entirely to our combatants.]
[If you encounter a member of an opposing guild while moving through the streets, combat will be instantly triggered.]
[If you successfully knock out an opponent or render them completely unable to continue fighting, your guild will gain 1 point! Furthermore, each guild will nominate one member as their Captain.]
[The other opposing guilds will not know who the Captain is. It is a secret you must protect! If a Captain is defeated, that attacking guild gains a massive 5 points!]
[Based on this calculation, the theoretical maximum score obtainable is 45 points, meaning every single guild remaining has the possibility of achieving final victory.]
[Akarin's Note: The 45 points is calculated based on the total number of opposing team members available to defeat, including the bonus points for taking down the secret Captains.]
[Tactically, teams can choose to act as a whole, cohesive unit, or split up to cover more ground.]
Chapati Lola grabbed the microphone back, his voice reaching a fever pitch. [Whose hands will ultimately touch the pinnacle of this supreme magical glory!!]
[Grand Magic Games!! Start————!!!]
Clang————!!
As the massive brass gong sounded, sending a shockwave through the air, the final round of the Grand Magic Games officially began.
"Ren, we'll make you the Captain," Laxus said immediately, not even bothering to look at the others for confirmation.
It was the most logical, indisputable tactical decision. Ren's strength was arguably the greatest in the entire stadium, and he was the absolute least likely to be defeated by anyone, making him the most suitable and secure choice for the high-value Captain role.
"Alright," Ren nodded calmly, his expression relaxed. There was no need to decline this responsibility; he knew he could carry the weight easily.
Gajeel cracked his iron knuckles, letting out a sharp breath. He looked over at Ren. "How should we arrange the upcoming battle? Do we hunt them down together?"
"Just act independently," Ren commanded, his tone casual but carrying undeniable authority. "Go wild."
"Alright! Then I'm off!!" Natsu couldn't hold back any longer.
The Fire Dragon Slayer's body was practically vibrating with pent-up energy. He finally had the chance to engage in an unrestricted, massive free-for-all across an entire city, which was a scenario he absolutely loved.
"Fire Dragon! Let's see who can score more points this time, metal head!" Natsu taunted, a fiery grin splitting his face.
"You're on, ash breath!!" Gajeel roared back, his competitive spirit instantly ignited.
Natsu and Gajeel immediately rushed out into the maze of the city, their figures blurring as they searched for their targets like headless flies drawn to a flame.
"In that case, I will strive to obtain as many points as possible..." Erza murmured, summoning a basic sword into her grip.
She felt that securing the championship should still be their absolute priority. Although their current score was slightly higher than the other guilds, it wasn't by a comfortable margin. They were only 10 points ahead of second place, and with the Captain bonus rules, that gap could be closed terrifyingly quickly.
"Mm, let's go then," Laxus agreed, turning into a bolt of golden lightning and vanishing into the nearest alleyway. Erza quickly followed suit, leaping gracefully over a nearby rooftop.
[It has already begun, the final battle.]
Yajima analyzed the situation from the commentator's booth, nodding wisely. "As expected, many guilds chose to disperse first and then attempt to defeat their enemies one by one. It's a high-risk, high-reward strategy."
The host, Pumpkin Head, waved his hands enthusiastically. "Good luck, everyone! May the best guild win! Pumpkin!"
[Sabertooth and Fairy Tail, both known for their overwhelmingly strong individual combat power, have indeed begun to split up!]
[Other guilds, however, are moving in more cautious groups of two, and some even in groups of three to ensure mutual protection.]
Standing alone in the designated starting square, Ren closed his eyes, centering his magical core.
"Full Body Take Over: Gojo Satoru!"
A brilliant, pulsating surge of cursed energy erupted from Ren's body, warping the very air around him. His physical features shifted rapidly. His hair turned a stark, snowy white, and a sleek black blindfold materialized over his eyes, contrasting sharply with his pale skin.
Ren had activated the Gojo Satoru form.
Despite the blindfold, Gojo Satoru's Six Eyes granted him an extremely long-range, omnidirectional vision. He could perceive the flow of magical energy with atomic precision, and even solid stone buildings could not obstruct his divine sight.
Furthermore, the Limitless Cursed Technique provided him with extremely high, almost teleportation-like mobility, making it absolutely perfect for navigating this kind of expansive, urban venue.
[Oh? Contestant Ren has transformed into the exact form he used during the first day's competition segment! This form left a very deep, terrifying impression on everyone present.]
The ambient magic particles in the air began to bend and distort around Ren's figure as the concept of 'Infinity' enveloped him.
Without moving a single muscle in his legs, Ren's body slowly floated upwards. Gravity seemed to lose all meaning around him as he steadily ascended.
He quickly flew into the clear blue skies above Crocus, leaving the stone streets far below.
[He's flying!! Contestant Ren is flying!!!] Chapati Lola screamed, nearly dropping his microphone.
Although flying magic didn't inherently offer much in the way of direct combat power enhancement, Mages who could freely use it without wings or tools were extremely rare. Among all the elite Mages participating in the Grand Magic Games, only Ren had casually demonstrated the ability to fly through raw magical manipulation.
"This guy... he's really arrogant!" Orga Nanagear growled from his hiding spot in a shadowed alleyway.
The Sabertooth Lightning God Slayer felt immediately irritated seeing Ren hovering in the sky like a supreme deity. Normally, in a survival game, no fool would appear so openly in front of everyone, as they would instantly become a massive, glowing target for long-range attacks.
"Ren... he's different! Orga, hide quickly, and don't let him see you!"
Rufus Lore stepped out of the shadows, shaking his feathered hat helplessly. His Memory Make magic still vividly recalled the sheer absurdity of Ren's power.
It was completely true that Ren, being so open and visible in the sky, was a clear target. But who in their right mind would actually dare to attack that target? Not only could they not afford to attack him, but they also had to actively hide their magical signatures from his gaze.
It was a similar situation for everyone else scattered across the city. Excluding the main Fairy Tail team, and perhaps aside from the incredibly stoic Jura and the fearless Kagura, everyone in the city of Crocus who saw Ren suspended in the sky had to consciously avoid his presence and temporarily seek heavy cover.
"Ren!! Damn it!! I want to fly too!!" Natsu yelled from a distant rooftop, looking at Ren in the sky with a face full of childish envy. Being able to float in the air without any assistance like Happy was just too cool!
"That monster!" Gajeel grunted from another street, shaking his head helplessly.
Every single transformation Ren used was incredibly powerful, and his borrowed abilities were super strong. Only a true monster like him dared to be so openly ostentatious in a stealth-based survival battle.
Erza, sprinting across a bridge, looked up and smiled slightly. "That's just Ren. He operates on a completely different level."
"Seriously..." Laxus chuckled from the top of a clock tower, shaking his head in amusement. He didn't even bother looking for Ren; he knew his Captain was perfectly safe.
The Fairy Tail audience seats erupted in another deafening wave of cheers, their voices carrying all the way to the battlefield.
"Go!! Ren!!"
"Hahahaha! That's the kind of unstoppable Mage we have in Fairy Tail!!"
"Let everyone witness your true strength, Ren!!"
[What powerful, suffocating deterrence!! Contestant Ren is clearly a target while flying in the air, yet no one dares to make a move!]
Flying high into the sky and looking down at the intricate, sprawling architecture of the entire city, Ren felt incredibly comfortable inside. The wind whipped through his stark white hair.
The entire world, with all its chaotic battles and desperate struggles, was literally beneath his feet.
Unable to help himself, feeling the absolute peak of power coursing through his veins, Ren pointed one finger toward the boundless sky and one toward the earth below, quietly reciting the words that belonged to this form:
"Throughout Heaven and Earth, I Alone Am the Honored One!"
[Akarin Note:
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