"Mermaid's Heel! Kagura wins!"
"Great! Shenle!" Mirena gave Kagura an enthusiastic hug.
"Don't get so close," Kagura objected, but only after Mirena rubbed her face against her did she let go.
Beth quietly said to Liseli, "Kagura seems to be getting more approachable."
Liseli nodded, "Yeah, it's probably thanks to Mirena. Never underestimate a cat lover's influence."
Alani shook her head, "No, it's definitely thanks to Simon."
On the commentary stage, Lahar regrettably remarked, "What a pity."
Jabadi busily asked, "Mr. Lahar, are you a supporter of Rays of the Rising Sun?"
"No, I just appreciate Talent's fighting style more," Lahar laughed, "If his equipment could quickly write and activate techniques instead of magic arrays, the outcome might be different."
Rhode thought, if techniques could be quickly activated with equipment, I'd apply to the Guild to get Fried a set first.
Then the Guild would always have 'Absolute Defense' ready.
Unfortunately, this kind of magic inherently requires preparation time.
"Next match: Blue Pegasus's Ive versus Mermaid's Heel B-Team's Jubia!"
Despite Blue Pegasus being far behind in points, One Night calmly instructed, "Go for it, Ive."
"Yes, Mr. One Night. However..." Ive's smile was a bit forced.
He had heard of the Four Elements back when he was with the Council, and beating Jubia would certainly be a challenge.
Hibiki teased, "Why not try calling her 'big sister'?"
Ive joked in response, "You didn't need to tell me; I already plan to do that."
Though he was a bit older, it didn't prevent him from appearing youthful, keeping to his youthful charm strategy.
There wasn't much advice given on Team B's side.
Wendy remembered the guys from Blue Pegasus as decent people and wanted to ask Jubia to go easy on them.
However, before she could speak, Rhode preemptively said, "Give it your best, Gray is watching you."
"Jubia will definitely win!" The gentle water seemed to instantly become boiling water.
Wendy: "..." I'm sorry, Mr. Ive. If you're too badly hurt, I'll take care of your healing.
"Participants are in position, the match begins!" announced Pumpkin Man as he quickly exited the stage.
Ive brushed back his bangs, revealing a perfect business smile, "Miss Jubia, I..."
He couldn't even finish his sentence before Jubia disappeared from sight, as a wave so massive it almost towered over the audience came crashing toward him.
Sweat immediately beaded on Ive's forehead, "Isn't this a bit too much?"
Avoiding the stands wouldn't even guarantee safety with an attack this size!
As it stood, Ive could only try his best to defend, "Snowman! White Safe House!"
A thick layer of accumulated snow formed on Ive's surface, transforming him into a giant snowman four to five meters tall in a blink.
Immediately following, a dome-shaped igloo sheltered the snowman inside.
A colossal wave crashed down, causing the igloo to collapse while successfully weakening the impact.
After the snowman's head crumbled, its body was completely submerged in seawater.
The entire match stage turned into a large artificial lake, with Jubia gracefully standing on the water's surface like a water sprite.
Pumpkin Man couldn't help but worry about the court's waterproofing and drainage effectiveness; would such an amount of water flood the passageways?
Now he understood why he constantly heard about Fairy Tail causing trouble.
Beneath the water, the snowball split open, and Ive emerged from it, surfacing the water. He wiped his face and apologetically said, "Miss Jubia... again?"
Tragically, he found another big wave rolling in his direction.
Instinctively wanting to flee, he turned but found another big wave behind him.
Heh heh heh...
Hope gradually faded for Ive. Although he could use large-range magic, it would only result in snowfall, or a blizzard.
The larger the range, the smaller the power; the greater the power, the more the range needed compressing, but... what's with Fairy Tail?
Seconds later, Ive was sprawled like a dead fish on the water's surface, "I forfeit."
Lucy suddenly felt a chill run down her spine, sheepishly commenting, "Jubia's becoming more over-the-top too."
Gray nodded in agreement and asked, "Would Aquarius stand a chance against her?"
"I don't know either." Lucy sighed, unsure of who would win between Jubia and Aquarius, but she knew she'd probably get caught up in misfortune.
Pumpkin Man had already announced the result, and Ive, feeling somewhat uneasy, asked, "Miss Jubia, why won't you let me finish a sentence?"
"Because..." Jubia hesitated.
Because Gray was watching her from outside the arena. It was already troublesome enough with Mr. Leon; having another handsome guy from Blue Pegasus flirt was worrisome for Jubia, as she didn't want Gray to misunderstand her as some kind of loose woman.
Still, thankfully, the match ended cleanly and decisively with her victory.
Gray, did you see it? This is Jubia's...
She turned around, only to see Gray and Lucy 'joyfully' conversing.
Lucy seemed downcast, and Gray was comforting her?
This way, Lucy would feel warmth in her low spirits and then fall in love with Gray.
In an instant, she'd imagined a little drama:
"Lucy (snuggling against Gray, holding his hand): Lord Gray, marry me, and don't pay attention to Jubia anymore.
Gray (gazing at Lucy affectionately): Okay, I've thought about it. If it's a boy, we'll name him Xirei; if it's a girl, Greluz..."
"No, no way, Jubie!"
Having heard of Mira's pregnancy, Jubia inadvertently fast-forwarded her fantasy to naming the child.
Ive still wanted to say more, but suddenly felt the sky darken as if it might rain anytime, and the water harbored a terrifying force.
He hastily flipped over and swam quickly toward the edge.
Pumpkin Man, humorously rowing a small dinghy amidst the ebb and flow, fearfully reminded, "Contestant Jubia, the match is over, please return to the waiting area quickly!"
Gajeel wondered, "What's that foolish Rain Woman doing this time?"
Rhode sensed something was off, promptly flying over to Team A's side, landing a hand on Gray's shoulder, "Hey, say something about how Jubia did out there."
Gray puzzled, "Huh? Jubia was amazing. Why bother asking specifically?"
"Well, as long as you've said it." Rhode drew circles in the air with his finger in front of Gray's mouth and flicked it towards Jubia.
The voice magic embedded in Mebius's Illusion Magic activated, amplifying half of Gray's sentence into Jubia's ears:
"Jubia was amazing... amazing... amazing..."
In an instant, all the water inside the arena receded, the clouds parted, turning to clear skies.
Pumpkin Man's dinghy suddenly hit the bottom, giving him a couple of wobbles, causing his pointed hat to tilt.
"What on earth is going on?"