"What's the deal with that Dragon Power? Is it a sign of Dragon Transformation?"
In the resting room, Gajeel posed this question.
Wendy and Laxus were equally intrigued.
Besides Team B, present were Natsu, the ever-curious Lucy, the three cats, and special consultant Mebius.
"Natsu has used that kind of power too," Hapi asked worriedly, "Will Natsu turn into a dragon?"
Mebius pondered for a while before answering, "I don't have any records about Dragon Transformation in my knowledge.
"All I know is that Dragon Power is a force hidden within every Dragon Slayer Mage, and it can't be used freely. Rogue from Sabertooth must have something unique about him."
"I only know that they call themselves the Third Generation of Dragon Slayer Mages, having both received teachings from dragons and implanted Dragon-Slaying Magic Crystals within them, and also..."
Rhode still found it hard to believe their words, but said it anyway, "Stinger and Rogue claim to have personally killed a dragon."
Everyone was taken aback; such an achievement was indeed intimidating.
Lucy was the first to react, questioning, "How is that possible? His strength doesn't even surpass Gajeel's."
Gajeel was about to nod when he suddenly realized, "What do you mean 'doesn't even surpass Gajeel'?"
Lucy awkwardly waved her hand, "Just an unintentional description, that's all."
Mebius speculated, "Could it be that one really needs to bathe in dragon's blood to actively use Dragon Power?"
Rhode seriously considered how many dragon jokes he needed to make to get some dragon's blood from a Marine Sub-Dragon, but dismissed the thought.
That method could be considered having side effects, not to be done recklessly.
Mebius also shared a lot of historical knowledge about Dragon Slayer Mages with everyone, confirming some of what Jilconis had mentioned.
"The Dragon King Festival was indeed a long-ago event, but its original purpose hasn't been passed down," Mebius glanced at Rhode,
"Zeref might know; his followers may have gathered some information and are planning to do something during the Great Demon Fighting Martial Arts... We need to be cautious in the coming days."
Everyone nodded, stepped out to check on the progress of the arena repairs, and then went to eat.
Around two o'clock in the afternoon, the matches resumed.
The first match of the combat section was Kagura from Mermaid's Heel versus Talent from Rays of the Rising Sun.
Talent had appeared in the covert match on the first day as a muscular guy.
This guy, while muscled, also had a sharp mind. During the match that day, he successfully used clones to trap his opponent for a lot of points.
Unfortunately, his movement technique was lacking, and he didn't use any equipment, which resulted in a lower ranking.
This time, facing Kagura, Talent showed a hint of nervousness.
After the referee announced the start of the match, he gave a shy smile and said, "Miss Kagura, please go easy on me."
Kagura was the type to determine her attitude based on her opponent's. With her opponent being so polite, she nodded, "Please go easy on me too."
Saying that, she gripped the scabbard in one hand and the sword hilt in the other.
Talent didn't underestimate her and immediately spread his right hand to activate Requip Magic, bringing out a... pen.
It looked like a pencil, but its length was equivalent to that of a Jimmy or a Wendy.
"Not fitting the image at all!" Lucy from Team A criticized, "I thought he would bring out a Wolf Fang Club or a Large Hammer or something."
Others felt the same, but quickly associated it perhaps with a magic similar to Lidas's.
Upon grasping the pen, Talent didn't hesitate and immediately began to write and draw on the ground.
Kagura's eyes flashed sharply, and she swiftly charged forward.
The samurai sword did not leave its scabbard, but was swung sideways with the scabbard.
In the blink of an eye, Talent was already knocked into the air, and Kagura stood steadily.
However, the ground on which she stood suddenly lit up with a red glow.
"Magic Array?" Kagura agilely leapt to the left, and a burst of flame erupted from where she had been standing.
Talent regained his footing, chuckling, "That spot was within my expectations."
Suddenly, a white Magic Array lit up under Kagura's feet, with two Wind Ropes binding her legs and two more wrapping around her waist, binding her hands.
"Did he paint two Magic Arrays in an instant?" Kagura was slightly surprised, but quickly glanced down to deny herself,
"No, it was four. Front, back, left, and right—no matter where I dodged, I would step into one. By comparison, the flame in the middle might actually be the least harmful."
"This pen's greatest function is to assist me in drawing," Talent didn't advance to attack Kagura while she was restricted, but started running rapidly across the arena, dragging the long pen.
Kagura clearly saw his actions; he was setting up Magic Arrays while running at high speed!
"At this rate, the entire stage will become a field of traps."
Kagura frowned, forcibly breaking free from the Wind Ropes.
She carefully avoided the paths Talent had run through and dashed toward him.
But Talent, like yesterday's War Chariot contestant, sped up and kept altering his route to restrict Kagura's chase.
After a series of agile maneuvers, dodging a few unintentional triggered Magic Arrays, Kagura suddenly stopped, staring in the direction of Talent, tightening her grip on the scabbard.
Talent's speed abruptly decreased, and a few steps later, he entered a slow-motion state.
A massive red Magic Array unfolded in the air above the arena, with the ground making creaking sounds as it cracked under the stress.
Talent felt his body becoming incredibly heavy, and he couldn't swing the pen with the same ease as before.
"Gravity Magic?" He instinctively felt something was wrong.
Indeed, the next second Kagura appeared beside him; the pen in his hand broke in two, and he felt as if he was struck by a heavy blow.
In a blink, Kagura moved to another side of Talent.
The heavily struck Talent didn't fly off but slumped to the ground, clutching his chest as if slashed by a sharp blade.
"What... what kind of swordsmanship is this?"
"Regret Blade· Kurnugi Style Sword Drawing Art Abyss," Kagura calmly named the move.
In reality, her early training focused on the 'Resentment Blade,' channeling the resentment towards her brother's abductor into strength; the day she drew her sword would be the day she avenged him.
But later, Simon unexpectedly returned, and with her brother's company, her resentment wasn't as strong as before.
Yet the regret of years spent apart lingered, prompting her to blend that feeling into her technique, thus creating the 'Regret Blade' from the foundation of the Resentment Blade.
Simultaneously, she realized yet another emotion opposite to resentment, a power opposite to the Resentment Blade.
But due to her character, Kagura still hasn't fully understood it, nor can she speak of it, merely continuing silently, awaiting the day to truly draw her sword.
"Regret Blade, huh..." Talent looked at his broken tool with heartache, feeling defeated, "I lost."