The air in the arena seemed to freeze—but only from the spectators' perspective.
In the next instant, Lyon's eyes widened in horror as he stared at the arena, his voice trembling with disbelief:
"Impossible... Jura-san..."
Sherria covered her mouth, her face filled with incredulous fear.
Ooba Babasaama, the Guild Master of Lamia Scale, stopped spinning her prayer beads, watching with a grave expression as Jura lay fallen on the field, releasing a deep sigh.
After all this time... they still couldn't defeat that monster...
Almost in the very next moment, the situation in the arena completely reversed.
All the spectators in the arena were utterly confused, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
Why?
How did Jura, who had been launching such fierce attacks moments ago, suddenly collapse unconscious?
Mavis watched as Ankh slowly sheathed the time sword back into the clock-face magic circle behind him, and calmly explained:
"The power of the Time God."
Erza had a sudden realization, exclaiming, "That's Dimaria's ability!"
On the other side, listening to Mirajane's explanation, Laxus pondered. "So you mean, Ankh just entered the Time-Seal Tomain where time stops? That's why Jura, completely defenseless, was defeated by Ankh?"
Gajeel couldn't help shaking his head in frustration, grumbling, "What kind of cheap move is this..."
Mirajane nodded, looking at Ankh with admiration as she smiled. "It seems Ankh has gained new power again..."
On the field, a deep sword wound marked Jura's chest, blood gushing forth as he lay unconscious on the ground.
Ankh sighed, dispelling his Time God form before walking to Jura's side.
He released Life Divine Power to heal Jura's injuries, quietly apologizing.
"Sorry about this, Jura."
As Jura regained consciousness and saw Ankh's expression, he couldn't help but smile wryly.
"Time Magic... I don't regret losing to that. I was simply outmatched, no fault of yours."
This was a classic case of mechanics triumphing over raw power.
Was Jura strong?
Of course—if it came down to a straightforward clash of power, even if Ankh could win, it wouldn't be easy.
But thanks to a broken mechanic like time stop, Ankh could defeat Jura with ease.
However, this Time-Seal Tomain wasn't entirely without countermeasures.
Like Dimaria's ability, this skill consumed tremendous energy.
Jura could either rely on defense to wait out the Time-Seal's duration, or study time-based magic to potentially become immune to the Tomain's effects.
But... time magic wasn't exactly easy to learn...
Watching the two who had instantly determined the outcome, Chapati was momentarily stunned before picking up the microphone to announce.
"The fourth match goes to Ankh from Fairy Tail Team B!"
"What an astonishing turn of events! We don't even know what ability Ankh used to instantly defeat Jura, the fifth-ranked of the Ten Wizard Saints!"
This anticlimactic match left the entire audience somewhat bewildered.
Still, at least the first half—Jura's rock performance and Ankh's transformation—had been a visual feast, so this final battle of the first day ultimately satisfied them.
More importantly, many appearance-focused fans unexpectedly discovered Ankh's former identity as the "Idol King," causing his popularity to skyrocket.
Meanwhile, strength-oriented fans were shocked by Ankh's feat of instantly defeating Jura and joined his support squad with reverence.
"Ankh! Ankh!"
"The mighty Lord Ankh!"
The stadium erupted in frenzied chants of Ankh's name, a clear testament to how much popularity he had garnered from this match.
Hearing the deafening cheers and screams, the other guilds simply felt envious of his popularity.
But Sabertooth and Raven Tail were particularly displeased.
Sting glared irritably at Ankh returning through the competitor's tunnel and scoffed.
"What's the big deal? No one even saw how he did it. Why is he getting so much support out of nowhere?"
Orga propped his chin in his hand, watching Ankh's retreating figure with eager eyes as he grinned.
"What you can't understand is the highest form of skill. I'd love to fight him myself."
The red-furred cat Lector, equally annoyed that Ankh had stolen Sabertooth's spotlight, whispered criticisms.
"Maybe he's not that strong at all. Perhaps that Jura was just too weak."
Frosch, dressed in an adorable pink frog costume, had no opinions of his own and mindlessly raised a tiny paw to agree.
"Frosch thinks so too~"
"Don't say that." Rogue patted Frosch's head and said seriously, "A man who surpasses Natsu and Gajeel is definitely not simple."
...
In Raven Tail's gloomy viewing area, the defeated Flare lay half-dead in a corner, clearly having suffered further abuse from her teammates after her loss.
Alexei's eyes burned with hatred as he gritted his teeth and said to the blue-masked cloaked man beside him.
"Obra, Ankh is too troublesome. Do you have a way to deal with him?"
Obra's voice from beneath the mask was deep and chilling as he whispered, "I can try."
Alexei cast an icy glare toward the jubilant Fairy Tail section and muttered venomously, "It seems one little girl wasn't enough to make you suffer..."
All matches for the first day had concluded, and the stadium erupted with fireworks and celebratory streamers, the sky filled with floating balloons and ribbons.
The Grand Magic Games wasn't just a competition but also a festive celebration, with the capital hosting numerous events throughout these days.
Thus, Mages could enjoy the festival after their matches.
Knowing the Mages needed to recuperate and explore the capital's festivities, Chapati efficiently delivered the first day's closing remarks:
"All matches for the first day have concluded. The current scores for all teams are as follows:
First place: Fairy Tail Team B, 20 points.
Tied for first place, Sabertooth, 20 points.
Third place, Fairy Tail Team A, 14 points.
Fourth place, Blue Pegasus, 13 points.
Fifth place, Lamia Scale, 6 points.
Sixth place, Quatro Cerberus, 2 points.
Seventh place, Raven Tail, 1 point.
Eighth place, Mermaid Heel, 0 points."
"Looking at the scores, Fairy Tail has completely surrounded Sabertooth with an overwhelming advantage!"
Chapati exclaimed with admiration, prompting Jenny to immediately declare with full determination.
"Our guild will definitely work hard to catch up in the coming days!"
"Alright then, the first day of the Grand Magic Games concludes here. Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Yajima and Miss Jenny!"
Ankh gazed at the scoreboard where the two Fairy Tail teams occupied the top positions, unable to suppress a faint smile.
This is the kind of dominance befitting the strongest guild~
Just then, Laxus slapped Ankh's shoulder, pointing his thumb toward the door with a cheerful expression.
"Let's go, the old man has arranged a victory banquet!"