The next morning.
The sun had barely risen when Magnolia was already enveloped in a cacophony of noise.
Inside the Arena prepared specifically for the quarterfinals.
It was now a sea of people, shoulder to shoulder, with the spectator stands packed to the brim.
Various discussions rose and fell, rging into a massive wave of sound.
"Hey, hey, did you guys watch the preliminary round yesterday? That area around the cathedral looked like it had been plowed..."
"Plowed? It was more than that! If Ron hadn't made preparations in advance, the cathedral would have been gone—completely gone—during their fight! You know that?!"
"Whoa... that spectacle, it was like the Thunder God descending, the earth dragons rolling, flas engulfing the sky, a clash of steel..."
"Sigh, if only I could use magic too. I'm so envious of them."
A spectator gazed on with longing, waving a small, homade flag in their hand.
"By the way, who do you think will be the final champion?"
"Probably Ron. He was the top perforr yesterday, a perfect score!"
"Tch, Laxus got a perfect score too. I'm betting on him!"
"It's definitely Miss Titania! Her heroic figure in battle is just so cool!!"
"I like Miss Mira..."
"..."
Damn, I asked you who would be the champion, and you tell you like Mira?!
Actually... I like her too, hehehe!!!
Just as the audience was arguing until their faces were red, the loudspeakers around the Arena suddenly vibrated.
Dun—dun dun dun—!!!
A passionate, blood-pumping entry BGM with a heavy tal rock style exploded instantly, the roar of the bass hitting everyone right in the heart.
The noisy venue fell silent for an instant, and then—
"Roar roar roar!!!"
A tsunami of cheers erupted, deafening!
Amidst the cheering and shouting, sixteen figures divided into two teams and entered the contestant waiting area in an orderly fashion.
Walking at the very front were Ron, wearing a black cloak with a smile playing on his lips, and Laxus, with his unruly expression and fur coat.
"Go for it! Ron!"
"Laxus! Take them down and win the champion title! You are the strongest!"
Ron tilted his head and looked him up and down: 'This guy actually has fans?'
He looked toward the spectator stands and instantly understood.
It was Mr. Ruchio, the landlord of the girls' dormitory and Chico's father.
He was cheering for his daughter's crush; that made sense.
Laxus turned his head and t Ron's gaze.
"Hmph!!!"
Besides the two leading the way, the cheers naturally also included Erza, Mirajane, Natsu, and Gray.
"Ahhhh! Lady Erza! fairy queen, please step on from the front!!"
"That smile... that gentle smile! Miss Mirajane! I love you!!"
"Take them down, Salamander! Set the whole arena on fire!"
"Go Gray, a shirtless Gray is even sexier..."
Juvia's ears twitched, her gaze sweeping like a blade toward the direction where the voice ca from.
'Soone wants to compete with for Gray?!'
"Damn!!!"
Upon hearing this, Gray looked down and instantly felt embarrassed.
"Where are my clothes?!"
"Gray..." A hand timidly reached out toward Gray, "H-here are your clothes!"
"Oh, thanks, Juvia."
Juvia hurriedly waved her hands shyly.
"N-no need to thank , it's what I should do, Gray."
The cheering continued; everyone was buzzing for Fairy Tail.
At the judges' table.
Reporter Jason was hanging over the railing, holding his cara and clicking frantically, the sound of the shutter becoming a continuous stream.
"Cool—!!"
"That's so cool!!!"
"This heat! This passion! This is Fairy Tail!"
Jason was trembling with excitent, his face flushed, shouting and cheering along with the crowd.
He looked like he wished he could jump down and have a fight himself.
"This close-up is perfect! And this one, the killing intent in their eyes seems to be overflowing!"
"This issue's sales are going to be explosive!"
"COOL—!!"
Beside him, Ur couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
"Everyone from the guild is really popular. It seems everyone is looking forward to today's matches, Master Makarov."
Makarov laughed until the wrinkles on his face piled up, looking like a blooming, aged chrysanthemum.
"These brats usually cause trouble everywhere, but they really know how to hold the stage when it counts."
"So, how do you think today's match results will turn out?"
"I don't know about that; after all, things like battles change in an instant."
Makarov chuckled and played dumb.
"But for , winning or losing isn't important. What matters is that the children grow, and the guild has successors..."
Although he said that.
Regarding the eight battles about to take place today, Makarov still had his own assessnt.
The battles of Ron, Laxus, Mirajane, Fried, and Gajeel were basically undisputed; the disparity in strength between the combatants was huge, and it could be said to be one-sided.
The most anticipated, and also the most unpredictable, was the battle between the two S-Class Wizards, Erza and Mystogan.
In yesterday's preliminaries, they only did so simple probing and didn't use their full strength; today would likely be the most spectacular battle.
As for the other two matches...
Juvia versus Natsu; the two, water and fire, countered each other.
Logically speaking, Natsu should have a better chance of winning in terms of raw strength, but in internal guild battles, Natsu always tends to underperform, so the outco of this match is really hard to say.
Cana and Gray, both of them have highly flexible combat styles, so their performance is worth looking forward to.
At this mont, the music stopped abruptly.
As the Chairman of Fairy Tail, Makarov quickly slipped back to the judges' table after a short speech.
He waved his large hand and announced.
"Fairy Tail Harvest Festival Tournant, Pre-Quarterfinals, Round of 16, now begins!"
"Next, please welco the first pair of contestants—enter the Arena!!"
The eight matches would proceed in the order released yesterday, so the first match was—
Loke vs. Ron!!
On the Arena, the two stood facing each other.
On the left.
Ron stood tall and straight, his eerie blue-gold heterochromatic eyes revealing absolute confidence and composure. His black hair fluttered in the wind, his cloak snapping behind him, fully displaying the deanor of a master.
On the right.
Loke was still wearing his dapper suit, but his eyes were extrely grave, and a helpless wry smile hung on his handso face.
In an instant, the difference in caliber was clear!
Loke looked at Ron, who seed calm and indifferent, yet gave him the feeling of facing an abyss.
"Sigh..."
He sighed helplessly.
"Running into you right off the bat, my luck is really terrible. You'd better go easy on later."
"It is indeed a pity."
Ron's lips curled up, and he nodded, agreeing with Loke.
"If the Arena were in the Spirit World, you could unleash your full strength; in that case..."
Clang—!!
Before Ron could finish his sentence, the bell for the start of the match rang without warning.
The Loke who was acting weak a second ago, saying "go easy on ," moved the instant he heard the bell.
His figure vanished as he lunged forward, launching an preemptive strike without hesitation.
Strike first to gain the advantage!
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