Time flew by, and soon it was the Harvest Festival in Magnolia Town.
On this day, the entire town was filled with a strong festive atmosphere.
All the major streets were lined with various performances.
And the Fairy Tail guild was preparing to host a beauty pageant.
Pulling the view closer to the main hall of the Fairy Tail Guild.
The hall was packed with a large audience.
And at the front of the hall, there was a raised stage.
"Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe... haven't shown any unusual movements recently, right?"
Makarov, dressed in formal attire, asked Mirajane beside him.
"I haven't seen much of them in the guild lately, so I'm not really sure!"
Mirajane, in her red dress, replied with a smile.
"Because of the Harvest Festival, everyone in the guild, except for Gildarts, will temporarily stop working and gather in the guild!"
"If Laxus plans to do something, he'll probably make his move today!"
Makarov said solemnly.
At this time, Kenichi, sitting nearby, heard the conversation between Makarov and Mirajane, and his expression shifted slightly.
From what Kenichi knew, Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe would indeed make their move today.
They would take Erza, Mirajane, and others hostage, forcing the Fairy Tail's members to fight each other.
[Sensory Magic]
Kenichi didn't hesitate and directly activated the Sensory Magic attribute.
The next second, most of Magnolia Town appeared in Kenichi's sensory field of view.
Soon, Kenichi sensed that Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe's magical power was heading this way.
'So, they are really going to make their move today, huh?'
While Kenichi was thinking this, the host on the stage ahead announced loudly: "Next up, contestant number 3, our Fairy Queen, Erza Scarlet!"
As soon as the host finished speaking, the audience below instantly erupted.
Then, under everyone's watchful eyes, Erza in her silver-white armor walked out from behind the stage.
'Kenichi?!'
While waving to the audience, Erza unintentionally noticed Kenichi staring at her.
The moment she spotted Kenichi, Erza was startled.
She had originally planned to perform a bit with her Requip Magic.
But with Kenichi present, her Requip Magic would fail.
'I completely forgot Kenichi is also a man and might be interested in this kind of contest. What a miscalculation!'
After thinking this to herself, Erza stepped aside.
"Erza, aren't you going to perform something?"
The host, seeing Erza step down, tentatively asked.
"Not in the right state today. I'll skip the performance."
"Lucky!"
At this moment, Lucy backstage, seeing that Erza wasn't performing, clenched her fists, her face full of excitement.
Perhaps the host didn't know why Erza wasn't performing-
But Lucy knew.
She had noticed Kenichi in the audience below early on.
In Lucy's view, if Erza didn't perform, her score would be lower.
That meant one less competitor for her.
And her chances of winning this contest had increased quite a bit.
While Lucy was excited, she suddenly thought of something.
'Wait, Kenichi's magic probably affects my Celestial Spirit Magic too!'
'And I was planning to perform a dance with my Celestial Spirits!'
Thinking of this, the smile on Lucy's face instantly vanished, replaced by a wry smile.
One moment she was taking pleasure in Erza's misfortune.
The next moment, it was her own turn.
"Next up, this year's newcomer to Fairy Tail, Lucy!"
"Huh? Huh? I'm not ready yet!"
Hearing the host's words and the cheers from the audience, Lucy seemed a bit flustered.
But she eventually walked onto the stage.
"I'm Lucy. I'm going to perform..."
Before Lucy could finish her sentence, a very sudden female voice came through the air.
"Alright, this boring contest ends here!"
Hearing the voice, Lucy turned to look.
She saw a woman with glasses and a fan in her hand walking over.
This woman was none other than Evergreen, one of the Thunder God Tribe.
"Evergreen!"
Perhaps Lucy didn't know Evergreen, but Makarov did.
He had long thought Laxus might make a move today-
But he never expected it to happen in front of everyone.
The moment Makarov saw Evergreen appear, he stood up.
But by then, Evergreen had already taken off her glasses.
"Stone Eyes!"
Evergreen directly activated her Petrification Magic on Lucy.
This magic could instantly petrify anyone who made eye contact with her.
"Lucy, don't look into her eyes!"
Seeing Evergreen attack Lucy, Makarov shouted loudly.
And at that moment, Evergreen's eyes suddenly lit up.
Bzzzt-
Just as Lucy was about to be petrified, Evergreen's body was frozen into an ice sculpture.
"This is..."
Makarov, seeing this sudden change, was shocked.
Soon, he noticed Kenichi nearby spreading his palm towards Evergreen, and a piercing cold air was emanating from Kenichi's hand.
'Was it Kenichi who acted?'
Makarov looked at Kenichi and inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.
However, just then, a golden lightning bolt descended from the sky and landed thunderously on the stage.
"How embarrassing, Evergreen. Defeated before you could even make a move!"
Laxus looked at the frozen Evergreen beside him and spoke mockingly.
Although Laxus appeared calm on the surface, he was very angry inside.
His original plan was for Evergreen to petrify Erza and the others, then use them as hostages to force the guild members to fight.
But now, before she could petrify anyone else, she was the one who got frozen.
Thus, his plan was thrown into disarray.
"Laxus, what exactly are you trying to do?"
Makarov stared at Laxus on the stage and sternly rebuked.
But Laxus acted as if he didn't hear Makarov's rebuke. He was staring at Gray.
'Ice Magic? Was it Gray who acted?'
'Probably not. This guy's magical power isn't at the level to freeze Evergreen instantly.'
After ruling out Gray, Laxus's gaze shifted to others.
Soon, he noticed Kenichi.
Seeing the cold air around Kenichi, Laxus grinned.
"Is it you again?"