"Go for it, Erza!! Show them what you're made of!!"
"Get 'em, Erza!!"
"Show them what a Fairy Tail S-Class Mage really is!" …
Erza walked into the arena with firm, confident steps.
[Oh! Representing Fairy Tail is the one known as the Fairy Queen, Erza!]
Whoosh—!
A gust of wind swept through the arena as a figure slowly appeared.
[The Phantom Lord Guild has sent out Aria of the Great Sky, leader of the Element 4's Division!]
Lucy grinned smugly. "Element? Didn't we already beat three of them? And why's that guy wearing a blindfold? Is he blind or something?"
Mirajane replied with a serious expression, "Don't underestimate Aria of the Great Sky. He's the top of the Elements. He usually keeps his eyes closed—it's the only way to suppress his immense magical power."
"Hehehe… Since I'm up against the Fairy Queen, I'll have to give it my all."
As Aria spoke, he removed the cloth covering his eyes and slowly opened them.
[Fairy Tail vs Phantom Lord Guild, Match Four!]
[Begin———!!]
CLANG—————!!
"Requip: Heaven's Wheel Armor!!"
Erza switched into her Heaven's Wheel Armor, a balanced set known for both offense and defense—one of her most commonly used armors.
"Heaven's Wheel: Blazing Sword Dance!!"
A barrage of magical swords shot toward Aria.
Aria raised his palm and murmured softly, "Sky Domain: Null!"
Countless invisible shock bullets burst forth, colliding with the magic swords.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
All of Erza's swords were shot down mid-air.
"Sky Domain: Null!"
Aria lifted his other hand, firing another wave of shock blasts.
Erza swiftly swung her swords, slicing through every single projectile.
Seeing this, Aria was visibly surprised. His magic was nearly silent—most people didn't even know how to counter it. But Erza had cut through it all with just her instinct. That kind of talent gave him chills.
"Heaven's Wheel: Circle Sword!"
Dozens of steel swords formed a rapidly spinning ring, slashing toward Aria.
Whoosh—!
Aria's form dissolved into wind and reappeared at a different location.
"As expected of the Fairy Queen. Looks like standard attacks won't decide this fight."
"In that case… let's end this quickly."
A powerful aura surged from Aria's body.
"Domain of Death: Zero—activate!!"
"This domain magic will drain away all life. Enjoy it to your heart's content—can you survive this, Fairy Queen?!"
"Watch out, Erza!!"
Fairy Tail's members called out warnings in alarm.
But Erza's eyes remained calm. She took a deep breath and focused all her strength:
"Fairy Dance!"
Erza moved like a leaping, spinning fairy, cutting down every incoming magical strike one by one.
"Impossible! You actually cut through the domain magic… how?!"
SWISH SWISH———!!
Erza's blades slashed across Aria's body.
"Aaaarghhh!!"
Aria screamed as he collapsed to the ground, completely unconscious.
[Th-the match is over!!]
[Winner: Fairy Queen Erza!!!]
BOOM————!!
The audience erupted into cheers. She'd defeated her opponent in an instant—it was overwhelming.
"Amazing! Erza!"
"That was incredible!!"
"So cool!!" …
The Fairy Tail members cheered loudly.
Many of them noticed that Erza's final move bore a strong resemblance to Kaien's. Remembering the recent match between Kaien and Erza, they realized she had already crafted a new technique of her own.
"No wonder she's Erza!"
Kaien couldn't help but admire her. He had once been called a genius—he knew all too well the vast difference between geniuses and ordinary people. It was the kind of gap that defied explanation.
Like how some people always rank in the top ten while others can't figure out why Diamond rank players are so weak.
Phantom Lord Guild's Rest Area
"..."
Jose remained silent. Everyone around him stood frozen, tense. They could feel it—their Guild Master was truly furious.
"Impossible!! The Elements was completely wiped out by those Fairy Tail nobodies?!!"
Defeated in the West—that was a disgrace. It implied his carefully nurtured Elements was no match for Makarov's kids. What would the audience think? That Fairy Tail was stronger than Phantom Lord?
Gajeel stood up and sneered, "If the Elements got wiped out by a bunch of trash, then that only proves they were trash too. I'll take it from here—I'll make those Fairy Tail losers remember: garbage belongs in the garbage."
"Everything's riding on you now, Gajeel. Don't disappoint me."
"Heh… Have I ever?"
Gajeel didn't even wait for the announcer. He walked straight into the arena, unable to hold back any longer. If he had known the others were this useless, he would've gone first and crushed them all at once.
At that moment, Erza returned to the rest area.
Kaien smiled at her. "Nice work."
Erza looked at him and said, "You're up next, Kaien. Go easy on them, okay? There's a crowd here—try not to be too rough."
Erza was one of the few who knew Kaien's true strength. Gajeel may have been known as Phantom Lord's strongest man, but to Erza, he was just a standard S-Class Mage. Compared to Kaien, who was on a whole other level, the gap was enormous.
"Don't worry! If there's one thing I'm best at—it's holding back."
With that, Kaien stepped toward the arena.
As he walked toward the center of the stage, Kaien's form began to change. His muscles swelled, becoming more defined.
His hair slicked back slightly, and his outfit shifted top to bottom. His shirt morphed into a tight-fitting black T-shirt that highlighted his muscular frame. His pants became loose-fitting gray joggers, and he wore a pair of black loafers.
Seeing Kaien transform, the Fairy Tail members gasped in unison.
They all knew he had many forms—but this one left the deepest impression. It was the form he once used to flatten the entire guild in a mock battle.
This might not be Kaien's strongest form, but it was certainly his most brutal.
Not long ago, Lucy had seen him utterly crush Natsu without giving him the slightest chance to fight back.
"That Phantom guy's toast."
"Totally."