Chapter 282: Taking the Top Two
"Sabertooth?"
The word rippled through the Fairy Tail stand like a stone dropped in a pond. Erza Scarlet, Gray Fullbuster, and the rest of the team turned their gazes toward the center of the Domus Flau, their expressions sharpening into seriousness.
Despite Sabertooth's abysmal performance on the first day—scoring a grand total of zero points—no one in the stadium, least of all Fairy Tail, was foolish enough to write them off as weak. The memories of their crushing magical pressure were still fresh. Whether it was the Memory-Make Mage Rufus or the Lightning God Slayer Orga, both had displayed power that could easily rival the ace of any other guild.
The announcer, Chapati Lola, leaned into his microphone, his voice booming across the coliseum. "As we all know, her opponent is Kagura-chan! Mermaid Heel's strongest Mage and the current Sorcerer Magazine's top pick among female Mages for 'Someone You Want as a Big Sister'!"
Cheers erupted from the female demographic in the audience, though Kagura stood motionless, her expression as still as a frozen lake.
"Her opponent, Yukino-chan, is a newcomer to the tournament scene," Chapati continued, hyping the match. "Yet, the very fact that she stands here representing the strongest guild, Sabertooth, is enough to raise expectations sky-high. Can she redeem her guild's honor after yesterday's disaster?"
"Then—let the match begin!!"
The gong sounded, resonating deep in the chests of the spectators.
In the center of the sandy arena, the two women stood facing each other. The contrast was striking. Kagura, clad in her white military-style blazer and leggings, exuded an aura of disciplined, lethal calm. Opposite her, Yukino Agria wore a flowing blue cape and a white leotard, looking almost fragile, like a porcelain doll amidst a battlefield.
Yukino placed her hands on her thighs and bowed deeply, a perfect 90-degree angle. "Please take care of me."
Kagura blinked, a flicker of surprise breaking her stoic mask. She hadn't expected such formal courtesy from a member of the arrogant, dominance-obsessed Sabertooth. She adjusted her grip on the scabbard of her sword, Archenemy, and nodded slightly. "The pleasure is mine."
Yukino straightened up, a determined gleam in her soft eyes. "Um… before we start, Kagura-san, how about we set a little wager?"
"A wager?" Kagura asked, her tone flat.
"Yes. A bet to make things... interesting."
"Sorry, I'm not interested." Kagura refused outright, her voice leaving no room for negotiation. She turned her body slightly, entering a combat stance.
Yukino bit her lip. "Are you afraid to lose?"
The provocation was clumsy, desperate. Kagura didn't even frown.
"I don't entertain such feelings. Fear and arrogance are impurities in battle," Kagura spoke calmly, her eyes closing for a brief second as she centered her breathing. "Furthermore, once a bet is made, it must be honored. That is the weight of a pledge. That's why I avoid frivolous sideshows. I am here to fight, not to gamble."
"Then let's raise the stakes," Yukino's voice trembled, not with fear, but with a terrifying resolve. She stepped forward, her hand clutching her chest. "Let's bet our very lives."
The silence that followed was absolute.
Gasps echoed through the Grand Magic Games arena; the chatter of thousands died instantly. Even the wind seemed to stop blowing.
"Did she just say… her life?" Lucy Heartfilia covered her mouth in the stands.
"This is madness," Gray muttered, his brow furrowed. "It's just a tournament."
In the arena, Kagura's eyes snapped open. The indifference was gone, replaced by a sharp, piercing intensity. She scrutinized Yukino, looking for a lie, a bluff, or madness. She found only cold, hard determination.
"If your resolve is genuine," Kagura said, her voice dropping an octave, resonating with a dangerous timbre, "then accepting your challenge is the least courtesy I can show to a warrior prepared to die. Very well, I agree!"
The moment Kagura spoke those words, the air pressure in the stadium shifted. It wasn't magic power flaring up—it was pure intimidation. The aura around her darkened, heavy and suffocating.
"T-this is getting a bit heavy…" Chapati Lola stammered into the mic, wiping sweat from his brow.
The spectators' expressions changed from excitement to unease; after all, this was supposed to be entertainment. Staking lives felt excessive, barbaric even. But for the mages in the ring, there was no turning back.
"Standing before Sabertooth is your misfortune," Yukino declared, her demeanor shifting from polite to combat-ready. She reached for the pouch at her hip. "Open, Gate of the Pisces!"
A golden light erupted from her hand as she swung a golden key through the air.
"Pisces!!"
The magic circle manifested in the air, rippling like the surface of a lake. From the void, a torrent of high-pressure water blasted out, transforming mid-air into two colossal entities—giant, serpentine fish, one black and one white, representing the mother and son of the constellation.
"A Celestial Mage?!"
Lucy leaned over the railing, stunned. "Her opponent also wields Celestial Spirit Magic? And she possesses one of the Zodiac keys?"
"They're huge!" Natsu Dragneel shouted, his eyes wide.
The two massive fish lunged at Kagura, their jaws snapping with force enough to crush boulders. They swam through the air as if it were water, closing the distance in a heartbeat.
Kagura didn't draw her sword. She didn't even panic. She simply sprang aside, her movement efficient and minimal. She vaulted over the white fish, used its scales as a platform, and dodged the snapping jaws of the black one.
Yukino didn't let up. She pulled a second golden key.
"Open, Gate of the Libra! Libra!!"
A second golden gate opened. A woman dressed in exotic, dancer-like attire appeared, her face obscured by a veil, holding a set of balancing scales in her hands.
"A double summon!"
Lucy exclaimed, shock evident in her voice. "Opening two gates simultaneously consumes an immense amount of Magic Power! I've only seen Angel from the Oración Seis do that before... I can do it now after opening my Second Origin, but for her to do it so casually..."
"Libra—shift the target's gravity!" Yukino commanded, pointing a finger at the agile Kagura.
The spirit, Libra, tilted her scales.
VOOOM.
The space around Kagura warped visually. A terrifying column of gravity crashed down on her, creating a spiderweb of cracks in the stadium floor. It was as if an invisible mountain had been placed on her shoulders. Kagura froze, pinned in place by the crushing weight.
"Pisces—attack!!"
With Kagura supposedly immobilized, Yukino seized the moment. She ordered the twin fish to strike the stationary target. The black and white leviathans circled back, accelerating to terminal velocity, aiming to sandwich Kagura between their massive bodies.
"It's over!" someone in the crowd shouted.
Yet, the moment Pisces rushed in, the impossible happened.
Kagura, who should have been crushed flat against the earth, simply… moved.
She vaulted straight up, defying the enhanced gravity as if it were nothing more than a gentle breeze. She spun in the air, her heels clipping the noses of the two fish, causing them to collide with each other in a burst of water and confusion.
Lector the cat, watching from the Sabertooth balcony, grabbed his head. "She slipped Libra's gravity?! That's impossible! That gravity is strong enough to crush a tank!"
Down in the Mermaid Heel stand, Risley, the Chubby-to-Slim mage, smirked confidently. "Of course she did. Did you think simple weight could bind our ace? My own Gravity Change Magic… everything I know was taught to me by Kagura herself!"
"She's a Gravity user too?!" Gray realized. "She neutralized Libra's field with her own!"
Seeing both Libra and Pisces fail to restrain the Mermaid Heel ace, Yukino took a shaky breath. Her strongest spirits had been evaded without Kagura even lifting a finger to attack.
She had to go further. She had to use it.
"Are you going to force me to open that gate… the Thirteenth Gate?" Yukino whispered, her hand trembling as she reached for a black key unlike the others.
Lucy blanched, her face losing all color. "The Thirteenth Gate?!"
Erza looked at the blonde mage, sensing her fear. "What is it, Lucy? I thought there were only twelve."
Lucy explained, her voice hushed with awe and dread. "There are only twelve golden Zodiac keys. That is the absolute law of Celestial Spirit Magic. But… I've heard rumors. Myths of a thirteenth gate, a spirit unknown to the modern era, one that surpasses all the others combined. The Serpent Bearer."
Yukino raised the black key high. The sky above the stadium began to darken, swirling with ominous purple and black clouds.
"Open, Gate of the Serpent Bearer! Ophiuchus!!!"
The ground shook violently, triggering a localized earthquake. From behind Yukino, a void tore open the fabric of reality.
It wasn't a biological snake. It was a monstrosity of metal and magic. A colossal Mechanical Serpent erupted from the gate, towering over the stadium. Its eyes glowed with a menacing crimson light, and its hiss sounded like grinding gears and escaping steam.
"ROOOOOAAAAARRRR!"
The roar of the spirit shattered windows in the VIP boxes.
"What the hell is that thing?!" Natsu yelled, gripping the railing.
"That is… the Thirteenth Spirit?" Erza narrowed her eyes. The magical pressure it emitted was dense, heavy enough to make the weaker audience members faint.
Kagura looked up at the mechanical titan. Her expression did not change. She did not step back. Instead, she charged without hesitation.
She ran straight toward the behemoth.
"Go, Ophiuchus!" Yukino commanded.
The snake lunged, its maw wide enough to swallow the arena whole.
Kagura's hand tightened on the scabbard of Archenemy. She lowered her stance, her speed accelerating until she was a white blur.
"Blade of Grudge…"
She didn't draw the blade. She didn't need to. The sheer aura, the concept of her swordsmanship, was sharp enough to cut reality without the steel ever seeing the light of day.
"Unsheathed Nevermore - Long-sword Form!"
Kagura flashed past the serpent in a trajectory that defied physics.
Shing!
A sound like a bell tolling echoed across the silent stadium.
For a second, nothing happened. The snake remained frozen mid-lunge. Yukino stood with her arm outstretched. Kagura landed softly behind Yukino, her back turned to her opponent.
Then, gravity asserted itself.
Crack. Boom. Crunch.
The colossal mechanical body of Ophiuchus split into four clean pieces. Massive chunks of celestial metal crashed to the ground, disintegrating into motes of light as they fell.
She hadn't even drawn her sword…
Erza was startled, her eyes wide. "To cut something of that magnitude without drawing the blade… merely using the pressure of the scabbard and the magic imbued within… Aside from Ren, I've rarely seen swordplay of such high caliber."
Kagura stood tall, her breathing even. She had closed the distance to Yukino in the same movement.
Yukino gasped, her eyes trembling as she looked at the destruction of her ultimate spirit. "No way…"
Kagura turned her head slightly, looking over her shoulder. "Your wager was reckless," she said coldly. "Even mermaids devour tigers."
Bam!
Kagura didn't use her sword this time. A simple, decisive palm strike to the gut.
Yukino's eyes rolled back. She collapsed, hitting the ground hard. She was uninjured physically, but her spirit was broken. Her strongest magic lay in ruins. There was no point continuing.
"M-match over!!" Chapati Lola screamed, his voice cracking.
"Winner: Kagura Mikazuchi of Mermaid Heel!!"
The crowd erupted. It was a deafening roar of approval. Kagura's popularity stemmed from this sheer, undeniable strength. She had never needed to draw her blade in any Grand Magic Games she entered. Many now considered her Fiore's strongest female Mage.
"Way to go, little Kagura!" Millianna cheered from the Mermaid Heel balcony, waving her paws.
"Yes!"
"Never underestimate her."
On the Fairy Tail balcony, the mood was a mixture of celebration and analysis.
"Sabertooth scored… zero points on Day Two?!!" Happy exclaimed, flying in circles. "They're totally flopping!"
Gray's face was grim, his arms crossed. "Is that Sabertooth girl weak? Or is the Mermaid girl just that strong?"
Erza answered immediately. "The latter. That celestial spirit, Ophiuchus, possessed power comparable to a high-level boss monster. Kagura dismantled it in a single move. Her strength is the real deal."
Ren sat on a bench nearby, nodding in agreement. "Her swordplay is solid. It's not just physical strength; she combines Gravity Magic with her kenjutsu to increase the weight and impact of her strikes without sacrificing speed. That 'Unsheathed' technique utilizes the friction of the scabbard and pressurized gravity to create a cutting wave."
Lucy stared at him, blinking. "Compliments from you are rare, Ren. You usually just yawn through these matches."
Ren chuckled, leaning back with a relaxed smile. "I'm nothing special; my praise isn't worth much. I just appreciate good technique when I see it."
He knew his own talent—his seeming brilliance came from the System, from absorbing countless character-card battle experiences. He had the muscle memory of swordsmen far superior to Kagura, but that didn't mean he couldn't respect her dedication.
Gray and the others didn't buy his humility for a second.
"If Ren isn't special," Gray muttered to Natsu, "then no one in this world is. That guy is a monster in human skin."
Down in the arena, the celebration felt distant to the loser.
Tears slid down Yukino's cheeks as she lay on the floor, staring up at the bright sky that felt so mocking now. "I… actually lost… Sabertooth actually…"
She thought of her Guild Master. She thought of the humiliation.
Kagura walked over, looming over the fallen girl. She didn't offer a hand. She simply stared down with those intense eyes.
"From today on, your life is mine," Kagura said coolly. "Understood?"
Yukino squeezed her eyes shut, fresh tears squeezing out. "Understood…"
"And with that, all matches of Day Two conclude!" the announcer declared, moving the program along. "Let's look at the shocker of the century! The rankings!"
A giant holographic screen lit up the stadium.
"Overall standings:"
Fairy Tail A – 32 pts
Fairy Tail B – 23 pts
Mermaid Heel – 20 pts
Blue Pegasus – 19 pts
Raven Tail – 18 pts
Quatro Cerberus – 13 pts
Lamia Scale – 12 pts
Sabertooth – 11 pts
The audience stared in disbelief at the rankings. Whispers turned into shouts.
Both Fairy Tail squads held first and second place. The guild that had been the laughingstock of Fiore for seven years was now dominating the board.
Meanwhile, the title-favorite, the invincible Sabertooth, sat dead last.
Even Lamia Scale, led by the Wizard Saint Jura, was struggling in second-to-last place.
The result was utterly shocking, signaling a complete upheaval of the magical world's hierarchy. The era of the Tiger was ending; the era of the Fairy was returning.