Upon hearing Bacchus's words, Cana's composure shifted.
She clenched her fists tightly and gritted her teeth in frustration.
In the spectator stands, Gray frowned at Bacchus's arrogant attitude and asked, "Erza, if I remember correctly, you know this guy, right?"
Erza nodded. "I encountered him during a mission seven years ago. He's indeed powerful—we fought but didn't reach a conclusive outcome."
Gray nodded, though he didn't pay much attention to the latter part of Erza's statement.
Given Erza's personality, she would never go all out when sparring with a Mage from a friendly guild.
If anyone claimed this Bacchus was truly as strong as Erza... who would believe that?
"Bacchus is known as the 'Drunken Falcon.' He can concentrate Magic Power to enhance his physical body, which is actually quite a common and orthodox form of Magic."
"But what makes Bacchus formidable is his powerful close-combat ability. He has mastered a martial art called Pigua Zhang, making his attacks possess both magical penetration and physical destructive power."
Lucy analyzed thoughtfully, "In that case, wouldn't it be fine if Cana just keeps her distance?"
Erza shook her head. "Unlike most close-combat Mages who struggle with a lack of ranged attacks, Bacchus also possesses fast movement speed. It's difficult to evade his combos."
Down in the arena, as the starting gong sounded, Bacchus placed his gourd behind his back and lounged casually on his side.
Seeing this, veins bulged on Cana's forehead as she shouted, "What are you doing? Stand up and fight me!"
"No... your strength really fails to make me tremble~"
Though he hadn't drunk yet, Bacchus still appeared hungover as he waved his hand dismissively, staring mockingly at Cana with a teasing smile.
"If you want me to take this seriously and play with you, how about making a bet?"
Cana frowned.
Bacchus thought for a moment, his gaze sweeping across the spectator areas where Fairy Tail members were seated.
However, when his eyes scanned Team B's section, a pair of cold eyes made him shudder.
'Forget it... better not provoke someone like that...'
Bacchus snapped back to reality and pointed at Cana's sexy outfit, leering.
"If you lose, how about I take your bra?"
"Ehh—"
Hearing Bacchus's demand, the stadium erupted in uproar.
The Fairy Tail members all wore unpleasant expressions, thinking about killing Bacchus while mourning his foolish idea!
If Gildarts found out, Bacchus would certainly be done for.
"Wild..."
The Quatro Cerberus members guiltily shrank back.
Master Goldmine covered his face in embarrassment, listening to the female spectators condemning Bacchus and the cheers from some male audience members, and couldn't help but sigh.
'It's over... Quatro Cerberus's reputation is ruined...'
"Still as arrogant as ever..."
Laxus leaned against the wall, watching the person in the arena with a laugh.
Juvia asked curiously, "Does Laxus know him?"
"I ran into him once during a mission with Ankh before."
Juvia blinked. "What happened then?"
Ankh said expressionlessly, "Then he got beaten up by me for running his mouth."
Mirajane chuckled lightly. "Bacchus always manages to say exactly the most annoying things."
"But what a pity, Cana isn't the kind of woman he thinks she is."
...
"Fine by me."
Cana's bold voice rang out in the arena, causing all the noise in the stadium to cease.
Even Bacchus looked at her in surprise.
Completely indifferent to his gaze, Cana pointed at him and said coldly:
"But if you lose, you have to change your team's name to Quatro Puppy, and run naked around the arena while repeatedly shouting: 'I am Bacchus'!"
"Naked run?"
"Quatro Puppy?"
Chapati covered his mouth to prevent his laughter from escaping.
Mr. Yajima, clearly experienced, said calmly, "Oh~ It seems both sides have made quite the remarkable bet."
Bacchus seemed intrigued. Slowly standing up, he said:
"This is getting interesting. Alright, I accept."
After all, he didn't believe he would lose.
The members of Quatro Cerberus instantly turned to stone.
'Wait, bro, you running naked is fine, but don't change our guild name!'
"Then..."
"Begin!"
Bacchus exploded forward from his position, his hardened iron palms flipping elegantly as he closed in on Cana.
Cana retreated backward, several cards flying out from her hands.
A dense electrical network crisscrossed various parts of the arena.
Bacchus's figure weaved through, avoiding the attacks and approaching Cana.
"Ah—"
Cana cried out in pain as a penetrating palm strike pierced through her abdomen.
Her body flew backward like a broken kite.
Forcing control of her body, Cana landed on the ground while continuously throwing out cards from her hands.
"Bacchus hasn't even drunk yet, his Splitting Palm hasn't upgraded to Drunken Splitting Palm, and Cana is already at a disadvantage."
Lucy said puzzled, "Strange, why isn't Cana using Crash Magic? That's an ultra-powerful magic that could decide the match in one move!"
Erza said with a grave expression, "Cana can use Crash at most twice, and it requires a long charging process. It's difficult to hit the rapidly moving Bacchus. If she misses, both her arms won't be usable anymore."
Gildarts' exclusive magic Crash—although father and daughter recognized each other earlier and Cana received her father's inheritance, learning Crash through her Super Magic talent—still placed high demands on physical strength.
As a Mage who has long used Card Magic, Cana's physical constitution ultimately remains insufficient.
Cana understood where her weaknesses lay.
Her three months of special training focused on learning how to utilize her existing advantages to maximize the power of Crash Magic.
"Too boring, Cana-chan~"
Bacchus laughed, lifting his gourd of wine with one hand and taking large gulps.
His figure began swaying strangely, completely resembling someone dead drunk, yet his movement speed became faster and more elusive.
"Going all out now... Perfect, the timing is just right!"
Cana crouched on the ground, breathing heavily, when a fierce grin spread across her face.
Bacchus was charging toward her when a solid stone wall materialized before him.
The cards Cana had placed around the arena earlier began activating one after another.
Layer upon layer of stone walls trapped Bacchus, while lightning strikes fell as densely as raindrops.
"You think... this can stop me?"
Bacchus roared arrogantly, on the verge of breaking through the stone barriers.
Cana slowly rose to her feet as a uniquely designed silver specialty card now in her hand.
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