Chapter 441: Two-on-Two

The Tag Battle.

Unlike the previous rounds, where a single representative from each team clashed in the arena, this event was a two-versus-two format.

"So, it’ll be Meredy and Sorano," Flare concluded.

"Makes sense," Ultear nodded. "They haven’t stepped into the arena at all yet."

"Hmm?" Meredy and Sorano exchanged a long, heavy look.

Deep in thought, the two girls genuinely wondered if this was a good idea. If it were Flare, Ultear, or even Finn, they knew the battle would be a breeze; they could easily coordinate with any of them. But Meredy and Sorano fighting together?

It was going to be rough.

Neither of them considered themselves weak, but their teamwork? It was practically nonexistent.

"Can you take control of both of us at the same time?" Meredy finally asked, turning to Finn with hopeful eyes.

Finn stared at her in deadpan silence. Did she think he was some blue robotic cat from the future, ready to pull a miraculous gadget out of a fourth-dimensional pocket?

"...I can," Finn sighed, resigning himself to the headache. "But you two owe me a massage later. Piloting both of you simultaneously is not easy."

"Yay!" Meredy and Sorano cheered in perfect, uncharacteristic unison. The thrill of looking impossibly cool in front of an entire stadium without having to do any of the actual heavy lifting was intoxicating. They were fully prepared to leave all the trouble to Finn.

While they waited for their turn to take the stage, the group settled back into their viewing area.

"So, is everything really going to be okay?" Ultear asked, lowering her voice.

"Are you still worrying about whatever the Kingdom is plotting?" Finn replied, resting his chin on his hand.

"You’re entirely too calm," Ultear sighed, exasperated. "You’ve hinted at it before. Aren’t you worried that instead of the grand victory they’re hoping for, they’re going to unleash a nightmare that will swallow the entire continent? When that happens, what exactly is your plan?"

"Isn’t that exactly why I bothered acquiring Dragon Slayer Magic?"

"Eh?" Ultear’s eyes widened as the pieces finally clicked into place. "Wait. You mean... what’s going to come out of that door are... dragons?"

She was brilliant, and reading the implications in his words—combined with his deliberate move to absorb the Jade Dragon’s power—left only one conclusion.

"Seriously?!" Meredy gasped, her jaw dropping.

"The dragons from the legends?" Sorano looked equally stunned.

"I thought they were just fiction..." Flare murmured, looking lost.

Fiction, eh? Finn thought to himself. It would certainly be convenient if they were just myths. But he knew the dragons were very real. Frankly, while an invasion of dragons meant absolute doom for the weak, to him, it was just an elite stage for power scaling. It was a rare opportunity to refine his own build, absorb unimaginable magical energy, and shatter his current limits.

"Let’s just hope nothing goes wrong and the Kingdom of Fiore becomes the unsung hero who finally defeats Zeref. Right?" Finn offered a mild smile.

"..."

Everyone stared at him. When he phrased it exactly like that, it practically guaranteed impending doom.

Before they could dwell on the apocalyptic foreshadowing, the first match of the Tag Battle commenced: Blue Pegasus versus Lamia Scale. However, the moment the Blue Pegasus representative stepped onto the stage, the atmosphere in the Heavenly Blue balcony shifted violently.

"Ugh!"

Ultear, Meredy, Flare, and Sorano all simultaneously clutched their stomachs, suddenly overcome by a wave of intense nausea.

They weren’t ill. They were simply reacting to the sheer visual impact of the man strutting toward the arena—a man with a face so aggressively "handsome" and "cool" that it supposedly made millions of hearts swoon.

"...Try not to be so rude to him," Finn sighed.

He knew better than anyone that despite his glaring physical and behavioral flaws, Ichiya Vandalay Kotobuki was the absolute powerhouse of Blue Pegasus. It was baffling, but Ichiya’s Perfume Magic was a top-tier system, allowing him to endlessly buff his own stats while simultaneously running a highly profitable fragrance empire. Ichiya was likely the sole reason Blue Pegasus was the wealthiest guild in Fiore.

"...How are you okay looking at that?" Sorano asked, staring at Finn in sheer amazement.

"I just said you shouldn’t be rude, but... well, his personality is a walking hazard, so your reaction is justified."

Ichiya carried himself like a gentleman, but in reality, he was an unapologetic womanizer who hit on anything that breathed. Then again, as the supposed "most handsome" man in his guild, wasn’t it natural for him to be popular?

"Yeah, he’s basically the most popular guy in Fiore," Finn added casually.

"Are you kidding me?!" Meredy yelled.

"Go ask around the kingdom. Who doesn’t know him?"

"...."

"...That makes sense, but it still feels so wrong," Ultear muttered, rubbing her temples.

"Right?" Finn observed Ichiya with morbid curiosity. "Still, the guy has serious power, so let’s just watch—actually, forget it. I’m going to throw up too."

Despite his incredibly high resistances, Finn realized even his mental defenses couldn’t completely block out the sheer essence of Ichiya. And, exactly as he predicted, Ichiya and his feline doppelganger, Nichiya, swiftly decimated the Lamia Scale duo.

"Lyon!" Gray yelled from the Fairy Tail stands, utterly dumbfounded that his fellow disciple had been laid out by Ichiya of all people.

"I warned you before, Ichiya is not weak," Erza sighed, though she looked slightly green herself. Unable to watch the Pegasus Mage any longer, she let her gaze drift back to Finn’s balcony. She couldn’t wait for today’s events to end so she could finally corner him.

Why does he insist on staying disguised?

While Erza pondered this, the announcer’s voice echoed through the stadium, calling the next competitors.

"From Mermaid Heel: Milianna and Kagura Mikazuchi!"

"Eh?" Milianna blinked in surprise, but Kagura remained perfectly stoic.

"Let’s go, Milianna."

"Okay, Kagura!"

Milianna might not have been a heavy hitter, but her binding magic was top-tier. If she could lock an opponent down, Kagura’s blade would effortlessly chop them to pieces.

Neither of them, however, expected to be matched against the Heavenly Blue.

"And their opponents... Meredy and Sorano!"

The stadium fell dead silent for a second before erupting into a deafening roar.

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

This was a dream matchup. The crowd had already witnessed the devastating, untouchable might of Kagura. What would happen when Mermaid Heel’s strongest female mage clashed with the mysterious beauty of Heavenly Blue?

"Finn, pilot me like usual," Meredy said brightly, feeling perfectly relaxed. Her request was simple enough—she would just act as an overpowered archer again.

But Sorano had a different plan. Staring down at Kagura in the arena, she had eyes that gleamed with a dangerous, vindictive light.

"Dear, can you do me a massive favor?"

"Yes?"

"If you can pull this off, no matter what you ask of me later, I’ll do anything."

Sorano stared up at him, her gaze a lethal combination of puppy-dog innocence and blatant lewdness. Finn sighed inwardly, refusing to agree blindly.

"What is it? Tell me first."

"When you take over... can you use pure swordsmanship to utterly crush her?"

"Hmm?"

Finn tilted his head, realizing just how deep Sorano’s grudge against the swordswoman ran.