"Saint Ten—he's definitely Saint Ten!"
As George stepped down from the stage with his team, serious expressions crossed the faces of Kagura from Mermaid Heel, Ichiya from Blue Pegasus, and both Jiemma and Minerva from Sabertooth.
He was too powerful. It wasn't clear in the first match, but by the next three, the terrifying tri-colored flames were unmistakable. Even standing at a distance, they could feel the immense, oppressive power radiating from them.
"He's incredibly strong. Doesn't he already have the strength of a Saint Ten?"
Lyon from Lamia Scale turned to the real Saint Ten Wizard beside him—Jura.
"Saint Ten? I'm afraid he's not just any ordinary Saint Ten. It seems this time the guild master may be disappointed."
Jura pressed his palms together and slowly closed his eyes.
As the lowest-ranked among the Saint Ten, he had seen the power of them all. The most terrifying were the four at the top—known as the Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar—wizards whose strength had long surpassed human limits.
Even the fourth-ranked among them could easily defeat the remaining six.
The most powerful of all was the number one ranked, God Serena—also a Dragon Slayer, who possessed eight Dragon Lacrima, each allowing him to use a different type of Dragon Slayer Magic. He was practically divine.
Just now, when George unleashed his Dragon Slayer Magic, Jura was briefly reminded of the time he had faced God Serena.
If George's strength truly approached that of the Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar, then winning the Grand Magic Games this time would be far more difficult than anticipated.
"Don't say that! Sure, he's strong, but we're not weak either!"
Sherry Blendy, the pink-haired female wizard who used Doll Magic, struck a confident pose.
To her, even if George was Saint Ten, Jura was too—nothing to fear. Plus, they had Lyon, who was strong enough to match the leader of the Four Hounds. Overall, their team should still be stronger than Fairy Tail.
"That cat actually has this kind of power..."
Jiemma's voice was filled with 70% anger and 30% jealousy.
Minerva's eyes, however, flashed coldly:
"So what if he's Saint Ten? He's just a cat with no brains. Let him wait for tomorrow's Battle Royale—I have plenty of ways to deal with him."
"No one is taking away my title of 'strongest.'"
If that cat had hidden his strength until the final day and then revealed it, he might have caught everyone off guard.
Unfortunately, a cat is still a cat—loud and flashy, but lacking strategy.
"You already have a plan. As expected of the daughter I've raised so carefully."
Jiemma smiled with satisfaction.
Minerva's eyes briefly flashed with disgust, but she quickly explained:
"Now that he's revealed his Saint Ten–level power, every wizard will be wary of him. Tomorrow, with a little guidance, it'll be easy to rally everyone to focus on eliminating him first."
"He might be able to defeat five wizards at once, but can he beat fifty? A hundred?"
"This Grand Magic Games really is hiding something..."
As he stepped down from the stage, George ignored the wary gazes from the other wizards and the wild cheers of the crowd. Instead, he frowned and looked toward the royal palace.
Earlier, he hadn't noticed, but just as he had unleashed his Dragon Slayer Magic, he had faintly sensed something strange: the magic energy released during his attack had been subtly drawn toward the palace.
After defeating the four challenger guilds, George lay on Laki's shoulder and focused again. To his surprise, it wasn't just his magic. All magic released during battles in the arena was being pulled toward the palace.
It was as if something there was absorbing magic.
"I'll check it out tonight."
If the royal family was up to something shady, he needed to figure it out.
Getting caught off guard later could be dangerous.
His strength now was indeed formidable—but not invincible. There were still beings like the Black Dragon, the Five God Dragons, and the Four Heavenly Kings of Ishgar. He had never fought them, so their true power remained unknown.
Better to stay cautious.
Another day passed, and the third round of the team defense battle finally came to an end.
(End of Chapter)
Fairy Tail still held first place.
Sabertooth was in the same position, though they took longer than Fairy Tail. However, they managed to defeat all the challenger guilds' members, earning sixty points.
The other four guilds that held the arenas, except for the Four Hounds who had run out of magic power in the final battle and only earned forty-five points, also ended with sixty points.
This round truly showed the audience the vast difference in strength between the top guild wizards and those from regular guilds.
Late at night, when everyone else had fallen asleep, George used his Mirage Shift to disappear from the dormitory and flew invisibly toward the royal palace.
Following the trail of magic absorption he had sensed earlier in the day, he carefully avoided the patrols guarding the palace and made his way to the basement below. Eventually, he found a large door adorned with golden Zodiac symbols.
"This door… is no ordinary door."
Flying around it and closely inspecting the patterns and magical runes etched into the door, George felt a sense of awe.
As a master alchemist, George was well-versed in alchemy. He had even studied magical airship crafting books to help create a floating city in the Marvel world.
So, it was no surprise that he instantly recognized that the door was made from an extremely rare and expensive magical metal. It incorporated many complex alchemical techniques he had never seen before.
However, after a closer look, George couldn't shake the feeling that this door was related to both the Star Spirit Magic and advanced Time Magic of this world.
Star Spirit Magic was unique to this world, and he hadn't studied it much, but the twelve symbols on the door were clearly the Zodiac symbols of the Golden Twelve Spirits.
As for Time Magic, George had been studying the principles of time for a while now and could easily recognize its influence on the door's design.
"The royal family is using the Grand Magic Games to channel magic into this door… What could their goal be?"
Hovering in front of the door, George thought carefully. To understand it all, he realized he would need to find the king of this country. A plot this grand was most likely being orchestrated by the king himself.
Once he located the king, he could quietly use his magic to read his memories and learn everything he needed to know.
If the king didn't know anything about it, he could always try reading the memories of the queen, princess, or any of the ministers. Someone in the palace must be in the know.
But just as he was about to use a tracking spell to find the king, a magic circle suddenly appeared beneath him, and his illusion spell was dispelled.
"Found out…"
Hearing the sound of approaching guards from all directions, George quickly looked up and saw a magic eye hovering above him, its gaze focused squarely on him.
"It seems the magical surveillance created by the Magic Development Bureau is quite impressive. I didn't even notice the monitoring magic here."
Since he had been discovered, there was no point in hiding anymore. It was time for a more direct approach.
(End of Chapter)