Here's the next chapter and another opening for the next arc!

All rights go to the song and the artist that sings it!

Enjoy the Chapter!

The opening begins in the city of Crocus, the camera slowly scaling up above the rooftops of Crocus until we see the Domus Flau Collesium in all of its glory and balloons and confetti flying everywhere. Next, the point of view changes to just above the coliseum while the camera continues scaling up and the Fairy Tail logo appears in the middle of the screen.

We see an up-scale shot of the audience in the coliseum, all appearing shocked or surprised. Next, it changes to Yajima and Chapati, both speaking to each other while keeping their gazes on the arena. We then see the area from the audience's point of view, and it quickly zooms into the teams competing in the games. First, we see Team Fairy Tail A comprising Natsu, Lucy, Erza, Gray, and Elfman, the pink-haired lad roaring as the Fairy Tail emblem appears above them, and Happy pops up from the side, waving.

Tanjun dakedo junsui na yatsu
Sono me ni wa itsumo utsutte ita nda

Next, the members of Blue Pegasus appear, Ichiya, Hibiki, Ren, Eve, and Mr. Blue Bunny, all sparkling with charisma as they pose.

Then, Team Lamia Scale appears. First, Lyon and Jura zoom in from either side back-to-back, Toby and Yuka come in from below, and Shelia from the middle smiles shyly.

After that, we see Kagura from Mermaid Heel with an up-close shot of her face, eyes closed. Then, as she opens them, the camera sharply zooms out, revealing her fully to the left side, while the other members appear next to her; Araña, Risley, Millianna, and Beth.

Fifthly, we see another red Fairy Tail emblem on the ground in the arena. The camera quickly zooms up, revealing the members of Team Fairy Tail B. Laxus, Mira, Gajeel, Juvia, and Jellal disguised as Mystogan.

The sixth is the team of Quarto Cerebus; Rocker, Warcry, Jäger, Nobarly, and Semmes, all of which were screaming "Wild" simultaneously.

Taisetsu na mono ashita no koto
Hontou no tsuyosa ga nani katte koto

The seventh team emerges in a flurry of black feathers, Raven Tail, comprising Kurohebi, Flare, Nullpudding, Obra, and Alexi. A transparent up-close shot of the five zooms by to the right of the screen, and then we see an image of Ivan Dreyar smirking smugly at the viewer on the right and the Raven Tail emblem on the left.

Finally, we see Sting and Rogue standing next to each other, Sting smirking confidently and Rogue stoic. Then, the other members of the Team Sabertooth appear Yukino and Rufus next to Rogue and Orga next to Sting, holding his championship belt proudly, and Lector and Frosh pop out from the sides of the screen.

Kimi no koto wo omoi dashite chippoke na jibun ga okashiku natta
Nani mo kamo houri dashite MIRAKURU misete yaru

Yuka, Ichiya, and Risley are now racing against one another in a contest. Ichiya takes the lead at first before getting overtaken by Kurohebi. Then, Sting gets ahead of Kurohebi and gets caught up by Gajeel, and not long after, Natsu, the three dragon slayers now neck-in-neck.

We switch to see the other Fairy Tail members in the audience cheering for their friends while Nab waves the Fairy Tail flag. While this happens, a giant water dragon shoots by with Willy inside it, smiling and winking at the viewer.

Mae ni mae ni motto mae ni zenryoku de kakero
Zettai kou da to omotta toki ga unmei sa

Gray is fighting Nullpudding, now having spikes cover his body. As Nullpudding swings with a punch, Gray narrowly avoids it by jumping upward and counters with a blast of his ice magic. As a chunk of ice moves across the screen, we transition to Lucy fighting Flare, who attacks her by making her hair radiate with fire while extending and whipping it towards her. Lucy jumps up to avoid the blow as it hits the ground, making rubble fly, and then summons the Gemini twins, both becoming a clone of her as they prepare to attack together.

Seiippai no koe de motto SOURU motte butsu katte ike yo
Sankousho wo nirande tatte nani mo nannee sa

Now, Jura claps his hands together and uses his magic to make several tendrils of rock shoot towards Jellal, who uses his magic to hover and avoid them.

Then, we see Mira and Jenny posing in swimsuits with the camera panning up from their feet to their heads. While this happens, chibi versions of Chapati and Jason appear on the screen's sides and stare at them lustfully with hearts in their eyes. But then Willy appears from the upper right of the screen glaring in anger at them, while Fuzen pops up from the upper left, gazing mischievously at Willy.

Next, Elfman is fighting Baccus, the two throwing punch after punch at each other, neither giving an inch.

After that, we see a panning shot starting from the upper right while zooming out of Mavis and the other Fairy Tail members as they wave and cheer from their balcony. Then, from their balcony, we see Orga, Yukino, and Rufus watch on while Lector and Frosch cheer.

Next, we see a man wearing knight armor, tan skin, a snub, square-shaped nose, dark and wavy hair sticking up with prominent sideburns that joined into a curved beard.

We change into a view outside the coliseum where Ultear and Meredy stand on top of a statue as transparent up-close shots of the two come into view.

Then, in the infirmary, we see Porlyusica sitting next to Wendy and Carla, the three looking towards the viewer, appearing to be worried.

Finally, the scene fades back into the arena to five fists raised high in the air, all belonging to Fairy Tail Team A. The camera pans down to Natsu wearing a determined scowl and then zooms out, showing the rest of Team Fairy Tail A standing in the middle of the arena as the song ends.

Chapter 195

The Preliminary Round

WILLY'S POV

I now stood right in the middle of the Domus Flau arena sporting my new attire and wearing a confident grin. I could see that everyone had their eyes on me, which was embarrassing, but I was full of energy, ready to fight.

I heard Chapati's voice filled with surprise. "Oh my! That miraculous display turned out to be Willy Falconer of the Fairy Tail guild!"

"An excellent choice for a representative," Yajima spoke. "I'd expect nothing less. Good pick, Maky!"

As I walked over to Natsu's and Gajeel's teams wanting to see them, I could see that the other competitors were staring right at me, along with the other teams participating in the games. From a glance, they were mostly glaring out of scorn, not believing that I was here. However, I paid no attention as I came up to the Fairy Tail teams.

Natsu and his group were the first to approach me.

"Willy! What the heck, dude?!" Natsu exclaimed while pointing a finger. "You didn't tell us that you would be competing in the tournament!"

"Sorry, Natsu. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't say anything," I explained. "If it's all the same to you, I didn't expect to be competing either."

"I take it that the Master asked you to?" asked Erza with a smile.

"You got it," I answered her. "The other night after we found Wendy and Carla, Master asked me to be the representative for the Crocus Fighters Tournament. The request surprised me, but I couldn't refuse. After all, he and Sieri were in on the whole thing."

"That would explain why she wanted to go shopping the other day," said Elfman.

Then, Gajeel and his team came over.

"One thing's for sure, you made one hell of an entrance, Water-boy," grinned Gajeel. "Not to mention, you're sporting some nice duds."

"Thanks. I wasn't sure they suited me, but I'm glad you like them," I told the iron dragon. "I'm quite fancy with them too."

Then, I looked across to Mirajane, who was staring at me, the least bit surprised. She was wearing a beautiful black dress with white trims and red pumps.

"Hey there, Mira," I greeted as I approached her. "You don't seem the least bit surprised."

"I had a feeling it was you the moment that water dragon came out," said Mira. "Although, I didn't expect you to show off to the crowd like that."

"Well, I figured I'd start things off with a bang. Plus, it was Master's idea," I spoke while scratching my cheek. "So, what do you think? Do I look strange at all?"

The white-haired woman smiled. "Not at all. If anything, I think you look rather dashing in that outfit. It suits you," she replied. "I also like that tied bang in your hair."

My cheeks reddened a little as I played with my bang a bit. "Thanks. Let's say I had some - inspiration for that," I said.

"Hey, you guys. How about you save the flirting till later?" teased Laxus. "Besides, we're out in public, so you should probably focus."

I immediately felt my face get hot for a brief moment before refocusing. Then, I happened to see Sabertooth's team, and as soon as my eyes locked with Orga's, they narrowed in a slight glare while he seemed to smile mockingly. He then came over.

"Well, what do you know. Guess you decided to show up after all," the male spoke. "And here I thought you'd be too scared or ashamed to come."

"And here I thought you would have heeded my advice from the other day," I countered. "But as usual, you just love to talk and stir up trouble."

"What can I say? I love to show off," Orga spoke coolly. "And you would know all about stirring up trouble, don't you? Your middle name is trouble along with Criminal."

I heard Natsu and Elfman growl in anger, but I raised a hand while looking back at them, shaking my head.

"You and I can go back forth throwing insults all day," I told him firmly as I looked back. "However, actions speak louder than words at the end of the day, and I have as much a right to compete as you do. And, once I come out on top of this tournament, I'll show you, your guild, and everyone else what I got by beating you and taking your championship!"

"Whatever you say," chuckled Orga. "Try not to lose in preliminaries. Your guild's reputation's already in the crapper, so you don't want to worsen it. After all, there's nothing worse than being humiliated. Especially in front of millions of people. Then again, there's nothing more entertaining than to see a confident person crash and burn."

I clenched my fists at their sides, wanting nothing more than to shut him up, but I told myself to keep calm and silent, believing I would get my chance soon enough.

At that moment, I heard Mato. "All right, folks! Can we have all the competitors for the prelims gather around, please?"

Realizing that I had to go, I gave one last wave to the others. "Well, I better get going," I said. "Wish me luck."

"Go get 'em, Willy!" Gray called out. "You got this, bro!"

"Make sure you do your best!" called Erza. "Win this one for Fairy Tail!"

I answered with a nod as I joined the other competitors.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting, folks, but the preliminary round will now start!" called out Mato. "Now, open the field!"

At the pumpkin figure's command, numerous buildings began springing up one after the other, along with pavement replacing the arena's dirt. In seconds, I stood in the middle of a city, right in the middle of the stadium.

"Wh-What the heck?" I exclaimed as I looked around. "Where did this city come from, or how did this city appear?!"

I also realized that I was now all by myself as I looked around. The competitors, Mato, and even the teams had all mysteriously disappeared.

"What the-! Where'd everyone go? Did they disappear or something?"

I then heard Mato's echoing throughout the city. "Remember, competitors, you only have one hour to knock out your enemy and score points, and the top eight with the highest scores will move on to the next round! So let the preliminary round of the Crocus Fighters Tournament begin!"

At that moment, there was the sound of a gong, signaling the start of the prelims.

"Well, it looks like I better get cracking. I've only got an hour to score points, so time for me to find some wizards."

I quickly took a running start and jumped up high, hopping on different building ledges until I stood on top of it, getting a good view of the city from where I stood.

"I suppose it's a good thing we got spread out like this," I thought. "For a second, I was worried we'd get thrown straight into battle, and then things would get completely crazy." I then leaped off of the building and landed back on the ground. "I better use my Aqua Sense to see if I can find any wizards."

I jumped down to the ground about to start and was about to do so. But then, I heard rapid footsteps heading straight towards my location. Before I knew it, I found myself surrounded by a couple of dozen wizards.

"Looks like we finally found you, Willy Falconer!" said a male wizard. "Sorry, but you gotta go."

"We can't have someone like you in this tournament," said another male. "You don't belong here, and it's not just because you're with Fairy Tail."

"Is that so?" I spoke as I glanced around. "And you sure you guys want to do this?"

"Well, duh. If you haven't noticed, we've got you surrounded and outnumbered," said a female mage. "And the fact that Fairy Tail's weak, considering they've been competing in the last few games and haven't even made it past the prelims once, it's safe to assume you're as weak as they are. So you don't stand a chance."

I then cracked my knuckles and punched them together as I took a stance. "That seems a sound strategy," I said. "But unfortunately, I don't think it will work."

"Says you! When we get through with you, you're going to wish you'd stayed home, you criminal!" growled the first male. "The Crocus Fighters Tournament has no place for lowly weaklings and scum like you, so take your beating and get the hell out!"

The male and a few other wizards charged at me, raising their weapons or preparing to fire magic blasts. But just when they were close enough, I spun around a couple of times, used the momentum to drop into a handstand, cloaked my legs with water, and unleashed a flurry of whirlwind kicks as I spun. My kicks either deflected any magic attacks or connected with a couple of wizards, sending them flying in all directions.

As I flipped back on my feet, I saw that the mob surrounding me had disbelief filling their faces as I smirked with confidence popping my knuckles.

"Normally, I'd ask you guys to kindly leave me be and give you the chance to run," I said. "But since there's a preliminary round going on, and I need points, I've got no choice but to knock you guys out. So, please, don't hold it against me."

I shot forward going on the attack and clocked several guys on the chin sending them flying and knocking them out. Then, as the other wizards and mages charged at me, I clenched my fists and straightened them out as water covered them and turned into a pair of swords.

"WATER DRAGON: DOUBLE BLADE!"

While dashing forward, I sliced and slashed at my enemies at an incredible speed, stopping just a few feet away as they all screamed in agony and pain while collapsing to the ground, out of the fight.

I looked up in time to see some mages from above unleashing various attacks at me, from weapon projectiles to magic blasts. I quickly jumped back into a handstand and flipped a couple of times, managing to dodge them all while landing in a crouch. Then, I jumped into the air close enough to the rooftops and made torrents of water erupt from my hands.

"WATER DRAGON: WING ATTACK!"

While throwing my arms, I hurled the streams of water, blowing away every opponent that was on top of the rooftops and sending them falling to the ground.

Then, I saw a few other wizards firing more magic attacks at me from the corner of my eye. I quickly turned in their direction and took a deep breath chuffing my cheeks.

"WATER DRAGON: ROAR!"

I unleashed a powerful blast from my mouth with a mighty yell, canceling the incoming attacks and blasting their castors away.

As I landed back on the ground, bodies of wizards lay everywhere, most of them unconscious, while others moaned and groaned as they lay sprawled in agony. I couldn't help but feel surprised with myself as I looked at my right hand.

"Wow. I didn't expect to take these guys out so easily," I murmured. "I didn't even get a chance to bust out the new spells I learned. But then again, it would be better to keep things under wraps until later, so I better stick to my usual spells. Until then, I better go find some more targets."

I then took off running, beginning my search. But as I ran down the street, I was suddenly cut off by another group of wizards.

"Hey, look! There's Willy Falconer!"

"Get him! Don't let him escape!"

As they charged straight toward me, I punched my fists, cloaking them in water, and raised them high.

"WATER DRAGON: GEYSER WALL!"

I slammed my hands into the ground and made an enormous building-sized geyser erupt, blocking my attackers' path. Next, I hopped from side to side on the buildings while straightening my hand out while cloaking it with water. Then, I jumped down, and before my targets could react, I swung my straightened hand.

"WATER DRAGON: BLADE!"

I struck five people with a swift swipe, knocking them down. The other wizards charged, swinging their weapons, and attacked with spells, but I was quick to counter them with my other attacks.

"TALON!"

"IRON FIST!"

"GUSHING ELBOW!"

As I knocked down one wizard after the other, I sensed someone charging at me from behind me. I quickly ducked in time for a fist shot past my head and swiftly countered with a hard elbow and two rapid kicks. Next, two more came running at me from my left and right, and I jumped up, performing a perfect split, and gave them both powerful kicks to their chins. As I looked up, I could see that the other wizards were starting to warily back away while I remained in a stance, waiting for anyone to make a move.

Then, my body began to glow in a strange aura. However, unlike my usual blue color, what was shrouding me was colored red, and it seemed to be emitting from my body like smoke as it went up into the air.

I then heard Mato.

"Heya, competitors, there's only thirty minutes left! Some of you may have noticed that you are emitting a red aura. It's no cause for concern. It's a bit of an indicator showing that you've accumulated quite a few points, but that also makes you a big target!"

"Wait, a target?!" I repeated with surprise.

"From now until the end of the game, if you can defeat the contests that have the red glow, you'll gain all of their points!" went on Mato. "The auras should make it easier to spot, so make sure you take advantage!"

"Oh, great. As if I didn't have enough of a bull's eye on my back," I huffed. "Now, they made me an even bigger one."

"You hear that?!" exclaimed a wizard. "Looks like today's gonna be our lucky day!"

"Since he's got that glow, if we beat Willy, then we can steal all of his points!" said another.

Then a female wizard scowled. "Hey! Who said that you get to fight him! If anyone's going to beat him, it'll be me!"

As they all charged at me at once, I couldn't help but roll my eyes as I held out my hands and conjured a pair of giant water stars.

"WATER DRAGON: DOUBLE STAR!"

I took careful aim and threw them at the same time. After that, the wizards all stopped seeing the stars coming toward them and quickly got ready to defend. However, both the giant stars shot past, narrowly avoiding them. When the wizards noticed this, some of them began to laugh.

"Ha! What kind of attack was that?!"

"Yeah! How lame! You completely missed!"

"Where'd you learn how to aim?!"

But I confidently smiled as I chuckled. "Instead of laughing at my "poor aim," you might want to look at the bigger picture," I said. "And you can start by looking up."

Right on cue, the stars came back, zipping and cutting right into the sides of the buildings like a butter knife. Immediately, the buildings began to slide as they collapsed right on top of the competitors with a thunderous and ground-shaking crash. Dust and debris blew everywhere as I shielded my eyes.

When the smoke cleared, amongst the piles of the sliced-off buildings, I could see all of the wizards lying face down, sprawled out, unconscious on their backs.

"That may have been a bit over the top, but I suppose that works," I spoke in my thoughts. I then looked at my body, which was still radiating in red. "I could wait and let the other competitors come to me and keep getting points. After all, this aura they slapped on me is practically a beacon. But, on the other hand, I should conserve my magic and strength until the time runs out. I don't want to show off all of my cards just yet."

I turned around and walked away from the scene while thinking about my next move. I had just peeked out from around the corner, scanning to see that no one was around. Then, I hopped onto a ledge of a building that was high enough to see but low enough so I wouldn't stand out. In the distance, I could see that a few other red auras were wafting in the air.

"Looks like I ain't the only one who's accumulated some points. So those guys must be the other contestants." I then counted the number of auras. "One, two, three, four, five, six."

At that moment, I did a double-take.

"Hold on a second. Six? That can't be right. Including me, there should be a total of seven at most. There's a possibility that the eighth hasn't gotten a chance to get enough points, but even if they hadn't, they should be getting that aura anyway. So where are they?"

Then, an unsettling feeling crept into my stomach, a feeling that something wasn't right. I jumped about two ledges over to another building and then hopped back down to the ground. No sooner than I did, instinct took over my mind warning me to duck.

A violet-colored blast of power narrowly missed my head no sooner than I did, blasting a hole into another building with a mighty boom. Then, as I whipped my head around, I heard a voice.

"Nice dodge. I would have been very disappointed if you took that attack."

A figure then stepped out from the shadows into the light. It appeared to be a male who wore leather boots, pants, a jacket with an undershirt, and a strange clown-like mask covering his face.

At first, I was about to ask who it was, but the figure suddenly shot forward and attacked with a roundhouse kick. I quickly bent backward, dodging the attack feeling the wind from it blow past my face as I flipped back.

The stranger trusted his hand forward, unleashing another blast, but I was quick to jump and avoid it. Then, as the attack blasted another building behind me, I swung downwards with a kick going for the head, only for the man to cross his arms to block and push me away.

As I skidded back, managing to collect myself, I pounced straight toward the masked man while he did the same. The two of us then clashed with a flurry of punches, parrying and swinging rapidly for a few seconds before forcing each other back.

"Well, guess that means I found number eight," I huffed. "So, mind telling me who you are, or are you just another wizard with a grudge against me?"

"Who I am should be of no concern to you," the stranger spoke. "But I know who you are. I've been looking forward to seeing you for a long time now, Willy Falconer."

"Is that so? And what reason would that be?" I asked suspiciously.

"Come now. Surely you can understand what I mean since we are in the middle of a competition," the masked clown man chuckled. "But if you still don't understand, how about I be more direct?"

He suddenly brought his hands together and unleashed another powerful blast from his hands. I quickly sidestepped out of the way while shooting toward him and swinging with a kick. The male managed to bend back, avoiding it while performing a handstand, and spun quickly around and kicked me square in my chest.

The force of the kick was enough to send me flying towards a building, but while twisting my body, I managed to summon my water wings and, using them as parachutes, slowed myself down and skidded myself to a halt.

"Look, buddy! I don't know your deal, but are you sure you should be wasting your time with me?" I called out. "We'll both probably make it in the top eight, and there's still plenty of time to get points!"

"True, but there's nothing in the rules that say we can target those of the top eight," the masked stranger spoke. "Not only that, but I'd say that I've got a pretty good reason to be fighting you as do you with me."

He pulled up his shirt, revealing his abdominal region and a guild mark on the left side. It was black in the shape of an R and had a sword in its circle.

Upon seeing the mark, I quickly recognized it as I glared. "That mark! You're with Raven Tail!" I growled.

"That's right," the masked stranger said while putting his shirt down. "And if I recall correctly, two of your guildmates were greeted by one of my associates." He hummed, pretending to ponder. "Now, let me see, what were their names again? Oh, yes, Wendy and Carla, am I right?"

Immediately, my pulse quickened in anger a little as I clenched my fists.

"Yes, I remember those two. My guildmates and I were just talking about how much of an impression Obra left on them," the male continued to taunt. "I would have loved to have met the little darlings myself, but sadly it appears they couldn't make it. The poor little dears, I bet they must be feeling devastated for not being here, especially poor, unfortunate little Wendy. Oh, well, if you can't take the heat, then stay out of the kitchen."

The rage inside me quickly swelled as I shot toward the wizard and gave him a water-covered punch.

"WATER DRAGON: IRON FIST!"

However, as I swung, the man ducked out of the way and, while closing the distance, gave me a swift punch right to the gut, making me gasp from the blow knocking out some wind. A wave of weakness struck me as I felt my strength leave my body, focusing on where his hand was.

"W-WATER DRAGON: A-AQUA JET!"

Reacting quickly and panicking a bit, I promptly shot water from the bottoms of my feet, shooting myself into the air and gaining some distance. As I landed back on the ground, catching my breath while glaring, Mr. Clown Mask chuckled as he faced me.

"My, my. That's quite a temper you have," the masked man spoke to me. "You should know that those who lose their tempers will lose the fight."

"Wh-What the hell was that just now?!" I thought. "For a second, it seemed like something was getting drained from me!" I clenched and unclenched my hand while focusing my magic, causing my hand to radiate in blue. "My strength and magic seem intact, but something about that punch seemed way off! Not only that, but I let my anger get the better of me. I need to calm down and not let him get to me or touch me. Otherwise, the next time he gets a blow in, I'll get knocked out!"

"Not too shabby. As I thought, you're different than the others," the stranger spoke with ominous delight. "Most of the others I've faced didn't even last after that. That's good. That means you can entertain me some more. How's about we have some more fun?"

I kept my guard up while the mysterious clown mask did the same. A good few seconds passed, the tension so heavy you could hear a water droplet hit the ground. But before any of us could make a move, there was a ding-ding-ding sound as Mato's voice rang out.

"Time's up, people!"

Immediately, the tension lifted as I instinctively looked around. At the same time, the red aura dissipated from both my and the masked clown's bodies, and the town quickly disappeared, returning all of us to the arena.

"The preliminary round for the Crocus Fighters Tournament is now over!" continued Mato. "But we'll reveal the eight participants and the first matches for the tournament after the versus battles! So, don't go anywhere, folks! Will the competitors please clear the arena to make room for those competing in the Grand Magic Games?"

"Oh, drat. It seems that our time has been cut short. Talk about a letdown," the masked clown complained as he looked across at me. "No matter. I'm sure we'll meet again, Willy Falconer. And when we do, I hope you'll be able to entertain me some more."

As the other contestants started to leave, I could only stare at the guy as I watched him walk away, chuckling. I was fuming about what he said about Wendy but also a bit tense, sensing something ominous and off-putting about him.

If you liked what you read, don't be afraid to let me know!

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Until then, and as always, thank you for reading!

Dragomaster, signing off!