Here is the twelfth chapter of this story released when I wanted it to be in keeping with my self-imposed upload requirements for this series. At long last the first part of the Grand Magic Games is upon the Black Bulls as they must now enter the Sky Labyrinth and come in the top 8 to qualify for the main games. It's certainly a challenge and one that the Black Bulls will now rise to. That is all the administrative stuff I have for you as there are no questions to answer or guest reviews that require a response so I will end this here. Do keep the reviews coming as I enjoy hearing from those who enjoy my work. Anyway, that is it for pre-chapter note so it is time to end it so that y'all can sit back and enjoy the twelfth chapter in Black Bull Banishment.
Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great animes.
Chapter 12: Qualifying for the Games
"Alright let's go!" Asta yelled as he leapt onto the stairs and began to run up them the moment the preliminary round began.
"Damn it Dorksta don't you have a plan?" Noelle asked as she leapt up after him to make sure he didn't do anything stupid. "We need one if we're going to get through that thing."
"Yeah, charge in and find the way to the finish line." Asta said. "And beat the others on the way so that we qualify for the games."
"That's…" Noelle begin.
"Ha that's Asta for you, nice and simple." Luck said having leapt up with Magna right after her while Finral brought up the rear. "Good plan."
"We need to make sure we know where we're going." Noelle pointed out. "And get the lay of the land because that thing is unlike anything we've seen here."
"Simple, we use Luck's mana sense to find the path to that stadium thing." Asta said. "And anyone who gets in our way we knock aside because we can use magic, well I can't but you can, in there."
"The little guy's right." Manga said. "It's pretty straightforward really. No one is as good as Luck at mana sense so he can find the way and we just follow him and dispatch any who try to stop us"
"It's what I'd expect with him and Luck on the team." Finral said.
"I still think that it won't be that simple." Noelle said with a sigh, but it was still a good plan to come up with on the fly and did play to their strengths. "Alright fine but we need to be quick, speed is key here."
The others nodded as they ran, Asta, Luck and Magna grinning while Noelle thought and Finral just hoped he didn't have to fight too much as they reached the Sky Labyrinth and entered it. The moment they did they stopped to blink at what they saw.
"Huh, kinda reminds me of the dungeon we explored." Asta said looking at the layout as they stopped on the platform that their stairs led to. "Only, you know, in the sky and not stone but metal and more complex."
Asta wasn't wrong, the sky labyrinth was basically an eclectic collection of staircases, doors, metal sheets, archways, platforms, various gears that seemed to make no sense being there, and much more that formed together to make some sort of maze in the air. To add to it the whole thing the maze was open to the air so they could see the starry sky and the buildings below them in places which meant that they could fall from the labyrinth if they weren't careful.
If they did, they would be disqualified, not that they were aware of that at the moment, and as all five had to cross the finish line to advance to the Grand Magic Games, providing they were top 8, they couldn't afford for that to happen. Thankfully with Finral around that wouldn't be a problem as he may not be able to portal them to the finish line, but he could save them if they fell. This was why having Finral on their team was critical for events, his support magic was potentially a literal life savor if used correctly and that was just one of the functions Finral served.
"It looks like there's also Gravity Magic at play here just as there was in that dungeon." Noelle said as the they saw a random Guild in the distance running upside down on some stairs. "So at least we won't fall if we end up like that."
"Somehow I don't think that that will last." Finral said with a sigh. "You know the whole dying thing was no joke, so I don't trust the organizers not to have some tricks up their sleeves."
"True so let's get through this and fast." Noelle said as she looked over the boys realizing that she was definitely the voice of reason and logic with this team. "We prioritize speed above all else to get to the goal, no fighting unless it is absolutely unavoidable."
"Aww but there are some super strong people here." Luck said as he felt the mana around him, well Ethernano but he'd adjusted to it over the last 2 years so that he was still the best around at sensing mana, and he could tell that there were some really powerful people in the labyrinth that he was itching to fight. "Would be fun to take them on."
"Of course you'd say that you battle mad freak, but we should listen to the princess." Magna said. "Only 8 get through so speed will be key in this event."
"Fine but if they get in our way we take them down." Luck said as he began to sense the Ethernano to figure out where to go. "Because I want to have a fight in this thing."
"Obviously." Noelle said feeling like she was repeating herself but if it got her point across then she'd do just that. "Now where are we heading Luck?"
"Over there." Luck said as he got his bearing and pointed to an area of the labyrinth that was covered up and deeper in it. "That's where we have to go."
"Alright then not a moment to lose." Asta said as he charged off in that direction and drew his large Demon-Slayer sword from his grimoire as he ran. "I got point."
"That's actually a good spot for him." Noelle said as they set off behind Asta. "Luck, be right behind Asta for directions and to cover him if need be. Finral and I will be in the middle to support while Magna takes the back to protect the rear."
"Right." The others said as they formed up and began to run through the labyrinth as fast as possible.
There wasn't any need to speak other than Luck's directions and he did just that as he steered them fast through the place as they ran up and down stairs, sometimes going upside down or running sideways which was a strange experience, through doors and strange hallways, and so on as they plowed through the place. They did have to save Asta once with Finral's Fallen Angel Wingbeat as he'd plowed through a door without pausing only to run a few feet down a path that had an abrupt right turn that he missed entirely and ran right off the edge with a yell.
Thankfully Finral was on alert and sent out the Spatial Magic spell to catch Asta and bring him back to them. Asta was getting better at using his large Demon-Slayer Sword to fly by controlling the Anti-Magic in it, he'd been really training hard on that front, but he wasn't fully there just yet and he'd been so surprised by the fall that he'd not even tried to use the sword that was in his hand at that time. All he'd done was yell as he fell before Finral acted and caught him with his spell.
That had been a close one and made Asta slow down slightly, as well as putting his sword away, as they got back to running and making their way to where Luck was directing them. They'd seen a few other teams around but ignored them as they made their way through the labyrinth as they weren't relevant or a threat to them. Most were confused and lost as they tried to map it and not in their way, so they weren't a concern for the Black Bulls. Unfortunately, that wouldn't last as they neared the location that Luck had identified as the core of the labyrinth that would lead them to the exit and advancement.
"Well, what do we have here boys?" A voice asked as the Black Bulls ran onto a large platform that had four paths leading onto it right at the same time as another team and they were both heading for the same exit path that. "Looks like it's time to get wild!"
"Yeah!" The others cheered and quickly the Black Bulls stopped and spread out as they looked at their sudden opponents and prepared for the coming fight.
The man who'd spoken was a fare skinned man of average height with blond hair that had been gelled up in two thick spikes with two smaller clumps at the back making a strange X-like shape out of it, thick eyebrows, and sideburns. He wore a leather jacket that came to his mid forearms with part of a red tattoo visible on the left one. He completed the look with dark purple pants and a chain that gave off a street punk vibe though not as strong as Magna's thanks to his hair and general vibe.
By the way he held and positioned himself he was clearly the leader of the group as the four men with him spread out behind him to prepare for the fight. That gave the Black Bulls a moment to study their sudden opponents.
Two were large men, one shirtless and with more muscles than Yami sporting white hair tied back in a pony tail, earmuffs, white fingerless gloves that extended over his forearms and red pants with pouches on his belt. The other wore a long-sleeved shirt with a yellow X on it that included a strange hood thing and mask over his face, pink pants, and larger white pouches than his teammate's ones.
The last two were more average with one in a tank top and dark brown pants with wrappings on his forearms and a blue bandana while the other wore blue pants and a strange dog head poncho thing. They were scrawnier but as with their own world magic was important and all five had a good amount of it so they were definitely a threat.
While the Black Bulls didn't recall their names they did know that war cry and realized which Guild they belonged to even without seeing a visible emblem on them. Based off that cry they were members of Quatro Cerberus, well that and the spoked dog collars that two wore helped identify them. They were one of the higher ranked Guilds so on the shortlist of who might qualify and thus this was a fight that they couldn't avoid and couldn't lose.
"Quatro Cerberus." Asta said with a grin as his grimoire floated up next to him and he drew the Demon-Dweller Sword from it this time as it's lesser weight and greater maneuverability would be more useful on a platform like this. "This will be fun and Quick."
"Who do you think you are to mess with our wildness?" The leader, who was called Rocker, asked as he looked at them and noticed the marks on their robes and on the short, jacked, gray haired boy's chest. "Oh, the Black Bulls. This will be easy boys, they're too new and middle tier to be a threat to us."
"Yeah let's get wild." The others roared as one.
"Let's make this quick, it's time to really show this kingdom what we can do." Noelle said as her grimoire floated up and flipped to a page. "Water Creation Magic: Valkyrie Armor."
"Lighting Creation Magic: Holy Lighting Boots." Luck said a split second later forming them as his own grimoire flipped to the right page to form his spell on him and he licked his lips a cheery smile on his face as Noelle's water armor formed on her as well. "This will be fun."
"Get them!" Rocker roared as he used his magic to turn his legs to a vortex and he shot right at Finral who he deemed a support magic user, so he needed to be taken out quickly to get the upper hand right at the start. "I got this wannabe pretty boy."
"I'm no wannabe." Finral said as he raised his hand his own grimoire flipping open. "The ladies love me though I only have eyes for Lady Finnis. Spatial Magic: Fallen Angel Gate."
Before Rocker could even process what was happening portal appeared between him and Finral. Usually, his magic was good for such fighting but against someone defensively minded like Finral who used the magic he used Rocker stood no chance. Speed was good but when you were too fast to evade a spell that would transport you to another location it didn't help at all.
It showed in this case as one moment Rocker was charging at his target, the next was flying into a portal and through it to a random point in the labyrinth as far away from them within the labyrinth as Finral could send him. The last thing Rocker saw before he was knocked out was a sheer wall made of concrete that served as a platform as well as he crashed face first into and through it before tumbling away and down to fall out of the labyrinth and be caught in the safety feature with a final 'wild.'
"Rocker!" The tank top wearing member, Nobarly, said his eyes wide at their leader going out so quickly and getting distracted for a second too long. "What…"
He didn't get to finish before Luck sped forward and slammed into him with his lighting armor on and grabbed Nobarly's face in a lightning encased hand. There was a brief jolt of electricity and the man let out a howl of pain as he was fried by Luck's Lightning Magic before he fell to the ground in a smoking, unconscious, heap as Luck let go of him his body.
"Aw, you were no fun to fight." Luck complained.
"Who are these people?" Warcry yelled tears flowing from his eyes as the grey haired kid charged him with what looked like a rusty old sword. "They…"
He too didn't get to finish his statement either as Asta reached him and with a slash of his sword cut through the Tear Magic and nullified it before shoulder charging the man backwards as he'd focused the sword sweep on the man's magic not his body. Asta followed it up with a second sweep of his sword that slammed into Warcry's upper left arm with a thud that blasted him to the side and off the platform and into the open area of the labyrinth until he was stopped by a set of metal gears that were just randomly on a large block. The man stuck there for a moment before tumbling forward and away.
"Why you little bastards!" Yeager roared as he slapped his hands forward and a large, green Venus Fly Trap burst from the platform, shattering the floor, and open before it closed around Magna who was his opponent thus trapping the Fire Mage in it. "There that will hold one of you, now for the…"
Yeager was getting ready to send vines out and ensnare the kid who had blasted Warcry away when suddenly there was the smell of burning plant and his Venus Fly Trap was burnt away to show him the street punk kid grinning as he held a flaming bat in one hand and a fireball in the other, his strange book that they all had open, glowing, and floating to his side. He was a little damp from the juices of the fly trap but that was it.
"Annoying but your Plant Magic's got nothing on our guildmate Mimosa's Plant Magic." Magna said as he tossed the ball up and hit it while speaking with a ding as if both were made of metal which really confused Yeager. "And against a Flame Mage it's next to useless. My fireball on the other hand, well…"
Magna didn't even bother finishing as the fireball slammed into a shocked Yeager's massive chest with an explosion that blasted him backwards and off the platform and through several sets of stairs that were behind where the Quatro Cerberus guys had been standing, as well as crashing through another random Guild's team, before he fell away. Magna may not be the strongest of the Black Bulls, but he had used the most explosive spells and was grinning at the home run he'd just hit.
That left Noelle who was the only person still fighting as her opponent, who she'd learn later was called Semmes, and he'd been a bit trickier for her than the others. It wasn't that he was better than Noelle, she could tell from the moment he held out his arms and the blue face shield thing flipped over his strange face that had to be paint or something, that his magic levels were below hers, but rather that his magic allowed him to spin like a spinning top with his arms extended and at a high rate of speed which made him a better matchup against Noelle than his buddies had been against her Squad mates.
Spinning Magic as it was called was Semmes's chosen specialty and when he was in Wild Spin, the spell he was using against the sole female in the battle, he was next to impossible to stop. Noelle realized that she couldn't directly stop him as she leapt up and used her armor to fly around as he spun under her, and she led him away from the others to get a better shot on him.
She was sure that a direct stab with her water lance wouldn't work nor would Sea Dragon's roar as there wasn't the space for it to be effective against that spin and it would be too destructive, so she needed an alternative plan. Thankfully her first battle in her armor gave her the idea.
Noelle flew around as she timed her moment just right and then, as soon as she saw it, she got over her opponent and stabbed down so that her water lance, which was spinning itself as slammed down on the top of the spinning man's head. It was just like she'd done with that compass back when she'd first learned Valkyrie Armor.
However, rather than fight it as she did with that compass however, Noelle used the force of the blow to stop her opponent where he was, while still spinning, as she forced his feet into the ground. Then, as she was connected to her opponent she was in full control of the mana thanks to the nature of her armor, she went with the spin to increase its speed and literally drilled her opponent into the platform and through it.
Semmes didn't have time to react before he was pushed through the platform with a crash and was still spinning as he crashed through two Guild teams from other Guilds that had the misfortune of being right below the confrontation at that very moment, sending them flying as he hit them, and continued down and out of the labyrinth. It had only taken Noelle a moment longer than the others to win and they'd taken out one of the few Guilds Nero had identified as a threat to them.
"Aww man these guys weren't that strong at all." Luck said as Noelle dispatched the last one with ease. "I hope we face some actually strong people in the games. Hopefully, the ones who make it to the games alongside us are strong."
"Who are we?" Asta asked with a grin as he looked at the only Quatro Cerberus member who hadn't been blasted, drilled, or warped away though was still out cold so couldn't answer Asta, not that it stopped him. "We're the Black Bulls and we're going to be…"
Before Asta could finish talking there was a sudden loud sound that distracted them as they didn't know what it was or what it meant. They learned exactly what it meant a second later when there was a sudden groaning sound and the whole labyrinth began to shift and move on its z-axis.
"What the hell is going on!" Asta yelled as the labyrinth rotated around and suddenly, they began to slip on the platform that they were standing on. "This wasn't told to us."
"No doubt this is part of the whole challenge that helps thin out the numbers." Finral said as the platform moved so that they couldn't stand on it anymore and they fell from it, well four of them did. "And there goes the Gravity Magic just as I expected might happen during the event."
"Water Creation Magic: Sea Dragon's Cradle." Noelle yelled as her grimoire flipped to the right page while she flew back and down to get into space and send the spell at her teammates as she was the only one unaffected thanks to the flight ability of her Valkyrie Armor.
"This is fun." Luck said with a laugh as he kept his own armor on and zipped to a clear space where he grabbed a ledge for support.
"Not for me." Magna screamed but as he fell Noelle's Sea Dragon Cradle caught him and Asta in it, the latter keeping his sword away from the water to avoid canceling out Noelle's spell.
Noelle was in the best position to act as she wasn't on a platform thanks to her armor but unfortunately, she'd not been able to grab Finral before he fell away but she trusted him to be ok. He was as he had Fallen Angel Wingbeat and used it on himself to teleport himself into Noelle's Sea Dragon's Cradle where he landed on Magna much to the latter's annoyance. It had worked though and that was key.
"Damn Noelle you've gotten so much stronger, this is really impressive." Asta called out to her.
"I know Dorksta." Noelle said as she turned keeping the ball of water connected to her and her expression neutral, but she couldn't help but blush while her inner self cheered at Asta's praise of her skills as his praise always meant the most to her for some reason. "Now let's go, this will be faster and avoid that issue again if it comes up. Luck can you lead, find the place, and clear anything in our path on the way."
"Yup, and I'll have fun doing it." Luck said with a laugh as he took off and they resumed their journey.
This time they didn't even bother with the stairs, paths, or platforms, they just went as the crow flew to where they needed with Luck leading them by zipping off various things and blasting through obstacles be they part of the labyrinth or other teams that got in their way as they charged on. Nothing would get in their way now and they intended on keeping it that way as they sped through the labyrinth.
It was certainly a sight to see to those who saw them as the laughing, blond boy with a manic smile on his face as he crackled with lightning boots and gloves on him as led an austere girl in water armor who was dragging along a ball of water behind her with her remaining teammates. Those who also weren't blasted out of their way also caught a glimpse of their emblems as the ones in the ball of water could be seen clearly and realized that the Black Bull Guild was a lot better than they'd presumed to be based of their new status.
Naturally, the Black Bulls didn't notice this as they plowed on and within only a few minutes, and just before the next change in the labyrinth, did they reach the covered area they were aiming for. That was a strange place as it was a proper small town with large buildings, rolling hills, grass, a river cutting through it and a painted-on sky.
Of course there was a path in the area that led to where they needed to go and which was currently the ground while the impressive display was the ceiling, but they ignored it. They were aiming for the finish line now, so they continued to use Noelle's magic to fly through the air with Luck running along the path ahead of her as they neared their goal.
"We're almost there, just a little more." Luck said happily as they moved into a new section that was normal and had a single long path with an ocean around them for some reason. "Wow this looks fun."
"Leave it." Noelle said as she flew over the path though she was impressed by the ocean feature as it showed some considerable magic to add it to this structure. "How much farther."
"Just up there." Luck said as he pointed to where he was going, and Noelle looked up to see that the path went on in a zigzag for a bit before it became stepping tones that led up to a random door in the wall with the word 'GOAL' above it. "Come one we're almost there."
Noelle nodded and pushed past her limits to speed up as they closed the gap on the finish line, she ignored the steps while Luck zipped up them, and finally reached the top platform there. Only then did she let her armor and water ball drop as she landed on the platform with a pant and knelt down from all the effort that she'd put in to get them here. Luck was just smiling and laughing as his lightning melted off him while Manga and Finral landed on their feet when the ball burst though Asta crashed down on his ass on the wet landing.
Still, it was worth it as the sign above the door light up and the man standing before it, the actual Mato in his striped shirt, white gloves, pants and green cloak with matching witches had on the pumpkin thing he wore on his head, applauded them as they stood before the door. It was clear that they'd managed it and the mascot of the games was congratulating them for achieving it.
"Luck Voltia." Mato said as Asta and Noelle got up and he addressed them each in turn. "Noelle Silva, Magna Swing, Finral Roulacase, and Asta, er just Asta, congratulations! Team Black Bull has cleared the preliminary and have thus qualified for the Grand Magic Games!"
"Alright we did it!" Asta yelled pumping his fist as Luck laughed. "Noelle really saved the day for us."
"That's what a real men do." Magna roared as Noelle failed to fight back a blush at Asta's praise of her skills.
"I'm a woman but I knew we'd manage it." Noelle said regaining her usual composure before flicking one of her pigtails and just about stopping saying she was royalty because here she actually wasn't and as they were in the Capital of the kingdom it might be really bad to say that. "I did make sure of it."
"Real men and a woman." Magna said.
"Idiot." Noelle said.
"I'm just glad we made it." Finral said with a sigh of relief. "And the ladies will love me more now that they can see me in the games."
"I've got to ask." Asta said grinning at the pumpkin headed man before him. "Did we win?"
"Nope but you did come third which is impressive, especially for such a new Guild as yourselves." Mato said his pumpkin helmet thing always smiling. "So please proceed through this door and go get some rest and review the schedule as the Grand Magic Games will start in several hours' time."
"Well third is still not last so let's go." Asta said as the others nodded, and Mato stepped to the side to let them through as he looked out over the ocean and saw that just entering the area was the next team to reach the finish line. "Next up, victory in the games."
Luck, Magna, and Finral all cheered with that as Noelle just nodded and they made their way through the door to claim their place in the Grand Magic Games, Noelle the last to cross the threshold, and get some rest for the games. It would be a big day as the games got underway and the Black Bulls were ready to finally make their mark on Fiore.
Hopefully Fairy Tail either had already qualified or would make it as one of the remaining teams so that they could really have some fun and get to know the Guild that the Wizard King had been a part of. Time would tell on that front as the Black Bulls took their place as one of the 8 teams in the Grand Magic Games.
"…more like 8th place." Mato said in response to Lucy's question as to if they'd come in first in the preliminary. "You just barely qualified for the Grand Magic Games."
That took all of Team Fairy Tail by surprise as Lucy, Erza, Natsu, Gray, and Elfman, the last one being their reserve who'd stepped in as Wendy had gone missing with Carla at the last moment and they were worried about her but had to trust the rest of the Guild to find her and Carla and make sure that they were safe, as they stared in disbelief at Mato. After all that they'd barely made it into the games, likely due to the time they wasted getting all the maps from the other Guilds they ran into but that had been useful in the end, by coming in last place. They couldn't help but express that.
"8th!" They all said at the same time.
"Yes and now please go through the door and take the last spot in the Grand Magic Games." Mato said gesturing to the door.
Well, it was still a qualifying spot, and they'd have a fresh slate in the actual games, so the team quickly recovered and made their way through the door to claim it. They'd made it and that was what counted, starting in a few hours it would be a whole new competition and one that they intended to ensure that Fairy Tail won.
Mato, also known as King Toma E. Fiore, watched as the second Fairy Tail team to make it into the games went through the door and it closed behind them. The field was set, and he was eager to see who made it but for the moment it was time to end the preliminaries before he got back to the Palace and awaited the games himself.
"Attention everyone!" Mato called out as his image was once again projected all over Crocus to get their attention with his arms wide. "The 8 teams that will compete in this year's Grand Magic Games have been determined. That means that the Sky Labyrinth is over!"
There was a dinging sound that indicated that the preliminary round was officially over but thanks to the magic at play Mato could hear what was going on in the city and already there were questions as to who had made it as the round hadn't been broadcast on Lacrimas for them to watch it like the games would be. Well, they'd have to wait and learn on that front because it was more fun that way.
"You want to know who's participating in the main event?" Mato asked the city in response to their questions. "Well, you just have to wait until the opening ceremony to find out who has made it. Goodnight."
With that Mato signed off as the city complained but he didn't mind, this was way more interesting and he left the labyrinth to retire for the night. It was time for the games to begin and he couldn't wait for all the fun and excitement that they'd bring.
"Your highness, as requested here are the 8 teams who have made it into this years Grand Magic Games." An attended said as she entered the room with a sealed envelope and brought it to the beautiful green haired girl sitting on a chair in the Palace and looking out of the open window at the Sky Labyrinth as it was dismantled, and the losing teams treated for any injuries they may have suffered while participating in it. "The King just wrote it, and it is for your eyes only."
"Thank you." Princess Hisui E. Fiore, the sole child of King Toma E. Fiore and heir to the Fiore Throne, said as she held out her hand to accept the envelope. "That will be all, you are dismissed for the night."
"Thank you your highness." The attendant said with a bow before she left.
Only once the door was closed again did Hisui turn to the letter in her hand. She'd used her position to get this list to confirm what that man from the future had said. So far he'd been right about everything up to this point, his warning when he appeared had been the impetus to start the games and gather the power needed to use the Eclipse Gate, and now the time was almost upon them.
This would simply be the first step in confirming the highly detailed games that would occur this year and end in a dramatic, almost unbelievable, fashion. If it happened like that then she would know that the dragons would come and that they had to be ready for them just as the man from the future had instructed.
With a slight tremble in her hands as she was worried about what the future would hold and how to stop it, Hisui opened the letter and looked over the list of the 8 teams from 7 Guilds that would make up the Grand Magic Games. They were ranked from 1 to 8 in how they finished and instantly she saw a problem.
Her eyes went wide as she read the list over again to confirm that this wasn't the same Guilds as what the future man had told her. Instead of Quatro Cerberus coming in 7th as she'd been told they would, the Black Bull Guild, a Guild that had appeared only 2 years ago pretty much out of nowhere, seriously there had been some looks into them by the Magic Council and their origins were still unknown, and had established themselves as a reliable, small, Guild with a good business product line, had somehow come 3rd in the preliminaries.
This was a change from the future that Hisui had been told about and it scared and worried her at the same time because she didn't dare hope that this meant that the future wouldn't come to pass. She would have to talk to the future man as soon as he learned but for the moment she was stuck as she looked out over the city and wondered what this meant for the coming darkness.
What would the presence of the Black Bulls in the Grand Magic Games mean for the future of the Fiore Kingdom and the world in general? That was the question that began to haunt Hisui as she thought on it and the games that were about to begin.
Ah a little bit of confusion right at the end thanks the Black Bulls messing up Future Rogue's predictions and this is just the first thing that they have messed up, who know what else might be messed up by the Black Bulls being the Grand Magic Games. Of course they don't know this at all, they're just trying to win the games and claim the title of Fiore's best Guild which they are now on track to do so and come in with momentum after coming in 3rd in the prelims. As for who they replaced, the only Guild that I felt that they could have replaced was Quatro Cerberus as that was the only team that I considered to be replaceable of the 8 that made it in canon as they basically only had Bacchus who's role was to make Elfman have his moment, other than that they weren't exactly a major factor, so much so that when the Naval Battle rolled around the announcers literally forgot that one of Quatro Cerberus (well Quatro Puppies by that point) was in it and that guy came last anyway so they were replaceable. There were suggestions about Raven Tail but they are actually important to the games for a few reasons what with Laxus's growth in his battle with his father and how they allow for Fairy Tail to combine their teams in the end which makes a lot more sense so they couldn't be replaced though I do feel like Raven Tail was underutilized in the anime. Anyway, that is all for this chapter, next up is the opening ceremony and time for Team Natsu to see who else they will be up against, same with Team Asta. If you liked this please favorite, follow, leave a review, or let me know in a PM and I will try to answer any questions posed in reviews and PMs as best I can. Until next time.
Stringdog