The fourth day of the Grand Magic Games—Tag Battle.
The first match features Blue Pegasus' Ichiya and the mysterious rabbit against the Quatro Puppies' Bacchus and Rocker.
Rocker, one of the Quatro Puppies, clenched his fists with fighting spirit and said to Bacchus, "Bacchus-san, let's go all out wild-style! If this keeps up, we..."
"Whatever, as long as it makes my soul tremble, anything's fine," Bacchus replied lazily, his attitude indifferent compared to Rocker's seriousness.
Standing opposite them, Ichiya extended a finger toward Bacchus and Rocker, then solemnly addressed the figure in the rabbit costume beside him: "Alright... It's time to show them your strength."
Hearing Ichiya's words, the rabbit, who had been standing still all this time, finally moved, raising its hands to the headpiece of the costume.
"That rabbit!" Ed said with slight surprise, watching the rabbit's action.
"Is it finally revealing its true identity?" Noel murmured.
"Blue Pegasus has kept it hidden for so long, never letting it enter the previous matches. Is this their trump card?"
Even Blue Pegasus' Hibiki mused thoughtfully, "Even we don't know what's inside that rabbit suit. Just who exactly is it...?"
In the arena, Ichiya confidently declared, "Now, behold... that handsome face!"
The rabbit's headpiece was finally removed, but the moment the face hidden beneath was revealed, the entire arena fell into a brief silence.
Everyone in the stands had their eyes reduced to tiny dots, their expressions filled with speechlessness.
Because underneath that ridiculous costume was a cat-like face that bore a 90% resemblance to Ichiya.
"That guy is...!!"
"From Exceed's...!!"
"Nichiya!!" Pantherlily exclaimed in shock, blurting out the name of the face's owner.
"Double Handsome Attack~"
"A dangerous fragrance."
Amidst the collective facepalming of the crowd, Ichiya and Nichiya struck an exaggerated and flamboyant pose.
While the two of them seemed to think they were incredibly cool, everyone else felt an overwhelming sense of discomfort and secondhand embarrassment.
Even their opponents, Bacchus and Rocker, were completely speechless.
"My fated encounter with myself—this must be destiny!"
"Mmhm... It was on a bright and sunny afternoon..."
Nobody wanted to hear your fated encounter story!!!
Everyone present screamed in their hearts at the same time.
It was as if Bacchus had heard the collective thoughts of the audience—or perhaps he was simply too disgusted by Ichiya and Nichiya's performance.
The usually unmotivated Bacchus raised an eyebrow, and before Ichiya and Nichiya could finish telling their story, he struck first, delivering a powerful punch straight to Nichiya's face, sending him flying.
"You... What are you doing?!" Ichiya cried out, tears streaming down his face at the sight.
From the stands, Ren shouted in concern, "Ichiya-san, can that guy even fight?!"
"Of course! He has the same face as me!" Ichiya replied with absolute confidence.
"Which means... he has the same combat strength as me!!"
Meanwhile, Nichiya, who had been sent flying, lay there with his eyes rolled back—knocked out instantly.
"Wasn't he just one-shot the moment he entered the battle?!" Ren screamed, voicing what everyone was thinking.
Ichiya, now looking as if the world had just ended, screamed in despair.
"That's a lie!!!!"
"What the hell is going on?!"
"You have no way out anymore! Just admit defeat wildly!"
With Nichiya down, the match had turned from a 2v2 into a 1v2.
Bacchus and Rocker weren't about to let this opportunity slip by—they attacked simultaneously, each using their signature offensive magic to strike Ichiya, blasting him away.
"Ichiya..." Nichiya called out weakly from where he lay on the ground.
"Nichiya-brother!" Still mid-air from the impact, Ichiya shouted back emotionally, seemingly oblivious to the fact that Rocker and Bacchus were already closing in on him, ready to deliver the finishing blow.
(I dragged you into this battle… never realizing that you were a gentleman who couldn't fight. And yet, even so, you still chose to stand beside us in battle. But why? Why do you have such a handsome face? Why did you fall so easily? Why are you so wounded? I won't let your resolve be in vain! Handsomeness is justice!!)
Ichiya suddenly straightened his body, stabilizing himself as he landed firmly on the ground.
In a deep, dramatic voice, he declared:
"Allow me to present to you… the fragrance of victory."
With a boom, an invisible shockwave burst from beneath his feet, sending dust and sand scattering in all directions.
His entire body swelled up as if he had just taken some kind of magical power-up.
Seeing this transformation, both Rocker and Bacchus instinctively halted their attack, staring at Ichiya in stunned confusion, feeling an unseen pressure radiating from him.
"Wh-what's going on? Why did he suddenly become so wild?"
"That guy… is that the Fragrance of Power?"
Having successfully transformed into a muscle-bound warrior using his fragrance magic, Ichiya looked at Rocker and Bacchus and declared:
"Now, taste this! My R. Smile!"
Boom!
With overwhelming magical power and immense strength, Ichiya's fist—imbued with his pride and conviction—obliterated Bacchus and Rocker, sending them flying.
The two soared across an incredible distance before slamming into the arena's outer wall, only stopping upon impact.
Despite being the two strongest mages among the Quatro Puppies, they couldn't withstand such a devastating blow—both were instantly knocked out.
"Down—!! Quatro Puppies are down—!!" Chapati loudly announced.
"The winners are… Blue Pegasus!!"
"He actually took down Bacchus…" Erza muttered under her breath.
Although Ichiya had his many flaws, there was no denying his strength.
The fact that he defeated Bacchus—who had once fought Erza to a standstill—was proof of his power.
"A two-on-one… and he still won."
Gray let out a sigh and remarked, "Looks like he's not just an idiot after all."
"He really is strong," Natsu nodded in agreement.
"I've really come to see Ichiya-san in a new light, Noel-nii," Ed said with a smile as he stood beside Noel.
"He's still as... unsettling as ever, but..." Noel's lips curled into a faint smile as he watched Ichiya dramatically embrace Nichiya in a questionably passionate display.
In a quiet voice, he admitted, "This battle... was truly one worthy of applause and admiration."
Hearing Noel's words, Mira suddenly chuckled, as if recalling something.
She teased, "Getting a positive remark about Ichiya from you, Noel, is no small feat. Especially after that incident."
Noel's expression instantly darkened as he remembered his first encounter with Ichiya.
Ed, completely clueless, asked, "What incident? Did something happen between you and Ichiya-san before?"
Suddenly, Noel firmly placed both hands on Ed's shoulders, his expression dead serious.
"Eh?! Eh?! W-what is it, Noel-nii?!" Ed stammered, flustered by Noel's intense gaze.
"Listen to me carefully," Noel said with grave determination.
"This is an absolute taboo—you must never, ever ask about it. Do you understand, Ed? Never. Ever. Ask."
"Because that... was one of the most humiliating experiences of my life!"
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