As the morning sun rose over the horizon, the citizens of Crocus awoke and prepared to begin a new day.
However, because of today's special occasion, a huge number of people took leave from work and gathered at the plazas and parks designated by the royal family to watch the live broadcast of the tournament.
The Kingdom had even arranged professional commentators to introduce contestants from the various guilds and keep the crowd engaged.
"Good morning, residents of the magnificent Flower Capital!"
"After an entire night of intense exhaustion and fierce competition, more than half of the six hundred participating teams from guilds all across Fiore have already been eliminated!"
"At present, the team closest to the finish line is Fairy Tail A Team, led by one of the Ten Wizard Saints, Kabe!"
"I personally stayed awake all night watching Fairy Tail A Team's entire performance."
"From the moment the competition began until now, Kabe and his teammates have not used a single spell to conserve their stamina."
"They have relied purely on their astonishing endurance, determination, and physical strength to run all the way to this point, while somehow maintaining first place!"
"As expected of Fiore's pride! The pride of every citizen in the Kingdom!"
"Please give the loudest cheers and warmest applause to Lord Kabe and Fairy Tail!"
The moment the commentator finished speaking, thunderous cheers erupted throughout the entire capital.
Given Kabe's reputation and status within Fiore, the reaction was hardly surprising.
Countless young boys and girls stared up at the magical projection displaying Kabe's running figure.
Their eyes were filled with admiration, longing, and dreams.
...
Only after the cheers gradually subsided did the commentator continue.
"However, Fairy Tail A Team is not without challengers."
"A team from the major guild Lamia Scale is rapidly closing the distance at an incredible pace!"
The projected image shifted.
A six-man squad led by a bald-headed man appeared before the audience.
"Allow me to introduce them."
"Running at the front is their captain, Lamia Scale's ace!"
"A wizard rumored to possess strength comparable to a member of the Ten Wizard Saints..."
"Iwa-Tetsu no Jura!"
As a nation built upon magic, especially within the capital itself, even ordinary civilians possessed a decent understanding of famous guilds and renowned wizards.
While Jura's fame was nowhere near Kabe's level, he was still a highly respected and well-known mage.
Combined with the commentator's claim that he possessed power rivaling the Ten Wizard Saints, many spectators immediately became interested.
A sense of anticipation began spreading through the crowd.
Of course, veteran mages saw things differently.
They understood exactly how vast the gap truly was.
Jura might be powerful.
But comparing him to Kabe?
That was another matter entirely.
How many ten-year quests had Jura completed?
Kabe treated ten-year quests like routine work.
More importantly, Kabe possessed an actual record of defeating a member of the Spriggan Twelve head-on.
Even if Jura somehow managed to defeat Kabe during the preliminaries, most experienced mages would simply assume Kabe hadn't taken the event seriously.
After all, to someone of his level, this preliminary race was little more than a game.
...
"In addition to Lamia Scale, teams from Blue Pegasus and Quatro Cerberus have also distinguished themselves from the competition."
"Unfortunately, all four major guilds began from different directions around the capital."
"As a result, they won't encounter one another during the preliminary round."
"So for those hoping to see clashes between the strongest guilds right away, I'm afraid you'll have to wait a little longer."
"However!"
"This Grand Magic Games will last an entire week!"
"The upcoming events will be even more exciting."
"We hope everyone continues supporting the First Grand Magic Games of Fiore and doesn't miss any of the action!"
"I am your commentator, Mark."
"I've been awake all night, so I'm going back to sleep."
"See you all during the final stage of the preliminaries!"
...
Everyone watching:
"..."
The commentator's decision to casually leave halfway through the broadcast was unbelievably irresponsible.
Yet despite that, the audience remained highly enthusiastic.
People continued cheering for their favorite contestants and guilds with great passion.
At this point in the race, however, very few teams still possessed enough energy to engage in actual combat.
Most competitors were simply struggling to keep moving.
As a result, the excitement level had naturally dropped compared to the beginning of the event.
Many spectators chose to leave temporarily, planning to return once the preliminary round approached its conclusion so they could witness the final results.
This was, after all, the royal family's first time organizing such a large-scale tournament.
Their lack of experience in controlling the pacing of the event was beginning to show.
Meanwhile, tournament officials had already started gathering feedback from the public in hopes of improving future Grand Magic Games.
...
The race continued.
The exhausted participants pushed themselves forward beneath the morning sunlight.
Some chased glory.
Some chased dreams.
Others simply refused to give up.
And far ahead of them all, Kabe's team continued advancing toward Crocus, steadily moving closer to the true stage of the Grand Magic Games.