Not everyone rushed headfirst into the chaos.
Amid the battle, Mira quietly hid atop a giant tree, her sharp eyes fixed on the clash between Laxus, Erza, and Ultear. A sly smile curled on her lips as she muttered to herself,
"Hehehe… go on, fight… it'd be perfect if all three of you lose the ability to fight. Then all your badges will be mine."
Little did she know—
While the mantis stalked the cicada, and the oriole waited behind… there was still an eagle above them all.
Mira saw Laxus, Erza, and Ultear as the mantis, herself as the oriole—
But Arlen was already watching from the shadows, thinking the exact same thing.
Time slowly passed.
The hourglass was nearly empty.
Outside the guild, many members had already gathered. Some smiled bitterly, others sighed in defeat, while a few proudly weighed the badges in their hands.
Dong—! Dong—! Dong—!
The bell rang.
The match was over.
Whether searching or fighting, everyone stopped what they were doing and returned to the guild.
All eyes fell upon the leading figures—Arlen, Laxus, Erza, Ultear, Kagura, and Mira.
If nothing unexpected happened, the winner would be among them.
Makarov shook a cloth bag and announced loudly, "Alright! Time's up! Everyone hand over your badges—we'll count them now!"
But when the counting began—
Something unexpected happened.
Natsu, who had fought the hardest and looked the most battered… had zero badges.
Gray? The same.
Even Erza—covered in dust and clearly battle-worn—had zero.
Laxus, Ultear, and Mira weren't any better.
And then—
Arlen.
Twenty badges.
A collective gasp filled the hall.
Laxus, Ultear, Erza, Mira, Natsu, and Gray all stared at Arlen with burning resentment. If looks could kill, he'd already be in pieces.
Arlen, however, remained calm—completely unfazed. He even straightened his posture slightly, looking rather proud.
That only made everyone want to beat him up even more.
Just as everyone—including Arlen himself—believed the outcome was decided…
Makarov suddenly smiled and looked toward a corner of the crowd.
"The winner of this badge snatch battle is—"
Everyone turned.
Kagura stood there, raising her hand with a small, delighted smile.
Behind her—
A massive pile of badges.
Just by looking, it was clearly more than Arlen's.
"…Kagura?!" The entire hall erupted.
Arlen froze. "How is that possible? How did you collect more than me?!"
Ultear was equally shocked. "When did you even get that many?"
Even Erza raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Laxus blinked—then grinned. As long as Arlen didn't win, he was satisfied.
Mira, Natsu, and Gray shared the exact same thought.
"Because you were all fighting," Kagura said lightly, tilting her head.
"While you were busy competing and stealing from each other, you ignored the badges hidden in corners, under stalls, on lampposts… so I just picked them up slowly."
"…And sometimes," she added innocently, "I took a few from people who were fighting too hard to notice."
"Oh, and these include Lisanna, Cana, and Elfman's badges. They didn't find many, so they gave theirs to me."
Only then did everyone realize the truth.
From the very beginning—
Natsu and Gray were too busy fighting.
Laxus, Erza, and Ultear got locked in a three-way battle.
Mira and Arlen were both trying to play smart—waiting to steal at the end.
Only Kagura—and Lisanna's group—avoided conflict entirely, quietly collecting badges and occasionally reaping the benefits.
Makarov burst into laughter.
"That's right! The champion is Kagura!"
Natsu collapsed to the ground, drawing circles. "That's so sneaky… especially Arlen, ambushing people…"
"Aye… next time we should just quietly collect badges too," Happy suggested.
Gray sighed. "If I'd known, I wouldn't have fought you… we just handed everything to Arlen. Good thing he didn't win."
Erza smiled helplessly. "A loss is a loss. I accept it."
Laxus laughed loudly, slapping Arlen on the back. "You thought you had it, didn't you? Didn't expect that twist, huh? As long as you didn't win, I'm happy."
Arlen shot him an annoyed glance—he truly had thought victory was his.
Meanwhile, Kagura happily held the 500,000 jewels, her eyes curved like crescents as she ran off to split the prize with Cana, Lisanna, and Elfman.
What started as a chaotic free-for-all ended in a hilariously unexpected twist.
"Well then," Makarov announced, "that concludes this year's badge battle. Now, let's prepare for tonight's magic parade!"
"OOOH!!" xN
As the sun set, Magnolia remained alive with celebration. Visitors and merchants filled the streets, joining the townspeople in the festival's joy.
Fairy Tail's members laughed, joked, and walked back together, arms slung over each other's shoulders as they prepared for the parade.
The fierce battle from earlier already felt like a joke.
Who won the badges no longer mattered.
What mattered was this noisy, lively, warm moment.
As fireworks burst across the night sky, crowds gathered along the streets, eagerly watching in anticipation.
Under countless gazes, one parade float after another—extravagant, bizarre, and magical—rolled through Magnolia, carrying Fairy Tail's members as they showed off their magic and antics.
The stars shimmered, the moon shone bright, and the streets roared with cheers and laughter.
And in the midst of it all—
Arlen watched with a smile.
"Fairy Tail really is the best."
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