The Young Lady's Return and a Renewed Resolve

The heavy wooden doors to the hall were pushed open.

All eyes turned to the doorway.

"Young Miss!"

Lector covered his mouth with his two little paws and couldn't help but shout.

The mages standing on both sides of the hall straightened their backs and bowed their heads in respect.

A tall, slender figure stepped across the threshold and slowly entered the hall.

The woman had long, smooth, jet-black hair, styled into two small, round buns on either side of her head. She wore a well-tailored dark purple cheongsam, and her eyes were long and narrow, with heavy, dark eyeshadow around them.

Minerva, the only daughter of Chairman Jiemma and one of Sabertooth's top fighters.

Jiemma withdrew his gaze from Sting, sat back down in the mahogany chair, and rested his hands on the armrests.

"Minerva, you're back."

"It seems you already know the results of the matches outside."

Minerva walked to the center of the hall in her wooden clogs, stopped beside Sting, and bowed slightly to Jiemma.

"Yes, Father."

"On her way back to the capital, my daughter has already learned the details of the matches from the past two days."

Minerva straightened up, her gaze sweeping across the empty hall entrance, the direction Yukino had just left in.

"Their performance these past two days has been absolutely terrible. Not only have they lost their first-place position, but they've even been overtaken by Fairy Tail."

However, the situation has not yet deteriorated to the point of no return.

Jiemma snorted coldly and slammed his large hand heavily on the armrest.

"Having made a fool of themselves on the field for two consecutive days, the prestige that Sabertooth has built up over the past seven years has been completely trampled. Isn't this a desperate situation?!"

Minerva looked calmly at Jiemma.

"Therefore, at this crucial moment, if Father were to expel someone like Sting, who possesses core combat strength, Sabertooth would truly have no chance of turning the tide."

Jiemma frowned and leaned forward slightly.

"Hmph! Fairy Tail? Do you think we Sabertooth can't win without Sting?!"

Minerva knew her father's personality well and continued speaking, following Jiemma's lead.

"That's natural."

"If we only consider the overall foundation and comprehensive strength of the guild, our Sabertooth will naturally still firmly hold the top position in the kingdom."

However, there is one thing we must soberly acknowledge.

Minerva abandoned her casual demeanor and her tone became extremely objective.

"In a one-on-one fight, none of the people present are strong enough to contend with that monster from Fairy Tail named Jiang Bai."

A brief silence fell over the hall.

Orga, who had provoked Jiang Bai when he came on stage, did not utter a word in rebuttal.

I acted impulsively after winning the game, and even though I regretted it later, I pretended to be calm to save face.

Of course, it's also because he knows he might get beaten up, but he won't die.

The image of Jiang Bai casually summoning a thousand-meter-long giant sword and defeating Ten Wizard Saints Jura -on during the opening match on the first day is still etched in the minds of every participant.

Such world-destroying methods are simply beyond the reach of ordinary mages.

Even the renowned Rock Iron Jura, who had trained diligently for seven years, couldn't withstand a single blow. No matter who Sabertooth sent to fight one-on-one, the outcome would be the same.

If the Sabertooth knew that Jiang Bai didn't immediately kill Jura on the first day simply because their guilds had a good relationship and Jiang Bai was just trying to show Jura his strength, they would probably be even more desperate.

After all, given Jiang Bai's capricious style of doing things, if he really intended to get serious, he would either crush someone with a single finger or do what he did to Rufus.

Minerva paused for a moment, then continued.

"Not only Jiang Bai, but also Jura of the Lamia Scales is a formidable opponent not to be underestimated."

"Although Sting lost points in the morning race, it was just an accident caused by his physical condition, not a complete defeat in a head-on duel."

"The Grand Magic Games have only been going on for two days now, and there are still three full days until the tournament comes to a complete close."

According to the tournament rules, our guild can only register five players for the main competition.

"After Yukino left, we already had a vacancy."

"If we expel Sting from the guild now, we will face a huge disadvantage in terms of manpower for the remaining three days of large-scale raids and solo challenges."

After hearing this analysis, the anger on Jiemma's face gradually subsided.

His burly frame leaned back against the wide chair, his arms crossed over his chest.

Jiemma knew perfectly well that Minerva's words were all reasonable, giving him a legitimate excuse to vent his anger.

"Hmph! No matter who our opponent is, we, the Sabertooth, are the only victors who will reach the end!"

Minerva bowed slightly.

"This was an inevitable outcome; ultimate victory will belong to us."

Jiemma lowered his head, his cold gaze returning to Sting was kneeling on one knee.

"Sting!"

Sting's body jolted, and he bowed his head in response.

"Exist!"

"Out of consideration for Minerva's plea for you, I'll give you one last chance to redeem yourself!"

Jiemma suddenly raised his right hand, his index finger pointing directly at Sting's face.

"If you still can't secure victory in the subsequent team battles or one-on-one duels, don't blame me for being ruthless. I'll erase you from my life, along with today's humiliation!"

Sting let out a long breath and knelt on one knee.

"Yes, President! Thank you so much!"

Jiemma stood up, turned around, and strode towards the passageway into the inner room.

"Disperse, all of you! Don't get in my way!"

The heavy stone doors slammed shut, and the terrifying pressure within the hall finally dissipated completely.

The tense spines of everyone relaxed.

Minerva turned to look at Sting, said nothing more, just nodded slightly, and then walked calmly upstairs to the suite.

Orga and Rufus exchanged glances, then silently dispersed and left.

A few minutes later, Sting stood up, supporting himself on his knees; his legs were slightly numb from being tense for so long.

Rogue walked over to Sting and patted Sting on the shoulder.

"Let's go outside and get some fresh air."

Sting nodded silently.

The two stepped out of the inn and onto the quiet stone-paved streets of the capital.

Lector and Frosch, two kittens, followed behind, one on each side, slowly walking forward, stepping on the shadows of the two people.

The night breeze swept across the empty street, carrying away the daytime heat.

Rogue, with his hands in his robe pockets, looked up at the waning moon hanging in the sky and suddenly spoke softly.

Sting.

"Can we still be called the strongest guild in the kingdom now?"

The results of the two days were like a bucket of cold water, thoroughly waking up Sabertooth from his long-standing arrogance.

Frosch, walking beside him, raised her fluffy little head, her big eyes looking at Rogue with a worried tone.

"Rogue..."

Rogue stopped, bent down, and reached out to rub Frosch's round little head.

"Don't worry, Frosch, I'm fine. I was just saying it casually."

Frosch rubbed against Rogue's palm and nodded vigorously.

Sting stood under the streetlamp, the dim light casting a long shadow.

Sting raised his hands and looked down at his calloused palms.

For the past seven years, Sting has considered himself the Third Generation Dragon Slayer, believing that he has mastered the true power to slay dragons and completely disregarding the First Generation Dragon Slayer who was famous throughout the kingdom seven years ago.

However, today, on the Chariot, Natsu and Gajeel's fierce determination to crawl across the finish line, even when they were vomiting and their fingers were raw and bleeding, completely shattered Sting's pride.

Not to mention Jiang Bai, who sat in the stands and didn't even bother to take a serious look.

Sting clenched his fist tightly, his fingers forming a hard iron fist.

The restlessness deep in his eyes completely faded, replaced by an unprecedented clarity and solemnity.

"Our current strength is indeed no match for that monster from Fairy Tail named Jiang Bai."

Sting readily admitted this fact.

"But so what? Apart from that monstrous creature, our Sabertooth's Twin Dragons are definitely not weaklings to be slaughtered!"

Sting turned around, looked directly into Rogue's eyes, and spoke with unwavering resolve.

"Regardless of any changes to the rules in the upcoming matches, we will personally take care of Natsu and Gajeel from Fairy Tail!"

"The dignity lost on the Chariot, the reputation lost in the arena—we must reclaim it all with our own Dragon Slayer Magic!"

Lector jumped onto Sting's shoulder, waving his little fists and shouting.

"That's right! Sting can definitely do it! We Sabertooths will never admit defeat!"

Rogue looked at Sting, whose fighting spirit had been rekindled, and the corners of his tightly pursed lips finally turned up slightly as he placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"Ah, Natsu Dragneel, Gajeel Red Fox... we will defeat them ourselves."

Their fists clashed violently in the darkness.