Nine-Star Swordsman

Qi Yan looked expectantly at the giant screen. Erza was a genius, especially when it came to swordsmanship. In Fairy Tail, she had taught herself and trained her swordsmanship to an extraordinary level through her own efforts.

Soon, all the Group B contestants entered the arena. With Group A serving as an example, they already knew the rules in advance. They spread out, vigilantly watching their surroundings while searching for targets to attack.

As a female swordswoman, Erza naturally became the focus of many people.

"Who do you think will win?"

"Of course Kaiman! He's an Eight-Star Swordsman and very close to Nine-Star. Master swordsman Rosa once said that Kaiman only needs another three years to become a Nine-Star Swordsman."

"I favor Balto more. He's a veteran Eight-Star Swordsman. Even against a Nine-Star Swordsman, he has the strength to fight."

The spectators eagerly discussed who would win this match. Since no Nine-Star Swordsmen were participating, everyone guessed that the victor would emerge from among the Eight-Star Swordsmen.

At the same time, many people noticed Erza as well. Her long crimson hair, beautiful face, and status as one of the few female contestants naturally drew attention.

"Now, the first round of Group B! Begin----!!"

Clang----!!

With the ringing of the starting gong, the second battle began immediately.

"Little lady! You should be eliminated first!!"

Those who had set their sights on Erza immediately charged at her.

Slash---!

A flash of sword light swept out, and several people attacking Erza were immediately knocked down. Then Erza began attacking those around her. Few could withstand even one exchange with her.

"That red-haired girl is incredible!!"

Before long, many swordsmen in the arena were eliminated. Only three Eight-Star Swordsmen and Erza remained, the four of them engaging in a chaotic melee.

The battle fell into a tense stalemate. Every one of them was a master swordsman, displaying powerful and exquisite sword techniques.

Erza was extremely excited. Coming to this tournament had indeed been the right choice. Sparring with so many swordsmanship masters would greatly improve her skills.

The other three noticed this as well. They all abandoned their attacks on one another and joined forces to surround Erza. Erza did not panic in the slightest, fighting steadily as she searched for openings in her opponents' defenses.

Three people had surrounded one person, and that person was even a young woman, yet they still could not defeat her after so long. The three of them grew anxious, and impatience inevitably created openings.

Erza seized an opportunity and slashed one of them down with a single strike. Then she steadily dealt with the remaining two.

Gradually, Erza became familiar with the two men's swordsmanship.

Slash!

Another person was defeated by Erza.

Erza spent a little time dealing with the last person before defeating him as well.

"The winner has been decided!! The victor! Erza Scarlet!!"

"She's incredible! Who would have thought such a beautiful woman possessed such powerful swordsmanship!"

"Facing the combined assault of three Eight-Star Swordsmen, she steadily defeated all three of them! Incredible! Could a female Nine-Star Swordsman be about to emerge?! Let us cheer for Erza!"

"Erza! Erza! Erza!"

"Miss Erza! That was so cool!"...

Many girls in the audience were captivated by Erza's coolness.

Everyone present possessed considerable knowledge of swordsmanship. Although Erza had not displayed any flashy techniques, the more basic the moves, the more they revealed a person's true level of swordsmanship.

Clay, seated in the contestants' viewing area, watched Erza's performance and could not help stroking his chin. Looking at Erza's beautiful enlarged face on the magic screen, he said, "What a fine woman!"

After seeing Erza's strength, many people in the waiting room felt sorry for that fool who had sought his own death. He had actually dared to flirt with a Nine-Star Swordsman. This was only because they were in the resting area; if they had been outside, no one knew how he would have died.

Nine-Star Swordsman Arthur frowned. "Erza... Could she be that Erza?"

Inside the royal palace.

A massive magic screen stood before the king.

"Just as expected! Swordsmanship capable of easily killing a five-star monster with one strike could not possibly be ordinary."

The king smiled as he watched Erza's performance. She was only demonstrating swordsmanship so far, yet he had already obtained information on both Erza and Qi Yan.

Moreover, those two files were resting on the table before the king.

"Erza Scarlet, Fairy Tail S-Rank Mage. Alias: Fairy Queen. Specializes in Requip Magic and can fight by summoning various suits of armor, greatly enhancing her attack power, defense, and physical abilities."

"Qi Yan, a new mage of Fairy Tail. No title at present. Record: single-handedly destroyed the Phantom Thief Guild led by Camille, the King of Assassins."

Qi Yan smiled as he watched Erza on the screen. "As expected of Erza."

"Next is Group C! Contestants, enter the arena!!"

"Arthur! Arthur! Arthur!!"...

The moment the commentator announced the contestants' entrance, cheers erupted from the stands.

"What incredible popularity!"

Qi Yan was startled when he saw it.

Arthur rose to his feet as well and walked toward the entrance.

The moment he appeared at the arena entrance, the entire audience began shouting.

Qi Yan asked the person beside him, "Isn't he also a Nine-Star Swordsman? Why is he so much more popular than that previous Nine-Star Swordsman?"

The person he asked looked utterly incredulous. "You don't know Arthur? Other Nine-Star Swordsmen are Nine-Star because their strength has reached that level. Arthur is Nine-Star because Nine-Star is the highest rank a swordsman can have. Arthur is the strongest Nine-Star Swordsman."

This time, everyone who entered the arena ignored their surroundings and focused entirely on Arthur. They understood that unless they defeated Arthur, the strongest Nine-Star Swordsman, they had no hope of winning at all.

"Now, the first round of Group C! Begin----!!"

Clang----!!

With the ringing of the starting gong, the third battle began immediately.

"Charge!!"

The instant the match was declared underway, all the contestants rushed toward Arthur.

Light's Radiance!!

Arthur's sword radiated golden light. As he thrust forward at high speed, streams of golden sword energy surged toward the crowd like a tide.

"Uwaaaaaah!!"

"Waaaaaah!!"...

Every contestant in the arena did everything they could to defend themselves, but the attacks were too dense. In the blink of an eye, everyone had fallen. With a single strike, more than a hundred contestants were defeated.