"Juvia thinks that as long as we bring everyone's strength together, we can find Laxus no matter where he's hiding!"
Everyone chimed in, their discussion in full swing, yet not a single person so much as glanced toward the steps.
Blanc remained in his original pose, awkwardly frozen in place.
Hey... I'm sitting right here in the middle. Are you all blind?
Unable to save face, he had to clear his throat:
"Ahem."
"Ahem!!"
Someone in the crowd seemed to cast a perfunctory glance his way, then looked away perfectly naturally and continued talking about Laxus.
A vein bulged at Blanc's temple, and he shouted in exasperation:
"Hey!! If you aren't using your eyes, donate them to someone who needs them! Can't you see me here!?"
Only after hearing that deafening roar did Erza belatedly turn her head and look him up and down.
Then her gaze sharpened. Instantly switching to interrogation mode, she stepped forward and demanded:
"Good, I have something to ask you! Tell us the truth. Where is Laxus?"
"You're asking me?" Blanc was baffled. "I was about to ask where he'd run off to!"
"Hmph, stop playing dumb." Erza's gaze burned, her expression that of someone wise enough to see through everything.
"You acted completely out of character by asking for the position of Guild Master, then made a huge production of offering it as a tournament prize. When you announced the rules at the guild, that whole speech was directed at Laxus-"
At this point, her tone became firm and utterly certain:
"You organized this tournament so you could deliberately lose to Laxus and openly dump the position of Guild Master on him, making sure it would never fall to you again. Am I right!?"
The hall suddenly fell silent.
Blanc froze. Then he slowly