Laxus Dreyar was the third player to step up for Team D.
He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, placed his hands behind his back, and let his heavy fur-rimmed coat slide smoothly to the ground, leaving him in just a tight, purple sleeveless muscle shirt.
Then the atmosphere instantly reached its peak.
"LAXUS!!!"
Raizel even heard specific shouts from the crowd like, "So handsome! I love you! I want to have your..."
Laxus vs. Elfman
"Rock beats Scissors! It's still Contestant Elfman's turn to attack first!"
"MANLINESS!"
Elfman struck hard.
"Finally! This time it failed. I wonder if it was due to the overwhelming cheers from Laxus's supporters distracting him, but it feels like his performance was a bit off this time."
"Contestant Laxus's opportunity!"
"Let's see how skilled Contestant Laxus is at the card flipping game!"
After adjusting his breathing, Laxus assumed a solid horse stance, gathered his energy for a few seconds, and then slapped down heavily.
SMACK!
"He won!"
"NICE!" Raizel punched the air vigorously.
Even Laxus clenched his right fist and raised his arm in triumph.
"We can see that all the players on Team D are extremely happy, even hugging each other and jumping around."
"The score is now 1:2, with Team D temporarily trailing!"
Laxus vs. Evergreen
"Next up is Contestant Evergreen, a member of the Thunder Legion, facing off against her own captain, Laxus!"
"Go! Maaaaan!" Elfman cheered.
"You're the man!" Evergreen shouted back.
She was originally quite nervous facing Laxus, but Elfman's outburst helped her relax a bit.
Laxus attacked first again, having won Rock-Paper-Scissors.
This time he lowered his body even more. After a few practice motions to gauge the distance, he slapped down.
FLIP!
"2:2! Contestant Laxus also achieves two consecutive wins!"
"NICE!!!"
Raizel and Laxus jumped up on the hexagonal platform and bumped shoulders in celebration.
Wakaba got too excited and also tried to bump shoulders with Laxus to join the cool moment, but he was sent flying by Laxus's muscle mass...
Fortunately, Reedus was standing behind him and caught him with his soft, rounded physique.
Being sent flying immediately dispelled Reedus's own idea of shoulder-bumping with Laxus...
Evergreen and Elfman both stared blankly as Laxus secured victory with one strike.
Erza and Gray also looked helpless, as all the momentum had been taken by Laxus's entrance.
"Right now, the players on Team E seem to have lost all their composure."
Jason noticed that both Erza and Gray had their hands on their hips, looking like they wanted to say something but stopping themselves.
Ur spoke up at the right moment from the commentary booth. "Everyone, you must watch the match until the very end! The final outcome isn't determined until it's over! Team E members, please adjust your mindset and don't give up until the last moment!"
Makarov then added, "Yes, the match has returned to square one, and both teams still have a chance."
Laxus vs. Gray
"It's Laxus's turn to attack first again!"
After losing at Rock-Paper-Scissors, Gray threw his card onto the floor in frustration.
SMACK!
"Ah..."
"Both players failed in their first attempts."
Gray stepped up for his second try. He focused all his ice-cold determination into his hand.
CRACK!
"Ah... what's going on! The card got split apart!"
Gray used too much force this time, causing his own card to break into two pieces upon impact.
"Is this such an intense match that even the cards are breaking?!" Jason screamed.
"Alright, a new card has been provided, but this opportunity now goes to Contestant Laxus."
Laxus didn't waste the mistake.
FLIP!
"Flipped! It! Over!"
"Laxus's incredible comeback! The score was 0:2 before he stepped up, but now it's 3:2!"
The Fairy Queen Enters
"Now entering the stage is the Fairy Queen—Erza Scarlet!"
"Erza! Erza!"
"We're about to witness another showdown between Erza and Laxus!"
"Scissors wins! Erza takes the first move!"
"Change!"
Erza immediately switched outfits—not into armor, but into athletic wear: a simple T-shirt and shorts that allowed for better flexibility and movement, as her armor had been restricting her fine motor control.
"We can see Erza is taking this very seriously! She's changed into sportswear and even tied up her hair!"
"Erza is adopting a very unique stance!"
At this moment, Erza knelt on one knee, slightly bending forward, getting eye-level with the ground. Most others simply adopted a horse stance, varying only in depth.
"This should significantly improve her accuracy, though it might limit her power."
Erza was completely tuned out, immersed in her own world, her eyes fixed solely on the paper cards on the ground.
"Erza has been preparing for a long time!"
"She's making her move!"
SMACK!
"A loud sound! It flipped over! Erza has saved the team!"
"Whew~" After delivering that perfect strike, Erza let out a sigh of relief.
"Beautiful! Erza!"
"What a manly move!"
"I suppose I'll reluctantly praise you, but I won't be giving up the title of Fairy Queen," Evergreen muttered, adjusting her glasses with her fan, crossing her arms, and turning her head away as she spoke.
Laxus scratched his head helplessly.
The moment he lost at Rock-Paper-Scissors to Erza, he had a feeling defeat was inevitable—the more pressure there was, the more motivated Erza became.
"You did great, you won three rounds already. Leave the rest to me."
Raizel patted Laxus on the shoulder as they swapped places.
However, Raizel couldn't confidently say he could beat Erza now—if he lost at Rock-Paper-Scissors, it might be game over right there.
The Final Showdown: Raizel vs. Erza
"The tension is palpable now!"
"Scissors! Another tie! That's four ties in a row!"
The Rock-Paper-Scissors battle between Raizel and Erza was filled with palpable intensity, neither giving an inch.
"Paper! Erza takes the first move!"
"The moment everyone's been waiting for! Can Erza secure victory with one strike?"
Erza crouched down again, her right hand continuously measuring the distance, hovering over the cards.
No one, including Raizel, rushed her.
The arena was silent.
After taking a soft breath, Erza slammed her hand down forcefully.
CLACK!
Two paper cards stuck together from the vacuum pressure and bounced high into the air...
FLIP!
"They flipped over!!!"
The hexagon platform's steam jets erupted once more!
...
Erza, Evergreen, Gray, and Elfman hugged each other joyfully, patting each other's shoulders in wild celebration.
"A comeback victory! The score went from 0:2 to 3:2, then to 3:4—constant reversals!"
Even Makarov and Ur rose to their feet in disbelief, cheering enthusiastically into their microphones.
"It's a comeback, folks!"
Inspired by Makarov and Ur, the seated audience stood up and applauded thunderously.
"Erza! Erza! Erza!" The cheers echoed relentlessly.
"I expected it. The moment I saw Erza's determination, I knew we'd lost." Laxus stepped forward, watching Raizel who stood with his mouth slightly agape, at a loss for words.
Though Laxus felt a bit regretful, he could accept the outcome.
"It's alright, it's alright." Wakaba and Reedus also comforted Raizel.
"Ah, what a pity, mainly because I didn't even get to take a shot," Raizel awkwardly scratched his forehead.
He had been the ace in the hole, but he never even got to play.
"Congratulations to you." Raizel offered his hand to Erza.
"So this is what it feels like to beat you?" Erza teased while looking at Raizel with a bright smile.
Laxus was also congratulating Evergreen, with the several people on the field leaning against each other's shoulders and patting each other on the back.
Jason shouted into the mic, "A shocking elimination of the strongest championship contender!"
"This feels just like when Contestant Raizel was eliminated early in the games!"