"There was a fluctuation in spatial magic," Rhodes murmured as he observed his surroundings. "Feels like we were teleported to different places. But I can still hear faint reactions nearby, so we are definitely still within the arena."
Out of curiosity, he reached out and touched the wall next to him.
"A real building? Did they fully materialize this inside the arena? That is impressive."
At that moment, the Pumpkin Man's voice echoed from above.
"The rules for Hidden are simple. Find any other contestant on these streets and land a single hit."
"As long as you hit, even if no damage is dealt, you gain one point. The person hit will lose one point and will be teleported somewhere else to continue."
"Rankings will be determined based on total points, and corresponding tournament scores will be assigned based on rank."
"And that is not all. Duplicates of every contestant will appear on the streets. If you hit a duplicate by mistake, you lose one point."
As soon as he finished speaking, dense crowds materialized along the street in front of Rhodes.
Among them were countless versions of Rhodes, Gray, Lyon, Rufus and every other competitor, each replicated many times over.
From the waiting area, Juvia nearly fainted on the spot when she saw the big screens fill with hundreds of Grays.
Biting her sleeve, she wailed, "Juvia should have insisted. So many Lord Grays...!"
Gajeel grabbed her collar to stop her from charging into the arena. "Yeah, Rhodes made the right call."
Laxus nodded without a word.
Mira clasped her cheeks. "I understand Juvia. So many Rhodes. How interesting."
Pumpkin Man raised both arms.
"Now, vanish into the quiet night, like a black cat slipping through the shadows. Hidden, begin!"
A deep gong rang. The match officially began.
A transparent barrier surrounded the constructed city, blocking all external sounds. No one would be able to shout hints or reveal positions.
The audience watched their favorite contestants through the giant screens placed around the arena, each locked to a specific contestant's point of view.
Rhodes slowly examined the duplicates around him. He avoided touching them, unsure whether contact itself would count as an attack.
"Their movements look normal, and their expressions vary too. Other than their slightly thinner magic signatures, they look exactly like real people."
"And suppressed magic could easily be intentional. Interesting. If I disguise myself as one of these fakes and stroll around..."
He smiled to himself.
"No one will find me."
Not that Rhodes needed to worry much anyway.
Because the moment the big screens were revealed...
He started cheating.
Two Crabs, disguised with great care, were already hidden in opposite corners of the arena. Originally prepared for an investigation mission, they were now perfect spy cameras. By linking his senses with them, he could watch the large screens with perfect clarity.
And since the organizers had helpfully locked each screen to a contestant's perspective to improve the viewing experience...
Rhodes would have felt guilty not to take advantage of it.
Almost.
Still, as a Wizard Saint, he could not blatantly goof off while everyone was watching. So he raised two fingers in a sword seal. A faint golden ripple of detection magic spread outward.
From the commentary booth, Chapati shouted, "Rhodes seems to have activated a spell. Mr. Yajima, your thoughts?"
Yajima nodded. "It is likely a reconnaissance type spell. Makarov told me Rhodes is a child who loves reading and studying. His knowledge of magic should be extremely broad."
Child. A child?
Chapati could get away with saying that. No one else dared.
"As expected of a Wizard Saint. This puts the other contestants in danger," Chapati continued. "Wait... am I imagining things? It looks like there is one more duplicate standing beside Rhodes."
"I look forward to Gray's performance, but I believe Rhodes will win," Yajima said calmly. He did not hide his bias toward Fairy Tail at all.
Jenny added, "Then I will cheer for Simon from our guild."
Amid the crowd of duplicates, competitors began moving.
Rhodes picked the contestant he disliked the most and walked in that direction.
That was Rufus from Sabertooth. Not because of any past grudge, but because he was unbearably pretentious. The dramatic posture, the bard-like clothing, the half-closed eyes. Everything about him felt like Freed's aesthetic but worse.
Before Rhodes could reach him, someone shouted behind him.
"Your walking posture is too distinctive, Rhodes!"
A barrage of carrots came flying toward him.
Beth was about to celebrate, but then she gasped in shock.
"It… it went right through! Was that a duplicate?"
Chapati shouted, "Oh no, contestant Beth has made a mistake! But how do we judge this sort of situation? Does that count as evasion?"
Yajima only smiled without answering.
Rhodes appeared silently beside Beth and struck her lightly on the head with a hand chop.
"Ah!" Beth yelped as her body was covered in bright light, then vanished from the field.
Kagura, who had been watching closely, sighed.
"Fool. That was not the real body, and it was not a duplicate either. It was a Mind Body."
At the commentary desk, Yajima finally explained the trick.
"He created a Mind Body and had it act in ways deliberately different from the duplicates, using it as bait. Meanwhile, the real body hid among the copies, waiting for someone to fall for the trap before striking. A brilliant tactic."
Makarov immediately rallied the Fairy Tail cheering section, waving his arms enthusiastically.
Many members of the audience did not even understand what a Mind Body was, but since the former Councilor praised it so highly, it must have been something incredible.
And a dramatic reversal like this was exactly the kind of moment the spectators lived for.
The arena filled with loud applause and cheers.
"I found you, Rhodes!"
Gray, unusually emotional, charged forward and yelled, "Ice Make: Great Hammer!"
Rhodes raised an eyebrow. Gray was actually being considerate and using an ordinary hammer, not one made of ice.
In that case, he would return the favor.
Rhodes took two small steps backward, reached out into the air with his right hand, and then threw forward with force.
A transparent figure suddenly materialized and fell directly under Gray's descending hammer, looking startled.
"Who is that?" Gray said, but before he could get a good look, the figure was engulfed in light and vanished.
Rhodes explained, "Someone from Dragon's Treasure, I think. He followed me for dozens of meters. I was waiting for him to attack."
Chapati cried out, "Oh no! Silas from Dragon's Treasure has been taken out as well!"
"Likely using a magical device, maybe an invisibility cloak," Yajima said thoughtfully. "Rhodes probably detected him with his magic."
Jenny raised an important question.
"In that case, who gets the point for hitting him?"
...
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