Anyway, that was exactly why this island was now so alive. It made sense.
The matches worth watching today would be the third match of the first half and then the matches of the second half. When the tournament first shifted to its current format, the weapons matches were placed first and the bare-handed matches second, but starting today, they’d decided to swap the order.
Apparently, the audience reaction to the previous schedule hadn’t been good. In a tournament like this, it was important for the matches to get more exciting as the day progressed. Was it the lack of blood? Compared to the weapons matches, the bare-handed matches saw little blood being spilled. Without blood, it didn’t really feel like there’d been a fierce match. Blood excited the audience and made it more fun to watch.
The change might have also been because there were fewer bare-handed matches, though.
Whatever the reason, now that the change had been made, we just needed to adjust.
“Nia, we’re going to start the commentary now.”
“All right.”
The audience seats were filled again today. When it was almost time for the rounds to start, we began recording.
“The fourth day of the main matches will soon begin. The match I’m personally most looking forward to is the third match of the bare-handed division—the match between Leeno and Zeon. Leeno’s matches until now have shown her consistent strength, even while holding back. However, the intensity with which Zeon is approaching this tournament is nothing to take lightly. How long can he hold out against such a formidable opponent?”
I paused to let that question hang in the air and then continued. “With the newly introduced rule banning magic treatment following the matches, no matter what injuries the winner of this match sustains, they will have to fight in tomorrow’s round as they are. Leeno sustaining a grave injury today may even alter the course of the tournament entirely.”
The third match of the bare-handed division would see Lynokis and Zeon battling it out. In the weapons division, we’d see the match between Lynette and the Kenki.
“And then in the second half, we have the battle between Lynette Bran and Asuma Hinoki. This match will pit a fighter who has won her matches easily with steady precision against a renowned adventurer with the title of the Sword Demon—who has also won his matches with plenty of reserves to spare. Both are sword wielders, but there is one big concern...”
I raised a finger to punctuate my point.
“Asuma cannot use his cherished Eastern blade. He has been using a wooden sword since preliminaries, but it no doubt feels different from his familiar partner. He isn’t under a condition that will allow him to use his full strength. If we talk solely about skill with the sword alone, then Asuma no doubt wins. However, battles are not determined by swords and magic alone. One’s overall strengths, areas of expertise, and other factors can all have great effect. Judging from total strength, then Lynette has the upper hand.”
At least from my assessment, in both matches, my students were the ones on track to win. The problem was what would occur during the battles. Sure, Lynokis and Lynette would likely win their battles, but I couldn’t predict whether or not they would leave unscathed.
Zeon was clearly quite motivated in these matches. He would no doubt show just how fearsome a beastkin could be when no longer holding back. I wouldn’t be surprised if he was fighting with no concern for whether his opponent lived or died. He had become the very essence of one’s fighting instincts; that was how little mercy he would show. The only place you could still see a shred of reason in him was when he wouldn’t continue attacking his opponent once they were down.
Not to disparage Lynokis, but Zeon had trained himself well. I almost hoped that he could give the favorite to win a run for her money. That would make things so much more exciting.
And then there was the Kenki. He was someone I’d need to wait for the actual match to get a proper read on. Reaching the precipice of martial arts truly shined when in a moment of desperation. His true growth would come when he was backed into a corner. The real question would be if Lynette could handle such volatility.
A part of me wanted him to win. Compared to Lynette, Asuma went above and beyond her as far as time and quality of training and actual battle experience went. He’d also been through his fair share of dangerous situations. As a martial artist, I wanted to cheer for someone whose martial arts had been forged through years and years of effort.
But reality was cruel. No matter how much one trained—or even slacked off—the stronger one would win. Effort was tied to one’s results, but it did not mean that person was always guaranteed to win. That was true of pretty much anything.
This ruthless aspect of martial arts was part of its appeal.
The strongest would win. Such a simple and clear principle was merciless yet completely fair. Even fairer than the gods. They were all a whimsical bunch in comparison.
The day’s matches had begun. Now that we were on the second day of the tourney, there would be around thirty-five matches. I remembered someone saying that if the winners ended up with an odd number, then those in Block A and Block B would battle it out. That was the only detail that was slightly irregular.
In any case, with a few exceptions, competitors would fight in one match a day. Understanding that much should suffice.
I was a little concerned about the gaps left by the withdrawals, though... Several fighters had dropped out due to injury. The same would probably happen tomorrow too.
Well, surely the organizers would do something about it. I’m counting on you, our beloved king.
Though I must say, now that we were this far into the tournament, it had become much more exciting to watch. Every match had seen blood spilled. What had started with ten thousand participants had been cut down to fewer than one hundred survivors. Naturally, no amateurs had made it this far, so all of them were serious about their matches. Even the bare-handed matches were interesting to watch.
Right, of course. Throws are always an option. Strangleholds are quite plain, but the exchanges after the straddle are fun. It should be easy for the audience to follow too. But even these sorts of battles can involve some advanced moves that result in sudden changes in control. Hmm... This level of skill seems much more for those who are experts in the field. Just trading blows while standing is easy to understand, but pinning moves are a whole different game. All it looks like to the uninformed is two guys grappling each other, so it may look dull.
After all of that, we were onto the third match. Sonicspeed Zeon and the predicted champion Leeno walked onto the ring. The audience immediately erupted with cheers. They’d already been fairly loud to this point, but these had to be the loudest cheers of the day.
“What incredible noise. You can tell how high everyone’s expectations are for the match between these two popular competitors. I’m sure they’ll put on a fabulous display.”
Especially Zeon. Except for the afternoon matches on the first day, I’d seen all his matches for the main tournament from this distance. Every day, each time I watched him, the intensity of his hostility and desire to fight became stronger and stronger. He’d been so calm and collected during the preliminaries, but now, a light had finally been lit under his beastly instincts.