Yeah, that’s the deciding blow. If Tohaulow had been a normal person, she’d have been a goner with that one.
“That’s enough!”
The referee put a stop to the match—and no wonder. That had been dangerous. I was sure even the regular audience members could tell.
“Gandolph is the victor!” The moment I made my own announcement, cheers erupted from the audience mixed in with low murmuring. I could hear the worry of the spectators—had Gandolph killed Tohaulow? There was no way she was dead, right? Their concern showed just how aggressive the punch had been.
The right half of Gandolph’s face was covered in blood, while the rest of his body was covered in scratches. He was standing, looking down at the fallen Tohaulow. He didn’t appear shaken, so it seemed he didn’t think he’d gone too far. He was acting the same as always. He’d gone through with that punch, aware this would be the outcome.
He had foreseen his victory.
Gandolph had managed to avoid the attack to his face. His movements weren’t as sharp as the other fighters’, but his eyes weren’t bad. He had probably been able to see Tohaulow.
For Tohaulow, who had fully expected to hit her mark, Gandolph’s dodge would’ve been unexpected. That small moment of hesitation caused her to misjudge her timing to retreat. She likely tried to make her escape while getting a kick in—but she had been too late, and Gandolph had managed to get his hands on her.
Still...that really was quite the violent hit he got in. He usually made sure not to be too aggressive toward his opponent—perhaps because he knew his students were watching. He was constantly being careful not to go too far. As a result, he hadn’t fired any all-out punches in his previous matches, but...finally, he’d done it. And that was okay. A martial artist who didn’t know how not to show mercy would always remain second-rate, no matter how strong they became.
It wasn’t something he needed to worry himself about; Tohaulow had been prepared for something like that to happen. A strong fighter had been fighting a strong fighter. You couldn’t blame anyone if they got injured... Huh? Is she dead? She’s fine, right?
As the referees frantically called for the medics—
“Tohaulow appears to be safe.”
Oh, good. The fox girl had been lying unmoving on the ground, but then she suddenly hopped back up. Of course you wouldn’t die from that.
She said something to Gandolph with a grin and then stepped off the ring.
That punch really looked like it hurt, though. She definitely had a few broken ribs.
“Shit, that hurts...!”
The moment Tohaulow had made it away from the eyes of the audience, she crumpled to the floor.
“Hey, Toha! You good?!”
She’d known that Sauzan would definitely come to find her here. Her pride as a Hero candidate and her ability to pretend she wasn’t in pain could only last so long.
“Take me to the infirmary. I can’t walk.”
“It’s that bad? Got it.”
Picking up Tohaulow in both arms, Sauzan dashed off.
“I seriously thought you were a goner.”
“I did too. It’s been a while since I completely lost consciousness. Ugh, could he not have held back?”
“You’d have been pissed at him if he did.”
“Of course I would’ve.”
The girl was being completely irrational, but Sauzan understood what she was trying to say. She didn’t like to think that she’d lost against someone who hadn’t been using all their strength. It was humiliating.
“Dude, Sauzan, the city is scary as hell.”
“It really is. There are far more strong fighters here than I ever imagined. Sure, we’re not using our Divine Techniques, but I didn’t expect you to lose like that. And to a regular old martial artist.”
Tohaulow could beat basically anyone at the Heroic Star Assembly with her bare fists, and yet this was the state of her now.
“Gandolph of the Heavenstriker style, huh...? I ain’t forgetting you anytime soon.”