Lynokis—the predicted champion—was clearly moving less cleanly compared to before her fight with Zeon. She was trying to hide it, but many people would have noticed by now. That bite from the beastkin had to hurt.
Gandolph was at the arena with his top half bared—after his fight with Tohaulow, his dogi had been ripped to shreds, so it was easier to remove it entirely. The bandages covering his right eye were painful to look at, and the scratches were clear to see all over his skin. Had Tohaulow actually managed to scratch his eye? I thought her claws hadn’t gone too deep.
There were other fighters beyond those two who were also starting to move oddly. When they weren’t in their best condition, a lot of factors other than one’s strength began factoring in to who would win the match—it made it much harder to predict the outcome. Now more than ever, it seemed likely for there to be a sudden upset.
All of that said, while there were many injured among the remaining bare-handed competitors, that wasn’t the case for the weapons division. Most were either unscathed or only suffering from very light injuries. That comparison alone made it clear what difference it made to be wielding a weapon. Most fights with weapons were decided with one blow. There were a lot of fights where whoever got in the first strike won. There were very few matches that focused on trying to wear the opponent down.
Finally, it was time for those two to step in the ring.
“Our next match is between Sauzan and Lynette. Both fighters use a style reliant on the fundamentals and are therefore very well-versed in them. How will a match between two steady fighters shake out? Let’s pay close attention.”
The two fighters squared off, both wielding blunted swords. Sauzan’s sword was just a little longer than Lynette’s—a broadsword. Lynette’s was practically half its size. Incidentally, she wasn’t using a shield this time.
Just like all imitation weapons, no weapon was better or worse than the other. It would all come down to how they handled it.
Now, how will this turn out?
“Let the match begin!”
My anticipated match was now underway.
Oh, I see... So this is how it’s going to go.
I had viewed them both as steady fighters, but that was perhaps exactly why things had turned out this way—right from the outset, a fierce clash had begun. They might have both realized that their match would never end if they didn’t take an aggressive approach. Neither swung widely, neither stepped in too far, but neither let up on their offensive as they continued their attacks. It was because both of them were skilled at such a style that their blades crossed so frequently.
At least the clash was exciting enough to watch for the audience. From my eyes, though, all I could notice was that there didn’t seem room to get in a decisive hit. It felt more like...that was what they were searching for. Lynette had her Singing Palm, Sauzan had...well, something, probably.
But...
Lynette, no. It’s not like that. Singing Palm isn’t meant to be used like a defining move, you’re supposed to use it with your regular strikes, like a way to strengthen them. It’s a very basic external chi Technique. Don’t aim for a specific time to use it, just keep using it. If your opponent gets used to it, then mix up regular hits and Singing Palms to throw them off.
Maybe...that was too much for her right now. But a prolonged fight wouldn’t be good for her either. I could already see her starting to tire.
“That’s enough!”
She did her best. Unfortunately, the moment Lynette’s chi wavered, it was over for her. Sauzan had been toe-to-toe with Lynette even without using chi himself—it was obvious that the longer the match went on, the more of an advantage he would be at.
Then again, I was fairly sure Lynette was stronger overall by just a smidge. But Sauzan was just better with the sword than Lynette. That was probably why he’d been able to continue a clash with her. Even the Singing Palm Lynette had fired out in desperation had been predicted. The moment Sauzan put a stop to that, the match was over. He ended it very stylishly too, thrusting his blade to her throat. His ability was nothing to scoff at.
“And Sauzan is our victor. Lynette lost in the battle of endurance. That was an aggressive match neither had been part of until now.”
What was more, Sauzan wasn’t even out of breath nor was he even slightly injured. Even against Lynette, I never got to witness his true potential.
So this is a Hero candidate of the Heroic Star Assembly.
I definitely wanted to see his potential. Same with Tohaulow, as another Hero candidate.
“Next is the match between Anzel and Free... What?”
Bendelio suddenly wrote something on the blackboard, and I couldn’t hide my surprise. Are you serious? I asked with my gaze, and he nodded with a straight face.
Seriously?
Oh, of course. Are we nearing your time limit, Fressa?
“Ahem, it appears that Freeze has dropped out. We will deliver the details as soon as we know more.”
Fressa was a resident of the underworld. She must have come to the conclusion that she couldn’t afford to stand out any longer. Honestly, even making it this far seemed like a risk. It wouldn’t have been an exaggeration to say she was famous by this point.
The pair must’ve made some sort of deal behind the scenes. I imagine Anzel bought her out. Honestly, rather suiting given their roots. I wouldn’t call Fressa out for it. She’d fought her matches fairly until now, and even helped create hype for the tournament. I wanted to respect her choice.
Let’s put that behind us and move on.
Nia had guessed correctly. On the night of the fifth day, Anzel and Fressa had met in secret. They’d chosen an area beside the lodgings where they were certain they wouldn’t get caught. It was dark enough that you couldn’t see anything without looking closely.
The deafening noise of the day had been replaced with the deafening quiet of the night. The wind was cold, but winter hadn’t truly started yet—it would only get colder from here.
A while after Anzel had lit a cigarette and leaned against the wall, Fressa silently appeared beside him.
“I saw you on magivision, you know? Look at you making a name for yourself.”
What a greeting.
“Talkin’ about the portrait thing?” Anzel replied. “I’m just tryin’ to increase my popularity. I can’t run away whenever I want in the way that you can.”
Fressa could flee Altoire the moment things got dangerous for her, but Anzel couldn’t, not yet. He would only make his escape once he’d won the tournament or once he’d reached as far as he could go...or when it seemed like he was about to get arrested. The moment any of those happened, there was no need for Anzel to be considerate. He didn’t believe Kaffes would think badly of him for it either. If he did, Anzel would be pissed. He’d just tell him, “It was your fault for choosin’ the wrong man for the job in the first place.”
“You’re trying to increase your popularity?” Fressa asked, eyebrows raised.
“The more popular I am, the more value there is to my name. The only reason they’re turnin’ a blind eye to what I’ve done is ’cause they can still use me. ’S why I haven’t been arrested yet. At least, I assume that’s why. I think I woulda been arrested well before now otherwise. That’s why I’ve timed it the way I have.” He had no proof, so he wouldn’t confidently state it out loud, but he was pretty sure that Kaffes had worked his magic as well.