"START!!!"
The announcer declared.
And with that—
"YEAAAHHHH!!!"
"LET THIS SHIT BEGIN!!!"
"KILL HIM, UMAR!!!"
The crowd exploded.
The fight had begun.
And here I was—
"..."
Standing silently, eyes locked onto my opponent.
I shut out the noise, ignoring everything and everyone around me.
All that mattered was my opponent—Umar.
There was about 50 meters between us.
Tap— tap— tap—
He began walking toward me, slow and confident.
He was clearly underestimating me.
But I don't care, it's better for me that way.
So with that—
"..."
I just stayed where I was.
Thinking of things how to do this.
...
Not long—
The gap between us narrowed to less than 15 meters—
"KEHEHEHEHEHE—!!!"
Umar let out a disgusting, shrill laugh.
"..."
A frown formed on my face when I heard that.
And then—
"PREPARE TO DIE, KID!!!"
BAM!
Umar suddenly launched forward, sprinting straight at me!
"...!"
My eyes widened.
I was flustered—
—but only for a second.
"..."
I forced myself to focus, steadying my breathing.
Fwip—
Both hands gripped my sword's hilt tightly.
I raised it before me—the best fighting stance I could muster.
'I need to stay calm. If I lose even that—I'm done for.'
I told myself.
"..."
I kept my gaze fixed on Umar as he charged.
Then, soon—
TAP—!
He arrived right in front of me!
And with his axe already raised up in the air—
"DIEEE!!!"
SWOOOSH—!!
He brought it down in a brutal vertical arc, aiming to split my skull!
"Gugh...!"
Swish—
I immediately threw my short sword above my head, holding it horizontally to block the incoming attack.
I managed to react in time—my weapon was light enough.
Then—
CLANG—!
Our weapons clashed against each other!
And after that—
POP—
My left shoulder dislocated on impact.
"GAAAHHHH—!!!"
A raw, guttural scream escaped my mouth from the pain!
The power behind Umar's swing was overwhelming.
"GAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
His maniacal laughter echoed.
But then—
Because of the way that I was holding my sword—
SHIICK—
His axe veered off course—
BAM!
—and slammed into the ground beside me!
"Huh?"
Umar looked genuinely surprised when that happened.
"...!"
And so was I.
I thought I'd be split clean in half. Along with my blade.
And at that moment, I saw it—
Umar's left side... It was exposed!
A wide, open target!
And without a second thought—driven by sheer instinct—
"Gurgh...!"
I grunted, enduring the pain in my shoulder!
And with only my right hand—
"HAAAA!!!"
Fwoosh—
I lunged forward, thrusting my weapon!
"...!"
Umar's face turned pale when he saw that.
'He can't dodge!'
I realized, a flicker of hope breaking through!
And then—
Phuck!
My sword struck him!
"..."
Though—
"Huh?"
It didn't pierce his flesh.
Just the leather of his armor.
It stopped there.
And seeing that—
"...!"
I froze, silent.
It didn't even reach his skin.
I wasn't strong enough.
Even with both hands, I was weak.
And right now—I had only one.
"Fuck...!"
Frustration twisted my expression into a deep scowl.
Then, as I was distracted—
BAM!
"URGH?!"
A heavy punch slammed into my face!
Thud!
I hit the ground, landing on my butt.
TING—
My sword slipped from my grip in the shock of it.
I opened my eyes quickly—
But—
BAM!
"GAH?!"
Thud!
Another punch caught me in the nose, and I crashed onto my back!
BAM!
Then another.
BAM!
And another still!
"URGH...!"
I bit my lip hard to stop myself from screaming.
Fwish—
I curled up, shielding my face with my right arm.
But then—
Fwip—
I felt a heavy weight pressing down on me!
And before I could even check who was it—
BAM!
"UGH...!"
A punch landed right on my arm, it was aimed at my face!
"KEHEHEHEHE!!!"
"I thought you had me for a second—you actually scared me!"
Umar's voice spat above me.
Of course, it was him.
I forced my eyes open, squinting—
"KAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
BAM! BAM! BAM!
—just in time to see him straddling me, pummeling my face with savage glee.
He was barehanded now.
"WOW, IT'S GOING JUST AS WE ALL EXPECTED!!!"
The announcer's voice rang out again, loud and obnoxious.
"UMAR IS COMPLETELY DOMINATING THIS MATCH!"
He exclaimed.
"GO UMAR!"
"FINISH HIM!"
"NAH, PUNCH HIM TO DEATH!"
"YEAH—THEN CUT OFF HIS LIMBS!"
The crowd went wild with excitement at the sight of me getting beaten like a dog.
It was annoying.
"EARLIER, UMAR'S WEAPON GOT STUCK IN THE GROUND AFTER A RECKLESS SWING! KAISER ALMOST TOOK ADVANTAGE—HE STABBED HIM IN THE SIDE!!!"
"BUT—!!! HE LACKED THE STRENGTH TO FINISH UMAR OFF! WHAT A MISSED OPPORTUNITY!"
The announcer played the commentator, breaking all down what happened.
"NOW HE'S GETTING MAULED TO DEATH LIKE AN ANIMAL!!!"
He added, voice tinged with cruel amusement.
He was annoying too.
But, he's right—
BAM!
"GAH!!"
I couldn't get Umar off me.
I couldn't move.
My right arm was nearly broken now too.
And just then—
BAM!
"...?!"
He punched with force and sent my arm flying upward.
And in that moment—
'Shit.'
My face became completely unguarded.
BAM!
"GAARGH!!!"
BAM!
"KEUK—!"
BAM!
"URGH!!!"
Umar started showering me with punches.
His fists landed like hammers.
I was defenseless.
Pinned.
One arm wrecked, the other useless.
Right now—
I was nothing but Umar's punching bag.
Then—
BAM!
"GUGH—"
One punch hit my temple.
And with it—
'Huh?'
My head whipped to the side and darkness swallowed my vision.
Within seconds—
"..."
Everything went black.
'Did I pass out?'
I asked myself.
But—
"AHH!! LOOKS LIKE KAISER'S OUT COLD!!!"
The announcer's voice rang in my ears.
"UMAR! FINISH HIM!"
"HE'S JUST A LUMP OF MEAT NOW!"
The crowd screamed.
And that's when I realized—
I wasn't unconscious.
My vision had blacked out from the blow, but I was still awake.
Barely.
Then, suddenly—
Fwish—
"...?"
The crushing weight on top of me vanished.
Umar had stood up.
"KILL HIM!"
"GIVE HIM A CLEAN CUT TO THE NECK WITH YOUR AXE!!!"
The audience roared.
Looks like he was going to end it now.
And me—
I didn't waste that opportunity!
"GARGH...!!!"
FWISH—
Even without seeing anything, I turned over my body and pushed myself up with my right hand!
And because my lower body was basically unharmed—
FWOOSH—
I was able to stand up immediately!
"HUH?!"
"WHAT?!"
"WHA—?!!"
I heard everyone gasp in shock—the entire arena fell into silence for a second.
And in that moment—
"Ah..."
My vision returned!
It was blurry... but I could see again.
"..."
Blood was dripping from my nose and mouth.
My right eye was swelling, and my face was aching all over.
I was breathing heavily—every inhale felt like knives in my throat.
But still—
"..."
With a glare on my eyes—
Tap—
I took a step forward.
My legs were still working.
Tap—
Another one.
Then—
FWIP—
I bent down and grabbed my short sword off the ground with my right hand.
It felt heavier now.
But I didn't let it go.
"..."
I raised my head, and through my hazy vision—
"Huh...?"
I saw Umar, looking at me in disbelief.
His battle axe was planted behind him.
He was probably om his way to get it.
Anyway—
"..."
He just stared at me in silence.
While the crowd?
"HE STOOD UP?!"
"NO WAY—HE'S STILL FIGHTING?!"
"THAT KID'S INSANE!!!"
I heard their voices roaring around me again.
The silence broke.
The noise returned.
But this time—it was different.
"..."
I wiped the blood from my mouth with the back of my hand.
Then, still locking eyes with Umar—
I slowly lifted my sword and pointed it straight at him.
My arm trembled.
But it didn't fall.
And opening my mouth—
"This isn't over yet, fucker."
I declared that.
"...!"
Umar's face immediately turned red when he heard that.