Chapter 253 The Tournament Begins 3 (1/2)
”Wh-hat… Just happened?” After two minutes of being collapsed on the floor, Edgar, the young teen that Shin had knocked out with four blindingly fast punches, regained his consciousness and rubbed his head to quell the overwhelming pain that was piercing through his entire body.
”There you have it, senior. I told you that he would be fine after a while.” From the side, Shin's gentle voice echoed through Edgar's eardrums. ”Give him a few more minutes, and the four blocked meridians would recover, and he would be as good as new.”
”You're right… Sorry for doubting you before.”
”No, it's fine. I know that you were just doing your job.”
After knocking out his opponent, the referee almost disqualified Shin for using excessive force in a friendly bout. Although the academy promoted fights, it had to be within reason. If Shin had intentionally murdered or landed a long-lasting injury on his opponent, the referee would have been forced to disqualify him from participating in the following competitions, and Shin might have been suspended from the institution. Thankfully, Shin was well aware of what he was doing and hadn't lost control for a single second, only using enough force to temporarily paralyse Edgar.
”Am I free to go?” Now that Edgar was examined, and it was determined that Shin didn't break any rules, the black-haired boy asked if he may be excused.
”O-Of course! I wish you luck in your battles ahead.”
”Thank you...” Jumping down from the arena, Shin cautiously raised his head only to find out that the entire audience in the Lucha Amphitheatre had their eyes fixed onto his lean body. Even the adjacent matches had been stopped just so that they could spectate what had happened.
'Hah… I knew this would happen...' Shin sighed mentally as he tried his best to ignore the gazes. As someone who only sought to self-improve himself, he didn't want to have the overwhelming fame that some of his compatriots had. All he wanted to do was to do well in the tournament so that his place as the salutatorian would be secured.
Bending down his neck so that his face was obscured, Shin quickly returned backstage, where he would be hidden from the hundreds of stares.
”That asshole… He actually...” From the audience stands, a pudgy young boy was biting his nails in anxiousness. Beads of fat sweats dripped down his rounded face, and a mouthful of saliva flowed down his throat, moving his Adam's apple in the process.
”I told you that he would be dangerous...” Suji bit the bottom of his lip as he chided his childhood friend. ”Since you were the one who challenged him earlier on in the year, I'm sure he would be looking for a rematch, Dan.”
”I know...” Danroy thought back on the beating that he had rendered onto Shin, back when he thought that the black-haired youth was a pushover. ”Hmph! So what if he became faster?! He still can't penetrate my defences! What's the worst that he could do?!”
Even though the obese youth was putting on a dauntless front, it was all a facade. His kneecaps had begun to tremble slightly, and a churning fear started to swell up in his stomach.
'To think that brat could make it this far in less than a year...' Danroy was terrified. He, alongside Suji, was among the top talents of the current generation. Yet, here came this irrelevant black-haired country bumpkin who trumped all of their progression speeds to become one of the most potent powerhouses in the freshmen year. 'If he was given the full six years, what would he become?!'
”Nonetheless, so what if you really get him in battle? To be the best, you have to beat the best.” Suji 'reassured' Danroy, but his kind words fell on deaf ear.
'Hmph! Easy for you to say… You're not the one that pissed off a monster!' Danroy screamed out in his mind. ”Haha, yeah...”
”Don't worry too much about it, Dan. We should just focus on our matches first.”
~~~
Unaware of the myriad of emotions that he had put Danroy through, Shin was still in the middle of hiding himself from the public. Every so often, a stare of reverence would be shot his way as he walked down his lonely path, making Shin wish that he could dig a hole that he could hide in.
”Shin! Over here!” Just as he was about to make a run for it, an excited shout caught the attention of the black-haired boy. Pivoting his body, Shin could see a silver-haired young boy running in his direction.
”Isadore? Are you going up next?” Shin enquired.
”Yeap! They called my name straight after you exited the main stage. By the way, you did spectacularly! I didn't expect that you were that strong!”
”No, I still have a long way to go. It's still the beginning of the tournament.”
”Haha! Don't be so humble! Based on my trusted sources, I've heard that there are many members from the VIP stands that want to recruit you after this tournament is over!” Isadore beamed in delight as he revealed the information that he had just gathered.
”... Isadore. I have meant to ask you, but how are you getting all this information?” Shin finally worded out his concerns. From the first time that he met the androgynous youth, a seed of doubt had been planted in Shin's mind about the true identity of Isadore. To garner so many secrets about the members of High Society, one had to at least have a foot in the door of the aristocratic life. Yet, no matter how much he asked around, no one had ever heard of Isadore's name or family. Only Kanari acted a little suspicious as she avoided the topic, but otherwise, all leads regarding Isadore led to a dead end.
”Hmmm, I'll tell you in the future. Now's not the time.”
”What do you mean now's not the… Ah, he left.” Before he could double down on Isadore's answer, the silver-haired boy had already made his way to the centre stage, where his match was about to begin.
”Wait, now that I think of it, I have never seen Isadore fight with his Spirit before?” Shin pushed back his head as he thought back to the numerous occasions where he interacted with his close friend. Out of his entire clique, Isadore's Spirit was the only one that Shin didn't know. Although he knew it was a spear, Shin had never witnessed the silver-haired youth use it before.
”I guess now's finally the time where I can see him in action.” Instead of returning to his audience seat, Shin opted to stay right backstage, where he got a perfect view of Isadore's arena.
”Are the two of you ready?” Isadore's referee raised his hands and gestured for the two students to prepare themselves. His opponent, a combat course student, summoned out a vicious, bloody sabre, that seemed to be capable of cleaving through boulders with ease.
Isadore, on the other hand, just closed his eyes as a cool breeze brushed past the arena. From the depths of his soul, a garish resplendent light dazzled the audience as an elongated metal pole appeared on the palms of his right hand. The pole was rather thin for a weapon, and it contained a devastatingly sharp metallic blade at the very tip. However, unlike the typical spear, Isadore's Spirit also possessed a thick metal chain, which seemed potent enough to seal the heavens, binding the upper half of his weapon. Every so often, the chains of the spear would vibrate as if it was holding back a monster from escaping its grasp, hinting that there was something more to Isadore's Spirit than being a standard weapon meant for poking his enemies.
”THAT!!!” Standing up from her window seat, Lady Seph's hollered out as her voice rapidly turned nasal. Her lower jaw had dropped so far down that her full set of teeth were on prime display, sending those that sat around her to wiggle out in fear.
Rapidly throwing her head backwards, the blonde beauty sought out Principal Erudito, who was seated right next to the Duchess of Highgarden. The bronze-faced scholar raised his eyebrows and jerked back as he watched the regal goddess fly in his direction, all while the black-haired beauty beside him tried her best to stifle the giggling that was surging out.
”Someone from this generation awakened THAT Spirit?!” Lady Seph grabbed the collars of Principal Erudito shirt and started wringing away. Many of the onlookers, who had guessed Lady Seph's identity, were shocked that the ethereal beauty had begun to chide the bronze-faced man in such a violent manner.