Chapter 26: Sparring Session
A boy found himself standing alone at his father's office building.
However, the spacious and tidy building he was used to had transford into an abandoned, rusted, and crumbling structure.
He gazed around, through so of the damaged ceiling tiles, and decided to walk into one of the computer rooms.
Inside, the computer room was unrecognizable. Everything was ruined, and the ceiling was barely there. The boy saw so computers lying on the ground, destroyed, while others were rusty, broken, and still in their place.
He felt stunned and lost in the sight of the decimated room that he used to visit often.
Suddenly, he heard sothing that he couldn't explain. It wasn't long before he felt sothing grab his arm and throw him against the room's wall.
The boy could see a tall, skinny creature with pure black skin, white eyes, long hands, and sharp nails.
He couldn't believe what he was looking at.
The boy was petrified, and he couldn't utter a word when the creature hurled him to the ground.
He lay there helpless while it seized its sharp, lethal nail, and pushed it viciously into his stomach.
The world around glitched for a mont and everything turned dark.
Slowly I looked below and found a pair of sharp black nails stabbed into my stomach and a black, very very dark hand coming out of the wound as my eyes followed the hand my eyes fell upon the creature infront of .
I could see veins and arteries running from my stomach, and I felt a strange sensation of emptiness.
My mind was in disarray as I tried to make sense of the scene in front of my eyes.
It felt like a nightmare, and it was difficult to tell what was real and what wasn't - wait, a nightmare?
Huffing heavily, I woke up, seated in my bed.
*Huff huff huff*- my breathing was ragged and inconsistent.
*Badump badump*- my heart raced like a freight train, threatening to escape my chest.
The sensation overwhelming and consuming.
The chill in the room was palpable, and I could feel the goosebumps rising on my skin.
The faint light was barely enough to illuminate my surroundings, casting eerie shadows that seed to dance across the walls.
Every sound was amplified, from the rustle of my sheets to the ticking of the clock on my nightstand.
Tick, tick, tick.
It was as if soone cranked up the volu on my senses and I could hear everything so clearly.
Despite the cold, I felt sweat on my forehead, and my clothes clung uncomfortably to my skin.
I took a deep breath, attempting to regulate my breathing and slow down my heart rate.
The fear and disorientation from my nightmare was still lingering vividly.
I continued to focus on my breathing, taking asured inhales and exhales.
Gradually, my heart rate began to slow down, and my breathing stabilized.
"F***, the sa nightmare again," I muttered in frustration, covering my face with my palm.
Looking at the clock, it was 3:00 AM.
"I doubt I can fall asleep again," I said, rising from my bed and walking towards my computer desk.
I checked the app store where I uploaded my chess ga.
It hit 100k downloads within a week.
"Aweso! Once the official docunts are done, I can start earning from the app," I thought aloud as I stretched my arms.
.....
Sparring Session, A-21 training grounds.
Professor Riya explained the rules, "Your nas will be drawn and whoever is selected will have to participate in sparring."
She continued, "As it isn't feasible to organize 200 battles, only 5 matches will be held. The draw will decide the matchups, not the rank. Therefore, even the top-ranked student could end up fighting against the ranked 2000 student."
Most students looked nervous upon hearing this.
One curious student asked, "Isn't it unfair for a weaker combatant to face a stronger one?"
Professor Riya retorted, "That's a stupid question. Battles in real life aren't fair or honorable. Who's to say that your opponent won't be much stronger than you? The academy is preparing you to face such situations."
In reality, if soone faces an overwhelmingly stronger opponent, there may be little they can do. However, by giving students an example of this in advance, it can help them maintain focus in real-life scenarios.
A mont of distraction in a real-life battle could lead to fatal consequences.
The purpose of such experiences is to train individuals to think quickly and stay focused in order to effectively deal with the situation rather than panicking and wasting ti with irrelevant thoughts on the battlefield.
"I hope I don't get matched up with a tough opponent," whispered one student.
"Please, I don't want to fight soone strong," prayed another.
"Finally, sothing interesting is happening," remarked a student, while others murmured with anxiety.
The top-ranked students remained silent.
Professor Riya approached the drawing box and drew the first na.
As she shook the box, two balls fell out with a "tuktuktuk" sound.
Riya picked them up and announced the nas, "Kai Lee" and "Abdul Aziz."
....
Both Kai Lee and Abdul approached the disc arena.
Kai Lee seed focused, assessing his opponent and preparing for the battle.
Abdul, on the other hand, looked placidly proud.
With a smirk, he said, "People often say that fighters are special, but today I'll prove that mages are better with my own abilities."
Looking at Kai from top to bottom, Abdul snorted, "A weakling like you, with just an F- strength, doesn't deserve to be in the top 10 rankings."
As far as I rember the story, Kai Lee is practices in a unique style of martial arts that enhances not just his muscles, but his bones too.
As the story progresses, he even unlocks the ability to manifest 'Ki', an incredibly potent energy that enables him to hold his own against Takahasi.
Watching the scene unfold, I couldn't help but feel a sense of apprehension.
"There's absolutely no way he'll be defeated," I muttered under my breath.
With a nod, Professor Riya gave the signal to start the match.
"The match ends when either one gets thrown out of the ring or one side accepts defeat. Fatal attacks are not allowed. Of course, I don't need to tell this, but killing is also not allowed. Now begin," she announced in a clear voice.
Abdul wasted no ti and launched his attack first.
"Flaming Tornado!" he shouted as he brought his palms together, unleashing a powerful fla that rushed towards Kai at an alarming speed.
Kai managed to dodge it by leaping into the air.
Not one to give up, Abdul quickly ford a defensive shield made of rocks as he saw Kai heading towards him.
"Go Abdul! Show him what you can do!" so of the kids in the crowd cheered.
Jas and I observed the scene with keen interest, but we couldn't help feeling a tinge of doubt.
"They must be cheering him on to stall for ti. What is he, a sacrifice goat?" Jas muttered beside , his eyes glued to the fight.
Jas-
He was the only person standing beside , or perhaps I should say that I was left alone by the rest of the crowd.
After all, who would want to be anywhere near the "machete guy"?
"Exactly. If the match stalls for long enough, it'll be a small victory for Abdul," I chid in, hoping he could at least hold his own against soone ranked in the top 10.
Kai Lee landed beside Abdul and infused his limbs with mana, appearing to trigger a silent skill.
He struck the shield concealing Abdul with force, causing it to shatter with a resounding *crack*.
In an instant, Kai executed a powerful back kick that sent Abdul hurtling through the air like a lifeless puppet.
Tears welled in Abdul's eyes in pain.
He begged, "Please, stop. I surrender-"
Without allowing Abdul to finish his plea, Kai sprang towards him and punted him out of the ring like a football.
That was the end of the match.
The match lasted only 10 seconds, a sharp contrast to the extended battles presented in ani.
In truth, a real fight could be over in the blink of an eye.
As the match ended with Kai as the victor, I could hear muted murmurs of astonishnt from nearby students, not surprising given that Abdul was ranked F-.
The ease with which Kai defeated Abdul showcased his impressive skill.
However, so students seed disturbed by the quick victory. "It's too much," soone muttered. "Only two kicks, and he beat his opponent like it was nothing. If Kai truly wanted to, he could kill with a single move in a real-life scenario."
He left the ring with an nonchalant look.
Kai Lee was a very strong character in the novel.
Although he only appeared briefly during major arcs and was never a main character.
Despite this, he was extrely powerful and stood out even as a side character.
As I looked over at the main characters located on the other side of the cylinder arena, I couldn't help but think, "If the side characters are this strong, then they're just monsters. Even with Nano's help, I don't think I could survive a fight against any of them."
'And if they are monsters?What makes of' ,my eyes directed towards Aeravat, 'him?'
But this whole fight gave an insight.
It's true that I don't want to associate with the main characters but~
"Maybe Kai Lee could be my ally?" I muttered to myself, barely realizing my own words.
The protagonist had a team, and soon enough, I would need one too.
It was clear that without a reliable team, it would be difficult for to survive the early stages of the novel, especially when facing significant events and challenges.
Anyway, as much as I rember the contents of the novel the next match should be between Nola Reinheart and so random girl, whom I don't rember properly.
As I was thinking a sudden shook ca my way-
"Next Match"
"Nola Reinheart and Noah Grey"
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