They rushed Rhys into the infirmary and placed him on a soft healing bed. Warm light washed over him as the healers worked, slowly fixing the bruises, burns, and all the other "almost died" problems he had collected.
Rhys finally let out a long breath.
"...Okay. Maybe I won’t die today."
One healer checked a clipboard.
"Good news. Your next match isn’t in three hours."
Rhys blinked.
"...It’s not?"
The healer shook his head.
"You’re in the seventh bracket of the top twenty. Your match is the seventh one. That ans you have plenty of ti to rest. Maybe even two hours more than you thought."
Rhys’s eyes widened.
"So... I get extra rest?"
Another healer nodded.
"Yes. At least five to six hours before you need to fight."
Rhys almost cried.
Puddle floated above him, arms wide.
"MASTER HAS BONUS SLEEP TI!! THE GODS HAVE RCY!!"
Rhys collapsed deeper into the pillow.
"I take back everything I said. I’m definitely not dying today."
Sophia sighed in relief.
"Good. Because I would drag your ghost back just to yell at you."
Caria slumped into a chair nearby, notebook ready.
"So... more fights later... more explosions... great. I’ll get another notebook."
Lyra simply stood at the doorway, calm as always.
"You should rest. Your power output was unstable."
Rhys groaned.
"I KNOW it was unstable. My bones rattled."
Puddle patted his chest.
"MASTER BONES ALWAYS RATTLE. IS NORMAL."
Rhys didn’t argue. He was too tired.
The healers finished their spells and covered him with a warm blanket.
"Just sleep," one of them said. "You’ll recover much faster."
Rhys didn’t need to be told twice.
His eyes closed.
His muscles relaxed.
And for the first ti since the fight started, he felt like he might survive the day.
Puddle curled beside him, humming softly.
"MASTER SAFE. MASTER STRONG. MASTER SLEEP NOW."
Rhys muttered half-awake,
"Wake when it’s been... six hours... not before..."
"YES MASTER!" Puddle shouted proudly.
Sophia whispered to Caria,
"He’s going to oversleep, isn’t he?"
Caria nodded.
"Absolutely."
Lyra closed the door behind her.
"Let him rest. He earned it."
And so Rhys drifted away into a deep, much-needed, very well-deserved sleep...
...with no explosions for at least six hours.
Maybe.
Rhys slept like a corpse.
No dreams.
No thoughts.
Just silence.
For the first ti in days, his body wasn’t screaming at him. The healers’ magic worked steadily, nding muscles, calming nerves, restoring mana. The room stayed warm and quiet.
Puddle sat on the edge of the bed like a tiny guardian statue, glaring at anyone who ca near.
A healer peeked in.
Puddle hissed.
"NO WAKE MASTER. MASTER IN HIBERNATION MODE."
The healer backed away slowly.
Hours passed.
Sophia ca back first, checking a clock.
"...Three hours left," she whispered. "He’s still completely out."
Caria peeked in behind her.
"He looks dead. Should we poke him?"
"No," Sophia said imdiately. "Poking him might cause another explosion. Look at him—he’s smiling. He only smiles when unconscious or doing sothing insane."
Lyra entered quietly, carrying tea.
"He should wake up naturally. Forcing him awake will only shock his mana core."
Puddle pointed at them dramatically.
"MASTER WAKE WHEN MASTER READY!"
Sophia crossed her arms.
"Fine. But he better wake up soon."
**
Thirty more minutes passed.
Then—
Rhys twitched.
Puddle gasped so loudly he fell off the bed.
"MASTER MOVED!! MASTER ONLINE!! SYSTEM REBOOT COMPLETE!!"
Rhys groaned and sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes.
"...How long was I out?"
Lyra checked the clock.
"Five and a half hours."
Sophia sighed with relief.
"Good. That’s enough. You can stand now, right?"
Rhys attempted to stand.
His legs trembled...
His knees buckled...
And he imdiately sat back down.
"Nope," he said. "Legs are decorations now."
Caria scribbled furiously.
"Note: Post-battle Rhys turns into jelly."
Sophia stepped forward with her arms out.
"Okay, co on. We’ll help you walk."
As they helped him up, Rhys tested a few steps, wobbling like a newborn deer.
After a minute, his legs finally rembered they were part of his body.
"...Okay. Mobility restored," Rhys muttered.
Puddle raised both little fists.
"MASTER REVIVED!! TI FOR ROUND TWO!!"
Rhys froze.
"...Oh no. I forgot. I still have to fight."
Lyra nodded calmly.
"Your bracket match starts in thirty minutes."
Caria pointed at the arena outside the window.
"They’ve already fixed the arena floor. Again."
Sophia handed Rhys a water bottle.
"Drink. And don’t blow up the stadium this ti."
Rhys gulped the water down, stretched his shoulders, and took a deep breath.
"...All right. Let’s go."
Puddle floated beside him proudly.
"MASTER FIGHT!! PUDDLE SUPPORT!! WE DESTROY—"
Rhys grabbed him.
"No destroying. Absolutely no destroying anything."
Puddle blinked.
"...Maybe just a little?"
"No."
Sophia rolled her eyes.
"Let’s just hope your next opponent is normal."
Caria adjusted her glasses.
"Oh, he’s not. I checked the roster. Your opponent is soone called—"
The door to the infirmary suddenly swung open.
A huge silhouette filled the fra.
Everyone froze.
A giant, muscular man with a boulder-sized axe rested on his shoulder stepped inside, staring straight at Rhys.
His voice rumbled like thunder.
"Rhys. You’re fighting next."
Puddle squeaked.
Sophia whispered,
"...That is not normal."
Rhys stared blankly.
"...I want to go back to sleep."
The man grinned.
"Great. Because I’m about to wake you up properly."
Rhys exhaled.
"...I changed my mind. I AM going to die today."
And with that, the seventh match was about to begin.
Rhys blinked at the massive axe.
Not because it was big—everything today had been big.
But because it was glowing.
Not a normal glow.
A violent, swirling, blood-red aura wrapped around the blade like it was alive and growling.
Rhys pointed weakly.
"...Why is your axe... bleeding magic?"
The giant laughed, a booming sound that shook the tal bed.
"This?" He lifted the weapon with one hand like it weighed nothing. "This is Bloodmaw, my bonded axe."
Puddle hid behind Rhys’s head.
"MASTER... THAT AXE LOOKS LIKE IT EATS PEOPLE."
The giant nodded proudly.
"It does."
Sophia facepald.
"Of course it does..."
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