The referee quickly checked Ryan and motioned for the medical staff to take him away as well.
He wasn't going to wake up any time soon!
After the medical staff came with the stretcher and took Ryan away, Wieland made his way to his corner and waited for his next opponent to arrive.
Again, the change in the mood had shifted.
Ambrossa High was celebrating as if they had already won while Karuza High's supporters were solemn-looking.
"Kiernan." Jin patted him on the shoulder. "Don't get grabbed by your opponent. I am slightly familiar with Reed Aikido, and it is not something you want to mess with."
"Alright." Kiernan stood up, and after taking a short sip of the water, he walked up the steps to the ring.
"You can do it, Kiernan!" Timothy and Klaus screamed.
At the spectator stands.
"This is looking horrendous." Azer thought with an ugly expression. "Wieland Reed and Kasimir Kerr are both insanely talented individuals."
"Quarterfinals are so close…" Julia thought out loud. "I can't bear to watch."
Azer crossed his legs and interlocked his fingers. He wasn't in a mood to talk anymore, but instead put all his attention on the ring.
Inside private Irio's commentator's booth.
"Ladies and gents, the time has come for Karuza High's final fighter to make his stand!" Graham spoke into the microphone with a serious expression.
He'd been commentating for all of Karuza High's matches so far. At first, he thought it would be a short job.
He thought he would only have to commentate one match, maybe two if Karuza High was lucky with their matchup.
But against all odds, they were already at the round of 16, fighting for the spot at the quarterfinals!
It was unprecedented!
He was a small-time commentator, usually commentating some second-rate league matches, but now, he was making a name for himself as the view count for the broadcast had skyrocketed!
Every single household in Irio was currently watching!
"Karuza High's ace, Kiernan Hunter, had been absolutely magnificent throughout the whole tournament. It wasn't far-fetched to say that he'd been carrying the whole team!
"He was just elected to be part of New Rakuya's Top 5 Youth, which was an incredible honor, and he is only the second person ever to receive that honor from Irio.
"The first one was, of course, the great Azer Karuza, who led Xaru High to Irio's first-ever championship!
"Now, Kiernan is facing the biggest obstacle in his martial arts career. Wieland Reed, and if he gets through this formidable opponent, he will be facing another Top 5 Youth, Kasimir Kerr!"
Graham took a comfortable position in the chair, but when he looked at the screen where the match was about to soon start, he could only wonder how in the world can Kiernan win?!
'This is looking bad.' He thought. 'However, reaching the round of 16 is already an incredible achievement, and Kiernan is only a first-year student! With him, the next years will only get better and better!'
"The fourth match is between Wieland Reed and Kiernan Hunter!" The referee shouted. "Are both fighters ready?!"
"Of course." Wieland returned to his karateka stance.
"I am." Kiernan stood in his usual defensive stance of Iron Style.
"Ah, I am not much of a runner, so." Wieland rubbed the back of his neck and started slowly walking towards Kiernan.
It was almost like he was just having a morning stroll!
"I never understood the fighters that are rushing." Wieland said with a smirk. "Isn't that right, Kiernan?"
"I agree." Kiernan started walking and soon met Wieland at the center of the ring. "I am in no rush."
"Heh…" Wieland stared intensely into his eyes.
The two young men stood at the center of the ring. Not even a distance of a meter between the two. However, neither of them was making a move.
After ten seconds of waiting, Wieland's eye twitched slightly, and he shot his hand forward. It looked like he wanted to grab Kiernan by his jersey!
"Don't let him grab you!" Jin screamed.
Kiernan slapped Wieland's hand away.
"?!" Wieland looked at his hand and noticed that his thumb was broken!
When Kiernan slapped the hand away, he grabbed Wieland's thumb without him noticing it and broke it!
"You nasty motherfucker…" Wieland's back was instantly covered in a cold sweat.
"Come on, grab me." Kiernan reached out his hand forward as if he were doing a handshake. "I promise I won't break your hand."
Wieland used his other hand that didn't have a broken thumb and squeezed on Kiernan's hand.
'You fool! Now that I've grabbed you, I can control you like a puppet!'
Wieland grinned through pain and started shifting Kiernan's center of gravity, but after a moment of trying, Kiernan wasn't moving an inch!
"Iron Style, Anatomical Bind." Kiernan squeezed on Wieland's hand.
Wieland immediately dropped down on his knees with a shocked expression plastered across his face.
Shocked exclamations came from everyone that watched the match.
"Huh?" Kasimir slowly stood up with a serious expression. "I thought he was a striker. How come he is better than Wieland at aikido?"
'Kiernan…' Jin gulped. 'Seriously, what the hell is your style?!'
Kiernan slammed his feet across Wieland's legs, sweeping his legs from underneath him, and then lifted him above his head.
Wieland, with a shocked gaze, looked below him at Kiernan, who was effortlessly holding him above his head with only their hands interlocked.
"Iron Style, Sceneric Shift!"
With that, Kiernan tossed him down to the ground, and Wieland smashed into the concrete ground headfirst.
The referee jumped into the ring and shouted. "One!"
"Don't bother." Kiernan walked past the referee and rubbed his shoulders. "He won't wake up from that one anytime soon."
"?!" The referee went to check on Wieland and noticed that he was out cold!
The match that everyone was anticipating and expected to be a long and gruesome one ended so unexpectedly and quickly!
"The match is over!" The referee shouted loudly. "Winner is Kiernan Hunter!"
The cheers from Karuza High's supporters were deafening.
'I've been miscalculating his strength.' Kasimir crossed his arms with narrowed eyes. 'I must recalculate and reassess this young man's abilities. Kiernan Hunter, I applaud you!'