After knocking on the door a couple of times, Jin and the rest of the Karuza High members entered the medical bay.
It was a private one with only two beds occupied.
"Ah, sup~" Ryan waved from the bed; his legs were badly bandaged. "We were cheering you from here."
"Fucking hell, Kiernan!" Nath laughed and sat up on his bed. "You know what you just did? Somehow you got us to the quarterfinals!"
Kiernan wryly smiled and sat down on one of the free chairs.
"How're you doing?" Jin asked the two bed individuals.
"Ah…" Nath showed his bandaged arms. "We've received medicine, but my hands are not in good condition."
"Well, my legs…" Ryan touched his bandaged legs. "I can't walk properly yet, but we're getting there. I guess I can't use my legs in the quarterfinals, but I have other trump cards up my sleeve."
Jin, hearing that, sighed loudly and said, "Right, about that. I had a talk with the medical staff, and they didn't give you two permission to participate in any of the matches anymore."
"What?" Ryan and Nath simultaneously exclaimed in shock.
"W-what the hell does that mean?" Nath asked. "We can't participate in the quarterfinals? That's bullshit!"
"We've fucking fought all the way here, and now that we can finally fight at the big ring, we are not allowed to?!"
Ryan shouted angrily.
He was fuming with his face turning red.
"It's not my call." Jin was equally frustrated. "The tournament organizers don't want a scandal. If you two push yourselves, the damage might become permanent. They don't want that."
"Those cowards!" Nath punched at the bed with his eyes tearing up. "We can finally fight with everyone in New Rakuya watching, but now the opportunity is being taken away from us."
"What does this mean regarding the next match?" Klaus asked. "Will we forfeit?"
"Obviously not." Jin said and crossed his arms as he looked at the two reserve fighters. "We have reserve fighters for a reason. Klaus and Timothy, you will fight in their stead!"
"W-what?!" Klaus exclaimed. "We will fight in the big ring."
Timothy looked very nervous and removed his glasses to rub his eyes.
Their hearts were beating against their chests.
As reserve fighters, they were going to fight in the big ring, watched by every soul in New Rakuya.
When the representation matches ended, they thought they wouldn't fight in any more matches and thought that their high school career was over in that regard.
Now they were going to fight in the quarterfinals of the nationals!
"As always, Kiernan, we have to rely on you." Jin said.
"I am not going to lie. Winning is pretty much impossible. Klaus and Timothy are only there to slightly try to damage Yves, but if we want to advance to the semifinals, you must defeat all three of them."
"All three…" Ryan sighed. "Yves, Kara, and Johan. You must defeat two monsters before facing the strongest high schooler of New Rakuya."
"Still." Jin stood up and patted Ryan's and Nath's shoulders. "We've made Irio proud. All of you have made your families proud."
"When will the quarterfinals start?" Kiernan asked.
"In an hour," Jin said. "We will be the first match of the quarterfinals. Get yourselves ready; it will be the hardest battle any of you have ever faced."
Kiernan stood up and headed to the door.
"Where are you going?" Ryan asked out of curiosity.
"Some fresh air." Kiernan waved his hand and left the medical bay.
While walking down the long corridors, he couldn't help but think about his days back on Earth.
The starting days of his martial arts career.
'Those old fucks at the dojo used to think that I would never make it as a fighter. Well, they would never be able to imagine where I am right now.'
Kiernan looked through one of the windows that showed the entirety of the stadium with nearly a hundred thousand spectators waiting for the quarterfinals to start.
'They always preached about using martial arts only for self-defense and not for competitions.'
Kiernan thought and shook his head with a wry smile.
'I never saw eye to eye with that philosophy. However, back on Earth, I never competed. I still listened to their shitty philosophy.
'However, it is pretty funny to me that killing was fine, but competitions were a big no-no.'
Kiernan chuckled to himself, and looked at his hands that were still stained with blood from the previous match.
'When I left the dojo, I honed my style to be the instrument of destruction. When I traversed through the battlefields and every shitty corner of the Earth, my style became clear.
'The style of assassination.
Kiernan clenched his hands into tight fists.
'Maybe this is the place where I always belonged. A place where my philosophy thrives.'
A voice came from behind him.
Kiernan slid his hands inside his pockets and turned around.
"You have a habit of sneaking behind people?"
"…" Johan looked straight into his gray eyes.
"Was there something you wanted to say to me?" Kiernan asked and leaned against the window behind him.
"Curious about one thing." Johan stepped closer, and it almost looked like he was growing taller.
"Are you also a monster?" Johan tilted his head and looked closely at Kiernan's features. "I can't quite tell."
"A monster?" Kiernan raised an eyebrow. "You must elaborate."
"Were you born as a monster or made into a monster?" Johan asked. "If you tell me the story of how you gained this strength, I will tell you mine."
"What if I don't want to tell?" Kiernan asked. "To a stranger."
"I won't tell anyone." Johan promised and showed his pinky. "Pinky swear?"
"Hah…" Kiernan crossed his arms. "Why do you want to know so much?"
"You've intrigued me." Johan lowered his hand. "I want to know more about you. Your martial arts rank is… pathetic, but your real strength, your martial arts, is powerful. I want to know how you became .
"Were you born as a monster, or did you make yourself into one?"
"Sigh…" Kiernan scratched the back of his head. "My story might disappoint you."
"I doubt it." Johan crossed his arms. "Tell me anyway."