Martial Arts Worlds

At the commentator's booth.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I can't believe it!" Chris Chang jumped from his seat. "The two aces are going to battle in the first match!"

"Is there some kind of rivalry between the two?" Luca Pop guessed. "It's not like Johan to fight at the first match unless he wants to fight Kiernan at his full strength!"

"I guess we'll find out soon enough," Chris replied with a grin. "One thing is for sure—the quarterfinals will start with a bang!"

…

At the crowd.

"Johan Yeager…" Azer narrowed his eyes. "A talent that was rare even during my lifetime. I wouldn't have been able to defeat him during my high school days either."

"So, this quarterfinals match will be decided in the first match." Julia said with a worrying tone. "Johan Yeager is Martial Champion, isn't he?"

"Yes, Low Stage Martial Champion," Azer said. "The gap between High Stage Martial Fighter, and Low Stage Martial Champion is immense."

"I heard the bottleneck is extremely tough." Julia said. "Which is why most high schoolers never reach that rank during their school days. They usually need a couple of years during the Age of Growth to get through the bottleneck."

"It will be a tough fight." Azer crossed his arms. "It will be the hardest match of Kiernan's life."

…

At the big ring, Johan and Kiernan had already taken their spots at their very own corners.

The referee used the side of his hand to swipe off the sweat from his forehead. Even he was quite excited for this upcoming match.

However, he was also worried.

These two fighters had accomplished the impossible and were the only ones during this nationals to actually destroy the ring.

He hoped that it wouldn't happen again.

"The first match—Kiernan Hunter vs. Johan Yeager!"

The crowd could barely stand still.

Over half of the stadium was cheering for Johan and Tiamut High. After all, they were currently at Tiamut, so the home team had a significant advantage in terms of the amount of supporters.

Karuza High's side was small, but still loud.

…

At VIP Room.

"How interesting." Godfred rubbed his chin. "This is the first match of the nationals that actually interests me."

"Ho, ho, ho." The chairman laughed while rubbing his belly. "This is a pleasant surprise. There is no better way to start off the quarterfinals!"

Cadell leaned against his arm and looked towards the match with a narrow smile.

He hated seeing Kiernan keep winning and winning.

After doing some research, he found out that Karuza High was ranked among the weakest in the entire nationals, so he thought that Kiernan would lose quickly, but he kept winning!

Somehow he had reached all the way to the quarterfinals!

'Johan, if you lose, don't even think about joining Martial Academia!'

At another seat, Muriel looked down towards the match and kept watching without making a sound.

She looked like a rebellious teen with her all-black clothes, but she was still extremely beautiful with her elven features and the pointy ears that peeked through her black hair.

"Muriel, you've been quiet." Godfred looked over to her. "Is everything alright?"

"Yes." Muriel replied shortly and crossed her legs. "I just want to return home."

"Home? You mean Elf Kingdom?" Godfred asked worryingly.

"No, that isn't my home." Muriel shook her head. "I want to return to the academy…"

"Hmm…" Godfred nodded and touched his granddaughter's hand. "Shall we leave after these quarterfinals?"

"Mm…" Muriel nodded.

"U-uhm, but what about semifinals and grand finals?" The chairman asked in a hurry. "There are still some very talented kids here!"

"We're only here for Johan Yeager," Godfred said. "I hope this match shows enough of his talent. That's all we need to see."

The chairman, disappointed, but still nodded with a slightly forced smile.

…

"Are both fighters ready?" The referee shouted.

The crowd quieted down, but they were readying themselves to erupt in cheers at a moment's notice.

"Yes." Johan didn't have any fighting stance and just stood still.

"I am." Kiernan moved to his defensive style.

"I am honored to referee this match," the referee said and then swung his arm down. "Fight!"

"Argh!" Johan exploded off the ground and raised his fist into a throwing stance.

Kiernan sprang off the ground and met his opponent at the center of the ring.

The crowd roared in excitement.

"Kiernan!" Jin and Karuza High's members stood up.

They couldn't stand still anymore!

Without any technique and only brute strength, Johan threw his punch with all his might.

It was a punch that not a single high schooler had been able to handle before.

Kiernan moved his right arm and touched Johan's fist, but then his hand slithered across Johan's arm like a snake.

"Iron Style, Weaving Blast!"

The hand reached Johan's face, and it then turned into a fist.

The fist landed at Johan's face with a force that stopped him in his tracks.

SMACK!

When the crowd saw that, they quieted down immediately.

The first one to get hit was Johan!

When Kiernan retrieved his arm back, Johan stood still with a cold look in his eyes.

It didn't really look like the attack did anything, not visibly at least.

…

At the commentator's booth.

"Unbelievable, Johan got hit!" Chris Chang screamed.

"What a strange technique by Kiernan!" Luca Pop shouted.

"At first, it looked like he was planning on doing his famous defensive technique and redirecting the punch away, but instead, his arm moved around Johan's arm like a snake and reached out towards his face before punching!"

…

Crack!

With an audible crack, Johan formed another fist and sprang off the ground in one fluid motion.

Kiernan moved his hands in front as he moved back to his defensive style of fighting.

Johan reeled his arm way back, and then, as his left foot stomped on the ground, he swung his fist forward with all the force he could muster.

He wasn't holding back!

"Rendering Edge!"

Kiernan smashed the side of his hand against Johan's fist, but he couldn't move it an inch!

"?!" Kiernan's eyes widened in shock.

"Argh!" Johan smashed through his defenses and rammed his fist deep into Kiernan's stomach!

The mighty fortress of Rendering Edge crumbled apart!