Second Round, First Half Over

Azu's slash tore deep across Banzan's shoulder.

She landed and tried to press the attack, but Banzan's body vanished.

He'd been ruled unable to continue.

His eyes hadn't been dead, though. In a real battle, the counterattack would have come immediately.

Azu's heart was hammering from the tension. She managed to calm her ragged breathing.

Once it settled, she wiped the sweat away and finally let it sink in: she'd won.

The referee called Azu's name and declared her the victor.

A thunderous round of applause.

She gave a tentative wave, and the cheering swelled even louder.

Everyone was celebrating her magnificent victory.

Azu was taken aback. Only then did she realize how remarkable what she'd done actually was.

The applause continued until Azu was out of sight.

Then came the second match of the second round.

Finn the dagger-wielder versus Dalia the dancer.

Finn twirled the daggers in both hands.

It seemed to be a habit of hers.

Shoulder-length black hair. Black eyes. Some would call it an ill omen.

Dalia, by contrast, swayed through a languid dance, her flax-colored hair flowing past her waist.

Finn spoke up, sounding mildly annoyed.

"Hey, auntie. How about you forfeit? You can only win against men anyway."

"Oh my, hehe. Scared, little girl?"

Dalia shot back without missing a beat.

"There was an easier way to win, so I took it. And for the record, I'm still young."

With every move Dalia made, her sheer fabric billowed, flashing glimpses of the body beneath.

Popular with the male spectators, naturally.

"Says the woman dressed to please."

"As if you aren't doing the same?"

Finn's spinning daggers stopped cold.

Dalia's words had struck a nerve.

"Fine, don't forfeit then. Don't say I didn't warn you."

Finn walked toward her casually. Dalia kept dancing.

When just five steps remained between them, Finn vanished.

No sound. No telegraph.

Dalia drew the whip from her hip and, still dancing, cracked it against the ground.

She struck just behind and to her right.

Finn was there.

She'd been approaching from Dalia's blind spot in perfect silence, daggers in both hands, aiming for the throat.

Finn dodged the whip and pressed forward.

Dalia evaded Finn's attacks with rhythmic grace.

Her flexible body twisted and bent past every sharp, lethal-aimed strike.

It looked as though the two of them were performing a rehearsed dance together.

Finn lost patience and broke off the attack.

"What's the matter? Done already? Your rhythm's all off, you know."

"Shut it."

Finn cut Dalia short.

"Quit flitting around. It's annoying, auntie."

Finn moved again.

This time, she simply walked right up to Dalia.

Dalia found it odd, even while still dancing, and lashed out with her whip.

Finn caught it with her right hand. She'd sheathed that dagger at some point without anyone noticing.

"You're pretty good at dodging, I'll give you that. But seriously, just stick to dancing for men."

With that, Finn drove a kick at Dalia's solar plexus.

Dalia released the whip and tried to evade.

Finn snapped the stolen whip at Dalia's right leg and caught it.

Then yanked as hard as she could.

Dalia's right foot left the ground.

With only her left foot still planted, Dalia leapt, extending both legs toward Finn.

"Give it a rest."

Finn dodged, then slashed Dalia's throat.

Dalia's body vanished. Finn's victory.

Finn sheathed the dagger in her left hand, looking thoroughly bored.

The applause was sparse. A few boos mixed in.

The showy fighting style from the preliminaries had completely disappeared.

Unlike the first round, Finn didn't spare the audience a single glance. Once her victory was declared, she vanished from the stage.

Then, the third match of the second round.

Spartian warrior Obias versus seeded warrior Brusseo.

Brusseo faced Obias with his prized battleaxe.

Obias, unchanged from the first round, hurled his Spartian shield.

Brusseo batted away the incoming shield with everything he had while pushing forward.

He deflected it twice, three times, advancing each time.

But on the fourth deflection, Brusseo realized it wasn't just shields flying at him.

So focused on swatting them away, he'd forgotten to account for the javelin throw, a staple of any Spartian warrior's arsenal.

The spear, launched simultaneously with the shield, struck Brusseo in the gut. His body vanished.

Obias advanced to the third round.

The first half of the second round was over.

An intermission was called.

Spectators filed out of their seats to grab food and drinks.

Master left his seat too.

He bought a cold drink and headed for the waiting rooms.

During intermissions, even non-contestants could enter the rooms if they were part of a competitor's entourage.

He passed Finn in the corridor. She looked irritated. Master stepped aside to let her through.

Finn clicked her tongue as she went by.

He knocked on the door of the waiting room the arena staff had directed him to, confirmed it was fine to enter, and found Azu sitting around with nothing to do.

Apparently the main tournament gave each fighter their own private room.

When Master walked in, Azu's face lit up.

"Great work out there. Brought you a drink and a change of clothes."

He'd prepared a spare outfit just in case, and handed it over along with the drink.

The water canteen he'd given her had apparently already been emptied.

"Thank you!"

She sipped the drink slowly, swallowing the cold, fruit-infused water.

Her throat moved with each gulp.

The sweat had dried, but her body was still flushed, giving off a strangely alluring quality.

When Azu finished the drink, Master took the empty cup.

She changed right there. For Azu, this was just routine at this point.

Master, on the other hand, was the one nearly getting flustered.

Azu had grown in more ways than one.

He handed her a towel, and after she'd wiped off the sweat, she changed into the outfit he'd brought.

She'd been wearing trousers under her skirt, but he'd swapped them for shorts to give her better mobility.

Azu moved around a bit to test the fit. Everything seemed fine, so Master gave her a few words of encouragement and left the room.