Before the semi-final match between Kane and Giyori started, Sharon walked down the hallway. Not too far from her, Ral stood, leaning against the wall. His eyes were closed as he crossed his arms.

“Shouldn’t you be in the audience seats?” she asked.

“And let anything bad happen to you? Never trust anyone outside of our family, remember?” Ral warned.

“I still haven’t. Besides, what could a mere boy like him possibly do?”

“He could beat you and run away with the feather. Kane’s kinda strong, you know.”

“You’re worrying too much. I might be the weakest, but I’m not that weak. I have prepared for anything,” reassured Sharon.

“…” He silently stared at her before sighing. “If you say so.”

“Look. I’ve been doing this for years and also, I’m no longer a child, Ral.” She walked ahead first. “We’ve been here for too long. Let’s hurry to watch the semi-final.”

Ral simply silently followed her from behind as his answer, gazing at her slender back.

Both went to the audience seats. Upon arriving, many people — mostly men — swarmed them, trying to court her. While dealing with them, Sharon glanced at Ral. He growled before stepping forward and staring them down from a superior height.

“Scram!” Ral hissed.

They all immediately apologized before fleeing. Sharon looked at the puffed-up Ral and said, “Thank you, Ral.”

“Why should I be the one to scare them? Can’t you do it by yourself?”

“Because I have a particular image to maintain, and your face is scary enough without resorting to doing ‘that’,” teased her.

“Hmph, whatever.” He turned his head away.

After clearing that nuisance, they went back to their previous seat. Not too far away from them, an old man sat on one of the chairs. He was cloaked in a torn greyish robe. His face was tranquil until he noticed the siblings when they were approaching.

“Ah, you must be Miss Sharon.” He stood up. “You may call me ‘Zild’, the master and teacher for Giyori. Pleased to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine.” Sharon bowed.

“Hm, you’re quite a beauty, aren’t you? Such a pleasant sight for weary eyes.”

“Oh Sir Zild, you’re praising too much.”

“But that handsome man beside yours is even more so. What is your name, young man?” asked Zild.

“I’m Ral. You’re strong, aren’t you? Let’s fight!”

“Ral! How many times do I have to tell you? Don’t go picking a fight with anyone out of nowhere!”

“It’s alright, Miss Sharon,” calmed Zild. “Ral, was it? Very well, I suppose I accept your challenge.”

“Heh! Then, let’s pick a spot—”

Zild interrupted, “After I finished talking with Miss Sharon.”

“I’ll be waiting, then,” grumbled Ral.

Sharon kept smiling, keeping her elegant appearance. “What matter do you wish to discuss?”

“Oh, you don’t have to be so formal with me. I am merely a poor elderly man.” Zild chuckled before his expression turned solemn. “Although, I have one request: withdraw your brawler from this match.”

“Hoo? Interesting. Why are you suggesting that?”

“You see, I have seen many people throughout my 70 years. Be they strong or weak. Talented or not — I’ve seen them all. Nevertheless, I’ve never seen a talent like Kane before.”

“And your point?”

“It’d be a shame if he were to die here by my disciple, Giyori. Kane might be a very talented fighter, but he’s still lacking in terms of power. With her high strength and refined martial arts, she could easily cripple, or even — kill him.”

“Pfft!”

Hearing someone holding back laughter, they turned toward the source. It was Ral.

“Is something funny?”

“Just ignore him.” Sharon facepalmed. “I appreciate your concern, Sir Zild. However, the decision ultimately depends on Kane himself. I’ve given a way out from this match, after all.”

“Hm, I understand. You are truly a good master.”

“You’re praising too much.”

Then, Sharon and Zild continued the conversation, leaving Ral alone. Not long after that, the semi-final began.

---

Kane panted heavily as he sat against the steel bar. The beating finally took a toll on him. Not to mention, his easy way out — as Ral described it — had gone. He now had two options left: either get knocked out painlessly or win the fight. A rather low odds, but Kane had used to that. While getting the feather back was important, his life was obviously number one.

“What’s the matter, Kane? Already tired?” she snickered, staring down at him. “You said that you’re still holding back, right? Don’t tell me those were just empty words?”

Tasting his own medicine was never great to him, though it could be worse if he did taunt her. Kane stood up, correcting his posture — not sure due to his pure willpower or her words managed to pierce his pride. Definitely the former. There was no way for an ex-saint like him to care about some random girl. Nonetheless, he had to take this more seriously.

---

With a stern expression, Kane said, “I wasn’t really that serious. Now, I will be.”

“Oh, really? Then, show it.”

“Of course. If you can take my blow, then I’ll admit you’re stronger than me and concede immediately.”

“Hm, alright! I accept your challenge! Come at me!” she roared.

“Here goes nothing.”

Kane took a step back, pulled his fist, and lunged at her. He screamed on top of his lungs. On the opposing side, Giyori lowered her stance, showing her palm at the charging half-oni. She was confident to take his full power punch since her strength was much more superior than him. Moreover, the incoming attack was too obvious for her eyes.

Her plan was: when Kane entered her range, she would redirect the attack and grab his arm before countering with an uppercut. Giyori was certain that it would be a clean one-hit knockout by using his speed.

A moment later, he almost entered her range of attack. His fist was thrown. Giyori reached for Kane’s hand as she had planned before.

“Too easy!” she shouted.

However, Giyori grabbed nothing but empty air as if his arm had vanished. She even saw no one in front of her.

Upon this realization, Kane had already retracted his arm and charged against her stomach with his head. The momentum pushed her backward but still maintained her stance. She immediately tried to punch him in the face, however, Kane was already out of her reach. When Giyori looked at him, one thing she noticed first was the red blood covering both Kane’s horns. She didn’t know why and decided to dismiss it.

“Is that all you got? Too bad, I’m still standing, Kane.”

“Not for long,” he replied. His voice contained a hint of pity.

“Huh? What do you mean—” Before she could complete a sentence, Giyori winced, convulsing her face. She touched her stomach and felt warm liquid flowing from two holes. She was finally hit with a realization: she was bleeding. Her blood dripped down, forming a small red puddle beneath her.

---

It worked. The move that he came up on the spot worked wonderfully.

Although Kane had had this idea since the first time he fought in this cage, he hesitated to use it; he wanted to challenge himself, testing his limit. Unfortunately, his opponent was too strong for him to fight fair and square.

“You!” Giyori gritted her teeth. “That’s dirty!”

“So?” Kane raised an eyebrow.

“I can’t believe you resorted to a dishonorable tactic! Aren’t you a warrior?” she complained.

“Nope. I’m currently a mage student.” Kane shook his head. “You can keep blabbing on and on about honor, fairness, or whatever; but in the end, they don’t win a fight. I’ve learned it the hard way.”

“You’re… you’re wrong! Do you even enjoy such a hollow victory?” asked Giyori once again.

Kane scratched his ear. “A win is a win, no matter the means.”

“Giyori!” a loud shout filled the entire room, silencing everyone. Looking at the source, it came from an old man. Another martial artist, it seemed.

“Master Zild?” she responded.

“Don’t just sit there and fight! He’s stalling until you run out of blood!”

“Tch! He found that out.” Kane clicked his tongue. If her teacher didn’t interrupt, Kane could win without doing anything. That’s why he replied to Giyori’s pointless accusations. Whatever. He stalled more than enough to win.

At this point, the fight became a battle of attrition.

“You’re right, master!” She then glared at Kane. “I won’t forgive you, villain. Prepare yourself!”

“Why am I suddenly a villain now?”

Unsurprisingly, she ignored his rhetorical question and charged much faster and mightier than before despite her injury. Her eyes brimmed with hatred as if they were set ablaze. Her previous tranquility had completely gone now, replaced with violent rage.

Kane moved aside, then ran away to his left. Almost crashing against the steel bars, Giyori took a sharp turn and dashed toward him. Her speed was so great, she closed the distance almost in an instant. She delivered another punch except both her power and speed had diminished compared to before, making it easy for Kane to dodge. He then threw a one-two punch to her wounded stomach and then backed away. Even in her current state, he had to remain cautious. His punches might not be the strongest, but it should be enough to hurt her — which they did. She recoiled, wincing before going after him again.

He fled as she chased. When she attacked, he avoided it and countered with a couple of strikes. This pattern was repeated three times. Her blood almost covered the entire caged arena.

“Coward! Stop… running away!” she yelled, out of breath.

Of course, Kane had no intention to agree with her plea — that would be the same as throwing away his advantage.

“You can attack me with your horns, you know,” said Kane casually as he played a cat and mouse game with Giyori.

“Never! I’ll never stoop that low!”

“What’s the point of having them, then?” he asked.

“They’re our racial symbols! Our pride! And you, who use them in such a terrible manner, are a disgrace to oni!”

“I see.” Kane nodded until his foot slipped. “What the—!”

He then stumbled a little bit; the floor was slippery. His fingers scraped the blood. Glancing at his behind, Giyori was catching up, seemingly unaffected by the puddle.

“Got you!” she shouted.

He immediately whipped his bloodied hand at Giyori. The splash hit her eyes. She stopped and covered them while writhing in pain. A chance! Kane drove a front kick to her jaw and sent her flying backward. She skidded on the ground before collapsing.

Was it finally over?

Panting heavily, Kane sat down. His body was covered in sweats. He hoped she stayed on the ground until the referee declared him as the winner since he had almost no energy to stand up again. Moreover, the pain began to flare up. It hurt. Between his breaths, the audience was shouting something, not his name, but rather, Giyori’s.

Then, her finger twitched, then her arm, and finally her body. Shaking, she clenched her fists and used them as a crutch. Her white clothing was now stained — no, it was more like — dyed in crimson color. Contrary to Kane’s thinking, Giyori was smiling despite all of the injuries he had inflicted.

“Get up… Kane. Let’s continue… our fight.”

He grinned. An image of himself flashed briefly. How strange. He decided to stand up, barely able to support his body. “You’re a great fighter, Giyori. Too bad you faced against me… or it’s great for you.”

“Shut up and take my last attack!” She pulled her arm and ran toward Kane. Each of her steps created a splash.

This time, Kane didn’t move nor did he run away. He couldn’t take his eyes away from witnessing her unwavering will. What a rare sight to behold. At that moment, he cared no longer about winning and losing. Still, Kane would give everything he got to defend himself in this last attack and finish her off.

However, Giyori’s eyes turned white, and she fell before even getting near him.

In a blink of an eye, her master arrived in the caged arena and caught her, almost as if he teleported right into it, even though he didn't. With a warm smile, Zild’s hands hovered near her stomach and poured his vis into the wounds; the bleeding stopped.

“You have done enough, Giyori. Good work,” muttered Zild.

Then, he looked at Kane. The familiar sensation had returned once again.

Murderous intent — much, much more intense than Ral’s. Based on how everyone was unaffected, it was only aimed toward him.

What should he do now?