One day passed.
"Are you guys ready?" the referee screamed at the two fighters standing at the center of the arena, preparing to fight.
"Start!"
Soon, once again, chatter spread through the audience in the stands. Everyone wondered who would win this match. The competition to decide who would be allowed to continue studying at the academy.
"Hahaha! I want to see his desperate face after being beaten," a young man said, his voice full of disdain and provocation.
A girl grinned. "That's right. This time, he can't use his background to help him pass the competition like last year."
"Once he fails, he'll be expelled from the academy. After that, we'll torture him outside the academy before killing him."
"Certainly, that lowly scum will be defeated."
Usually, every year, the academy selected the 100 students with the lowest grades and forced them to fight each other. In the end, only 10 students would be allowed to remain at the academy, while the rest were expelled.
Hector was always among them, yet he easily avoided expulsion thanks to his powerful background.
However, this time would be different… According to what he had read, this villain would lose in the very first round, then be killed by the MC just a few days after being expelled from the academy.
A muscular young man with a bare torso chuckled.
"Tch! Rotten shit, you should surrender. Otherwise, I'll crush your balls."
Hector just shrugged his shoulders, ignoring the muscular young man's provocation. He showed no worry, because he planned to use a sword to win.
That was right—he had a blessing that allowed him to use a sword geniusly.
However, when he requested a weapon, the referee only gave him a contemptuous look and said,
"A warrior doesn't need a weapon. Only inferior trash needs one. And the academy won't allow inferior trash to stay here."
Hector's face twisted after hearing that. He clearly remembered that the competition had no such rule.
Unless… someone had interfered with the rules of this match.
Instantly, one person came to mind.
Alaric was from one of the three great clans, just like Hector and Violet.
"He has talent with the sword, but he'll be useless if he doesn't have anything proper to use," Alaric smirked, glancing at Hector from the stands alongside Zoe.
He added, "Hope that big trash can handle him."
"That's right! We should cripple his hands and erase his talent forever," Zoe said with a smile, looking down on Hector.
***
"Shit! There's no way for me… If I'm expelled by the academy, I'll definitely die—not just by the MC, but by many other bastards too."
Hector was knocked into midair as he narrowly evaded the muscular man's punch. However, it was only temporary. The muscular man relentlessly followed up, landing blow after blow on him. Clearly, Hector didn't have enough strength to fight a martial artist head-on.
For now, he could only avoid the attacks by using [Shadow Stepwork], which he had copied from Beck's blessing.
But it was only a matter of time before he was caught.
As expected, Hector was finally kicked hard by the muscular man, sent skidding across the floor before slamming into the arena wall.
The referee clicked his tongue, as if he had already known how this match would end. He stepped forward, ready to declare the winner.
"The winner is—"
However, after receiving a signal from Alaric, he quietly nodded, a crazed chuckle escaping his lips.
He cleared his throat.
"You! Finish him quickly. He can still continue the match."
The muscular man chuckled, clearly understanding what the referee meant.
"Understood!"
After that, only the sounds of fists striking flesh and raw torment remained at the center of the arena. The crowd burst into loud laughter, mocking Hector's agony.
"HAHAHAHA! Look at him, he's so weak!"
A student laughed.
"I wish I could go down there and beat him myself!"
"Yeah, just useless trash. We're going to kill him anyway," another student said, his voice filled with disdain.
Alaric smiled, crossing one leg over the other, his hands folded together.
"This is good."
Zoe nodded in satisfaction.
***
''Sorry, friend… Now I'll cripple your hands before crushing your balls… just like I promised.''
He lifted Hector's bruised body with one hand, then prepared to land a destructive punch on Hector's right hand.
''Y-Y…'' Hector groaned weakly.
''Huh? What are you saying, punk?'' The muscular man chuckled—yet at that very moment, he dropped his guard. His right eye instantly went blind, and waves of pain tore across his face.
He screamed in rage and agony, stumbling back a few steps and freeing Hector.
The match suddenly shifted, making everyone gape in shock.
Hector struggled to his feet. Shivering, he slowly brushed his pure blue hair back, soaked in his own blood and sweat. Now, he looked so badass. He spat out a mouthful of blood and clenched his teeth in fury.
''It hurts so much.''
…
''FUCKING BITCH, YOU'VE RUINED MY RIGHT EYE!'' The muscular man roared in rage while holding his face filled with blood. He immediately lunged forward, his punch empowered with mana, aiming at Hector with pure murderous intent.
If Hector took that hit, he would die for sure. And of course, no one would stop it. Even the referee standing there only smirked, hoping Hector would die soon.
But Hector didn't panic. He had learned one thing during that match—he didn't need a sword to fight… or any weapon at all.
After all, his body itself was a sword.
With a simple motion, he brought his hand down at incredible speed.
In the blink of an eye, the muscular man collapsed, blood spreading across the floor, the metallic scent of it filling the arena.
Everyone fell silent, shocked and dumbfounded… until Hector spoke in a cold voice to the referee.
''Hey, jerk… declare the winner.''
''And one more thing—thanks for your help, son of a bitch.''
With his face twisted in the darkness, the referee grit his teeth, barely holding back his anger and the disdain he had just received, then shouted:
''The winner is...H-Hector Jenkins.''
Once again, countless murmurs—loud and soft—spread through the arena. Everyone was completely shocked by Hector's victory.
''H-How could it be? There's no way!'' Zoe cried out in anger. Meanwhile, Alaric simply turned and walked away, showing no fury—or simpler, just heading off to find a private place to pour out his rage and failure.
As for Hector, he collapsed against the back wall of the arena's resting room, utterly exhausted.
Ting!
[A blessing has appeared. Do you want to receive it?]
Name: Brutal Martial Art
Rank: ★★
[Description]: You possess exceptional talent in martial arts. Most of your blows target fatal points on an enemy's body, leaving wounds that take a long time be healed.
''Damn! Is this what they mean by no pain, no gain?''