23 A Contest of Winners and Losers - Part 4

It was the next morning.

There was two hours until my next fight with the level-2 Esper, Nendo. Like the previous day, I made my way to the arena an hour or so early so I could watch the previous matches. Today, there was an exhibition match between two teachers.

There were significantly more students hanging in the stands, cheering and shouting at the two teachers who were fighting below. There were around a hundred students in the stands, which could hold up to around one thousand people at max capacity, so the stands were still relatively empty.

I looked downwards at the teachers who were fighting each other. It was obvious that they weren't fighting in complete seriousness. Neither of the teachers were using their Esper abilities offensively and only used them to either defend or enhance their physical strength. I could see that one of the teachers was a heat-type and the other one was one that could control explosions.

It was quite hard to tell with all the sparks flying around and neither of the teachers actually using their full powers but I assumed that they were around level-4. They traded punches as they bounced around the arena, using their abilities in a flashy way. One would throw a punch and the other would block with their arm, strengthened by their Esper ability.

The fight lasted around twenty minutes before one of them finally managed to land a finishing blow. His fist boosted by the momentum of fire and hot air broke through the other's explosive defensive barrier and knocked him out.

There was a huge uproar in the crowd as people rose in applause. The fight had finally concluded. My fight was going to begin in around twenty minutes so I began making my way towards the waiting room. I had already done some warm ups in Haven and I was as prepared as I would ever be.

I wouldn't be able to use the grenades again as I received a warning for using them the first time. The only reason I didn't get disqualified was because my opponent was also cheating with her poison darts. I also didn't have enough money to buy another flashbang. I would have to go in with only what I have.

I did have some last resorts if the need arises however.

**

The clock ticked in the waiting room.

It was quite humid as the day was rather warm. There was a distinct smell of deodorant although aside from that, there wasn't really anything too disagreeable. I took a seat on the bench and did a few stretches that I learnt from my time playing soccer—actually... when was the last time I played soccer? I realised I had some soccer skills a few weeks prior but I don't actually remember playing.

Well, that was a thought for later.

Suddenly, two students barged into my waiting room and stood at the door. They both had large imposing bodies and I recognized them as level-4s. I looked up at them as they blocked the exit.

'Can I help you?' I asked.

'You won't be leaving this room.' One of them replied.

'Why?'

'You have two choices, either resign or sit in this room until you get disqualified.'

'What if I report this?'

'You won't be reporting this, you don't have any evidence.'

It was true, there weren't any security cameras in the waiting room.

'We have also taped up the cameras leading into this room so you have no way of gathering any evidence of us being here.'

'Why are you doing this? Why do level-4s like you care about the success of a level-2?'

'He is a part of Rework, we always look out for each other.'

Rework... I had heard about that organisation. There was a poster on the main street written by Spectrum-Judgement telling people to watch out for them. They weren't necessarily an evil organisation, well at least Spectrum-Judgement didn't have much information on them yet. Well, this was a bit of a hassle, my match was scheduled to begin in five minutes.

I pulled out my phone and opened the voice recorder app.

'Well, I've been recording this conversation so I believe that should be enough evidence.'

Their faces looked at me in shock.

I hadn't actually been recording the conversation. These people weren't prepared for even such a little bluff. As they looked at me anxiously and then one of them smiled. They fired some sort of projectile and blew up my phone. Fragments of electronics and glass shattered across the ground, littering the floor with debris.

Ow. The projectile also injured my hand.

'Showing your evidence to the enemy, you're an idiot.' They said.

No—you're the idiot.

I turned towards the toilet stall.

'This should be enough proof, right?'

The teacher walked out.

'Yes, I will take care of the rest of this, you can get ready for your match.' The teacher replied.

The two students stared at me, frozen. Their faces showed pure anguish and confusion.

'Why... why was he in there...?'

The signs were clear from the beginning, I simply put the pieces together and found the answer. From the moment I saw the Rework tag on Nendo's arm to the unexpected withdrawal of his previous opponent. All I needed to do was to get a teacher to witness it.

~

There was an announcement on the speaker. 'Can the participants for the next match please make their way to the entrance of the combat area.'

I got up from the bench and walked out of the waiting room, straight past the two students.

I was expecting some dirty play.

Step by step walked onto the large open arena for the second time this week. The obstacles were still in the same places although there was some char and discolouration on some of them. It was likely a side-effect of the previous teacher-teacher battle.

I looked across at my opponent. It was obvious that he did not expect me to show up.

If you want dirty, I can play dirty.

I looked up as the timer slowly ran down. Nendo covered his forearms in hardened mud as I conjured [Blood Blade] to my hand.

Let's fight, shall we?