Chapter 24, No Ill Intent (4)

Translator: Hedge

Editor: Lizzz

 

The smell of dampness, sweat, and blood.

 

Even Kalian, who had lived through years of being accustomed to such smells, could not help but furrow his brow.

 

“Entrance fee.” A man approached Kalian and held up two fingers.

 

Kalian nodded and gave the man two gold coins, and the man handed over a numbered badge. It was to be a number plate in place of Kalian’s name. Kalian silently accepted it and went inside.

 

In the center of the gambling den was a spacious iron cage where two men were in the midst of fighting. One wore a black headband, and the other wore a white one.

 

About fifty gamblers were watching the scene. Some surrounded the iron cage shouting, while others could be seen sitting in chairs with small attached tables, observing the match.

 

As he stood in his place surveying the gambling den’s scenery, someone approached Kalian.

 

It was a silver-haired girl wearing a short dress. Kalian slightly furrowed his brow at the attire that did not suit her young age. It was clear as day that these were not clothes she had chosen to wear herself.

 

The girl soon wrapped her arms around Kalian’s and gestured, guiding him to an empty seat.

 

[She must be unable to speak.]

 

When Kalian sat down, the girl went somewhere briefly and then held out what appeared to be a tray to him. It was divided in half, painted black on one side and white on the other. It was not difficult to figure out its purpose.

 

After watching the fighters in the arena for a moment, Kalian took out three gold coins from his breast pocket and placed them on the white side.

 

He had bet that the man with the white headband would win. The girl wrote down Kalian’s assigned number and that he had bet 3 fiorins on white. She passed what she had wrote to him, and left with the money.

 

Kalian turned his attention back to the front.

 

The man with the white headband was staggering after being hit by the man with the black headband.

 

“You need to duck lower when you go in!”

 

“Watch your elbows, you idiot!”

 

Various curse-laden shouts could be heard.

 

Kalian closed his eyes as if there was no need to watch the outcome of the fight.

 

Soon, an unknown amount of time passed, just like that.

 

*Crash!*

 

Along with the sound of something massive being thrown down, some people cheered while others spat out curses again. When he opened his eyes, the man with the black headband was lying sprawled on the arena floor. His face was so badly beaten it was barely recognizable.

 

The girl who had taken money from Kalian earlier approached and gave him a piece of paper before leaving. It was a certificate stating that he would be paid double the amount since the man he had bet 3 fiorins on had won.

 

“Yes! Bloody  Gerard has won again today! Now we’ll begin today’s third match!”

 

Since this had been the second match, it seemed the first match had ended before Kalian arrived.

 

The man with the black headband was dragged out, and the man with the white headband walked out with exhausted steps. The next match began without delay, and the same girl approached again.

 

This time Kalian bet on the black side. However, he did not put down any money from his pocket. Instead, he used the 6 fiorin certificate he had just received.

 

The girl wrote down Kalian’s chosen information as before, passed the proof, and left.

 

Each match took about five to ten minutes, and Kalian would put down certificates and predicted the results each time.

 

Thus, the tenth match came to an end.

 

“The tenth match has concluded. The victor is Iron Knee Pat!”

 

The match announcer’s voice rang out. Soon the girl walked over again to hand over the prediction result certificate. However, her hand was trembling as she did so.

 

For Kalian, predicting the winners of fights was not a difficult task. As such, the 3 fiorins had now grown to an enormous sum exceeding 1500 fiorins!

 

Having heard about the mysterious guest who kept predicting match results without flaw, the announcer could be felt looking at Kalian. Kalian gave a nod in response. It meant to quickly proceed with the next round, as he was in a hurry.

 

[I didn’t come here to gamble. But, Kyrie still hadn’t appeared.]

 

[Was the information wrong, or am I here at the wrong time? Maybe Kyrie had already appeared in an earlier match, which I had missed?]

 

Since they needed to proceed with the next match for the other guests anyway, the announcer spoke again.

 

“Yes. Now for the final match. The stakes are quadruple the usual payout! Many of you have been waiting for this special match!”

 

People shouted and showed their excitement, and the announcer, caught up in the atmosphere, began his booming introduction.

 

“Introducing! Sledgehammer Sean!”

 

A muscular giant stepped forward.

 

With his white headband, he stomped the arena floor and raised both arms with a roar.

 

People cheered in unison at the sight.

 

“And challenging him today, the man who never gives up!”

 

It was the final match, and it felt like Kalian’s breath would truly stop if Kyrie did not appear this time.

 

Soon, the announcer’s words overlapped with a voice from some long-ago memory.

 

“He’s already had over ten close defeats! Though he’s never claimed victory before, will today be the same?”

 

[‘At that time, I was held captive in a place, where I fought for money.’]

 

The challenger entered the arena.

 

He wore a black headband.

 

Above that headband, a vivid aqua-colored hair was visible. Kalian’s body trembled at the sight of this.

 

“The outcome had not yet been determined! Has he come back stronger than before!?”

 

[‘After my sister died, I left Cyries.’]

 

The challenger raised his head and looked around. His eyes turned toward where Kalian was, and thanks to that, Kalian could clearly see him.

 

“Introducing!”

 

The odd eyes of blue and black.

 

“Fiendeye!”

 

[It’s Kyrie! Kyrie! I’ve finally found him!]

 

…

 

The girl looked at Kalian. It was because of how much money he had bet.

 

What Kalian put down was the certificate he had just received. He had bet over 1500 fiorins. Of course, his predicted winner was Kyrie.

 

Someone standing nearby cut in.

 

“Hey, don’t throw away such an enormous amount of money like that. That bastard has never won. The fight’s worth watching but just cheer him on and bet on white.”

 

“No! Today’s the day he’ll win! Yesterday, he would’ve won if he’d been just one second faster!”

 

Come to think of it, quite a few people seemed to be betting on black despite him never having won before. The girl with the tray did not hesitate any longer and wrote down the details before leaving.

 

People watched the arena silently as the fight that had just begun.

 

Although Kyrie too was tall for his age of seventeen, he looked like a child standing before his opponent Sean. Sean, who appeared to be easily 2 meters tall, swung his muscular arm. So muscular in fact that it looked like Raven’s legs, bulging as if about to burst.

 

*Swish!*

 

With an unbelievable sound from the swinging arm, Kyrie twisted his body slightly to dodge. Then Sean’s left arm came striking up from below.

 

At that moment, Kyrie stepped back once.

 

After Kyrie had avoided both attacks, Sean quickly retracted his swung arm and extended his leg. The speed was so fast that there did not seem to be enough time to dodge.

 

Perhaps thinking the same thing, Kyrie raised both arms to take on the attack.

 

*Thud!*

 

Despite preparing to block, Kyrie’s upper body staggered with a loud sound. As Kyrie stepped back once more, Sean approached and kicked up again.

 

Kyrie caught Sean’s leg.

 

It was an action meant to momentarily throw off his balance, but their difference in weight classes was simply too much. Sean extended his fist toward Kyrie’s side while Kyrie held his leg.

 

“Haaa!”

 

Kyrie let go of the leg and quickly retreated to create distance. Then as soon as the fist passed, he rushed in. Kyrie’s heel struck Sean’s chin hard as he spun his body once. Sean’s jaw turned sideways with a cracking sound.

 

Sean, who had briefly held his head and gathered his scattered senses, charged at Kyrie, grabbed him by the waist. There, he rushed toward the iron cage wall.

 

*Bang!*

 

A loud sound rang out as Kyrie’s body hit the iron cage. Sean’s fist soon struck Kyrie’s stomach.

 

Kyrie also extended his fist and struck up at Sean’s chin where he had kicked earlier.

 

This exchange of blows continued about twenty times.

 

Blood began streaming from Sean’s nose after being hit by Kyrie’s knee. Seeing his left hand trembling slightly, it seemed he had been injured when grabbed Kyrie.

 

Of course, Kyrie was not in perfect condition either. Kyrie’s body staggered slightly as he stepped toward Sean. The impact from being hit in the back of the neck earlier seemed to linger. His eye that had been grazed was swollen, and his lip was split.

 

“He’s become so weak without a sword.” Kalian muttered with a smirk.

 

Though his words seemed relaxed, his heart was not as calm as he seemed to be on the surface. It was infuriating to watch Kyrie fighting with his bare hands.

 

Meanwhile, Sean leaped through the air toward Kyrie. His right fist extended toward Kyrie’s face. Kyrie instantly raised his arm to block, but at the same time, Sean’s left fist struck Kyrie’s side, hard.

 

“Kuhek!”

 

Making a choking sound, Kyrie leaned against the iron cage. Seeing his shoulders shaking, it seemed he had been hit squarely in a vital spot. Kalian barely managed to stop himself from jumping up from his seat.

 

Sean charged forward.

 

Kyrie raised his foot and kicked Sean hard, and as Sean stumbled back, Kyrie rushed at him again. Right after that, he struck Sean’s solar plexus with his fist. However, Sean did not seem to take much damage.

 

*Whack!*

 

As if taunting him, Sean made a fist and struck Kyrie’s abdomen in exactly the same way. It must have been near the side that was injured earlier, as Kyrie staggered again.

 

Sean grinned and clenched his fist. With Kyrie barely managing to stand up, Sean rushed in. In an instant, over a dozen punches began pummeling Kyrie.

 

Kyrie, who had been blocking the first few hits, was helplessly allowing the attacks in at some point. Though he managed to throw punches here and there, he could not deal much damage to Sean. Finally, blood flowed from Kyrie’s mouth.

 

Unable to watch any longer, a shout burst from Kalian’s lips.

 

“Kyrie! You have a habit of drawing back your shoulder before attacking!”

 

Kyrie’s shoulder flinched at the voice that cut through the numerous noises.

 

Kyrie lowered his arms that had been blocking Sean’s fists.

 

He clenched his fist, putting strength into it from the fingertips. The muscles in his arm drew taut, and tendons bulged prominently from the back of his hand to his forearm.

 

Kyrie extended his fist toward Sean’s stomach with all his might. Just from hearing that one comment, this time, his shoulder moved properly.

 

*Whack!*

 

Sean’s foot stepped back once.

 

The impact must have been quite strong, as he unconsciously clutched his stomach. As Kyrie’s counterattack landed properly, cheers from the crowd shook the gambling den.

 

Riding that momentum, Kyrie’s attacks now came pouring in like a flood. He extended his arm, rammed his chin, and executed a spinning kick.

 

Attacks came without pause, as if not giving any chance for his opponent to regain composure.

 

And finally,

 

*Thud!*

 

Sean, who had been consistently stepping back, rolled his eyes and collapsed, spread-eagled. The announcer quickly counted down, but Sean, who had lost consciousness, could not get up.

 

“Wh-what is this!?”

 

The announcer stumbled over his words as if in disbelief. However, he soon gathered himself and shouted again. His voice was filled with excitement about Kyrie’s first victory.

 

“Finally! Kyrie has won!”

 

The crowd stirred.

 

Those who had bet on Kyrie’s victory could not stop expressing joy at their great fortune today.

 

“The winner of today’s final match is! Fiendeye, Kyrie!!”

 

Kyrie turned his head while catching his breath.

 

It was toward where a boy’s voice had come from. Though it could not be seen because of the hood, somehow, it felt like their eyes had met.

 

[Who?]

 

Just as Kyrie had felt it, Kalian too was watching Kyrie through his hood. Kalian smiled as if amused.

 

“Blood-Eyes and Fiendeye, huh?”

 

Kalian soon glanced around. He was waiting for someone.

 

“It should be time.”

 

Sure enough, someone was walking toward Kalian. It was not the girl who should have brought the payment certificate for Kyrie’s victory, but a man as large as Sean. Instead of handing over a certificate, he delivered a message.

 

“Someone is looking for you. Please follow me.”

 

As things proceeded as expected, Kalian rose from his seat without hesitation. Then, he followed behind the man.