Enlightened Violence 65

Chapter 65: The Tournament, Part 3

"So, anyone interested in a friendly bet about who's going to win?" Kaden asked with a smile as he sat on his chair overlooking the ring. 

"No thanks," Vilhelm said with a grunt, shaking his head. "You have that shit-eating grin on your face..." he added in an annoyed tone, dismissively waving his hand to the side, causing Kaden to chuckle. 

"That said, I think Awut will win..." Vilhelm said while gesturing towards a muscular, tall, middle-aged African man. "But I'm not betting, either way," he concluded upon noticing Kaden's smirk getting broader.

"I think Link would win, but I'm not betting either," Briar said from the side. "I still have a week's worth of paperwork and guard duty I still owe you, you damned cheater..." she added with a pout. 

"But who do you think will win, Mr big-boss-man?" Briar asked, playfully doing air quotes in the air with her hands as she mouthed the last part of her sentence.

"Well, if you two are not gonna bet, then forget it," Kaden said with a shrug. "I'm not spilling the beans," he concluded, ignoring Briar's pout as he turned his attention to the fight.

The second round of the free for all had already started, and it was already apparent who would win this round as two strong contestants dominated the ring. 

The first contestant was Link, who, despite not showcasing any supernatural abilities, went out of his way to perform dazzling takedowns on any unsuspecting contestants crossing his bath.

He showed a dizzying amount of bodily flexibility as he confused both his opponents and the spectators with strange footwork as he danced through the ring, delivering blows from the most unexpected angles.

He kept a steady level of power and speed that didn't transcend human limits while taking down seemingly more powerful opponents with pure technique and skill. 

However, the few irregularities Link displayed during the fight didn't escape Kaden's eye, as the former tried his best to hold back. But he was forced on over one occasion to display a greater level of speed and power by the more powerful contestants he encountered. 

The second contestant was Awut, the man Vilhelm spoke about, and although he didn't go out of his way to show off, he still stood out because of his massive figure and fighting style. 

Awut was a force of nature inside the ring as he basically bulldozed over the competition with brute strength, his punches creating loud thudding noises that reverberated all over the training room as he didn't even bother dodging any attack.

Though weapons were allowed inside the ring, very few contestants brought any, and Awut encountered his fair share of armed opponents, and he shrugged their blows as if it was nothing, but that is neither here nor there. 

The number of contestants on the ring continued to go down with each passing moment, and soon enough, Only Awut and Link remained as Link seemed to be actively avoiding Awut.

"It's just you and me now, Link," Awut said in a calm tone as he looked at Link. "I don't know why you've been avoiding me, but you can't do that anymore," he added, crossing his muscular arms in front of his chest.

"Well, you would have just kicked my ass if I didn't, and I need to display some of my abilities since the big boss is watching," Link said with a smile, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"You and I both know that's a load of bullshit," Awut said with a frown as he lowered his arms and posture. "Whatever it is you're trying to hide, I'll make you spill it out!" he concluded, rushing towards Link. 

Link just shrugged his shoulders with the same sheepish smile as Awut reached him, trying to engulf him in a bear hug. He ducked and spun around, disappearing from Awut's line of sight in a bizarre display of footwork and appearing behind him.

Link then jerked his hand to the side, and a dagger shot out of his sleeve, only for him to catch it and plunge into Awut's left side, and Awut reacted quickly, spinning around while swinging his arm in an attempt to hit Link's head with his wrest.

Link saw this, but he didn't panic even when it seemed his attack wouldn't connect in time before Awut sent him flying, and the speed of his arm suddenly increased massively, hitting Awut's left side before the latter's attack could reach him. 

Awut briefly frowned at that despite not receiving any injury as the dagger merely bounced off his side with a metallic clang and continued his swing aimed at Link's head. 

Link's attack left him almost defenseless as he was still yet to recover his balance, leaving him unable to do anything but cross his arms in front of his face to mitigate the attack. That ultimately connected, sending him flying backward. 

Link strangely twisted his body mid-air and reached with his hand for the ground to stop his momentum, finally coming to a halt several meters ago while doing one handstand. 

"I kind of felt that..." Awut said in a calm tone, touching his left side as Link adjusted himself with a flip, landing on his feet with a smile. 

"You don't need to lie to make me feel better, Awut," Link said while rubbing the back of his neck with a smile. "That said, you sure hit like a missile..." he added, shaking his hand in pain. 

"Yet, you don't like you've been hit by a missile," Awut said with a raised eyebrow, frowning in bemusement. 

"I'm sure you'll make so that I do," Link said with a shrug, scratching his head. 

"Enough nonsense!" Awut exclaimed with a frown, decisively waving his hand to the side. He quickly lowered his posture and charged at Link again. 

Quickly closing the distance, Awut suddenly stopped a meter away from Link and lunged at the latter, aiming to ram Link's abdomen with his shoulder.

And although Awut's sudden actions surprised Link as he was expecting another head-on attack, he still reacted and dodged to the side, only getting grazed in the side as Awut swung his fist in a last-second attempt to salvage the situation.

Link then began twisting his body and maneuvered himself into Awut's left side again, delivering another stab to the same spot he targeted earlier. 

Awut frowned at the hit again and tried to be unpredictable in his counter-attack this time, as he feigned an attack with his left elbow, causing Link to take a small step back. 

Awut saw this and spun himself in Link's direction, attempting to use the centrifugal force of his spin to deliver an elbow strike with his right instead of left as he closed the distance again. 

Awut's actions took Link by surprise again, and he had no choice but to jump back while crossing his arms in front of his abdomen to absorb the impact of the hit, which connected, sending Link flying back again. 

The fight continued in this manner as Link remained content with a passive fighting style, waiting for Awut to make the first move only for him to counter-attack, targeting Awut's left side. 

Awut would also take advantage of that and land a hit after Link losses his balance, which the latter would use to make some distance, and start over.

However, as the fight went on for several more minutes, Link became better and better at dodging Awut's attacks and started landing more hits on the latter's left side while evading more and more of his attacks.

And soon enough, the two contestants were standing still as they faced each other, Link still sheepishly smiling, while Awut frowned while holding his left side with a weary expression. 

"I don't understand..." Awut said in a calm tone as he stared at Link. "Why did you avoid me when you're this strong...?" he asked, removing his hand from his side and looking at the blood staining it.

"Like I said, if I didn't avoid you, you'd kick my ass in a second..." Link replied with a shrug, causing Awut to frown in displeasure. "You're basically invulnerable, so I had to keep my distance and figure out a weak spot before I fought you," he added in a helpless tone, causing Awut's frown to ease a little. 

"I see," Awut said, closing his eyes as he heaved a heavy sigh. "There is no point in continuing this fight anymore, then," he added as he opened his eyes. 

"I forfeit," Awut concluded as he turned around and climbed down the ring, much to the disappointment of the spectating Phoenix Wings, who were watching the fight with bated breaths. 

"The winner is Link!" Briar exclaimed from the side, and the spectators began cheering. "The last round of the free for all will start shortly, so the rest of the contestants should start making preparations," she added as several people came into the ring to clean it.