CHAPTER NINETEEN

The First Weekly Tournament

At the end of the week, Apprentice gathered them in the training courtyard.

"The rules are simple," he said. "Each of you will fight. Victory means rising in the ranks. Defeat means falling. There are no second chances. There is only strength."

The fights began immediately.

First Match

Kaïdën's first opponent was a cocky noble, a boy with slicked-back blond hair and a smug expression. He twirled his short saber lazily, grinning.

"I think his name was cole".kaiden thought

"You got lucky getting into the top ten," he sneered. "I'll show you what real martial arts look like."

Kaïdën didn't respond. He simply studied his opponent's stance—wide and unbalanced, too reliant on strength. The moment Apprentice signaled the start, the noble lunged forward, his saber flashing in the afternoon sun.

The attack was slow. Sloppy.

Kaïdën sidestepped effortlessly, the blade slicing through empty air. The noble barely had time to recover before Kaïdën twisted his body and launched a spinning kick, his heel connecting sharply with the side of his opponent's head.

The impact sent the noble crashing to the ground, unconscious before he even hit the dirt.

Gasps rippled through the crowd. The match had ended in mere seconds.

Kaïdën exhaled, rolling his shoulders as he stepped away. Too easy.

Second Match:

Immediately after his first match his second match began

His next opponent was nothing like the first.

A mountain of a girl stepped into the ring, his arms thick as tree trunks, her knuckles cracked and bruised from previous battles. Her name was Jok, and her strength was legendary among the trainees.

Author note:she was the one he defeated during the first competition

And yes that her name, a boyish name for a tomboy

As the fight began, Kaïdën immediately darted forward, aiming for a quick strike to test his opponent's defenses. He launched a sharp kick to the ribs—

—only for Jok to absorb the blow as if it were nothing.

Kaïdën barely managed to leap back before a massive fist swung toward his head, the sheer force of the punch creating a gust of wind. He dodged left, but Jorn anticipated it, his other hand slamming forward in a palm strike.

Kaïdën twisted his body at the last second, feeling the air shift inches from his ribs.

He couldn't afford to be hit.

Jok was too slow to keep up with Kaïdën's speed, but the problem was that Kaïdën's attacks barely affected him. He needed a different approach.

So, he began to move.

Kaïdën dashed around Jok in unpredictable patterns, striking from different angles—sharp kicks to the thighs, quick punches to the ribs, even a jab to the solar plexus. But every hit was like punching a slab of iron.

Jok grinned. "That all you got?"

Then, he charged.

Kaïdën had no time to dodge—the massive boy was already upon him, swinging a fist down like a hammer. Instead of retreating, Kaïdën did the unexpected—he stepped forward.

At the last possible moment, he shifted his weight, slipping past Jorn's guard and using his opponent's own momentum against him. Jorn stumbled, but before he could recover, Kaïdën struck—

A precise elbow to the temple.

A knee to the gut.

A final, crushing kick to the back of the knee.

Jok wobbled, his body swaying. He swung again, but his movements were sluggish, unfocused. The exhaustion had set in.

Kaïdën didn't waste the opening. He swept Jok's legs from under him, sending the giant toppling to the ground with a thunderous crash.

He didn't get up.

Kaïdën had won.

Third Match:

Kaïdën barely had time to catch his breath before his final opponent stepped into the ring.

A boy with black hair and wine-colored eyes. A noble Kaïdën had not fought before.

Her presence was different. Calm. Focused. Dangerous.

Apprentice ken signaled the start.

Kaïdën moved first, closing the distance in an instant. He aimed a sharp jab toward the noble's ribs—

—but his fist met only empty air.

The noble had disappeared.

A flicker of movement.

Kaïdën barely turned before a palm strike slammed into his ribs, sending him skidding backward.

He gasped, feeling the impact reverberate through his bones. He had fought strong opponents before. Fast ones, too. But this noble was something else.

Kaïdën dropped into a defensive stance, but his opponent was already moving. A blur of motion—then another strike, aimed at his shoulder. Kaïdën twisted to avoid it, but the noble's speed was inhuman. The attack connected, numbing Kaïdën's arm instantly.

He gritted his teeth. He had to find a way to counter—

Another strike. This time, a blur of fingers aimed at his throat.

Kaïdën barely tilted his head in time, but the attack still grazed him, the sheer force making him stumble.

Damn. He couldn't keep up.

He tried to retreat, but his opponent was relentless. A kick to his side. A palm strike to his chest. Another brutal blow to his shoulder.

Kaïdën's vision blurred.

Then—

A final palm strike crashed into his jaw, and the world spun.

He barely registered hitting the ground before darkness crept into his vision.

By the time he came to, the match was over.

He had lost.

The Aftermath

Kaïdën sat on the sidelines, watching the final matches unfold. He clenched his fists, frustration burning through him.

Though he lost to the 6th rank,he had still risen to the 7th rank after defeating that tomboyish young lady

And the other non-noble? He remained in 10th.

The weekly tournaments weren't just about strength.

They were battles of survival.

And next time, Kaïdën wouldn't let himself be taken down so easily.