Kiernan vs. Dominic

Ding, ding!

The school's bell rang for the final time, signaling the end of the school day.

The students poured out of the school building and headed straight to the stadium. There were a few ranked matches they were excited for.

While the stadium continued to get filled with students, on the stadium's top floor, Azer gazed down at the stage through a large window.

He was dressed in a fancy black suit with three buttons buttoned up and a red bow tie. There were also patterns of black flowers on his sleeves and collars—black flowers were a trademark of Karuza High.

At that moment, the door opened to the room, and a slick-haired man entered with his chin raised in pride and a smirk on his lips.

He wore a tailored suit with black suns embroidered on the lapels.

This man was the headmaster of Irio High, Bernard. His surname was a complete mystery.

"Azer, my friend." Bernard said, extending his hand for a firm handshake. "Been long time."

Azer looked at the hand, ignored the handshake, and turned to look out of the window.

"What do you want, Bernard?"

"Hahaha," Bernard lowered his handshake and stood beside Azer while looking out of the window. "I heard that there will be some nice matches today."

"Is it?" Azer raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "I am sure you will be disappointed. Today is just some small matches to decide some student disputes."

"Oh, is that so?" Bernard chuckled and side-glanced at him. "I heard Dominic will be fighting. Is he also fighting for merely a student dispute?"

"He is fighting against a 204th-ranked student," Azer said calmly. "So, I suppose so. You know the kids; they'll find any reason to start a fight."

"Well, have you thought about my offer yet?" Bernard asked with a calm smile.

"I have, and I have to refuse," Azer said. "That sum of money is not worth it for selling away the most promising student."

"Is that so?" Bernard chuckled and raised a single finger. "I have another offer."

"I am not interested," Azer said calmly. "Dominic is the future of Karuza High. With his lead, I am sure we will reach the national stage once again."

"Only if you defeat us." Bernard hummed playfully. "Only one school can participate in the national tournament as Irio's representative. It has always been either Irio High or Karuza High.

"Irio High has been the representative for the past two years. This year, our line-up is even stronger."

Azer narrowed his eyes.

"That's why I have an offer." Bernard looked at him and smiled. "We'll forfeit the representation match."

"What?!" Azer exclaimed. This time, he was completely taken off-guard.

The representation match was a fight between Karuza High and Irio High to decide which school would represent Irio in the National Martial Arts Tournament.

It was three-versus-three, and the team that was standing at the end would be declared the winner.

It was a match that happened only once a year. That's why both schools practiced for that one match for the entire year, so they had a chance to participate in the biggest stage.

Even if they didn't succeed in the National Martial Arts Tournament, it was still a great honor to be there.

That's why Bernard's offer was absolutely ridiculous.

'He is willing to forfeit the match?' Azer's eyes shook. 'Just for Dominic? I know that he will be an important fighter in a few years, but to this extent? Is there something I don't know?'

"Oh, the fight ended." Bernard looked to the stage with a smile, where one ranked match had just ended. "The next match should be… ah, Dominic's fight."

He then turned to Azer and saw that he was taken aback. "You've got time till the end of the match to think about your answer. I suggest you use it wisely."

'What should I do?' Azer gritted his teeth. 'Our line-up this year is weaker than Irio High's. I don't think we can win, especially since they have that guy fighting for them.'

…

In the stadium's locker room, Kiernan sat cross-legged on the bench, waiting for his match to start.

He was quite calm, despite the invisible pressure weighing on his mind.

'Kiernan was really scared of Dominic.' Kiernan thought to himself with a frown. 'However, he was also angry. He got bullied by him countless times, and he wanted to fight back, but whenever he tried, a fear took over him.'

'I'll need to calm myself. I can't let emotions wreak havoc. Be calm. The fear doesn't control me.'

At that moment, the door opened and the match overseer stood in the doorway.

"The match is starting." The match overseer said.

"Alright." Kiernan stood up with a smile and left the locker room to head to the arena.

He was dressed in black shorts with white flowers printed all over them, and his upper body was shirtless. His hands were wrapped in a white cloth, and so were his feet.

After exiting the small hallway, he entered the arena with the hot sun glowing in the sky, and hundreds of students and spectators from all around Irio screamed in excitement.

However, those screams were aimed at a different side of the arena—from the other end, Dominic entered the arena with an anger-filled expression.

His upper body was also shirtless, and he was filled with well-defined muscles that made him look even more intimidating. He wore white shorts with a black flower pattern, and his eyes were narrowed in on his opponent.

Like with Kiernan, his hands and feet were wrapped in a white cloth.

The two students stepped up small stairs until they stepped on the stage. The stage was around thirty meters long and forty meters wide. It was made of concrete, and it didn't have any fences surrounding it.

The screams of the crowd faded into echoes of background noise as the two fighters exchanged fiery glances.

"Dominic, you can do it!"

"This should be a walk in the park for him. He is facing a 204th ranked student!"

"Kiernan is apparently 1-A's bread boy! This will be a slaughter!"

"I don't think the fight will last even five seconds!"

At that moment, the match overseer entered the stage and shouted loudly.

"Today's challenge match is between Dominic Raze and Kiernan Hunter!

"The rules are simple—if you get knocked unconscious, pushed off the stage, or surrender, you lose. You're not allowed to kill your opponent, not in here."

The match overseer then raised his arm and looked at the two young men.

"Dominic, are you ready?"

"Yeah." Dominic cracked his knuckles.

"Kiernan, are you ready?"

"Yes." Kiernan replied calmly and moved to his fighting stance—his front foot's toes curled up, his back foot slightly behind him, his arms in front of him in an open-palm stance.

The match overseer breathed in and then swung his arm down. "Fight!"

Swoosh!

Dominic didn't take even a second to think. He immediately rushed in with a quick charge.

After reaching the range of the attack, Dominic formed a fist. All his strength was focused on a single point on his fist. And then he punched.

It was a very fast and accurate punch.

Dominic was practicing a martial art called Raze Family Style. It was a style passed down through generations in his family.

It was a simple martial art with deep meaning behind it. It was a style that focused all strength on a single point. If that point happened to be in the heart, it would result in a fatal blow.

This time, Dominic focused the point on Kiernan's nose. He planned to cave his face in and make him pay for this humiliating match.

The cheers became louder as everyone realized that Dominic was going for the victory.

At that moment, Dominic's fist smashed straight through Kiernan's face. The crowd erupted in a mix of shock and awe as, in their eyes, Kiernan got punched with immense strength.

However, Dominic's eyes shook.

'Why didn't it feel like I hit anything?'

At that moment, the "punched" Kiernan, whose body was slowly falling towards the ground, vanished like it never existed.

"I am here." Kiernan whispered underneath Dominic's arm.

As he was about to get punched, he ducked underneath Dominic's arm to make a perfect afterimage that made it seem like he was punched when in reality he had dodged.

It was such a difficult thing to do, as it needed perfect timing. He had to dodge pretty much at the moment when the punch was about to land on his face.

"Well then…" Kiernan grinned and then slammed his palm against Dominic's face. The hit sounded chilly and crisp, echoing through the stadium.

Dominic stumbled backwards with a bloodied nose and a shocked expression plastered across his face. He had just been hit by someone he thought was an insect.

The cheers slowly subdued and the stadium suddenly turned quiet.