Water Rise

"Hahaha! I like the name Tender, but I just have to add Slap to make it look a bit spicy!" Gaggard said with a laugh.

Elya just looked away and said, "They don't want a real name. And I only know you as Tender!"

"Hmm!" Noah wore the uniform without complaining. It was a slightly loose sleeveless brown shirt and short trousers. He checked Elya's name and he felt a pang of anger because the name was so good and cool.

Green Tiger. That was the name. Noah ignored that by telling himself that he was a Knight and should not feel jealous of a kid. But deep down he intends to beat the crap out of Green Tiger if they cross paths, just to show that Tender Slap is mighty.

The arena was larger and there were rooms along the wall that stretched 40m up to the top. Noah and Elya sat where kids like them settled.

"Fury Fist!" 

"Water Rise!"

Two kids, about 14 and 15 respectively, came and stood by each other. Before they removed their shirts and then waited.

Noah sighed as he was already bored knowing that the fight would be uninteresting but when Fury's fist attacked his interest peaked. 

'He is precise with a fist!' Noah thought.

"Damn. Noah, he is fast with his fist!" Elya beside him said. 

Fury Fist, as his name was called, fists were fast and he coordinated them with each other by dodging his opponent's attack. 

Water Rise punches were stronger but not quick, so he was having a hard time landing a single blow while his opponent had already made him bleed his nose.

However, Water Rise has something which compensated for it, it was stamina and durability. He took so many fists before he managed to have an uppercut strike which he shouted when he managed to connect.

"Great rising fist!" 

"Haha. Water Rise, flood the Fury with your river." An old man shouted. He has bet on Water Rise. Noah shook his head, there was no way for Water Rise to win.

"Winner is… Water Rise!"

"Two punch water man!" The crowd cheered. 

Noah had just taken his eyes off the fight for a moment and it had come to an end. He looked at Fury Fist on the ground as if he fainted and the Water Rise that was jumping for joy. Noah shook his head with a smile.

'He said I should do something to entertain them. Haha. So that's what he means!' 

"Noah, they are saying that the maximum punch Water Rise ever landed on an opponent was four because he was so strong that he mostly knocked out his opponent in two punches!"

"Okay!" Noah smiled at the naivety of Elya. 

Fury Fist was stronger, faster, more durable and had more stamina than Water Rise. That was Noah's conclusion but the fight was just a show to make Water Rise win.

Thankfully the next fights were true fights and at the end of the day, Noah discovered what was happening. 

There were three categories of kids.

One category was them, the kids that were on contract and sought 100 wins to earn freedom. Many of these kids' have 10 to 32 fights. They lose and win fights but strive to have 100 wins before 100 losses. 

When they have 100 losses, they will be demoted to mere Servants where they have to work to earn their food and a place to sleep, but also in their free time, they have to come and fight in hope of getting 100 wins. 

They were mostly the losers that newcomers such as Noah and Elya fought. They were a group of servants and slaves. And at the very bottom of the fighting hierarchy.

The next was a group of winners, the True Fighters. They have their 100 wins and have the freedom to leave but they stay around to fight more and gain some money.

Each one of the Winners has a backer that handles their affairs. Water Rise and Fury Fist were in that group and that was the reason they afford to play around and give a win to the person that doesn't deserve it.

The last fight that happened on that day was the most brutal and it was between Water Rise and Green Claw. 

Green Claw wasn't that fast but he fought by clawing his opponent. He took three punches directly in the face from Water Rise but he also made Water Rise bleed by bursting his veins and almost ripping out his throat.

In the end, Water Rise won the fight but he was barely alive and he was rushed to a healer to stop the bleeding or else he would bleed to death.

"So, it can be brutal," Noah said.

"Yes. It can be. But in your group, they want nothing like that. We want you to survive and bring out your talents!" Gaggard said but then he glanced at Elya, the boy has been silent ever since the first fight.

He just realized his first fight wasn't anything special.

"There is nothing wrong with losing a couple of times. Just don't have 100 losses before 100 wins. That's all it matters!" Gaggard said to the kids to calm them down, "You can even forfeit a fight that you know you can't withstand. For example, if you are matched with Green Claw or Fury Fist just admit defeat. That will be better!"

"Can one use a soft weapon?" Noah asked.

"Soft… how?"

"Like a glove or something," Noah said.

"Not in your group. You see there are four groups …!" Gaggard then explained the three types of groups that Noah recognised with an additional one. 

There are Group D, C, B, and A. 

Group D are losers, Group C was the group Noah was, and Group B was the group Water Rise and the rest.

Group A was called a special group and the old man didn't elaborate on what they are.