With the door opening, Kiernan returned back to the locker room but came across some sour-looking teammates.
"What happened?" he asked.
"Didn't you see our next matchup?" Klaus felt like crying crocodile tears. "Ambrossa High, cursed!"
"Are they any good?" Kiernan asked.
"Good? Better than that." Ryan scratched the back of his head. "They're the third strongest school in the nation, spearheaded by Kasimir Kerr!"
"Yeah, I met that guy. He was among the top 5 youths." Kiernan sat down and took a sip of the water. "I expected him to be good."
"That's not all…" Nathaniel, still slightly depressed about the last match, said. "If we win, our quarterfinal match will be against Tiamut High."
"It's not looking good." Timothy nudged his glasses. "They're opponents that are beyond our league for now."
"Don't talk like that." Jin stood up and clapped his hands to make such thoughts go away. "We're already among the best in the nation. We must push through!"
Everyone nodded and checked the time on the television. It was about forty minutes before the start of the next match.
While they were focused on the television, Jin sat beside Kiernan and leaned closer to whisper.
"Do you think you can advance?" Jin asked with a wry smile. "That would be pretty useful right now!"
"Sorry, coach, but I ain't feeling it." Kiernan said. "Middle Stage is still some distance away."
"Alright, that's very understandable." Jin chuckled to himself, then stood up and patted him on the shoulder. "Gather your strength. We'll need you at your best."
'I guess I'll go get some fresh air.'
Kiernan slipped his hands inside his pockets and left the locker room.
A short walk later, he stepped out of the stadium's side entrance and leaned against a pole that held the ceiling overhang above the entrance.
With the fresh air caressing his face, he was able to see a sea of people near the front entrance of the stadium.
Since it was quite packed already, not even half of them would be able to find seats inside, so they were mostly watching through the big screen outside.
"?" Kiernan looked over and saw a young man hold an arm of an older, well-dressed woman, trying to stop her from leaving.
It looked like they were having an argument.
"Come on, it was just once." The young man scratched the back of his head in annoyance.
"Once? As if!" The older woman laughed angrily. "You had five women in your hotel room! That's not how first-time cheaters act!"
'Oh, lovers quarrel?' Kiernan crossed his arms over his chest and kept observing the scene.
"Sigh, whatever, go." The young man turned his back on the woman and waved his hand. "I'll need to prepare for the upcoming match."
"Ah?" The woman stomped on the ground angrily and screamed. "Fine, go you bastard! I never want to see you again!"
With that, the young man walked over to Kiernan and caught sight of him.
"Oh, it's you." Kasimir scratched the back of his head. "Enjoyed the show?"
"Yes, it was like watching drama." Kiernan shrugged his shoulders. "I wish I had some popcorn with me."
"Glad you enjoyed it." Kasimir yawned, and approached the entrance.
"Shouldn't you go after her though?" Kiernan curiously looked at him.
"Why should I? She is bothersome, making a scene like that." Kasimir shook his head and opened the door. "I am sure she will come back, begging. She always does."
"Right." Kiernan rolled his eyes. "I guess I am too young to understand the complexity of relationships."
"Yeah, you're only sixteen, aren't you?" Kasimir said. "Impressive talent, I must say."
"You should come to Ambrossa High when I leave," he said. "This school will be at loss without me."
"Oh, you're praising yourself highly." Kiernan smirked.
"Of course." Kasimir spread his arms wide. "I am carrying this shitty excuse of a school after all. Like you're doing with Karuza, another school that is way over its head."
"I am quite fond of this school." Kiernan said, and side-eyed him. "Don't talk badly about it. It might upset me."
"Hmm~" Kasimir turned around and entered the stadium with the door coming to close behind him.
Kiernan slipped his hands inside pockets again and softly whispered.
When the holographic interface appeared before him, he opened the inventory and took out a small pill.
It was the Iron Style pill.
'Maybe I am forced to use this next match.'
Kiernan tossed it up into the air and caught it before it landed on the ground.
He then slipped it inside his pocket, turned around, and entered the stadium.
The stadium's lights turned bright, and the attention of the spectators turned to the rings.
There were only eight rings left, as there were only sixteen teams left to compete for this year's championship!
Within the lights, the remaining teams entered the stadium and arrived next to their respective rings.
While the number of teams had drastically decreased, the excitement in the audience had only increased.
"Only sixteen teams left!" Chris Chang's voice reverberated through the speakers. "Who will advance to the quarterfinals? In the round of 16, eight teams would get eliminated, while the remaining eight would move on to the next round!"
At the second ring, Karuza High members sat on their benches, but they couldn't help but look at their opponents.
The members of Ambrossa High wore purple jerseys with a menacing dragon logo on the front. It was their pride and joy, as apparently, thousands of years ago, Ambrossa was protected by a guardian dragon.
The truth of the matter was never clarified, but they believed wholeheartedly in the legend.
"Nathaniel, are you ready?" Jin patted the young man on the shoulder.
"I think so," Nathaniel said.
He wasn't as confident as he was in the previous round.
"Trust in your martial arts." Ryan whispered to him. "It has gotten you this far, hasn't it? The more you trust in it, the stronger you will be."
Nathaniel slowly stood up with a nod and headed up the stairs to the ring.
'Kamala Style…' With a deep sigh, he arrived at his corner of the ring.
By Ambrossa High's bench, a young man with dead-looking eyes stood up. He slowly removed the earbuds from his ears that were blasting with heavy metal music.
It was surprising that he hadn't gone deaf.
"Aight~" The young man made his way to the ring and faced Nathaniel with a dead look.
The referee was a bushy-bearded man. He looked at the two contenders and roughly nodded.
"The first match between Karuza High and Ambrossa High!
"It is between Nathaniel Waters and Xenon Haworth. Are both fighters ready?!"
"Yes…" Nathaniel moved to his fighting stance and breathed deeply.
"Mm…" Xenon lazily nodded.
'He is Martial Fighter.' Nathaniel thought. 'I am going to get beaten to the pulp, aren't I?'