TIZE VS. ROQUE

“It’s hard to say that either of our next two competitors really fought in the first round. Maybe they’ll actually throw a punch this time. First up, he was essentially just a performer’s assistant, The Reliable Refuge, Tize! And the second may have permanently damaged one of his deepest friendships, but he did so for our entertainment, The Scummy Swindler, Roque!”

《Kada: Oh yeah, speaking of that, how did things end up with you and Roque?》

《Chorus: The matter has been settled. Let’s just leave it at that.》

《Kada: Ah c’mon, you can’t just tease us. What happened?》

《Chorus: We both understand that we crossed a line, and that what we did was for the competition and was nothing personal. Our relationship shall continue as it always has, so I ask that we never speak of it again. Unless you want something of a similar nature broadcasted to the entire world.》

《Kada: Huh, but I’ve neve- or how would you- okay yeah, let’s just enjoy this fight!》

“So, Tize, buddy, how much for you to surrender?” Roque started haggling shamelessly.

“I don’t think you have enough money for that,” Tize shot him down.

That only made The Swindler laugh. “Oh please. Everything has a price. But I guess we need to lower the value of your sense of honor first.” A contract unfurled in front of Roque, and automatic machine guns appeared in each hand. They began firing relentlessly as the man continued to laugh.

Tize slammed down his shield, blocking every shot, and returned fire. But a new contract appeared. Several layers of clear barriers popped up in front of Roque. Any shots that made contact barely tarnished the first layer, and they even had installed wipers to clear away the corrosive effect of the paralysis munitions. Clearly, Roque had prepared well for this tournament.

Another contract appeared, and out rolled two rows of cannons. The first row fired immediately, but Tize was still fairly well protected by his shield, though a bit shaken just by the sheer volume of explosions. And then the second row of cannons wheeled forward and fired their volley while the first retreated.

Tize had to guess that they were some sort of self-reloading cannons, but it took a few seconds to do so, which was why Roque had them alternate. However, the timing was lined-up to keep him subdued. The Refuge turned his pistol into a high-powered rifle, something hopefully strong enough to puncture through all of Roque’s barriers at once.

He waited for the lull in the firing, that brief pause after the explosions subsided while the cannons were transitioning. Tize lowered his shield and raised his rifle, aiming directly at Roque’s head.

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But then he felt a tug on his left hand. Before he could realize what happened, a mechanized Racrown was skittering across the arena back to its master. “Tahahaha, I can’t believe you fell for it,” Roque almost burst into tears. “Thank you, Thievius,” he took the puck from his pet that activated Tize’s shield and then chucked it out of the arena. “Let’s see how well you defend yourself now.”

The cannons resumed firing, and Tize frantically rolled forward to dodge the barrage of explosions that detonated behind him. But then he was met with a new problem. Drones swept around him, and his body lit up from their laser sights. The man was surrounded with no escape, so instead, he dissolved his body entirely.

Orange light drifted over towards Roque, something even all of his barriers couldn’t protect him from. 『Synchronization Rate: 82%』

“How annoying,” Roque couldn’t even appreciate his newly adjusted suit. “I see you’ve taken the coward’s way. Not that I have much room to talk, but at least I don’t hide entirely. Are you going to come out from there anytime soon?”

There was no response. Instead, Roque suddenly spun around, seemingly against his will. He then took a heavy, jerking step forward. And then another. And another. “The hell are you doing, Tize?” the host’s discontent grew with each step. He tried to fight back, but his clothing kept him trapped.

“This isn’t cool of you at all. I’d even go so far as to call it cheating. Unsync!” Bits of his suit dissolved back to orange and started to drift away, but then they slammed back into Roque’s suit. “I said unsync dammit!” Less of his suit dissolved this time, Tize holding on tightly.

“You cosdamned bastard!” Roque got fed up and tried to take off his suit jacket, but that wouldn’t budge either. He couldn’t even undo the buttons. More slow steps forward, and the frustration etched deeper into the man’s face.

Roque grabbed the pen from his breast pocket and dug his thumbs in on one side, trying to break it, but it wouldn’t so much as bend. “Curse you!” The Swindler pelted the pen out of the arena as he himself slowly shambled to the edge. But before the writing utensil could hit the ground, it dissolved back into light and reappeared in the man’s pocket.

They were only a few steps from the edge now, and that sent Roque into a full raging rant. “You’re a real piece of zjik! You know that, Tize Scound?! Does your honor as a soldier mean nothing to you?! Get out here and fight me for real!” There was still no response, and Roque continued to fight him every step of the way.

Once they reached the edge, the armored suit took a step forward off the stage causing Roque to tumble and fall. Only finally then did Tize 『Unsync』 The Refuge watched from the edge as his opponent ungraciously landed on the ground just outside the arena, slamming his fist down in defeat.

“Tize wins!” Rallie hopped onto the stage to congratulate him, but his moment in the spotlight was quickly taken from him—stolen by the maniacal laughter of his defeated opponent.

“heheheheHaHahaHaAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Roque leapt to his feet, straightened his suit, and ran his fingers through his disheveled hair to straighten it. “Congratulations Tize, you’ve won. I knew that I could never beat you. So it’s a good thing that I made a bet that Roque Personson would lose by ring-out in the second round. And I wagered a fortune. Thank you for helping me become even richer!”

~Unfulfilled Wish~

Roque: A universal basic income so that everyone has the base level of support necessary to pursue their dreams, and no one will ever need to die on the streets again.