When both fighters moved, the exchange of blows was intense. Daniel’s party members all thought the same thing… “Could I take all three hits like he did?”. The speed at which Jonas attacked was higher than Zara’s on her best days. How much had Daniel fought throughout his life to have the instincts to react to such an assault? Another question that popped into their minds was how much Jonas had to train to become the monster in front of them.

Apart from the party members, the rest of the caravan was as clueless as Bryn to what just happened. But they all understood the situation by looking at the man with one knee on the floor holding himself by the hilt of his sword and the cheers coming from the crowd.

“Jonas, Jonas, Jonas…”

The villagers were excited to watch one of their leaders prevail in a duel. Unlike the caravan members, they were accustomed to the speed and power of the representative in the arena.

Daniel used his sword to get up as he got back on his guard. Looking at the man in front of him, he realized that speed would be of the utmost importance for him to have any chance of winning this debut.

“Mr. Jonas, I have to hand it to you… It has been a long time since I was pushed this far… Thank you for the opportunity.”

Turning to his challenger, Jonas replied. “You are speaking a lot for someone who barely evaded a few slappes… Will you be able to continue your streak? I wonder…”

Daniel utilized that moment to take a deep breath. Judging by Gabriel’s words, there was no risk of dying in the upcoming barrage of blows. With that in mind, he dropped his shield and sword.

“Interesting…” Said Jonas, waiting for the man in front of him to get ready.

Daniel removed all of his equipment, wearing simply his pants and shirt.

After putting the equipment at the edge outside the arena, Daniel went back to his position facing Jonas. “Thank you, you didn’t have to wait.”

“Where is the fun in that? Are you ready?”

“Come on.”

As Daniel finished, Jonas went on the offensive once again. Coming close to Daniel’s range, Jonas bent his legs in the approach as if going for Daniel’s waist. Thankfully he didn’t fall for the faint and stayed with eyes glued to Jonas’s torso. At the last possible second, Jonas looked upwards as his left hand came rushing from the side trying to reach Daniel’s ribs.

Clenching his abs and lowering his elbow by a bit, Daniel was able to block the incoming blow. When his fist met with the elbow, he could see Jonas's face, completely unprotected. Before he was able to take advantage of the situation, he registered the smirk on Jonas’s face as the impact of the punch finally kicked in.

It held so much weight behind that left hand that part of Daniel’s lungs compressed and he sighted the air he had just breathed in. Saliva comes out of his open mouth as his eyes bulge from the impact.

There was no time to think as the corner of his eyes could see Jonas’s weight shifting towards his right leg. It happened in such a fluid motion that in any other situation Daniel would feel inspired by the movement. That is until the right hand came crashing in his face's direction.

Throwing his torso back, the right hand passed so close to his eyebrows that he felt the air surrounding it. The man in front of him didn’t feel dispirited at all. Using the momentum of the backswing from the right hand to sidestep the left in an angular motion, Jonas threw a jab straight into Daniel’s left shoulder. Combined, with the backward motion from the evasion and the punch from Jonas, Daniel lost his balance for a split second.

It was enough time for Jonas to throw a kick with his right leg in his stomach.

The impact sounded like a thunderclap. The entire arena was still holding their breath since the start of the exchange. As they all reared it, mixed feelings could be seen. A few used their hands to cover their mouths. Others held their open mouths with both palms.

Like other low-level watchers, Bryn was having a hard time comprehending what just transpired. That is until Gabriel whispered. “It is over now.”

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After the thunderclap, Daniel fell to his knees. Mouth opened wide and eyes with no life behind them. His body gasped for air. Jonas slowly retracted his right leg that was still holding Daniel's torso after he fell on top of it.

“You did great, I thought you would last a single punch…” said Jonas to the man on his feet.

Walking away from what looked like Daniel’s corpse, Jonas lifted his arms around and yelled “Any other challengers?? Come on!”. As he moved his arms up and down, Bryn yelled trying to reach Daniel.

What just happened? I was sure to have evaded his right hand… Why is Bryn moving his mouth so much but I can’t hear a word he is saying?

Yelling “Daniel, come on! You can do this!!” while slapping the edge of the arena, Bryn kept using all he could to lift his teacher from the floor.

After he punched me in the shoulder I felt something in my right ribs… But his right hand was so far from them… Oh right, there was no rule about only using your hands… I started the fight with my sword and shield, why wouldn’t he use his legs? Still, he didn’t show any sign of kicking before it was too late for me to do anything. Come on Daniel, get up… Get up…

Looking at Jonas’s celebration, Gabriel stood up from his seat, walking first in Kwame’s direction. “Kwame, there was no blood drawn, but I don’t believe we need to continue with the fight, what do you think?”

Kwame was in a daze, still reliving the strikes in his mind. Movement by movement he tried to imagine himself in Daniel’s shoes and the conclusion was that he would have lost many strikes beforehand.

He could use magic, but his best spells needed time for the enchantment… Would he be able to perform them before Jonas was already on top of him? The thought was so sinister that he didn’t even realize his palms were wet just from imagining it.

“Kwame, do you believe I could end the fight??” asked Gabriel once again.

“Yes Mr…”

As Kwame was about to answer, Daniel finally emitted a sound.

His lungs were finally able to breathe as his head lifted in shock. With his eyes blinking extremely trying to reconnect with reality, he used his right hand to cover the bruise between his ribs and his abdomen. Still on his knees, his cheeks clenched in pain. Mustering all his strength, he said.

“Hey… you… We… Are not… Don… Yet” Putting his right foot forward and steeping up with his left leg.

Jonas looked back at the opponent amazed by his fighting spirit. The kick had landed flushed in his abdomen and diaphragm. That was one of the ways to incapacitate an opponent without causing lasting damage to them.

“Incredible, you can even speak after that… You really are better than I anticipated,” said Jonas.

“Stop talking and let’s fight…”

Before continuing, Jonas looked at Gabriel who nodded slightly up and down.

“Let's do it then…” answering the provocation.

This time, Jonas stayed still, waiting for his opponent to make a move.

Daniel used that time to slowly shorten the distance and recover as much as he could. Within a small distance, Daniel threw his very first strike since the beginning of the match. The punch was used to make sure Jonas was already in striking range. His hand felt a connection which triggered a barrage of strikes. Daniel used his hands, feet, knees, and elbows in a sequence of sharper and sharper attacks.

Amelia, Kaelar, Kwame, Thrain, and Zara were proud of the display of strength from their partner. Strike after strike, they could hear the connection from it with Jonas's body. They could only imagine what the man was feeling. Yes, he had hit Daniel once and almost won the fight instantly, but the combo he was a victim of was no joke.

As the attacks continued, Michelle held her brother’s hand as he yelled for his uncle.

The grandstand once again fell silent in anticipation of how would their champion take so many attacks. The members of the caravan couldn’t follow Daniel’s arms or legs, but from the eyes and sound of the crowd, they knew that the situation had changed.

That is until a few seconds and an insane amount of strikes happened. The time gap between movements was getting bigger and bigger.

“Good stamina kid, now it is my turn…” Said Jonas in the middle of an incoming elbow to the face.

As Daniel had done not moments ago, he moved his head and torso backward to evade the hit, combining the motion with a small step to the side. Daniel was putting so much strength on the attacks in the hopes of getting the first blood that he stepped forward when the elbow didn’t connect.

As his right leg went forward, his head and eyes looked right to see Jonas's hand approaching at unprecedented speed towards his face.

From his position and movement, there is no way for him to carry too much strength.

At least that was what he thought. As the hand landed on the side of his head, his neck felt all the fibers constricting trying to hold everything in place. That’s when he felt the dizziness from his brain shaking inside his skull. The knockdown was strong enough for him to completely lose the grip on his right arm and his hand to fall to his waist. Looking at the blur coming his way, he had no time to think or to react.

Despite the fight being intense, there was no animosity between the two. Both felt utmost respect for one another. Jonas held Daniel’s faint body next to him, raising his hand as if the spirit he demonstrated deserved the cheers from the crowds. A small cut could be seen above Daniel's eyebrow making Jonas the first one to get first blood.

“Everyone, thank you for your cheers today. I’m sure both fighters were only able to push themselves this much because of your support” said Gabriel as he walked into the arena.

“This time Jonas was victorious, but as you all saw it, the match was very close!”

Gabriel's words felt silent in the entire party’s ears. Close? They all thought. Repeating Daniels's hail marry off a barrage, they tried to replay it in slow motion in their mind. All connections heard by them… There is no way, could it be?

Jonas used his hands and shins to deflect the blows just enough so that he didn't take damage, but the noise and feeling of connection were still there. As Daniel’s gas was almost up, he used that timing to throw him off and turn the tables once again. That was not even what shocked them the most. The last strike Jonas had made was what troubled their minds.

At the very end, all of them were sure to see Jonas's hand close into a fist, and as he was about to strike once again in Daniels's face… He flicked the air with enough force that the movement of air cut Daniel's eyebrow.

The mere thought that someone was powerful enough to do that was inconceivable… That is for everyone except Kwame. Trice in the same day Kwame was at a loss of words to a magical display. Jonas knew that Daniel would not respect him should he win the fight in any other matter than a physical confrontation. Knowing that Jonas only used a bit of magic on that last flick of his finger to open the small wound on the opponent's face. It was delicate enough not to create any scars on Daniel’s face, but enough for Gabriel to call first blood.

There was no doubt. That day, Daniel was utterly and completely defeated.