I quickly dressed in the gear I selected, which included black pants with two blood red lines running the length of the seam on either side, and hung decently loose with fabric that was similar to sweat pants. The set also included a sleeveless shirt that was a deep scarlet red, which was eye-catching when he stood in the white room, but would likely be hard to see in dark places, and a hood attached to the back of the collar. It was incredibly comfortable and flexible, with a slightly elastic material that seemed pretty durable as well, likely made for hunting large game, which was perfect for my situation. I had hung my hat on the weapons rack while changing, and now that I was finished, I reached over, removing it from the rack and placing it on my head.

The goddess said I could keep up with most of the creatures on this planet with just my physical ability alone, but the guy I’m going against is obviously a trained veteran, unmatched by a race of beings that could rip trees out of the ground and use them as weapons. I took a deep breath, and looked at Ella, who had stepped back when I started changing, and turned around, however, she was now facing me with an odd look on her face, and I could feel a weird feeling coming from her direction. How long had she been looking at me?

A bright smile filled her face, as she extended her right arm out towards me, sticking her thumb up in the air with a wink. I felt slightly awkward, knowing she was watching me, but pushed it out of my mind since I needed to focus on the task at hand. Since my abilities are significantly enhanced, and this isn’t a fight to the death, though the height mortality rate makes me think these fights are no joke, I most likely won’t die from the first few hits, and will have the chance to surrender before my life is threatened. Losing would obviously be the easiest way to get out of this situation, but if my injuries aren’t substantial enough, then they likely won’t accept a surrender, and will make me fight so the people that paid for a ticket get to see some bloodshed.

I wasn’t sure whether the people actually paid or not, but I thought it should be taken into consideration when making my decision. My eyes trailed downward as I considered my options, and rested on my feet which I had forgotten were bare. My toes peaked out from the hem of my pant legs, feeling out of place when compared to the contrasting black of my pants, and the white of the floor. It seemed the set didn’t include shoes, so I looked back at the rack for more options, scanning the rack for something to cover my feet, which had been exposed since I came to this world. My gaze settled on a pair of boots, made of black leather with an intricate wavy design on it, a small silver spur on the back reflecting the overhead light. I smiled and shook my head, it would be fun to have boots that matched my hat, but they were impractical in this situation, so I looked past them, and continued to search.

After a while, I was unable to find shoes that fit, were light enough to not get in the way, and were a dark color, so I just took a long, black strip of cloth, probably meant to be used for a headband, and wrapped it around the the ball of my foot, slowly working my way back to the sole, and then around my ankle before tucking it in. I jumped a couple of times, kicking my feet out to make sure it wouldn’t come undone, and noticing how it allowed me to move unhindered. My toes still stuck out, which made me a bit uncomfortable, since I could imagine how stupid it would be to lose a fight due to stubbing my toe on something, and losing my balance, but this was only temporary, so I would just deal with it for now.

I returned my focus to forming a plan, but only for a moment because a voice intruded on my thoughts, pulling me into the here and now.

“Ash, your ten minutes are up.”

Ella looked at me, announcing I had run out of time, and the fight was ready to begin. I shifted back and forth, alternating my weight on each foot, and mentally preparing myself for the fight before walking towards the door. A plan had formed in my head, but I didn’t really like it since it will most likely end with me getting smacked around, and losing the fight. However I wasn’t aiming for victory, and it won’t be the first time I’ve been smacked around, not to mention this would give the quickest results if successful. If it’s unsuccessful, though, I will have to fight back and win, putting myself in a more difficult position. I inhaled deeply, holding it for a second before releasing it, approaching the only door in the room, and opening it up to something I hadn’t expected, and I blinked for a second as my brain absorbed the information.

I stepped out, not into the white room I had expected, but into a large dome with a solid black roof while big, light blue balls of light floated around, acting like miniature suns and brightly illuminating the arena. I stepped out, following the wall around the space with my eyes, and estimating it to be about half the length of the ship and oval shaped, which led me to believe we were still on the massive ship, but most likely on a lower level which is probably why I missed this massive structure. I placed my foot down on the ground, and felt something cold, and hard, so I looked down, seeing a large, reddish metal line on running under my foot, and along the entire outside of the wall, lightly pulsing at a constant rate.

I continued to walk until my feet felt the soft dirt packed tightly on the ground, coating the inside of the battle ground cushioning my steps. I saw Charles Woodlock standing in the middle of the arena facing me with a bored look on his face, a white door visible on the wall behind him where he likely entered before me. I continued to walk, approaching the center before realizing a critical variable I overlooked, and turned my head to face it. Floating blue orbs lined the walls, blocking the upper portion from my sight, but I could definitely feel it.

Hundreds, maybe even thousands of eyes were focused on me, watching my every move as I turned to face them, though they remained silent, already predicting the outcome of the fight before it even began. I became very self conscious, my heart accelerating, and sweat beading on my forehead before trickling down into my eyes. I brought my arm up to wipe away the sweat while wondering what kind of person doesn’t get scared in a fight, but buckles under the pressure of people who are simply observing him.

I was now standing directly in front of the massive elf, my head barely high enough to pass his tree trunk of a waist, and I turned my focus toward him, in hopes of dispelling my nervousness. Ella’s father was still wearing the same clothes as before, and did not wielding any weapons, which is what I had been expecting, so I wasn’t really surprised. What did catch my attention was his eyes, which glistened when they looked down at me as if apologizing for what he had to do. He was pitying me.

I became irritated, and pushed my hat down on my head, looking up at his eyes while keeping my face unreadable out of habit, which felt really weird since I didn’t remember forming such a habit. A memory appeared in my head, but didn’t take over my mind like the previous ones, it just kind of came out of nowhere, as if I had just remembered something from a long time ago. It wasn’t a specific memory of an event like the others so far, but more like a group of concepts, or rules that I followed whenever I made up my mind to fight.

The first rule: keep the goal of the fight in mind. What am I fighting for, and is it worth the risk? In this case I am fighting with the intent to lose the physical battle, and gain the ability to walk away without giving them any reason to follow me. This isn’t life threatening if I play it smart, and I will probably get out of it with just a few injuries, which should heal quickly since I am enhanced now, so this is worth the risk.

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The second rule: Give your opponent, or opponents, a fair warning and their due respect. Make sure you give a fair warning so your opponent(s) can be prepared, and if they show you courtesy, be sure to offer them the same. If they choose not to believe you, or show arrogance over courtesy, then there is not much more you can do.

“Hey.”

I caught the big elf’s attention with a quick word spoken so that only he and I can hear it, the only people who need to.

“I’m tougher than I look.”

A smile appeared on the man’s faced, and the pity faded from his eyes, and an almost respectful look appeared. I suppose that would be a normal reaction, considering how he probably thinks I’m heading to my death, I’d either be really brave, really stupid, or really cocky. I guess he’s giving me the benefit of the doubt, and going with bravery.

The third and final rule: take the fight seriously. Your opponent will, in most cases, not give you the same courtesy you give them, so do not underestimate them. My fight isn’t beating the crap out of my opponent, it’s losing the physical battle, and walking away from this alive and with minimal injuries. I have to focus and make sure he doesn’t kill me on the first blow, and after that, I should have a good estimate of his power.

“You don’t have to worry about me using magic. I noticed your particular deficiency, and had them activate the Mithril around the arena.”

Ella’s father probably said something to comfort me, but I didn’t completely understand it. I thought back to when I first stepped out into the arena, and the pulsing metal that lined the arena, figuring that was the Mithril he talked about, and from his words, it likely had a negative impact on his magical energy, or mana, or whatever the hell they called it.

[The fight will begin on my mark.]

A loud booming voice echoed through the arena, vibrating the walls with it’s impressive power, and I recognized it as the one belonging to the elf I saw earlier known as Jonathan.

[The rules for this fight are: no magic will be used in any fashion, including amulets, artifacts, and talismans. The fight will last until one is unable to fight, or surrenders. The conditions of surrender are: you must be injured enough to warrant a surrender, such as having a broken bone, or other injury that would make victory impossible. The other condition is the fight must last for at least ten minutes, after that, either side can surrender when they please, disregarding the first condition. The third and final rule is: when one surrenders while meeting the conditions, or is unable to continue fighting, the fight is over, and no more attacks are allowed. If one or more of these rules are broken, the offender will be tried, and convicted to a sentence suitable to the crime.]

The announcer laid out the rules, which were very simple, however, hearing the conditions of surrender was a little disheartening. I guess there are a lot of people here just to watch this one fight, and someone surrendering as soon as they got a couple of scratches would be pretty disappointing, not to mention it helps prevent rigged fights.

[Ready yourselves...]

The crowd made a little noise, discussing what they thought was about to happen, and likely taking bets on how I would die.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make it quick and painless. There’s no need for you to suffer just to entertain this crowd.”

The massive veteran in front of me spoke a line that sounded like something a super-villain would say right before he got his ass kicked, and I though he might have just raised a flag, but put that thought out of my mind when I remembered I was trying to lose. I thought about just running out the clock, and avoiding getting beat up, but this elf was at least attempting kindness, and dodging his attacks for ten minutes would probably just insult him and his daughter, who I am supposedly fighting for. Rule two, he showed me courtesy, so I guess I’ll just take the beating.

This code of honor is going to get me killed.

[Begin!]

Adrenaline pumped into my veins as the giant began to move. The entire world around me froze, the only things moving were me, and the veteran I am fighting, though he was a bit slower than I thought, moving at about the speed of a normal person. However there was definitely skill visible in his movements, which were calculated and precise, and I’m certain the power was nothing to scoff at either.

The man moved his right hand, bringing it up and around with a closed fist, aiming for the left side of my torso. I braced for impact as it approached, and accepted the blow full-force with a tense upper body, and a well placed left shoulder, that should absorb the majority of the damage. Contact was made, and I felt the momentum transfer into my body before I was blown away, flying across the arena while skipping off the dirt floor a few times before smashing into the wall with a resounding boom that hung in the air.

My hat, which had left my head in the attack, flipped several times as it softly drifted to the ground. The wall that my body had flown into was smashed, and crumbled into a small pile of rubble while leaving a significant hole in it’s place, and large gashes in the dirt floors surface led up to it. The arena was silent, and the massive elf looked down on the black cowboy hat with a dark expression. After a few moments passed, Ella’s father crouched, reaching down to touch the hat, and brushed the buckle lightly with the tips of his fingers.

I felt that. His hit definitely had power, and could probably hurt me if I continued to take them head on without defending myself. I lay, buried under a pile of rubble for a moment, feeling relieved that I wouldn’t have to fight, or humiliate the elf, and let out a small sigh. I pushed myself up, letting the rubble, which was similar to concrete, tumble down off my back, while noticing the clothes I’ve been wearing were still intact. I was admiring them when I noticed my head, which felt a little cold, and my eyes followed my previous path back, looking for the hat that had fallen, and that’s when I saw Ella’s father, crouched over my hat with a hand outstretched.

Bits and pieces of memories stabbed at my mind of a man, surrounded by other men who wielded guns and knives, and were moving toward the first man threateningly. The image disappeared, and a flood of emotions assaulted me, a mixture of rage, sadness, and fear being directed at that hat, and the man touching it.

My mind opened, and I could feel the air around me move and swirl with the slightest movement, and sense the dirt shift, the warmth, and emotion every person in the arena was emitting, the gravity pull, and the walls vibrate with each sound that came in contact with it. However, it was more than that. I could control it as if it were just an extension of my own body, everything near me was under my control.

I locked my eyes on my target, taking a deep breath before removing the air from the space between us, only allowing the air behind me to flow. I was propelled forward with explosive force as the air behind me rushed to fill the empty space, approaching my target with incredible speed, and throwing my shoulder into the large man before he could react. The man was launched upward, and away from the hat, still confused as to what was happening, while habitually getting prepared to fight back.

I was still mid-air, when I reached down at the small, black object in the dirt, picking it up, and placing it on my head before continuing with the assault.

Before the veteran collided with the wall, I reappeared behind him, bringing my knee into his right side, and propelling him at an upward angle, before creating another vacuum, and flying after him in pursuit. This time, the elf was prepared when I dashed at him, and swung his left leg at me in an effort to knock me out of the air, but I easily dodged and positioned myself above him with both hands raised over my head looking down at the large man, who was now horizontal in the air facing up. I brought both my hands down hard on his chest, and the elf warrior flew straight down into the ground with an incredible shockwave and an impressive amount of dirt.

I landed soon after, my feet kicking up some dirt on impact. The undefeated elf champion of the Dragon’s Maw lay in a small crater in front of me, unconscious. The arena fell into silence once more, this time due to shock at the encounter they just witnessed, and many of them just stared with gaping mouths.

“Shit. I am such a moron.”