Chapter 9: Knight Competition I (part 1)

“Ha haaap…”

I took a deep breath and looked ahead.  

There were many people, including myself, standing in the wide arena.  

The heat filled the hall, wrapping around us like a suffocating blanket.  

I couldn’t let my guard down—not even for a second. If I did, I’d be the one who got taken out the moment I slipped.  

I kept my body tense, ready to move the instant the signal sounded.

“…”

At the last moment, I closed my eyes and exhaled.  

Boom!

“Waaa!!”  

A thunderous cheer erupted as the signal blared.  

At that very moment, I drew my sword and swung it forward without hesitation.  

“Ha… ha… ha…”  

I was out of breath.  

My legs trembled beneath me, and I felt like I could collapse at any moment.  

But I couldn’t afford to.  

If I fell here, it would all be over.  

“There are only ten left,” I muttered.  

Only ten of us were still standing in this arena that had once held over a hundred.  

“It’s so d*mn hard…”  

All my confidence about breezing through the preliminaries had shattered.  

This was the Knight Competition in Heros.

The preliminaries had become more intense than usual, with over 500 participants.  

The rules were brutal—participants were divided into groups of roughly 100, and each group fought simultaneously.  

Only the last three standing would advance to the finals.  

To make up the final sixteen, up to four people would advance from the last group on the final day.  

Unfortunately for me, I was placed in Group A—the very first group to compete on the first day.  

That meant out of the remaining ten, seven more still had to fall.  

Of course, I wasn’t expected to fight everyone on my own.  

“Ha… ha…”  

I caught my breath and scanned my surroundings.  

Most of the others looked just as exhausted as I was—all except for one.  

He wore a hood, and a mask concealed his face.  

Judging by his physique, I assumed he was male.  

While the rest of us panted for breath, that man—the Masked Man—stood completely still.  

Unmoving. Calm.  

An unmistakable talent.  

Perhaps he was aiming to become a knight.  

It didn’t matter how many times I ran it through my head—there was no way to beat him. Even if the rest of us teamed up against him, he would likely take us all down with ease.  

“D*mn it…”  

That meant I had to fight everyone except the Masked Man.  

But that was easier said than done.  

None of the ten of us dared to move recklessly.  

A perfect stalemate.  

Whoever moved first would upset the balance— and no one wanted to be the one to tip the scale.  

No one… except the Masked Man.  

He was the only one strong enough for everyone to acknowledge.  

All eyes were on him. The tension was unbearable.

“Haam.”  

Suddenly, a yawn echoed through the hall.  

Of course, it came from the Masked Man.  

He showed no sign of tension.  

In fact, he looked… bored.  

“Shall we finish this soon?” he said.  

The moment he spoke, he moved.  

In a flash, he dashed to the right—straight toward me.

Impossible.  

He’d been fighting for more than three hours, yet his movement was still sharp and fast.

“Kuugh!”  

As soon as he closed in, he swung his sword down at me with blinding speed.  

I barely managed to raise my own sword to block it—  

And even then, the impact sent a jolt of pain through my wrist.  

If I had slacked off in training even once, I’d have collapsed right there.  

“Oh, not bad. I thought you wouldn’t be able to block it,” he said, his tone half-mocking.  

I wanted to snap back, but I couldn’t even open my mouth.  

“Since you blocked that, you pass.”  

He said something completely unexpected—then pulled back his sword.  

“What?!”  

Before I could react, he vanished from in front of me—appearing again to my right, already charging at someone else.  

It all happened in a blur.  

And just like that, everyone else collapsed the instant he crossed swords with them.  

Just like that, the preliminaries for Group A—my group—ended in a thunderous roar.  

The finalists were:  

The Masked Man.

Myself.

And the man who had been standing to my left.

***

“You did well,” someone said to me afterward, walking up with a calm voice.  

“…You too,” I replied, slowly reaching out to shake the offered hand.  

Up close, I noticed the Masked Man’s build was similar to mine.  

Maybe a little shorter.  

“Honestly, I was planning to leave after this,” he said. “But I had a question.”  

“A question?”  

I swallowed hard, caught off guard.  

“Why are you wasting it like that?”  

“…Wasting?”  

“I was wondering if you trained like that on purpose.”  

He looked at me with a curious glint in his eye, as if fascinated.  

But I had no idea what he meant, so I didn’t answer.  

“If that’s intentional, then your skill is impressive.”  

And with that, he continued, “Let’s fight seriously in the finals.”  

Then he turned and walked away.  

I stood there in silence, unable to move—  

Still thinking about what he said.