Short black hair, scars, large yet functional muscles. The man before me was the definition of a fighter.
That wasn't why my heart felt the way it did.
In his gaze, I swore I could see death itself. Souls danced in the hell black abyss he dared to call eyes. It was frightening, it was unsettling, it was petrifying.
The shiver that ran down my back made me weak, sweat moistened my hands, and my mouth had turned dry. I couldn't even muster the courage to call off the fight.
A thought ran through my mind when I saw the misty beige card floating around him.
I'm going to die…
It was a thought I had often, but never had it stopped me from fighting for my life.
This moment wasn't any different.
The scared little voice in my head was replaced by one of disgust and indignation. I'm not going to die, I refuse. Hell be damned if I fought this long to die to some nobody in a godforsaken fight club. I will not die, that is a fate I refuse. F*ck you for considering it. Tonight, the Executioner will become the Executed…
What right did I have to give up? Outside this fight club, someone was waiting for me. The simple thought of leaving her made my heart burn.
My eyes focused as the Executioner dashed toward me, leaving afterimages where he passed. Acting purely on instinct, I flicked my hand and disappeared. Using the carried momentum from my sudden teleportation, I threw a punch into the Executioner's side. My figure disappeared in the next instance and I appeared a few meters away.
Phew…
A short breath was all I could take, stopping for longer may very well spell death. I dashed toward my enemy and threw another hook, this time aimed just under his armpit. Before the Executioner could block, I vanished and appeared behind him, my fist digging into his back.
I retreated a few steps.
Phew…
Another short breath and I'd need to get back into the fight. My opponent's expression didn't reveal his state, his devil cold eyes casually scanned the arena for his prey.
He vanished from where he stood, moving so fast that the dust under him didn't even move. I snapped my head to the side just in time to dodge the punch he had thrown.
Even in the brief few seconds since the fight had begun, I was slowly piecing together my opponent's Nexi.
Whoosh! I dodged another one of his punches, feeling the air besides me rush to the point of almost igniting.
That's twice now, I can tell his strength is beyond human, the same can be said for his speed. It would be safe to assume that also applies to his durability. Tier I, Ability: Body Augmentation, Class: Flesh? I can't be sure, I'm basing that off the color of his Nexi, it very well could be something else. But assuming the class is Flesh then his tier two should be of the same class, right?
Another close call pulled me from thought. The Executioner's fist grazed my cheek, drawing blood.
The cold feeling down my cheek made my heart jump. An association had been made in my head. If the Executioner's tier II was also a Flesh Class, then wouldn't the ability to control blood also fall under that umbrella?
Can't take the chance…I wiped the blood from my cheek as best I could. This opened a small window for retaliation.
The Executioner didn't need to be told to take advantage of this opening. He dashed forward and threw a punch.
Barely, just barely, I managed to jump back and dodge the punch. This proved to be useless.
In the air, right in front of the Executioner's fist, a flame-red card had appeared.
I really couldn't have been more wrong….My thoughts turned light as the air in front of me seemed to catch fire. With a loud boom, I was sent tumbling. My body only stopped when I hit the metal cage around the boxing ring.
The Executioner's tier I Nexi had indeed been something akin to a flesh type but my guesses about his tier II were completely wrong. I had assumed that, like any sane person, my opponent would have a tier II that corresponded to his tier I.
My mistake was assuming that my opponent was sane!
There was only one thing I could do now: die with honor.
If this is really the end then it wouldn't hurt to fight fair, for once in my life, I won't have to fight like a dog. I wonder what the afterlife is like… My thoughts were abnormally calm for someone about to die.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!" I screamed as I ran towards the Executioner.
I threw forward a punch, aimed at his stomach. A grin illuminated my face as I winked at the colossus I was about to hit.
"Vanir," My figure faded into thin air.
I'm way too young to die! I thought, not losing any momentum as I appeared in the changing room not too far away. I picked up the brick I had prepared ahead of time in a fluid movement and disappeared once more.
I appeared in the air right above my opponent, who was still confused by my sudden "retreat".
I plummeted from above, the brick gripped tight in my hands.
The Executioner finally noticed me—his cold, devil eyes widening ever so slightly. He had prepared for a punch, a blade, a Nexi attack… not this.
He started to raise a hand, but it was too late.
THWACK!
The brick slammed into his temple at Mach speed. I heard bone crack.
The Executioner's stance wobbled. For the first time, he looked shaken.
I landed, took a step back, and saw it—his balance was off. His body, enhanced or not, still needed his brain to function. And his brain had just been bricked.
"Huh," I breathed. "Would you look at that…"
He took a knee.
And I didn't hesitate. I flew toward him and threw a kick at his head.
Scrrrr!
I let out a deafening scream, overshadowing the crack of bones.
"V-vanir," I managed weakly, disappearing and appearing a few meters away. The Executioner was still alive. He had used my temporary overconfidence to counterattack and break my leg.
I hobbled and leaned against the metal cage that isolated us from the now roaring crowd outside, barely making out my opponent's form at the edge of my tear-stained vision. He was standing, a look of pure fury in his eyes.
I had, at most, ten seconds to end this.
There was no time to hesitate, I could only act.
"Vanir!"
My body didn't disappear.
Instead, a blood-red object appeared in front of the now kneeling Executioner.
The object was vaguely conical and extremely asymmetrical. It still pumped with life, causing blood to spray everywhere.
It was his heart. It had been teleported out of his body.
I didn't even have time to relish in my victory when my head felt like it would split in two. I fell to my knees as I clutched my aching skull. I mumbled incoherent words and fell to the ground, unconscious. My body still jerked in pain despite my state.
In the crowd, an onyx emblem gleamed under the fight club's dim lighting. On the emblem were six roses, each made of a different colorful gem. The emblem's owner was a thin man with messy black hair and deep eyebags. He took an exasperated sigh while fidgeting with a golden yellow card in his hand. On one side of the card, a pair of heavy-looking handcuffs were drawn in silver, while on the other side, the word "Cohihi" was written in the same moon colored paint.
Just above the word were three distinct lines: III.