He stepped into the arena without knowing who he would be facing, although he had a feeling he had seen or heard of him recently.

It wasn’t until a big guy with exaggerated muscles and a huge fist entered the arena that he remembered.

’Ah. The big guy from last night.’

Matthew nodded. According to rumors, this guy might have the heaviest and strongest fist of all the participants. Having to face him in the very first match revealed that this place would not be easy from now on.

Besides...

He looked at a board listing the different groups to reach the top and "Be the Champion." There were only two.

If he beat this guy, he would advance to the Quarterfinals, where he would face either Bruno, the Young Assassin trained by Richard Brooks, or Barrett, ranked 21st, who used spears.

That match surely wouldn’t be difficult, but the one coming up next, the semifinal...

Although there were other names that could have gotten there, it was clear that the one who stood out the most was Juliet. Given how outstanding she is, it would be extremely rare for her not to reach those stages.

Furthermore, if she did reach those stages, she would do so by getting rid of that guy named John, so she would reach them better than Matthew himself.

’Hehe, I guess I got lucky. I wonder if there will be a surprise.’

Matthew focused his attention on his opponent, who was already staring at him.

"I guess I was unlucky, huh?" said the man, who was clearly not used to talking, but couldn’t hold back his words when he saw that he had been matched against this guy who instilled fear just by standing on the arena.

Matthew smiled. "Do you think luck exists?"

He frowned. "Doesn’t it?"

"And if luck is a combination of what fate considers feasible for you, based on your abilities, would you believe it’s impossible to beat me?"

The silent man became increasingly confused by his words, but... Was he encouraging him?

"If that’s the case, maybe I have to fight without looking. Right?"

"Just fight, no matter who you’re up against."

"I see." The man nodded. "Then that’s what I’ll do."

Perhaps it was the first time anyone had ever made this guy talk so much, which felt unreal to him.

Matthew simply needed this guy not to be afraid of him and to fight with all his strength. That talk about luck was just words, though not empty ones, because luck doesn’t really exist, but is a combination of other things.

At least in his opinion.

But right now, that was beside the point.

He needed to fight someone who could show him how strong his body currently was, and a hand-to-hand martial artist like this was the best option.

They stood facing each other, 10 meters apart.

Xael assumed a martial artist’s fighting stance, unarmed. One leg behind him for stability, the other forward for reach, his body was quite flexed. One hand forward and one back. It was a simple fighting stance, but effective for his size and fighting style.

Seeing this, Matthew simply adopted the combat stance he had practiced often, a mixed martial arts stance. It was a bit similar to Xael’s, only without as much bending and more focused on quick and precise attacks, which was his trademark.

Xael was surprised. "Aren’t you going to draw your sword?"

"Prove to me that I have to draw it to beat you, and then you’ll see."

Although he was surprised, Xael finally smiled. "A swordsman without swords... no matter how high you ranked in the previous test, I think you’re underestimating me."

Matthew didn’t answer.

Most people thought that way, but he didn’t care. He just wanted to strengthen his body, even if it offended Xael.

The referee stood near them and raised his hand. After a countdown, he shouted, "Go!"

Immediately after, he moved a little further away from them, and the fight began.

Xael didn’t move quickly to face him, as he lacked speed. Instead, he took short but precise steps in his direction, waiting to see what Matthew’s first move would be.

Matthew, on the other hand, had no time to study his opponent. He didn’t care whether he lost this tournament or won it; he wasn’t here to win.

He was here to improve his body.

That’s why he used footwork to keep his guard up and move in quickly. His speed wasn’t very high because he didn’t want to break his guard, as it would be counterproductive to just get hit senselessly.

Instead, he moved in quickly and remained in perfect fighting form.

As soon as he was within reach of Xael, he threw a strong punch at his chin, which was quickly countered by his opponent’s huge fist, who was already ready for combat. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

When they both struck, neither came out losing. For Xael, it was a surprise, but Matthew simply smiled.

"Come at me with everything you’ve got," he said, before raining down a barrage of precise and powerful blows on Xael’s body.

"HUAGH!" Xael roared and shook off the punches, then began responding with the same aggression, only much more slowly.

Even so, his punches landed on Matthew’s body a few times.

’Strong,’ Matthew thought.

He was genuinely surprised by the strength of those fists; he could certainly tell that this was a powerful person.

That’s why he continued to face him that way for a few minutes, until he got bored.

As Xael’s fist headed toward his face, Matthew raised his left arm to deflect it to the side, while raising his right arm to strike the other incoming fist and stop the attack in its tracks.

"I must say I like your martial arts a little, but shouldn’t you go serious?" Matthew said firmly. His right arm not only stopped Xael’s arm but also moved up to his shoulder and struck it fiercely.

BAM!

Xael was knocked back by an overwhelming force and took several steps backward.

"If that’s all you’ve got, you’ll lose very easily."

Xael stared at him, rubbing his shoulder lightly.

"You’re good, swordsman. But since you want to fight my best version without your sword, I’ll grant your wish. Although I can see that your strength hasn’t been fully unleashed either, even for a swordsman fighting without his sword. So, let me show it." He smiled, clenched his fists, and returned to his initial fighting stance.