"Kyo probably won't be coming today."
Watching the fight on the arena that was about to decide the winner, Daimon Goro let out a sigh.
Yesterday he had still been thinking that if they couldn't get the championship, second place would be fine, but now Kusanagi Kyo truly couldn't spare the time. Most likely, they could only forfeit.
"So frustrating!" Nikaido Benimaru clenched his fists hard, but in the end could only loosen them helplessly. He couldn't blame Kusanagi Kyo.
His girlfriend was still being rushed through emergency treatment, asking him to abandon his girlfriend's hospital bed and come compete would obviously be crossing a moral line.
"Actually, it's fine. Anyway, if we can't get the championship, it doesn't really mean much to us. Kyo already said before that he came for the championship, for the King of Fighters title. When our strength improves again and the next King of Fighters tournament comes around, we'll fight properly then."
Daimon Goro was the oldest of the three on the Japan Team. With his greater life experience, he could see things more clearly than a rich kid like Nikaido Benimaru. He patted Benimaru on the shoulder as he spoke.
Benimaru also sighed. "I guess that's the only way."
As they were talking, the match on the arena was already over.
Although Sakazaki Ryo and Terry were evenly matched in strength, when true experts clash, even the slightest advantage or disadvantage can tip the balance.
Because Terry had fought one more match than Sakazaki Ryo, he had expended quite a bit of stamina. In the end, as his strength gradually ran out, he was defeated by Sakazaki Ryo's Kyokugenryu ultimate move, Ryuko Ranbu. Even so, Sakazaki Ryo wasn't doing much better, he was bent over with his hands on his knees, gasping for air.
At this point, aside from the Japan Team, which had received a bye, the other three teams that advanced had already been decided.
They were the Women Fighters Team, the Psycho Soldiers Team, and the Art of Fighting Team.
Next would be the battles between these four teams.
However, since the Japan Team and the Psycho Soldiers Team had already fought yesterday, and the Psycho Soldiers Team had also fought the Women Fighters Team, dividing up the matchups was straightforward.
Very soon, the matchup information appeared on the screen.
Women Fighters Team vs. Japan Team.
Psycho Soldiers Team vs. Art of Fighting Team.
When he saw this matchup list, Aiden froze for a moment in the audience.
"Doesn't this mean Mai and the others are basically guaranteed a top-three finish?"
With one member missing from the Japan Team, relying only on Daimon Goro and Nikaido Benimaru, it was basically impossible for them to defeat a full-strength Women Fighters Team. After all, Mai Shiranui, Yuri, and King hadn't been injured at all from yesterday until now, their condition was excellent.
As for the Psycho Soldiers Team, the master-and-disciples trio were also in better shape than the Art of Fighting Team. Although both teams had one older member, Chin Gentsai's condition and strength were clearly better than Sakazaki Takuma's, giving them a huge advantage.
But still… their luck was way too good, wasn't it?
The Women Fighters Team and the Psycho Soldiers Team had already fought yesterday, so once they beat their respective opponents, there was no need to fight again, the rankings were already set.
The Psycho Soldiers Team, having beaten the Women Fighters Team, naturally took second place. The other teams, having suffered double defeats, were eliminated. That meant the Women Fighters Team, with only one loss, placed third.
'Could it be that my good luck affected them too? That luck doesn't just favor myself?' Suddenly, that thought crossed Aiden's mind.
After all, when you really think about it, the three women on the Women Fighters Team were closely connected to him, and he also had a good relationship with the Psycho Soldiers Team, especially Athena. As for the other teams, he'd only chatted with them a bit and basically had no real connection.
'Mmm, that must be it. Otherwise, with Mai and the others' strength, there's no way they'd make it into the top three.'
'So…'
'Thank you, Goddess. You're really good to me.' Aiden sincerely offered his gratitude to the Goddess of Luck in his heart.
———
To ensure the following matches would be just as exciting, the organizers decided on a one-hour intermission before continuing the competition.
During the break, Daimon Goro and Nikaido Benimaru of the Japan Team started discussing again, whether to surrender outright, or go up there and fight it out one last time…
The Art of Fighting Team, on the other hand, was using the time to rest as much as possible. However, Sakazaki Ryo still went to look for Yuri halfway through…
Before long, the hour passed, and the matches resumed.
The first matchup was the Women Fighters Team versus the Japan Team.
But just as the Women Fighters Team's first fighter, Yuri, stepped onto the arena, Daimon Goro from the Japan Team suddenly walked over to the staff by the ring and said something to them.
Then, receiving the message, the commentator announced in a very surprised tone, "The Japan Team, due to lacking one team member, has chosen to forfeit. The Women Fighters Team wins by default."
As soon as those words came out, the entire arena exploded into an uproar.
The three women of the Women Fighters Team were stunned for quite a while. Yuri, who was standing on the ring, even looked around in confusion, not knowing what to do, until a staff member reminded her. Only then did she blankly walk off the arena.
"Big Sister Mai, what's going on?" Yuri asked Shiranui Mai in confusion.
Mai had just asked some other staff members. After thinking for a moment, she said, "It seems Kusanagi Kyo from the Japan Team couldn't come because something came up. The remaining two felt they couldn't win a two-against-three, so they forfeited directly."
"So… we won without even fighting?" Yuri asked, as if trying to confirm.
"Not just won, we're directly third place. Third place!" King said excitedly.
Although it couldn't compare to the prize money for first place, third place was still extremely generous: a full ten million Franklin. Split three ways, they instantly became millionaires. Even after taxes, they'd still get over two million each. If you converted that into yen, you could even call them billionaires… it's just that the numbers were a bit inflated.
While the three of them excitedly talked among themselves, the match between the Psycho Soldiers Team and the Fatal Fury Team began.
The Psycho Soldiers Team's first fighter was once again Athena, while the Fatal Fury Team's first fighter was again Robert.
The one-hour break had let Robert barely recover most of his stamina, and most of his injuries had healed as well. But compared to Athena in peak condition, Robert's now-discounted strength meant he was simply no match for her. After only a few dozen exchanges, he was knocked off the arena by Athena.
Then Sakazaki Takuma stepped on stage. His situation was a bit better than Robert's, after all, in the previous match, Terry had gone easy on him because of his age and hadn't hit too hard. Even so, he only lasted a few dozen more moves than Robert before also being thrown off the arena by Athena's psychic powers.
However, after defeating two opponents in a row, Athena finally ran into a wall with Sakazaki Ryo. No matter what, Sakazaki Ryo was the strongest of Kyokugenryu. If not for bad luck, his team could also have made it into the top three. This round, Athena was defeated by him.
But anyone with eyes could see that Sakazaki Ryo could at most defeat one more fighter, Shingo. As for Chin Gentsai, there was absolutely no way he could get past him.
Sure enough, just as expected, after defeating Shingo, Sakazaki Ryo was beaten by Chin Gentsai. The Fatal Fury Team regretfully took fourth place.
And because the Psycho Soldiers Team had defeated the Women Fighters Team yesterday, there was naturally no need for them to fight again. The Psycho Soldiers Team advanced directly to the finals to compete with the Kagura Team for first place.
The Women Fighters Team took third place.