The big moment had finally arrived, and Aka and 29 got up from the stone they called a "bed" and went to the great hall. For the first time, the hall didn't look crowded — it actually looked orderly. She and Aka split up and wished each other good luck. Before leaving, 29 gave Aka a quick kiss and said, "Don't you dare die."
Aka didn't know who to choose as his opponent. Even though he had fought many people, he still wasn't sure he could actually kill someone. While he was standing there in confusion, 71 came up to him and challenged him to a duel. Aka didn't want to fight — let alone kill — someone he had come to know, even if only through their fights. But 71 insisted and said he wanted a rematch. Out of respect for his honor, Aka accepted, and they went to the instructor.
The instructor cleared a space in the crowd — orderly as it was — and announced that Number 47 had zero failures, while Number 71 had two, which meant that 71 had to spare 47, but 47 had to kill his opponent. Anyone who interfered would be killed on the spot without question.
Both of them stood ready, but unlike usual, both 47 and 71 were wearing light armor and already had their weapons in hand. 47 had his usual spiked gloves, while 71 was wielding twin daggers.
The instructor started the fight.
71 rushed forward with quick steps and swung his dagger. Since Aka wasn't prepared to fight someone with a weapon, he simply guarded — which resulted in his arms being cut. Then it was Aka's turn to attack, and before 71 even realized what Aka was doing, the spikes at the ends of Aka's fists stabbed into 71's feet. Shocked and struggling to dodge, 71 fell back as both his feet were injured.
Aka still didn't really know what he was doing, because no matter how much he fought, he still couldn't accept the idea that he had to take someone's life. Yes — he knew that if he didn't kill, he would die. But no matter what, it still felt wrong.
Seeing Aka distracted, 71 rushed toward him — but instead of striking or stabbing him, he threw his dagger. Aka reflexively dodged to the side, but 71 had been watching Aka's movements for months and had already learned his habits. He slid in under Aka and tripped him, knocking him down — then immediately stabbed his other dagger into Aka's right knee and started pummeling him on the ground.
Physically, Aka was stronger than 71, so he managed to throw him off. He stood up and glanced at the daggers on the ground. It looked like 71 had no weapons left — but Aka still approached carefully, kicking the daggers even farther away. 71 understood what Aka was trying to do — but he also noticed that Aka was staggering badly. The damage to his knee was severe.
This time, Aka moved toward 71 — and because 71's foot slowed him for just a split second, Aka managed to hit him with a fast body rush and knocked him to the ground. Seeing his chance, Aka hit him as hard as he could — about two punches — and then slashed 71's arms with the spikes. 71 tried everything to throw Aka off, but Aka wouldn't get up and kept punching, tearing into 71's arms.
As a last resort, 71 pulled out a small throwing knife he had hidden in his armor. Because they were so close, he easily stabbed it straight into Aka's eye. That finally made Aka fall off him. While Aka was still down, 71 kicked him, then quickly stood up, grabbed his daggers from afar, and waited in a ready stance for Aka to come at him.
The unexpected blow made Aka feel, firsthand, how meaningless his hesitation had been — because this really was a place where people had to do whatever it took and stake their lives on it.
Blood from his eye almost completely blinded one side of his vision. His injured knee made him stagger, and now his opponent was fully armed again. But despite everything, for the first time, he felt strangely calm. He was barely thinking at all — except about how to defeat his opponent. He also picked up the throwing knife 71 had stabbed into him, not forgetting to arm himself as well.
He stood up, then forced himself to walk forward, limping toward 71. Just when 71 thought he had secured victory and saved his own life, Aka reached him from his blind side — and something completely unexpected happened. Aka tripped him to the ground and then mercilessly punched him with his spiked fists.
Aka carried the unconscious 71 over to the instructor — but the instructor said he wasn't dead yet and ordered Aka to finish him. Aka refused, but before he could even react or say anything more, the instructor suddenly stabbed a dagger into Aka's good knee — as if out of nowhere — and reminded him once more: if he didn't kill, he would die.
Aka dropped 71 back to the ground. Crying — hating every bit of it — he drove the spike of his glove with all his strength straight into 71's throat. Then he collapsed as well. He no longer felt like himself. That strange calm he'd felt earlier vanished completely, replaced by nothing but guilt. All he could think was: If I'm only alive because I killed someone else… what does my life even mean?
The instructor checked 71 and declared Number 47 the winner. Immediately afterward, a healer arrived, treated Aka, and ordered him to stand. He stood there crying — but, knowing that showing disrespect would at best earn him a severe beating, he waited for the instructor to speak.
"Initiate 47 — also known as Feral — it was a good match. However, you failed to take advantage of many opportunities. Your footwork is simple and predictable. But your biggest weakness, without question, is your lack of weapon skills. Either improve your weapon use, or you'll die in the next big exam. Also, all of the gear belonging to the one you defeated — Number 71, the Trickster — is now yours. You may go."
When the instructor finished, Aka bowed respectfully. Then, suddenly remembering 29, his heart tightened. He anxiously scanned the huge hall to find her — but she was nowhere to be seen. Thinking about how strong she was, he clung to hope… and went to the training grounds to burn off the sickening feeling inside him.
Once again, he trained until he was on the brink of passing out and then returned to his room. What he saw there — even though his heart was still blackened with guilt and regret — lightened it just a little: 29 was asleep on his bed, just like always. Without waking her, he lay down beside her and held her, as if she were the only thing he had left in the world.
Hey everyone, hello again. This was the chapter I spent the most time on, and I really tried hard to describe things well. It's also going to be a very important turning point in our character's development, so that's why I put in so much effort. If you liked it — or even if you didn't — I'd really appreciate it if you shared your thoughts in the comments. And whether you read it fully or just checked it out, thank you so much