Bala's POV-

I was sitting in one of the areas inside the stadium made for the participants. It gave us a closer look at the fights. I fixated on two people, Risa and Mirik.

Risa was fighting another guy whereas Mirik was fighting a red-haired guy no. 99. Their fight had started and I could instantly tell that this would be a tough fight for him. The build of that guy was something else. He was tall and had a reach advantage on Mirik. Not only that he had muscles hidden under his clothes.

Mirik's quick reaction saved him or it would've been an instant knockdown. Now that Mirik had created some distance between themselves, they both stood there and assessed each other. Mirik used to be the type to counter but the situation made him first.

He again attacked him, this time with his staff. This was the first time I saw him use a weapon. He slashed down with his staff and the other guy dodged the attack by stepping back. As the missed attack hit the ground he stepped on the staff making it impossible for Mirik to recover it. He attacked Mirik with his claw. Mirik spun as he barely dodged the attack and at the same time he changed his staff into the baton. The staff snapped from 99's foot and provided extra momentum to Mirik's spin. Mirik attacked with his baton towards 99's head.

99 saw the attack coming calmly and used his other hand to grab the powerful attack like it was nothing. The stopping of the attack made Mirik's hand stop immediately and if not for his training his wrist would've been broken. Even then this numbed his hand as his expression changed a bit.

99 attacked with his claw as he held Mirik's baton in the other hand. Mirik again changed his baton to staff but this time he was as he just moved his body and made the staff miss him.

The claw made Mirik dodge, but it also made him leave his weapon. Now without his weapon, Mirik was like a sitting duck waiting to be slaughtered. 99 grinned as he held up the staff with his hands and brought it down to its knee. Everyone heard a cracking noise, loud enough to be even heard by me.

But the result was something very unexpected. The thing that broke was not the staff but his knee joint. He sat down crying in agony as he held the cursed staff in one hand and his knee in the other. He looked towards Mirik furiously as he would chomp him down.

Mirik didn't miss this opportunity and ran towards him at full speed and drop-kicked him. But even with one leg down 99 redirected his kick and threw him to the side. But he quickly realized something as he saw something was missing from his hand. Mirik quickly got up as his aim from the start was not to injure him, but to take his staff back. Now with the staff, he had an upper hand on the already injured 99.

He started poking 99 with his attacks which he was easily defending against. The situation was in a deadlock. The fight was getting more interesting.