Chapter 26

A New Champion

Erin had expected the whole fight between Ryle and the female orc to not happen at all. After all, the manager had told them that no one without any real fame would be allowed to step in. Not to mention that they most likely already had a full schedule planned.

However, much to the redhead’s surprise, the manager seemed to be completely fine with the idea and even let the two of them get in the ring right away. The reaction from the crowd seemed to be mixed, as some found it amusing that someone who was essentially a complete rookie in their eyes was challenging one of their champions, while others were annoyed by the fights they were looking forward being delayed.

Erin herself couldn’t help but be worried over the well-being of her friend. This might have been their plan, but she hadn’t expected what seemed to be a veteran champion to get in the ring with the blonde. She had hoped that they could earn some decent money from her fighting newcomers, while she and Arkay made some extra through gambling. To be perfectly honest, Erin just wanted to stop the whole thing and drag Ryle out of the ring, but one look in the blonde’s eyes told her that there was no way that it would be possible. Ryle was more than determined to see this through, no matter what.

“S-Shouldn’t we stop them!?” Arkay asked the redhead. “If I just apologize properly, I’m sure we’ll be let go without any incident!”

“As much as I’d like to avoid this myself, I fear that’s no longer a possibility. Both Ryle and that orc are so enraged that nothing will sway them,” Erin said with a sigh. “Also, I’m not going to lie, I don’t like the idea of you doing whatever services that woman had in mind. You do know that she isn’t going to just have you do household chores for her, right?”

“Oh… I know… I’m fully aware of what she wanted from me,” the cat boy said in a sad tone that nearly broke the redhead’s heart. “But even if that is the case, I would prefer it over Ms. Ryle getting hurt because of me. Besides, it wouldn’t be the first time-”

Arkay was suddenly cut off as Erin put a hand on his shoulders and gripped it in a tight but gentle manner. The cat boy looked at the redhead and saw that the expression on her face had hardened and she seemed to be gritting her teeth.

“Don’t say such things. Just trust that Ryle will pull through this,” Erin said as she stared at the ring. “If there’s anyone that can get through this, it’s her.”

Back in the ring, both fighters were currently standing in their respective corners, glaring at each other. While Ryle had an expression of pure anger on her face, the orc was smirking. The way she saw it, the blonde was most likely nothing but a hotheaded amateur that had made the mistake of thinking too highly of herself. It wasn’t the first time that this had happened and it wouldn’t be the last either. It seemed like the world had an infinite supply of idiots that thought they were the greatest of fighters and were just waiting for someone to give them a rude awakening.

While the people managing the fight pit had been preparing for the unexpected match, Erin and Arkay had taken the chance to learn about Ryle’s opponent. Her name was Garza and she was not joking when she said she was one of the top fighters in the arena. The orc had an impressive record of over fifty victories and only five losses in total. What was most concerning was that Garza had a tendency to brutally kill her opponents by breaking their bones with her top level strength. There had even been cases where she had bent her opponents in half, like their bodies were made from cardboard. This was her favorite method of finishing a fight.

Garza was considering of doing that with Ryle as well. This was because she often reserved her infamous finishing move for those that had angered her in some way. It could range from someone insulting her to just having a face that she didn’t like. All that mattered to the orc was that she got to make sure those who had greatly angered her would stay dead.

The fight was finally starting, as a referee walked up to the middle of the ring and called for both combatants to walk up to him. The referee was there mostly to determine if one of the fighters was unable to continue, as pretty much all methods were allowed in these fights. However, they did have the authority to stop the match in case it looked like the audience might be in danger, which was so that the ones who brought in the money wouldn’t fear for their safety when coming there. You had to look out for your source of income in order to keep a business running, after all.

“Alright, the two of you are aware that this fight can lead to either of you getting killed, right?” the referee asked the two fighters, who nodded in return. “Well, since you know the risks, let’s get it on!”

With that, the gong rang and the fight started. Both Ryle and Garza got in their stances and started to slowly circle each other. They were starting slow, as they were only sizing up each other for now and seeing which one of them would make the first move.

The orc had actually expected her opponent to rush straight at her from the start, but it seemed like Ryle was able to keep her calm for now. Garza grinned as she had an idea of how to break the blonde’s cool.

“Hey, that cute kid with you. What is he exactly?” the orc asked, getting Ryle’s attention. “Is he your little brother or something? Or did you perhaps buy him from the Maiden’s Nest?”

“None of your damn business!” the blonde answered with a growl.

“Oh my, how scary… I was just curious,” Garza said mockingly. “After all, once I’m done with you, I’m going to have him serve me quite well. Too bad for him that you got in the way you did, though.”

“The hell are you saying?” Ryle asked.

“You see, after I’m done with a match, I have trouble getting myself to calm down,” the orc explained. “Had this not happened, he would have a better chance at surviving what I’m gonna do with him. This isn’t the first time that has happened, although this time it might not be completely unintentional.”

Hearing such things caused Ryle to see red and she charged towards her opponent. This was all according to Garza’s plan. She wanted Ryle to get angry and to attack recklessly, since she would become an easy target. Those who let their emotions take hold of them were often easy targets, which is why the orc taunted her opponent the way she did. Garza grinned as she readied her arm for a punch that launched towards Ryle the second she was in range.

However, the attack never landed.

Garza had to blink for a moment at her opponent suddenly disappearing from sight. Her gaze soon went downwards, where Ryle had ducked underneath the orc’s punch and was now preparing her counterattack. The blonde’s fist was readied for an uppercut that soon came flying upwards at Garza’s chin.

The orc tried to block the oncoming attack with her left arm, but it was too late. She couldn’t stop the fist heading towards her like a missile, as it simply pushed past the defending arm and hit its target, launching Garza into the air. The orc soon fell onto the floor with a loud bang.

Though she had been shaken quite a bit, Garza was not completely out yet, as she started to get back up. This was proving to be quite difficult, as the blow she had received had shaken her throughout her whole body rather violently. The orc was expecting her opponent to charge towards her and attempt to follow up on her first successful attack. Much to Garza’s surprise, this wasn’t the case at all. Instead, Ryle was standing still, glaring down at the orc.

“Get up,” the blonde said in a venomous tone. “I’m not going to let you go this easy after the shit you tried to pull.”

For a moment, Garza’s body seemed to freeze, as the threat just now brought something to the orc that she thought had long since disappeared. For the first time in years she felt fear course through her body. This was something she had last felt when she had only been a rookie in the ring, but now that feeling had suddenly come back.

Garza was brought back from her frozen state upon hearing loud cheering from outside the ring. She hadn’t been the only one to freeze, as the entire audience had gone silent upon seeing their famous champion receive a blow powerful enough to knock her down. All the people that had been looking at Ryle like she was some arrogant beginner had their views completely destroyed. While they still believed Garza would win in the end, they could now expect a truly spectacular match from the blonde fighter.

“Hmph! Don’t get cocky over a single lucky hit, you bitch!” Garza said angrily as she finally stood up. “I was going to take my time and play with you, but now you’ve pissed me off big time! I’m just going to butcher you!”

“Stop talking and get to it, you goddamn boar!” Ryle yelled back.

Garza wasted no time in going after her opponent, fully intent on making her pay for the humiliation she had faced so far. The orc launched a furious storm of punched and kicks towards Ryle, but they weren’t landing. The blonde was easily avoiding all of the attacks with little effort, as Garza’s original plan was now being used against her. With the orc angered, her attacks were furious and powerful, but sloppy and easily avoidable. The way her attacks were being dodged so easily also served to further anger the orc, who was starting to tire herself out.

As Garza was swinging wildly, Ryle was awaiting for her opportunity. The moment she saw it, she seized it by landing a powerful right into the orc’s throat. The sudden blow caused Garza to stop in her tracks as her eyes went wide. With shaking hands she grasped her throat as she began to cough up blood and fell on her knees. Her breathing was shallow and ragged, as she tried to desperately gasp for air.

Despite her opponent’s perilous situation, Ryle wasn’t about to stop attacking and soon delivered a powerful kick to the side of Garza’s head, which sent her to the floor. Once down, the blonde followed her attack by mounting the orc and launching a storm of punches at her helpless opponent. Garza could hardly defend herself as the attacks rained down on her, turning her face into a mess.

After brutally pounding on her opponent’s face for what felt like an eternity to Garza and the audience, Ryle finally stopped her vicious attack. She stood up, leaving the barely breathing and conscious orc on the floor. But when everyone thought that the blonde was done with her opponent, she wasn’t. In one swift move, Ryle grabbed Garza by the hair, lifted her up and stared at her straight in the eyes.

“Listen here, you ugly bastard. And make sure you listen well,” the blonde said while glaring at the orc as hatefully as she possibly could. “I’m going to stop it here for now, but if I ever see your face ever again, I will finish this. Got it?”

Unable to speak, Garza simply nodded weakly. She was then unceremoniously dropped to the floor like a piece of garbage.

With that, the match between Ryle and Garza was over, as the referee announced the blonde as the winner. The audience erupted in cheers over the brutal and surprising match, having not expected an unknown fighter to come in and defeat one of the favorites in the arena.

Both Erin and Arkay had also been quite surprised by the skills of their blonde companion, as they had expected her fight to be a lot tougher than it turned out to be. Regardless of their expectations, both were obviously very happy over Ryle’s victory and were cheering her with smiles on their faces.

“Way to go, Ryle!” Erin yelled happily as she called out to her friend. “You really showed her!”

“T-That was incredible, Ms. Ryle!” Arkay said as he cheered for the blonde. “You were simply amazing!”

Picking up the voices of her comrades, Ryle turned her attention towards them. A bright smile immediately appeared on her face, as she ran to the side of the ring closest to her friends and began waving at them.

“Hey, Arnie! Did you see just how awesome I was!?” Ryle asked happily with a goofy smile. “I did that to protect you! I promise that no creep like that ugly orc is ever going to get to lay their hands on you for as long as I’m around!”

“...Well, I guess she might have ruined the mood, but she did still win in the end,” Erin muttered with a sigh, embarrassed over her friend’s antics. “Too bad that we didn’t place a bet on this fight. We could have made a nice a profit from it.”

“Ummm… A-Actually, right before the match started, I went to place a bet on Ryle,” Arkay said, surprising the redhead. “I felt like it was only appropriate, as she was risking her life for our sake.”

“You did!? That’s great!” Erin said happily. “What were the odds?”

“It was ten to one. We just made ten times the money we had when we came here,” the cat boy answered.

The redhead’s eyes went as wide as possible as she thought about all the money they had just earned in one go. While she did feel that it was reckless of her friend to place all of their money on the fight, he did have a point about Ryle risking her life for their sake. Even if it was only one of them really…

“Amazing! With that much money, we might have enough to hire the mercenaries we need!” Erin said happily. “Let’s call Ryle back and get going. No need to risk ourselves by staying here longer than necessary.”

Meanwhile, said blonde woman was about to step out of the ring, when a hand on her shoulder stopped her. She turned around and saw a large man with a big ax strapped to his back. This was obviously one of the fighters in the arena.

“Not so fast there, lady. I’m afraid that you can’t just leave like that,” the man said with a small smirk. “Do you have any idea what you’ve just done? You’ve pretty much ashamed all of us gladiators through that little stunt of yours. Don’t you think it’s a bit unfair for you to simply walk out on us without giving us a chance to reclaim our honor?”

“Yeah, that’s sad and all. My heart bleeds for you,” Ryle said sarcastically, not even trying to sound sympathetic. “But I’ve got better things to do than to worry about your hurt egos. So would you mind leaving me alone? I doubt you want to get your ass handed to yourself the same way the orc did.”

Instead of being angered by the blonde’s taunting, the gladiator simply chuckled. He then turned his attention to the audience to address them.

“My good visitors! Guests in our palace of violence and excitement! We have seen something truly amazing by witnessing one of our beloved champions face a surprise defeat at the hands of a warrior that is unknown to us all! I am by no means going to make light of her achievement, as she won fair and square against Garza! Such a feat deserves respect!” the man began his speech. “However, I now ask of you, my friends, is it okay to leave things in such a way!? Are we, both fighters in the ring and you in the audience, not entitled to reclaim our honor!? Not only was one of us defeated by someone who didn’t struggle the same way I and many others did in order to just step in this ring, but I am sure many of you were hurt by this incident as well! A lot of you were fans and loyal supporters of Garza and some of you even bet money on her defeating this newcomer! Don’t you all agree that we all deserve a chance, just a small opportunity, to settle the score!? FOR I SAY WE DO!”

The crowd erupted in roaring cheers and calls for Ryle to stay and continue fighting. All sorts of insults were thrown her way, calling her a coward and several other nasty things. The blonde looked around and saw several people that were clearly fighters looking at her with smirks and grins, hoping to get a chance to take her down.

“Tch! You’re a real piece of work, aren’t you!?” Ryle said as she glared at the man with the ax. “You don’t have the balls to come after me yourself, so you work the crowd on your side!”

“It’s just showmanship, dear,” the man said with a smirk. “You learn it in order to get ahead in these circles. Along with the skill to spot good opportunities.”

Meanwhile, Erin and Arkay were staring at what was going on around them in horror. They had thought that the danger had already come to pass, but it seemed like the worst was yet to come.

“B-But Ryle won fairly! Why does she have to keep fighting!?” Erin asked. “Besides, it was Garza who started this whole thing!”

“I-I fear that none of these people care about the details anymore!” Arkay said in a frightened tone, getting the redhead’s attention. “The fighters are hoping to get an easy victory that will boost their reputation by getting to fight an opponent that is already tired from a previous match. The people watching probably lost a good amount of money by thinking this was an easy bet to make, so they’re looking for revenge on Ms. Ryle in return! And if we don’t comply, I fear what might happen!”

“WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!? THIS IS COMPLETELY UNFAIR!” Erin yelled as she pushed her way past the crowds of people in front of her and made her way to the side of the ring. “Ryle, don’t listen to their bullshit! There’s no need for you to continue risking your life like this! Let’s just collect what we won and leave!”

“I’m afraid that isn’t possible, little lady,” the man with the ax said with a smirk. “You see, while every place has its rules that you need to follow, sometimes those rules are bent to satisfy the masses. With the amount of upset people in the audience, do you think that the people running this whole operation aren’t going to give in to their demands?”

“You dirty son of a-!”

“Erin, that’s enough,” Ryle said in a surprisingly calm yet stern tone. “I appreciate that you are trying to look out for me, but you shouldn’t worry about me. I can handle this easily.”

“B-But you already had a match!” the redhead tried to argue. “Are you sure you’re up for this!?”

“Oh, come on. You know me better than anybody else here!” the blonde said with a big grin. “Just sit back and watch as I mop the floor with these losers!”

Seeing as there was nothing she could say to change Ryle’s mind, Erin decided to trust her on being able to handle the situation they were currently stuck in. However, she was going to at least show her friend just how much faith she had in her.

“Understood. But we won’t simply sit back while you’re fighting,” the redhead said. “We will place all of our money on you, as you fight. That way, we’ll taking the risk along with you.”

“D-Don’t lose, Ms. Ryle!” Arkay cheered. “Show them what you’re made of!”

“Oh! You know, Arnie, it would really give me some great motivation if you gave me a kiss before my next match!” Ryle suddenly said with a goofy smile on her face. “Just the cheek is enough!”

“...Well, that certainly ruined the mood,” Erin said in a deadpan voice, now worried if her friend was truly going to be okay.