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After untying him, they pushed Hitaru from behind and he fell forward.
The blow knocked the wind out of him and his hands hit the hard ground.An intense pain shot through his left palm when he put his weight on it unintentionally.
The arrow fragment still embedded in it moved a little, just enough to make him gasp and clench his teeth.
The blood started flowing again.
A guard goblin approached him and pointed to the ring with the tip of its weapon.
Hitaru stood up slowly. His left hand hung limp, his fingers stiff and covered in blood. Every heartbeat sent pain shooting up his arm.
Perfect, he thought. I didn't even arrive in one piece.
He walked toward the ring without looking back. The wasteland was illuminated by campfires and torches stuck in the ground.
The shadows moved with each step. The air smelled of smoke, sweat, and metal.
He climbed into the ring.
The ropes brushed against his skin,but he barely noticed. His attention was on not losing his balance and on not putting weight on his injured hand the wrong way.
From above, he saw the audience.
On one side,the human slaves. Silent. Tense. Some with their eyes closed.
On the other, the goblins and fighters. Fixed gazes. Attentive.
Then he saw her.
She was in the human corner,covering herself with her hands. Her body was trembling, but she was looking directly at him. He lowered his head.
"Don't lower your head," she said. "If you lower it, you've already lost it."
Hitaru took a deep breath.
"I'm trying."
The rival goblin entered the ring.
He was short. Much shorter than Hitaru. He barely reached his chest. His height wasn't impressive, but his body was. It was compact and strong. His short arms seemed made for close-quarters striking.
He walked unhurriedly.
Confident.
She looked at him and spoke quickly.
"Don't let him get too close. He's strong."
Great, thought Hitaru. Short and strong.
The signal sounded.
The goblin attacked immediately.
Not with technique.
With brute force.
He lunged forward and the blow came low, straight to the abdomen. Hitaru didn't manage to cover up. The impact bent him over and knocked the wind out of him. He took a step back, then another.
Breathe.
He couldn't.
The second blow hit his ribs. Short and strong. The goblin got under his guard and pushed with his whole body. Hitaru felt a crack and fell to his knees.
The ground scraped his skin.
He heard laughter around him.
The goblin didn't stop. He went after him.
A charge to the chest threw him onto his back.He fell badly and the pain in his left hand exploded. The arrow moved again.
He saw blood on the ground.
This is going badly.
He tried to get up, but the goblin was already on top of him. One blow hit his face. Another on his shoulder. Another on his chest.
There was no pause.
Hitaru rolled as best he could and got up clumsily,backing away. The goblin advanced without covering up. He knew every blow he landed did damage.
He's short, he thought. But he drives in hard.
He tried to maintain distance using his height, but his left hand wasn't responding. Every movement made him lose control due to the pain.
The goblin attacked again.
Hitaru raised his right arm to block,but the impact shook his whole body. He lost his balance and fell on his side. The goblin fell on top of him, heavy.
He was out of breath.
He rolled.He crawled.
He half-stood up.
He's going to kill me.
The goblin caught up to him and kicked his leg. Hitaru fell again. The ground was cold. The lights from the campfires danced in his vision.
The goblin raised his arm to strike again.
"Get up!"
The voice pulled him from the noise. He turned his head and saw her. She was still there. Trembling. Looking at him.
If I lose, he thought, it's not just me who loses.
The fear didn't disappear.
It changed.
He rolled just as the blow came down.The impact hit the ground. Hitaru got up as best he could and backed away, breathing poorly.
The goblin grunted and advanced.
He's strong, he thought. But he doesn't think.
He let him get close.
The goblin attacked with a direct blow.Hitaru moved to the side and let the momentum carry him past. He didn't attack. He just dodged and retreated.
The goblin attacked again, faster, less controlled.
Hitaru dodged again.One blow grazed his shoulder and drew a groan from him, but he kept moving.
Tire him out.
The goblin was breathing with difficulty. He was still strong, but his blows were losing precision.
One hit him in the chest and threw him backward. Hitaru fell, rolled, and got up again, his whole body aching.
His left hand was still useless.
Then he looked at the blood.
He saw the arrow fragment protruding from his palm.
That.
The goblin charged again.
Hitaru waited.
At the last moment,he ducked under the attack and closed his left hand around the arrow fragment. The pain was immediate and intense.
He screamed.
But he didn't let go.
He drove the piece of wood into the goblin's neck,right under the jaw.
The goblin screamed, surprised. He took a step back and brought his hands to his neck.
Hitaru didn't wait.
He lunged at him,wrapped his right arm around his neck, and locked his legs.
He pulled backward with all his strength.
Now, he thought. Now you die.
The goblin struggled. Hit the ground.
Moved for a few more seconds.
Hitaru squeezed.
The body suddenly went limp.
It fell.
There was silence.
Then shouting.
Hitaru released his hold and moved away. He was trembling. His left hand was bleeding heavily. His whole body hurt. He was breathing with difficulty.
I won.
A guard goblin climbed into the ring and grabbed him by the arm.
Hitaru didn't resist.
They pushed her toward him and they walked together to the front of the ring.
In front was the other girl, lying on the ground, unable to move.
There were several carriages lined up.
One stood out.
A man watched them from the shadows.
Hitaru remained standing.
Pain.
Blood.
Alive.
I'm still alive.
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Message:
I hope you liked the third chapter of my novel, honestly I would like you to leave your collection and your comment so I know you like the novel, and so I can continue it and publish more and more chapters.
The next chapter will be an|HL| but don't worry, if you think they are filler, they are not. They are part of the story and will explain future moments about the protagonist's personality and character arc.
Before finishing this message,I want to say that the |HS?| of the other characters won't be filler either, but if you don't want to read them, don't worry. In the main story, there will be clues about what happened or what will happen
Thank you for reading and for your support.
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