Chapter 21: Shawn Vs Zenjo

The next day, the arena went all out as the crowd roared with enthusiasm. Thousands of people had gathered to see the semifinals of the Grand Star Festival, which would determine who would proceed to the final match and face Aria, the Sword Saint.

“ATTENTION, EVERYONE!”

The announcer's voice echoed throughout the arena over the loudspeakers.

“WE NOW BEGIN THE FIRST SEMIFINAL MATCH OF THE GRAND STAR FESTIVAL TOURNAMENT!”

He paused mid-sentence, preparing himself to announce the contenders.

“REPRESENTING THE SANDSREACH KINGDOM—A MAN WHO HAS RISEN IN JUST A SHORT TIME, WHOM EVEN THE STRONGEST STRUGGLE TO DEFEAT: ZENJOOOOOO!”

Zenjo emerged from the gate, shocking the crowd with how tall he truly was. He wore a small piece of armor on his shoulder, gauntlets on his hands, and a sharp grin.

“AND HERE COMES THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE AZURE TEMPLE—OUR BELOVED SWORD SAINT'S VERY OWN ATTENDANT AND THE GODDESS OF SWORDS' RETAINER: SHAWN FALCON!”

Shawn walked out from the opposite gate, his expression neutral as the crowd reacted with mixed emotions.

From the stands, Marvin grinned at his entrance, muttering under his breath, “Show them, Shawn. Show them what you're made of.”

“Sir Shawn! Give it your best! We're with you!” Rikka screamed at the top of her lungs to cheer him on.

“Be quiet. I don’t think he can hear you at all,” Celestia said, brushing back her hair after yesterday's commotion.

“But Celestia-sama, we need to give him all our support!” Rikka turned and cheered for him again.

“Geez! Well, at least the loud one is quiet today...” Celestia turned to Aria, whose face was pale and looked weak.

“Are you alright?” Celestia asked out of concern.

“I am...” Aria's cheeks puffed out as she grabbed a plastic bag and vomited into it.

“What happened to her...?” Celestia asked Rikka.

“Sir Shawn said she's purifying her inner body with this method, just like in many sculptures depicting the process of self-purification.”

“Ehh...? Well, this is news to me. I hope people don't start following her example,” Celestia chuckled softly.

Down on the battlefield:

Deep breaths. You've trained for this. You've planned for this. Just trust the plan.

Shawn reached his position as the referees checked whether both fighters were ready. The height difference was stark; Zenjo looked down at Shawn as if ready to chew him up alive.

“Well, well. I thought the Sword Saint’s little pet might be hiding behind his owner, complaining about what I did yesterday.”

“Huh... Yesterday, you just caught me off guard, that’s all.” Shawn’s eye twitched.

“You sure bark a lot, Sword Saint’s pet. Anyway, this will end soon, and then I will crush your so-called Sword Saint into the ground.”

Shawn ground his teeth, took a deep breath, and closed his eyes as Aria’s words whispered back to him.

Yesterday night:

After Aria walked into her room, Shawn asked for a favor.

“I need a favor.”

“A favor?” Aria tilted her head sideways.

“Well, more like advice from you,” he said, scratching the back of his head nervously.

“What kind of advice? It’s rare for you to ask my opinion,” she said, amused.

“Just listen first,” he raised his voice, embarrassed. “Have you ever faced someone where you saw yourself losing? If so, how did you find a way to defeat them?”

“Someone who could beat me, huh?” She placed a finger on her chin, thinking hard before answering. “Well, in my entire life, I’ve never felt that someone could actually defeat me. Above all, I’ve never struggled against anyone.”

“Figures,” Shawn sighed, muttering to himself. “Then I guess I need to find that answer for myself.”

“Are you asking because you think you’re going to lose tomorrow’s match?” she questioned.

“Well, yes. You might not know, but I saw him during the party, and after seeing his strength, I can tell I’m at a huge disadvantage. Winning seems too distant to achieve.”

“Winning? But why are you aiming to win?” she asked, confused.

“What do you mean? Isn’t winning—” Before he could finish, she cut him off.

“No, what I’m saying is that this isn’t like you at all. That’s why your vision is clouded by doubts of losing.”

“I’m not following what you’re trying to say.”

“Remember the first time you challenged me? You never questioned whether you’d win or lose. Back then, you were confident in yourself and your skills. I tried to break your will, but you kept standing back up.”

“I still don’t understand.”

“What I’m trying to say is, just be confident in your skills and your will. I’m sure that if you could shake my will with yours, winning against this opponent won’t be too big a task to overcome.” She smiled and added, “Just give it your best, and everything will be fine.”

His eyes snapped back to the present. Zenjo was babbling something as Shawn muttered under his breath:

I just have to give it my everything. Stop thinking about winning—just find a way to survive this.

He grinned.

Well, Aria, let's see if your advice works or not.

“Oh, so you’ve really gone insane now! Wahahaha!” Zenjo laughed, but Shawn looked back at him with pure confidence.

“Hey, big guy.”

Zenjo raised an eyebrow. "What of it?"

Shawn's grin widened. "I'm just laughing thinking about how amusing it'll be after I shatter your so-called confidence into dust. Then we’ll see who barks with no strength behind it.”

The crowd went quiet. Zenjo's grin vanished, replaced by a scowl that could curdle milk.

"You've got a death wish, little pet," he growled.

"Maybe." Shawn settled into a low stance. "But at least I'll die knowing I pissed you off."

“BEGIN!”

Zenjo exploded forward. His body was massive, yet he moved like a charging warhorse, closing the distance in the blink of an eye as he swung his hand to grab Shawn.

Shawn ducked, rolled, and pushed off the ground with his hands, swinging his feet up to kick Zenjo across the face. Using the force of the strike, he pushed off Zenjo's arm and propelled himself backward.

Zenjo lost his balance for a split second but quickly regained it. He caught Shawn's right leg in his massive arm, slammed him into the ground twice, and hurled him into the distance.

Shawn coughed up blood, standing up on shaking legs. On the other side of the ring, Zenjo wiped blood from his mouth.

“It seems you have a few tricks, but that won’t be enough...”

Shawn pulled three white crystals from his clothes and threw them. Zenjo took a defensive stance and covered his face, but the blinding flashes blurred his vision for a moment.

Tsk. Zenjo clicked his tongue.

"Tricks again!" he roared. "Pathetic! You won't defeat me with—"

As Zenjo turned toward the sound of footsteps, Shawn was already within striking distance. His eyes were locked on his target, unflinching as he swung his blade.

Zenjo tried to step aside, but it was too late. Opening his mouth, he caught Shawn’s sword between his teeth and shattered the metal with the sheer force of his jaw.

Despite losing his blade, Shawn kept his momentum going, swinging the jagged, broken hilt directly toward Zenjo’s exposed neck.

"Predictable," Zenjo snarled.

He swung his heavy arm, sending Shawn flying across the arena. Shawn hit the ground hard, rolling to absorb the impact. He was back on his feet in an instant, though his sword hand was dripping with blood.

What is happening? Yesterday he was struggling like an insect, but now he's a completely different person. His attacks still lack raw power, but he's using extreme efficiency, and his speed is on another level.

Zenjo's expression hardened.

In the stands, everyone's eyes widened in shock at how well Shawn was fighting. They watched in disbelief as he moved so smoothly despite the massive disadvantage.

Celestia blinked several times before pointing at Shawn and screaming at Aria, who wasn't even watching the fight and was leaning her face against the railing.

“WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?! HOW IS HE OVERWHELMING THE SAME ZENJO HE MET BEFORE?! WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!”

“Augh... I feel sick. Could you keep it down, Celestis...?” Aria said, covering her ears.

“IT'S CELESTIA, YOU AIRHEAD!”

“I'm totally surprised as well,” Rikka stated. “If he keeps going like this, I'm sorry to say he might actually defeat you in the title match. You really trained him well.”

Aria chuckled weakly. “Hehehe... I'm not that great.”

“She wasn't complimenting you! And you should be worried that he might steal your beloved title from you!”

On the battlefield, Zenjo tried to close the gap, but Shawn kept his distance, striking only when he caught an opening in Zenjo's defense.

“AUGHHH, ENOUGH OF THIS!”

Frustrated, Zenjo stomped the stage with immense force. The stone floor crumbled, sending shattered debris flying into the air.

Shawn balanced himself on a floating piece of rubble as Zenjo leaped toward him, throwing a devastating punch. Shawn jumped to another airborne rock, and Zenjo pursued him through the air.

As the rocks began to fall back to earth, Shawn jumped high. Zenjo used his raw muscle strength to reach him, grabbing Shawn by the collar midair. As they fell, Zenjo turned Shawn downward, intending to drive him headfirst into the ground.

Shawn struggled to break free, but Zenjo’s grip was absolute. They crashed into the arena floor together.

Zenjo leaped backward with a grin as dust billowed into the air.

“Well, it’s over now... I'll admit, you did well...”

Suddenly, Shawn charged out from the dust cloud. Gritting his teeth, his face and body covered in blood, he landed a solid punch directly on Zenjo's face.

“Sir Shawn!” Rikka screamed.

Stumbling back onto his feet, Zenjo landed a heavy blow to Shawn's gut. Shawn wavered, but immediately struck back at Zenjo's face, only for Zenjo to hit him again.

They traded blow after blow, every punch answered in kind, spraying blood across the battlefield.

Gradually, their punches began to slow down. The audience watched with open mouths at such an incredible display, while Marvin, Leo, Celestia, and Rikka watched in stunned silence with every hit.

With a sharp groan, both fighters landed one final punch at the exact same moment. Zenjo collapsed onto his back, his eyes rolling back as he lost consciousness.

The referee froze for a second before realizing the match was over. He raised his hand and declared the winner:

“The semifinal match between Shawn and Zenjo has concluded! The winner is Shawn of the Azure Temple!”

The arena remained dead silent for a moment in complete disbelief, before erupting into wild cheers. The crowd began chanting Aria’s name.

Celestia screamed at the top of her lungs, “HEY! WHY ARE YOU CHANTING ARIA'S NAME?! SHE ISN'T EVEN FIGHTING DOWN THERE! YOU SHOULD BE CHANTING SHAWN'S NAME, YOU BLIND FOOLS!”

Rikka jumped with joy and turned to Aria. “Aria-sama! Did you see how amazingly Sir Shawn ended that fight?!”

Bughhhhh!

Aria vomited again into her plastic bag, hiding her face.

“Aria-sama...”

Shawn, panting heavily, remained standing for just a second. As his vision blurred, he collapsed backward onto the ground.