After his match ended, Jhonathan left the arena without a word.
The Ability Tournament didn't pause, didn't wait, didn't care. Fighters came and went like shifting weather inside a controlled storm. But between matches, there were spaces—rest zones carved into the tournament dimension.
One of them was the bar area.
A strange place to exist inside a battlefield.
Dim lighting. Floating counters. Tables that seemed half-real, as if the concept of "comfort" had been copied from another world and pasted here without understanding what it meant.
Jhonathan found it unexpectedly quiet.
And there, he saw her.
His opponent from before.
She was drinking ale alone, staring into her glass like it held answers she didn't want.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Not enemies now.
Not fighters.
Just two people placed too close to a system that kept forcing them into violence.
Her voice came out low.
"I used to love the Hero," she said.
Jhonathan didn't interrupt.
"But…" she continued, fingers tightening around the glass, "I think he gave the Sins too much trouble."
A bitter laugh escaped her.
"They look human when you see them," she said. "That's the worst part. To everyone else… they look normal."
Her shoulders trembled slightly.
"And still… the way they're treated…"
She stopped.
Then exhaled shakily.
"It's too much."
The glass tilted slightly as her grip weakened.
For the first time, the warrior who had fought on stage looked tired instead of strong.
"There's an unspoken way to obtain a star without killing them," she said quietly.
A pause.
"But only a few have ever succeeded in working with them."
Her eyes lowered.
"Being friends with a Sin… is too much," she repeated, almost like she was quoting someone else.
Then she went silent.
---
Elsewhere, the next match was already unfolding.
Draco Jay versus Sylviana.
The arena lit up again.
Sylviana moved first—fast, sharp, controlled. Her kicks cut through the air like precise strikes meant to end fights before they escalated.
But Draco Jay didn't react like a normal opponent.
He dodged everything.
Effortlessly.
As if the attacks were arriving too slowly for him to even acknowledge them properly.
Sylviana's expression tightened.
She accelerated.
Another strike.
Then another.
Still nothing landed.
Then Draco Jay shifted.
His arm twisted.
Changed.
Bone and flesh reshaped into something unnatural—a massive naga-like tail extending from his body, sweeping through the arena with crushing force.
In a single motion, he caught Sylviana mid-air and tossed her violently across the field.
She hit the ground hard, sliding across cracked crystal terrain before trying to push herself up.
But the tail struck again.
Binding her.
Wrapping around her body.
Restricting movement completely.
Sylviana struggled.
But couldn't break free.
Then—
a claw strike landed.
A tiger-like slash tore across her side, opening a deep wound that made the arena shudder from the intensity of the impact.
Gasps echoed across the viewing space.
---
In the observation area, Sophia's eyes widened slightly.
"How could she win?" she said under her breath.
Leerooey stood beside her, arms crossed, watching carefully.
"Just believe in her," he said simply.
Sophia didn't respond.
But she didn't look away either.
---
And in the arena below…
Sylviana was still on her feet.
Barely.
But still standing.