"What a thrilling match, don't you think?"
The MC stepped once more from the corner of the stands, his voice booming through the speakers, tightening the already strung-tight atmosphere until it thrummed like a snapped string.
The roar of the crowd surged, deafening, as if it could shatter the concrete ceiling above.
"Red Bean! Red Bean!"
"Encore! Encore!"
Kai stood tall, his back straight, his body still blazing with fire that refused to die down. His levo was greedily draining from Serein, yet her voice no longer echoed in his head.
Panic seized him. His eyes swept frantically across the stands, over flushed faces lit with hunger and satisfaction. But she was nowhere to be seen.
"And now," the MC crooned, "who shall be the next challenger—"
"I'm done fighting."
Kai's voice sliced through the microphone's echo. He bolted from the cage, shoving past grasping hands and the jeering crowd, searching for Serein.
"What? Why stop now?"
"Keep going, it was just getting good!"
