The large man took a fighting stance, resembling jiujitsu, Hori responded with a simple boxing pose.
"How much you betting?"
A familiar man spoke in a lavish room far away from where the preliminary rounds took place.
It was that man in a milk sweater who was last shown reviewing this years participants on a computer.
"Nah, it's too early to start betting."
A new character responded, a tall muscular man wearing a super heroe costume. The color palette consisted of red and white, with Japans national flag placed boldly on his chest.
The faces of the two weren't visible, but from the black strap around their biceps with the writing "B" anyone could tell that they were bishops.
They decided to examine the first match before placing bets on the later ones.
Kim-joo wasted no time and sprinted.
Despite being twice of Hori in size. His speed was astonishing.
Under only 2 seconds he closed the distance between him and his opponent Hori.
Now close enough,he lifted his hand and punched her downwards. Shattering the ground.
"Woah! That's unreal!!"
A male participant exclaimed, for a human to smash the ground only meant one thing.
Narrator - Drugs. To no ones surprise, some contestants took drugs to enhance their stats. , your probably thinking, "Thats illegal!" Well surprise surprise, SHO are responsible for selling such drugs. They already allowed bribery so this shouldn't be a surprise, all to generate as much income as possible each Sabbath Exams.
The crowd yelled in excitement!
Meadow who was on the other side, the red field staggered back from the impact.
Hori's match was distracting her.
Haruki darted his eyes around the arena, searching for where Hori went to after dodging the punch.
The dust settled and we finally see her. Standing on Kim-joo's bald head.
Sir Scott leaned towards the television where he watched from.
A suited man, turned commentator grabbed a microphone and yelled.
"W—what impressive speed from both opponents! but Hori Inori, is faster! She dodged that attack and is now standing on his head!"
The crowd clapped with excitement, this resembled a scene only shown in anime.
Haruki simply rested on the wall said with a relaxed face. Hori had everything under control.
Kim-joo, who didn't notice Hori on his head until the commentator said so got pissed. He tried grabbing her leg from above, but she jumped away and landed on the other side of the arena.
Hori dusted her clothes and motioned her hand for them to continue.
Kim-joo charged towards Hori again!
He frantically threw punches at her, hoping either of his hands would land a blow.
A desperate attempt rendered useless due to Hori's instincts. As already mentioned her "Feelings"
acted as a form of danger sense. Stacked with her impressive speed made human punches non-existent.
Hori dodged some more then concluded to end the fight.
"I'm going to attack now!"
She announced to her opponent, making sure he guarded.
With her hands now placed behind her back, Hori quickly rose her right leg vertically with ASTONISHING speed!
Her lower limb still in the air, everyone watching anticipated a drop kick.
Kim-joo brought both arms to guard his head. A grin appeared, calculating he would simply grab her leg when it landed.
Dark Frame
The entire rings saturation reduced to zero, leaving only Hori and Kim-joo with color.
Kim-joo's smile immediately faded.
As she struck her leg bypassed the pitiful defense of his both hands, Hori crushed his arms and violently struck his skull, forcing his head into the ground!
The floor beneath them buried
Kim-joo as his head stuck into the ground. He was left unconscious, with both arms flailing around in the air, their bones completely shattered.
The backgrounds saturation returned to normal as the crowd processed what just happened.
Thunk.
Hori's leg finally touched the floor after delivering such an outstanding attack.
She looked at her opponent,then at the crowd, awaiting what she was meant to do next.
A Hataki briefly ran up to check Kim-joo's pulse, this would determine if Hori was disqualified or not.
The Hataki squatted down to hear his heart beat....he was alive!
"W—winner! Hori Inori, by knock-out!"
She fearfully rose Hori's hand and declared her the winner.
A round of applause followed by the crowd, that was an amazing first match. A little short but still.
The timer stopped at 4 minutes 40 seconds, it took only 20 seconds for Hori's victory.
The crowd gaped in shock.
Sir Scott asked well was surprised. This wasn't their new record but still impressive.
After the applauding for the blue field died down. Another Hataki yelled.
"Winner! Meadow Fernando, by knock-out!"
The Mexican girls match was over.
She had spent 30 seconds against her opponent who resembled an ordinary middle aged man.
She also received applause for her victory, then the wall dividing both fields of the arena came down.
Hori bowed down to Meadow saying hello, she waved and smiled, impressed by Hori's quick victory.
Sir Scott cleared his throat from the room and spoke.
"Okay, that was extremely quick! Hori Inori, Meadow Fernando, you have successfully cleared the preliminary rounds."
He announced permitting them to leave the ring.
Hori walked down, releaved she didn't gravely injure her opponents. She expected some comments from Narrator but the voice had been quiet for some time now.
"Please, after you pass this round, step into the hall, to await the Sabbath Exams. Members of the Bribery system are also allowed to enter, but you can stay behind to enjoy the match."
And with that Meadow walked to the hall. Hori quickly ran towards Haruki.
He congratulated her and praised for such an effortless win.
"Hehe, thanks Haruki!"
She blushed then collected the cap haruki was holding for her during the match.
"Be sure to pass too, I'll be waiting!!"
She yelled at Haruki with a smile.
He was definitely going to pass as well.
Hori wished him good luck then waved. She then walked towards the hall.
----------
As Hori entered the large milk colored hall. Nobody was present except Meadow. Surprisingly, members of the Bribery System were still seated awaiting the next match. The one they just witnessed got them excited.
Hori stepped into the hall and sat down on.... the floor, SHO seriously couldn't provide any chairs?
She glanced around the hall, admiring the scenery.
Hori decided to check on the voice in her head.
She peeped making sure nobody saw her talking to herself.
"Narrator, you there?"
Hori called out.
Narrator - Yeah?
She answered.
"I'm actually doing it, after the preliminary rounds, were gonna start the Sabbath Exams! Just you wait father!"
Narrator - Please, you still have a looooooooooooooong way to go!
Narrator said mockingly, hinting at the length of Hori's journey ahead.
"Um, helloooo?!"
A female voice chimed in.
Hori looked up and saw contestant Meadow
"Hi there, Meadow Fernando, nice to meet you."
It was the Mexican girl, she was introducing her self to Hori who was busy talking to narrator.
She spoke fluent Japanese with a hint of Spanish accent.
"Oh, nice to meet you!"
Hori immediately stood up and shook Meadow's hand.
"That was really something. You won under 20 seconds!"
Meadow sat down on the floor after dusting it with a rag.
"No need to compliment me, I'm not that strong, my opponent was just weak."
Hori also sat on the floor with an embarrassed face, receiving complements from a stranger made her blush.
"What do you mean weak?! He smashed the ground like some, Sinner of Wrath!"
Meadow insisted, forcing Hori to accept her praise.
Hori examined her face. Her skin was a quality brown with freckles on her face, the bold Spanish earrings she wore glowed beautiful against her black wavy hair.
Hori admired her hair and complimented it.
"Wow, Fernando your hair is beautiful."
She said touching hers which was now short.
"Awwwn, thank you girlie, you can use my first name tho. Don't know why you people are so respectful."
Meadow said, curious about the formal courtesy the Japanese always displayed.
"Speaking of Japanese, yours is quite good! I didn't expect it from a foreigner!"
Hori was impressed, it sounded slightly different but still impressive.
Meadow explained that she trained for 5 years before coming here. Be it their language Japanese, their tradition or even physical training to pass the exams.
"Dat's why I'm gonna pass the Sabbath Exams for sure!"
Meadow said facing front. She was excited that her 5 years of training were going to be put to the test.
The door to the hall loudly opened.
"Heyoooo!!"
Haruki bursts through the scene!
"Haruki! You made it!"
"Of course I did!"
He bonked Hori's head.
Meadow stared with her eyes tranced.
'It's that pretty boy I saw earlier! He looks like a girl!!'
She had always seen pretty Asian boys online but Haruki was a special case.
Hori glanced and decided to introduce Haruki to her.
"Meadow! This is Haruki. He's my best friend!"
She said giving him a big hug.
"Welcome to Japan."
Haruki spoke in English which made Hori laugh.
".....wow, he's beautiful!"
Meadow admitted with zero embarrassment.
"I know right?!"
Hori shouted said with a proud face, as if it were her being complimented.
Haruki awkwardly laughed, slightly embarrassed getting compliments from girls.
----------
The door opened again.
It was the blonde boy rumoured to be Sir Adams brother, his full name Friday Adams.
Slight stains of blood covered his scarred arms, he must've broken his opponents nose.
The boy ignored Hori and her group and walked to the far edge of the room.
They all wondered what must have caused the multiple marks on his hands.
The door opened again!
It was the black American boy with a white and black shirt.
He walked into the room without saying anything, and simply went to sit in a corner, bending his head.
So far they've all been mates taking the exams, all teenagers.
"Sure are a lot of interesting characters."
Haruki said folding his arms.
"And their finishing their matches so quickly, they must be really strong!"
Hori said as well.
The door opened again.
This time a new character. A girl of Hori's height with jet black hair, arranged bangs in front and tired eyes. She had red pupils, companied with such black hair made her resemble a vampire of some sorts.
A black nose masks shielded her mouth.
"K—konichiwa!"
The introverted looking girl greeted Hori, Haruki and meadow as she awkwardly walked far away, shyly peeping at Friday.
---------
The door opened again, it was a familiar face, Mrs Takane.
Hori ran up to her and hugged her.
She had gotten tired of watching the matches so she decided to come check on Hori.
Meadows eyes widened upon seeing the pregnant woman.
Is she even allowed to take the exams?
"Hori, you were so strong!"
She yelled in excitement as they twirled around.
Hori giggled and asked.
"Mrs Takane, how many trials are you bypassing with the Bribery System?"
"Well, there's a total of 7 trials for the Sabbath Exams, I'll make payments for bribes later. We don't have any idea how dangerous their gonna be. So it's best to save my money until it's dangerous."
Mrs Takane explained, she had already planned it all.
Meadow greeted the woman as she approached her.
Mrs Takane was surprised. She had never seen a chocolate person up close.
Meadow asked gently.
"I hope your Expected Delivery Date (EDD) isn't close right?"
With a worried expression of course. Why would a pregnant woman be in the Sabbath Exams? What would happen if she went into labor?!
Mrs Takane replied.
"It's until next month, so I'm good!"
She said with a wink and a thumbs up!
Meadow hoped that would be the case, EDDS aren't always accurate. She decided to stop worrying since it was non of her business.
----------------
About 1 hour passed by and all participants were now in the large hail.
Once again Sir Scott came to address the large crowd. The only present Bishop it would seem.
Ahem!
"Since a total of 756 people came, 556 used the bribery system, leaving 200 participants for the preliminary rounds. Out of the 200..."
He checked the list then continued.
"Only 50 people passed the preliminary rounds, the one's who couldn't pass, failed to knock their opponents out under 5 minutes. Leaving a total of 606 participants for the Sabbath Exams."
A suited man continued.
"You will be separated according to gender. Males follow me."
He ordered.
"Females follow me."
A suited woman said.
Hori was sad they were splitting up, she didn't want to leave Haruki again.
Haruki told her not to worry, they'd be sure to meet up later,or maybe during one of the trials for the Exams."
----------
The female participants who were greatly smaller in numbers followed the woman to a huge pink room with multiple closets.
"Please access the lockers with your names written on them and change into the uniforms. They are arranged alphabetically, be fast."
"I'm sure you all visited the site to provide information on your measurements."
She said walking out of the changing room.
Hori panicked, not only did she not know what a site was, but both her and Haruki didn't visit it, Meaning she didn't provide her measurements!
Out of 606 participants for the Sabbath Exams, They were only 78 females.
Hori searched the names of the lockers and finally saw her's in the "H" section.
Meadow who already changed into hers approached Hori.
"SHO sure is prepared, they even got us uniforms!"
Hori said as she saw meadow approaching her.
Meadow replied but was a little distracted by something.
Hori was stripping casually, revealing her tanned toned physique. She wore a simple sports bra.
Hori glanced at meadow who was staring at her.
"Ay, caramba..."
Meadow mistakenly spoke Spanish.
Hori must have mis heard since she continued changing.
Meadow casually asked for Hori's age if she was cool with telling her.
Hori replied having no reason in hiding it.
"I'm 14 years old!"
Meadow was shocked, she jokingly asked if Hori was sure to which she replied yes.
"Chica, I'm 2 years older than you!"
Meadow exclaimed in disbelief seeing Hori's body.
TL Note: Chica means girl in Spanish.
Hori awkwardly smiled, not understanding what Meadow meant by their age difference.
She zipped up the track suit, they were finally done changing.
The uniforms for the Sabbath Exams was a blood dark red tracksuit, with golden lines, the pants were black tho, and the English writing "SHO" was placed boldly in gold at the back.
"pfft, are the uniforms meant to be that big?"
Meadow chuckled seeing what Hori wore. With the lack of information for their measurements and even gender, they made them the size of an average human male, given they were the majority of the participants.
"M'ija, lemme get dat for you."
Meadow gestured at her hands.
She rolled up Hori's sleeves and folded the bottom of pants so she wouldn't trip.
"Thank you so much!"
Hori appreciated.
The suited woman came back after 10 minutes.
"You all should be done changing by now. Follow me ladies! were gonna go meet up with the guys."
They did so and walked to ANOTHER wide hall, were they saw the male participants standing.
"Girls sure take a while to change, we've been standing here for ages!"
A handsome play boy told Friday, who stared holes into him.
Sir Scott came to address the crowd for the final time, scratching his eyes from exhaustion, he wasn't wearing his sunshades because the room had normal lightening.
"Before you begin, I will brief you about the rules for the exams... First of all, killing is allowed"
His words caused shudders throughout the crowd.
"Normally, a single kill would turn a person to a Sinner of Murder, but the area where the exams will be held are... Let's just say special. Now since it's allowed, I won't say it's encouraged. Rather, just try to disqualify your fellow participants"
A suited man stepped forward and continued.
"Points will be given to each participant after each trial. How quickly you finish each trial would determine how much your reward would be after the exams"
A male participant rose his hand for a question. He asked that they were already promised prize money for completing every trial. ¥10,000,000 if he recalled.
The suited man explained that the larger your points, the more you will be paid after total completion of the Sabbath Exams.
"I wish you all good luck, please try not to die, the populations already low as it is. And with this, let the Sabbath Exams.... Begin!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, every participant vanished at the sound of a kitchen bell as if signaling it.
Narrator - Next chapter, we see what the Sabbath Exams are like. Stay tuned!