The arena had become silent.
No one cheered anymore.
No one spoke.
Even the wind seemed to pause.
At its center...
Two exhausted warriors faced one another.
Riven Thorn.
Zoldick Velmora.
Their bodies were bruised from head to toe.
Their knuckles bled.
Their breathing was ragged.
Every muscle trembled from exhaustion.
Yet...
Neither took a step back.
A smile remained on both faces.
Riven wiped blood from the corner of his mouth.
"...One more."
Zoldick nodded.
"...One more."
Around them, the crowd watched with bated breath.
Even Queen Nyxara leaned forward on her throne.
Nobody wanted to miss what came next.
BOOM!!
The stone beneath them exploded.
Both warriors disappeared.
Fist met fist.
Elbow met elbow.
Kick met kick.
Every collision echoed across the estate.
Riven's hook.
Blocked.
Zoldick's kick.
Avoided.
A knee.
Countered.
A spinning elbow.
Deflected.
Neither gained an advantage.
Neither surrendered even a single inch.
They had abandoned technique.
Abandoned caution.
Now...
It was simply will against will.
The crowd erupted.
"RIVEN!"
"ZOLDICK!"
"RIVEN!"
"ZOLDICK!"
The chants shook the arena itself.
Inside the storm of fists...
Both reached the same conclusion.
This has to end.
Zoldick stepped in.
A straight punch shot toward Riven's face.
For the first time...
Riven didn't block.
CRACK!
The fist smashed into his left cheek.
His head snapped sideways.
Another punch.
THUD!
It struck his ribs.
A knee buried itself into his stomach.
A palm strike crashed into his shoulder.
The spectators gasped.
"Why isn't he defending?!"
"He's taking everything!"
Blood flew from Riven's mouth.
Pain screamed through his body.
Still...
He kept moving forward.
One step.
Then another.
Ignoring every blow.
Ignoring every instinct telling him to retreat.
Zoldick's eyes widened.
"You're...!"
Too late.
Riven's right hand shot forward.
It clamped around Zoldick's punching arm like a steel trap.
The Velmora heir instinctively tried to pull away.
He couldn't.
Riven had him.
His left leg suddenly sprang upward.
It wrapped around the side of Zoldick's neck, locking his head firmly in place.
The arena fell silent.
Even Eryx's eyes widened.
"...That technique."
With his entire body suspended in the air...
Riven twisted his hips.
Every ounce of momentum.
Every remaining fragment of strength.
Every lesson Eryx had ever drilled into him.
Everything became one.
His right knee rocketed upward.
BOOOOOOM!!
The impact exploded against the side of Zoldick's skull.
The crack echoed throughout the estate.
His eyes rolled back instantly.
His body went limp.
A collective gasp swept through the audience.
"He got him!"
"Zoldick's unconscious!"
But...
Even as darkness consumed him...
Zoldick's years of training refused to let his body surrender completely.
His remaining instinct acted on its own.
Using nothing but gravity...
He twisted.
Still trapped within Riven's hold...
He pulled both of them downward.
Riven realized it a fraction too late.
"...Oh."
BOOOOOOOM!!
The two warriors crashed into the arena like a falling meteor.
The stone floor shattered.
A massive crater spread beneath them.
Dust engulfed everything.
Silence.
No movement.
No sound.
The dust slowly settled.
Both warriors lay inside the crater.
Neither moved.
Neither stirred.
Both unconscious.
For several long seconds...
The entire estate remained frozen.
Then...
The cheers came.
The arena exploded.
Thunderous applause shook the night.
House Nocturne roared Riven's name.
House Velmora answered with Zoldick's.
Neither side sounded disappointed.
Neither side claimed defeat.
Instead...
They celebrated.
Because everyone understood what they had witnessed.
Not victory.
Not defeat.
But two future pillars of the Third crossing fists without regret.
Eryx stepped into the ruined arena.
He looked at Riven.
Then at Zoldick.
A smile slowly appeared.
"...Idiots."
Vadok walked beside him.
He laughed.
"The finest idiots our houses have ever produced."
The two patriarchs looked at one another.
Then...
Without hesitation...
They shook hands.
"A draw."
"A draw."
Above them...
Nyxara rose from her throne.
She looked over the cheering crowd.
The shattered arena.
The unconscious warriors.
A grin spread across her face.
"Now..."
She declared.
"That..."
"...was entertainment."
The crowd erupted again.
Even the elders who rarely showed emotion applauded.
Soren leaned against the arena wall and laughed.
"I can't believe they knocked each other out."
Lira folded her arms.
"They're both hopeless."
Nyss couldn't stop smiling.
She quietly brushed a strand of silver hair behind her ear.
"...Welcome back, Riven."
Diana gently rocked baby Fenrick in her arms.
The infant slept peacefully, completely unaware that history had just been made a few dozen meters away.
Music slowly returned to the estate.
Servants carried more food into the courtyard.
Wine was poured once again.
Children excitedly reenacted the duel with wooden sticks and exaggerated punches, arguing over who had won.
Old veterans laughed as they recalled famous duels from decades past, agreeing that tonight's battle deserved to stand beside them.
The celebration continued long into the night.
Not for a victor.
Not for a loser.
But for two young warriors who had proven that the future of the Third Order rested in capable hands.
High above the estate...
The moon watched silently.
As though it, too...
Had enjoyed the spectacle.