Page 25 of Interion

“It's okay, it's over,” I said, trying to calm her down.

Even healed, the bruising below her eyes and nose persisted. Removing the blood that had leaked between the tissues was delicate, time-consuming work—I preferred to let the body handle that on its own.

“What happened?” the girl asked, looking around in confusion. Zion and Adrian were standing beside her.

“You got knocked out in two minutes,” the general replied. “Kyller healed you.”

The girl looked from Adrian to Zion, then to me, genuine confusion written on her face. She stared at her opponent for a long moment, then shrugged, got up, and sat on the bench beside the ring, taking the defeat in stride.

The trainer continued calling pairs, and with each round, we began to accept the new rules a little better. Some students hesitated at the order to knock out their opponents, but one look from Zion was enough to change their minds.

I kept healing those who fell—at least the damage wasn't as bad as I'd imagined. So far, I'd restored a broken nose, two dislocated arms, six cracked ribs, and three concussions. At some point amid the chaos, I started feeling guilty about my cowardice, and after a while, the idea of being knocked out didn't seem so terrifying anymore. But that acceptance still couldn't stop me from wanting to run. The truth was, I remembered what it felt like to be beaten to the brink of death, and I wasn't comfortable with the idea of going through that again.

“Ethan and Kyller, get in the ring. Adele, you cover for Kyller now,” Zion ordered.

I stood up, summoning what little courage I could muster—and I have to say, it wasn't much, just enough to keep me from running. Ethan was one of the best students in the class, and I'd watched some of his matches, so I knew kicks were his strong suit. I positioned myself across from him in the ring; his eyes gleamed with amusement, but I tried not to let it intimidate me.

“Begin.”

Zion's command sent my heart racing, and with every ounce of bravery in my cowardly body, I took a step toward Ethan.

Δ

“Kyller?” I woke with a start. The faces of Zion, Breno, and Adele swam into view, and for a moment, I felt like a corpse at a wake.

“What happened?” I asked, disoriented. The next second, it came back to me—I'd fought Ethan and lost. I brought my hands to my left eye and felt it swollen and sore. I remembered taking punch after punch, kick after kick, until one landed harder than the rest. When I went down, he kicked me in the face so hard my brain rattled like jelly.

“You passed out, so Adele tried to heal you, but it wasn't working,” Zion said.

I studied them, confused. Then, looking at Adele, I remembered why.

“I'm resistant to healing—I'd need someone at level 800 for it to take effect.” I sat up right away, a little dizzy.

“Why didn't you tell us before?” the girl asked, irritated.

“I forgot.”

“Are you okay now?” the general asked, scanning every inch of my face.

I touched the sore spot and shrugged, still dizzy.

“Yeah, I’ll be a hundred percent in five minutes—my healing’s already kicking in.”

His eyes fixed on the left side of my face with obvious concern. After a few seconds, apparently satisfied with my answer, he turned and headed back to the ring. Breno helped me up, and I made my way to the losers’ bench. Looking in the mirror on the side wall, I saw I had a black eye. I could also feel a rib knitting itself back together, but it still hurt like hell when I moved.

“Don’t worry,” Breno whispered in my ear, squeezing my waist as we approached the bench. “You’re still the prettiest girl here, even looking like a one-eyed panda.”

I suppressed a smile, momentarily forgetting how badly I’d just gotten my ass kicked.

“I hope you have better luck than me in the ring.”

Breno smiled, letting go of me as we reached our destination.

“I’m not worried. Even with two black eyes, I’d still be the best-looking guy in this place.”

If Zion weren’t there, he’d be right. This time, I just snorted in amusement, and Breno shot me an exaggerated wink before returning to his spot near the ring. Lorena, her bun pulled painfully tight, made room for me to sit beside her. She said nothing.

I continued watching the fights, and Breno was called to duel Naoki, a level 300 ice elemental from Yonser—so pale he made your eyes hurt in the sunlight. As expected, my friend won. When he sat on the winners’ bench, which was on the other side of the ring, he shot me a smug smile.