Natalya Pov :

I practically dragged my feet up to the ring and stood opposite the boy, but not too close.

He was obviously staring at me like he had already killed me and won.

I give it to him. I mean, when I was in Base One, nobody stood a chance with me, because I always won.

But before I did so, I made sure I beat the living brightness out of your normal self so you wouldn’t have the nerve to come at me again.

But this actually seemed to be the same scenario, only reversed, I was the prey and he was the hunter.

The man in charge of us, I didn’t seem to grab his name when he introduced himself came closer to us and slowly gave out the instructions.

“The rules here state that you are not allowed to hit anybody’s sensitive parts, but you are allowed to attack the person when you find out their weakness. And finally, two don’t leave the ring. It’s required to have only one survivor, and that’s it. So as you two can see, I’ve got all the time in the world. We could stay here for a week if it means only one person gets off that ring and leaves a dead soul. Yeah, let’s wrap it here,” he said, and moved to a seat adjacent to us so he could have a clear view.

The game didn’t start yet until the man I assumed to be the commander came in, followed by the Tier Two inmates those who had already graduated. They took their seats respectively, and everywhere went dead silent when the man blew the whistle.

“Game on!” he screamed with joy all over his face. I stared at him and was disgusted by how he was happy putting two thirteen-year-olds in a ring and asking them to box to death.

Although I knew I would be the one to die, I just didn’t imagine myself dead in this kind of place.

Still in my thoughts, I felt something hard and very hurtful hit my head, and I zoned in immediately. It was the death-stare guy that blew me.

“Ouch!” That really hurt, no kidding. I faced him fully with my hands squeezed, ready to blow him, but I wasn’t too fast. I was just in my stance, and I watched him move from one angle to the other, hopping like a frog.

I have watched a frog hop, and I’ve calculated how far they go, but the difference is that a frog is a little slippery while he is just human.

He moved forward, throwing another punch at my.. what! my ankle. This boy just wanted to break my bones before he killed me, jeez.

Just as I was still groaning in pain, he aimed at my stomach and hit it. Bloody Mary… I felt my whole intestines leaving their comfort zone. Nothing is more painful than a hit to the stomach.

Still in pain, this guy didn’t even give me a chance to recover from the stomach blow. He hit me very hard on my shoulder. He was practically attempting to weaken me in places that would stop me from fighting back.

I stood up from where I was practically kneeling, trying to reduce the pain I was feeling in my stomach. That was when this idiot of a man blew the whistle, which forced the boy to halt in what he wanted to do.

“Princess, are you just gonna stay there doing nothing while receiving the end blow? Do you think this is a joke?” he shouted. The way he said it pissed me off, and I had to talk back.

“Sir, what the fuck were you thinking, giving a girl a death-stare-faced human to fight with? You wanted me dead in the first place.” What I said drew a hole from him. Yeah, that’s right you don’t mess with me and act like nothing happened, I muttered to myself.

“Who the fu..” Before he could complete the sentence, the commander shut him up. Yeah, that’s what I thought.

“What’s your real name, Princess?” he asked, which took me off guard.

“I’m Rose, sir,” I answered with an innocent look in my eyes. He stared at me for a little bit, then I heard what I never needed to hear in my life. Now I was starting to regret why I ran my mouth.

“Hey, get me one of our best inmates from Tier Two. I want the person to finish this dumbass off. Ain’t nobody going against me in my territory, do you hear me, Princess?” he said, motioning at my lifeless self. I just nodded at least now I knew they really didn’t want me alive here.

When I thought I had had enough, they brought in a very muscular guy. I could guess he might be fifteen already.

He looked proud as he walked. Yeah, he must feel honored to be running a stupid errand for this commander.

The new guy climbed into the ring, and they signaled the first guy to get off the ring, which he did obediently.

I didn’t need anyone to tell me to get into the ring. I just walked in and faced him. Let’s give this a trial. I stood ready to take him when I heard the whistle blow.

Before I could analyze where to hit him, I already found myself on the floor. My back was no good at all, but good thing I knew he was fast.

I jerked up immediately, and I heard chants of “woah… wow… she looks confident.” My head started to grow big, because I enjoy it when people think I’m cool. I aimed at his jaw and gave him a quick shot just when he wanted to avoid it.

I diverted the blow to his stomach and took him by surprise. He groaned a little, and I smirked.

Now I liked the look of that. But just as I wanted to celebrate my victory a little bit, he hit my knee, and I stumbled to the floor. That one got me. It hurt like hell, man. I cursed under my breath.

He rushed to grab me from where I was still on the floor, looking pathetic. I stood back up immediately, but I was obviously limping, and he smiled at the sight of that. He really was enjoying this.

I looked around me and realized that I was on my own in this one, and nobody would save me. So if I wanted to die, at least I would die as a fighter, not a pathetic loser. I stood firmly, but my knee was seriously aching. Still, I held my stance and faced him.

“Princess, don’t waste your energy. At least you’ve had enough already. Just tap out or something,” he said with a teasing grin.

I wasn’t finding it funny, so I told him, “Not after I deal with you. I think you should be the one tapping out.”

The statement made him laugh hard at me, but not before saying, “Now I’m seeing why your dad ditched you off. You are nothing but trash to roll over.”

That one hit me real hard. I hate to admit it, but my dad really did hurt me, and I hate it when a stranger spits those words at me. It hits differently.

I didn’t want his words to affect me, so I ignored him and stared at him with my hands still in fists, waiting for his next move.

That was when I remembered what my coach once told me that if you strike an enemy and they seem stiff and strong, use their weakness, whether emotional or physical.

This joke of a guy thought he could get me emotionally, whatever he thought he was doing, but nah. I already passed that phase. I went through that shit back in Base One.

My dad ordered his men to beat me mercilessly when he heard that I was beaten through emotional stuff. The idiots almost beat me to death.

They always had fun beating me and leaving marks, so I don’t think this ass right here knew that I don’t fall for emotional shit.

He stared at me for a while, drifted to my side, then jogged backward like he wanted to hit me into a stupor. But he wasn’t quick enough this time.

I aimed at his side, just beside his stomach, and gave him a hard blow. I could guess his rib might have been broken because he groaned, trying to hold onto the pain, but blood rolled out of his nose since he didn’t let it out through his mouth.

I gave him an “I knew it” smile and ventured further.

I grabbed him by his leg and made him lose balance, and he fell to the ground. I didn’t let him take a break. I raised my leg as high as I could and threw it at his face. He curled into a circle in pain.

Now I liked the sight of that. The Tier Two inmates were so quiet, unlike earlier when they were all “woah” and stuff.

I stood aside and gave him the privilege to regain the remaining dignity he had left, at least for the sake of his fans, because he seemed to be the crowd favorite.

But I wasn’t done yet, because I wasn’t ready to die just yet.

He gently stood up, but he was visibly shaken. Maybe I really did break his ribs. He locked his hands into fists and aimed at me. I dodged it and changed position.

The crowd was cheering me, and I liked it. Then he did something that surprised me, he went on his knees.

“Wait, what… bro, what the fuck are you doing?”

I questioned him, just to know whether he was trying to lure me down or something. He hit his hand on the floor and said in a loud voice, “I tap out, please. She’s too strong for me. I can’t… I can’t breathe… please, Com..”

He said in a shaky voice, but the commander held his hand up in the air and motioned for the guards to take the guy out. Maybe I really did hit him hard for him to tap out in just two blows.

The commander motioned to the death-stare guy who left the ring earlier and gave him the sign to get into the ring. Okay, this was getting interesting.

“Now this one isn’t the one you tap out on, Princess. You face death. I was gonna ask him to go easy on you, but you just injured my favorite Tier Two so badly. If you kill this one, then I’ll give you a name no one would challenge,” he said with pride, because he knew there was a possibility that I wouldn’t win this next match. I mean, I didn’t want to die myself.

I stood and faced the death-faced guy. When I heard the whistle, I was a little weak because I had just fought a tough person.

The death-faced kid rushed me, but I was quick to shift to the side.

That made him stumble because he came with force, his back facing me. I hit his spinal cord real hard. That’s a major place that can paralyze a human.

He stood stiff immediately. Yeah, that one got him. I lifted my leg to the side of his neck and hit it hard. He fell to the ground and rolled in pain, it was unbearable.

I knew, because I had been hit like that before. Just before he made an attempt to move his hand to support his body, I raised my leg real high this time and struck his neck. It cracked, and his body became still without much struggle.

I went closer to him and shook his hand. Then I realized he was dead.

“He’s dead!” I screamed, and the commander took a close look at him and shouted, “Natalya,” which means **THE NEMESIS**.

I mean, my name sounded cool… and yeah, you wouldn’t want to face the Nemesis, would you?

Natalya Pov :

That was where and how I got my name, Natalya, meaning “THE NEMESIS”.

Yeah, so when I got off the ring, there were chants of my name here and there, and God, that felt so good.

Then I noticed the commander motioned for me to come closer, which I did, and he drew his hand out for, what!

He literally gave me a handshake and patted my back, muttering, “Natalya, you are gonna make it big, yeah. I love your style.” With that, he stood up from where he was sitting and exited the place.

Whatever. I kind of mingled with the crowd, and I noticed Tasi. But before I could scream her name, she motioned me over, which I did without wasting time.

“Hey guys, this is Natalya. She’s my roomie and the first tier champion, yeah,” she said with pride. I mean, who wouldn’t be proud of me, not after I almost got my ass whipped out there.

We stayed there for a while, and the trumpet sounded again.

I didn’t need Anastasiya’s help to get back to my base. I practically pictured the whole place in my head from the morning when she was leading me out. Immediately I got to base.

I drifted off immediately into a deep sleep, but not long after I shut my eyes, somebody tapped me. Of course, I already knew who it was.

“What is it, Tasi? I just wanna sleep. I’m tired.”

“Natalya, get your ass up there. You are not yet done for today. We were gonna take lunch, then go for a few laps and back to the ring,” she said.

Her voice was practically growing out of patience with the way she talked.

“What do you mean we are gonna run a few laps and go back to the ring? Please don’t tell me I’m gonna still fight again. I’m exhausted.”

I groaned. “I mean, who the fuck stresses a seventeen-year-old like this?” I muttered to myself.

“I heard you, Natalya, and yes, you are still gonna fight again today, but with a different opponent. We are getting him from Tier Three. Those ones go to school and study at the same time, so I think you might get your ass whipped this time. But you are not to die in this one. You just have to break bones like make the person not be able to move, though they can eventually fix it through an operation. We have a surgeon who takes care of shit like that.”

“What… Tasi, did you go through all this shit before you settled in this base?” I asked, because this seemed to be going zig-zag.

“Yeah, I passed it all, because I wasn’t ready to die yet. But I lost my first two inmates before you on their first trial, so since you survived the first one, I have high hopes that you are gonna pass other levels.”

“Wait, how many levels do they have?”

“Just five, which is almost a week. Each day goes to two trials, and you are given a day of rest before they give you the fight back to back.”

“So, how long have you been here?” I asked, because she sounded like she was already done with this Base Two stuff.

“Natalya, I’m two weeks gone already, so me and you are gonna graduate together if you don’t die after the whole trial stuff.”

“So are you a prisoner or what? You seem tough. I mean, I have met your age mates who aren’t into mafia stuff, and they are out there sticking their butts in the air and acting like babies in front of their parents, having nice sleeps and other boring shit.”

“Look, my parents just sold me here. They needed money to sort some stuff, so I was the only valuable thing they had to sell. So that’s it. Come on, enough with this pathetic talk. Let’s hit the field,” she said, practically dragging me up with her.

“Wait, I thought you said we were gonna eat first before we go to the field,” I said, whining.

“Yeah, and we both wasted the time by talking about personal stuff.”

“Don’t tell me we are gonna go hungry for the day.”

“Yeah, exactly. First time you thought with your brain, that’s impressive,” she teased me.

“So I’m gonna fight on an empty stomach with somebody who has already had enough energy,” I said, almost groaning.

I was seriously hungry. I hadn’t had a proper meal since the last thing I had was the water Tasi gave me before the first match.

And now I was getting the news that we missed a meal, and clearly it seemed they served food only once a day. Oh gosh, can this get any better? I don’t see that happening.

We moved over to the field with Tasi leading the way, and I followed suit. When we got there, they were already standing in line, and we joined in.

The Tier Three seemed special, because they were quite far from us and had the same cool clothing patterns and stuff.

Still checking them out, I heard a voice that made me move my gaze away from them.

“Take it easy, tiger. You are gonna get there if you survive tonight and a hell of two years here,” Tasi smirked at me.

I didn’t retaliate or say anything. I just scanned the room with my eyes, being observant of my environment. At least I needed to take a glance at it, because my hopes were not really high right now on the issue of winning the second fight. I was so goddamn hungry, I would surely drink blood if I was offered one now.

Not long after we settled down, the coach came in and started guiding us on what to do, but I just kept falling or going out of line. I was seriously hungry.

“Hey, Natalya, what the fuck is wrong with you, huh? You think this is a joke, huh? Because you won the first stage, you suddenly think training here is not worth your time, huh?” he spat out, obviously fuming. I mean, what the fuck did I do? I was just hungry.

“I’m sorry, I wo..” Before I could complete it, he cut me off immediately.

“Keep your sorry ass to yourself. One more stupid mistake and I would make you run laps till it’s your turn to enter the ring. Do you get me, Natalya?”

“Yes, sir…” I silently sniffed.

“That’s coach to you, yeah. So guys, let’s get back to the training,” he said, diverting his gaze away from me to the base that were staring at him.

We continued with the exercises, and it was my turn to show how much I learned for the day, because we went by turns. I used the opportunity to rest my aching back.

I stood up and walked forward to the space that was kept for us to do the stuff, and I felt someone’s foot on my leg. I wasn’t fast enough to hold my stance, and I found myself tripping to the floor.

“Ouch! That hurts,” I groaned, still not realizing how much I had embarrassed myself just yet. As I struggled to get myself up, I looked up to see where I was clearly, and my eyes fell on the commander and all the base. They were literally staring at me, and it was obvious they wanted to laugh, but not without permission.

“Oh shit.” Now this is what we call a worst-case scenario.

“Cut the practice. Everyone to the front base. I wanna get Natalya done for,” he commanded, and everyone sped up immediately. I wasn’t even stressing myself this time.

I took my time with how I walked, unless I wanted to embarrass myself twice in a day. I felt something touch my shoulder, and I sprang into action immediately to take the thing down.

“Hey, it’s me. What was that back there, huh? Do you wanna get yourself killed? Now the commander is gonna get whoever it is you are gonna wrestle with drugged so they can finish you off,” she shouted at me, but it was out of concern, at least.

“Nah, just hungry. Wait, do they drug them to fight?”

“Yeah. If the opponent seems to be hot-headed like you, they drug them so they could take you out without blinking twice. Just please win this match for me. I just need a roomie, alright?”

“Yeah, I got you,” I teased her.

“You betta,” she winked at me and started walking over to where she was gonna sit and watch the match, while I was stuck here with hunger pangs and frustration. Whatever it was that I was feeling right now, I was really gonna take it out on both my opponent and that shit they called drugs.

Immediately the commander walked in, everywhere went mute. At least, as far as I could remember, I could hear the sound of my intestines pleading for food.

He motioned for me to move to the ring, which I did without hesitation.

At least when I was done dealing with this guy, whoever he was, then I could have a nice meal and enough rest at my base tomorrow. Wait.. what the fuck was I doing thinking about tomorrow? I hadn’t even seen my opponent yet.

I noticed a huge guy walk in. He was sweating all over his body, so I thought maybe he fought with my opponent before escorting him here or something, because I didn’t want to believe I was going against this giant.

I mean, y’all know how it is with David and Goliath.

it was real lit but I think I’m gonna be the David this night, though I’m little, because this beast here I don’t wanna call him human is gonna eat me raw. Don’t get the wrong mindset.

He walked over to the ring where I was and was jumping up and down or panting.

I just couldn’t get a word for it, but he was hopping like a frog, like the way the first guy that I broke his neck did before he met God.

The annoying guy from the first game blew the whistle real hard. Maybe he wanted me to hear it one last time before I died. His actions were obvious.

I practically turned and faced the huge guy. He ventured toward me with speed, and I darted aside and let him crash flat to the ground.

I mean, why wouldn’t he trip when he stupidly ventured toward me like that? Y’all should try a new style, please. I’m tired of breaking necks already.

I didn’t rush him like I would normally do. I didn’t blame him much for speeding like that he ate enough food before coming for the fight, and since I came hungry, I wasn’t ready to be hopping like a frog or running like a cheetah. I might trip again if I tried that shit.

I waited till he got on his feet.

“Ahh, he’s too slow for my liking.”

When he got on his feet, I was expecting him to go on with his clumsiness, but this bro jerked me up like I was a leaf and practically threw me to the extreme end of the ring.

My back hit the bricks they had carelessly kept there.

“Ouch, that hurts like shit,” I cursed and rolled myself into a ball, at least to put my sight in order before standing up. It took me all the remaining functioning bones in my body to stand up, and the weird guy let me take my time.

Maybe he was returning the favor of what I did to him earlier. I placed my hand on the floor for support to stand up, and to my surprise, it didn’t disappoint me. Maybe my hand wasn’t that hungry just yet, unlike my stomach, which was already groaning unnecessarily.

When I was sure yeah, I needed to be sure that I was standing firmly on both my legs, I put my hands into fists, ready to take him. But he showed me that he still had the upper hand. He struck my stomach.

“Ouch… oh crap,” I screamed. It was loud enough. Then I noticed something liquid spit out of my mouth. It was… blood.

“Oh shit.”

Natalya POV :

No… no… I panicked immediately I saw the blood stains that came out from my mouth. It was really thick. Still in shock, the boy was busy stretching himself and changing position on how he would take me out.

I hastily kept my hand on the floor to support myself when I was standing, but my hand was weak. It slipped off, and I slumped to the floor unintentionally.

“Ahhh,” my whole body was a mess. Really, this shit was painful, no jokes. I rolled to the other end of the floor and placed my knee on the ring floor for support, and to my surprise, I stood, but I was practically bent slightly because the hit on my stomach was so painful that I didn’t want to stand up straight.

When the boy was sure that I was standing, he didn’t attack immediately, like he was waiting for me to recover a little so he could finish me off, or maybe he was surprised because I survived the blow on my stomach.

I have this feeling that he knows I’ve been hit thrice on my stomach, and a next hit would draw out blood, which it did.

Since he was just staring at me, not taking action, I decided to go first. I hate wasting my time over something that I know I can’t win, so I took a few steps closer to him, but nahhhh, I didn’t clinch my hands into a fist this time.

I just stood and stared back at him. I’m not too dumb to know that he wants me to take the first action, and I’m not trying that shit. We were still staring when the coach blew his whistle.

Now this is the second time this dumbass is blowing the whistle just when I’m starting to enjoy the game.

“Yo, what are both of you doing there, huh? We don’t have all the time, and you hawk, finish this piece of shit up. C’mon, let’s wrap it real quick, yeah,” he said and motioned on us to resume the fight.

And just as I was diverting my view to the ring… “Ouch.”

One of my eyes went dark, combined with the pain that accompanied it. Wait, bro, take it slow on me, yeah. This bro literally threw a blow to my eye. I better start kicking before he kills me.

I charged myself up. I wasn’t feeling that hungry now. I was just feeling the pain that I let this bro beat me into, and I haven’t even touched him yet since the game.

He swung his leg sideways, planning to hit my back, and I drifted aside, grabbed his leg, used my elbow, and gave him a hit right at his knee spot, and his bone cracked.

I knew I might have broken his bone because I could see veins creeping out of his neck, clearly stating that he wanted to shout but was holding it in. He rolled to the edge of the ring for support, just like I did when he hit my stomach.

Yeah, right. So he now knew how it felt to get hit, though his case was different. I just broke his bone. Well, that’s the rule. I smiled to myself. He might think I’m weird, but I just love it when I break bones. It’s my second favorite. My first could wait for later.

I wanted to rush him and finish this fight up, but he seemed to find it hard to stand, so I left him and just enjoyed the view of him struggling.

When he got enough energy and stood up, I stared at his knee. It was really no good because he was limping but trying his possible best to look normal. I love that. Maybe one more hit there wouldn’t hurt.

He took a step right in front of me and grabbed me by the waist. I would give it to him, he was really good at grabbing. He could lift anything, anytime, but nah, I have hit the ground enough. I’m not doing that shit again.

When he grabbed me by my stomach and lifted me up, ready to throw me, I released my weight on him by pressing myself down really hard. He saw that he didn’t stand a chance, so he immediately raised the same leg I hit him on to snap on my neck.

“Oh jeez, this guy really is dumb for real.” I mean, you can’t practically fight with a wounded knee because at that point, that’s your weakness, and your opponent will only target it. And I can’t just miss the fun.

When he swung his leg ready to take me out, I grabbed him by the knee. This time, I didn’t hit his knee. I brought his leg over my shoulder real quick and drifted to the floor, making the leg crack more. Hmmm, I like the sound of that.

He immediately grabbed his leg and winced in pain. I really wanted to go easy on him earlier, but his hit wasn’t helping, so now I had to retaliate in a very hard way. I went closer to him, bent over, and whispered to him.

“Bruh, just tap out or something. I don’t wanna kill you, but breaking a few bones here and there can do that.”

The statement made him look me in the eye. He wanted to say something, but the pain was obviously holding him back. I tapped him and said,

“Nah, save that for later. Now get your ass up, let’s finish it up.”

Before I could turn to the other end, I heard him mutter something.

“Fuck off, psycho.”

I hated it whenever I’m called a psycho. Just when I thought I was helping him, he still had the guts to call me a psycho.

“Oh God, this piece of stuff is really pissing me off.”

I immediately walked back toward him, sat on top of him, and gave him blows that totally ruined his face till he passed out. Yeah, he didn’t die, he just passed out.

I stood up and tapped the ring, notifying that my opponent possibly passed. The manager came closer, examined his pulse, and said that he was dead.

“Um… seems like I literally killed him.”

At least that would make my next three opponents, maybe by tomorrow, take note of their future possibilities. I don’t kid around in the ring, but I do give chances of survival.

I left the ring and walked up to the commander. He seemed too shocked to tell me anything. He just waved me off and left the fighting ground. My next three opponents might undergo strict training if they don’t want to die.

“Hey, Natalya, over here,” Tasi called out, and I turned immediately and waved at her. I wasn’t ready for a conversation or possibly to talk to her friends. I just wanted to sleep. I was really tired, so I walked back to our base immediately.

I swung the door open, walked to the bed, and slumped on it.

“Urrrh, this feels so good. After a long day, I get to have a stress-free nap.”

I hugged the bed tight and slept off.

I woke up the next day. Yeah, I really slept that long. I was woken up by a tap on my shoulder.

“Hey, Natalya, let’s go for morning jog. I don’t wanna be late today, please,” Tasi was practically begging.

It was the rule here. It states that you don’t show up to any activity alone unless you don’t have a roomie, but if you do have one, then a very honorable punishment awaits both of you.

I jerked up immediately, took a quick shower, wore shorts and a sleeveless top, and followed Tasi to the field. We took a few laps, discussing personal stuff while waiting for others to join. Not less than two minutes after we got there, the commander showed up.

“Oh no!” Tasi screamed when she saw him, same with everyone around me. They seemed tense.

“Hey, what’s up? Why are y’all screaming for nothing?” I asked out of curiosity.

“Commander never comes to the field, and if he does, we suffer a lot. Today’s spot might be boxing,” Tasi said.

“Yeah, I mean, I love boxing. No big deal there.”

“Yeah, wait till you’re really hit on your body with that boxing stuff. It’s really painful,” Tasi said and drifted off to where her friends were standing.

I just stood at my own spot since I’m not the type that walks to people and starts a conversation. I’m kind of an introvert.

I was still taking in the view of the field when I heard a voice beside me talk.

“Natalya, you love the view, huh?”

I turned my back and faced the person fully, dashed him a smile, and drifted off to the end of the field. I’m not ready to have a conversation. I just want to have a peaceful morning without breaking bones.

Not long after, the commander came and we started off the training. We were taught cool fighting skills, though I already knew most of them because I went to Base One before I came here.

Then it was time for boxing.

“Aha, why did it take them so long to get here? I have been waiting long.”

The commander gave out the rules, specifically stressing the part about not killing your inmate, that it was just a game and not a life-or-death situation. I knew he was specifically talking to me with the way he was staring at me, but I didn’t care. I don’t go by the rules. If you try to slaughter me, game or no game, I’m definitely killing you.

The game kicked off when it was Tasi’s turn. I watched how she took off her opponent. She was really tougher than she looks. Damn. Her opponent tried to hit her face, she held her two hands at the sides of her face to prevent blows, then she struck him one time on the cheeks and he fell to the ground.

I gasped in shock. How the hell did she take a huge guy down with just one strike? Now I know why she’s called the Nightingale. She really doesn’t waste time on the battlefield. That is a skill I want to learn.

We went row by row till it got to my turn. I stood and ventured to the ring. My opponent was just normal-sized like me. Now I’m a little bit grateful they, for once since I came here, gave me someone my size.

Our fight kicked off when the commander himself blew the whistle. He wanted to keep a close eye on me so I don’t kill my opponent. I placed my two hands beside me to prevent future blows since I wanted to go easy on this little one. Yeah, now I’m calling my size the little one.

I threw a punch on him and dodged it, hopping from one angle to the other. I gave him a playful punch, and he staggered back. I mean, it was just a playful punch, why the hell is he staggering?

“Hey, Natalya, take it easy with the punch. You drew smoke outta his ear just now. I said knock him out, not make him deaf. Do you get me?” the commander asked.

“Yes, sir,” I said before diverting my attention back to the fighting ground.

I didn’t give out another punch. I wanted him to show me what he had got so I could level how I throw a punch at him. He came closer to me and was watching my movement to know how he would strike, but I just gave him a free pass and he hit me just as hard as I hit him. It wasn’t that strong, but it was a little painful.

Then I wanted to take him out this time, so I leveled my hand and threw a punch hard enough to take even a ghost out on his face, and he fell to the ground without shaking or even groaning.

Maybe he really was strong, but I paused my movement when blood started filling the floor. I screamed, “B… blood.”

The commander checked the boy’s pulse and shook his head.

“Oh shit, he’s dead!”