Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem novel Chapter 1696

The three brothers, along with the bodyguard couple, left their residence and headed to one of the tournament arenas. This martial arts competition, like any other, was a ladder you had to climb. First came the preliminaries, then the semi-finals, and finally, the finals. Today was the first day of the tournament, the preliminary rounds. Due to the large number of participants, the preliminaries were split across several venues. The arena Evan was at had about a hundred contestants, but only three would advance to the semi-finals. When they arrived, the stands were already packed. They walked straight to the front, taking the seats they had bought in advance, ready to watch the show. When the time came, the announcer gave a brief opening speech, read the rules one more time, and then started calling fighters by their numbers. Fighter #1 was a 55-year-old man from Thyania. Fighter #2 was a 21-year-old man from Alerasia. There was a big age gap between them, but in the world of martial arts, that wasn't unusual, and no one thought twice about it. After all, skill had nothing to do with age or gender. A whistle blew, and the match began! The Thyania fighter, #1, had a very steady and deliberate style. The Alerasia fighter, #2, was clearly more impulsive. Evan said, 'Number 1's got this in the bag.' Sure enough, after a few exchanges, the Thyania fighter won, and the Alerasia fighter was eliminated. According to the rules, if the winner needed a rest, two new fighters would take the stage. If the winner didn't need a break, they could continue to the next match. The Thyania fighter chose not to rest and went straight on to face #3. Fighter #3 was a 42-year-old man from Koryon. He looked mild-mannered, but his moves were vicious. He knocked out #1 in a flash! Fighter #4, also from Thyania, only lasted a few exchanges with #3 before he was on the ground, unconscious. Fighter #5 was a Zhinora fighter, around the same age as #3. The moment he made his move, Evan tensed up. He was no match for #3. Just as he feared, less than a minute after stepping onto the stage, he had taken several punches and his face was already bruised and swollen. Fighter #3 gloated, 'Give up and admit that you Zhinora fighters are trash, and I'll stop hitting you!' Fighter #5 gritted his teeth, his face a mess of injuries, and charged forward. Fighter #3 kicked him, sending him flying, then quickly rushed over, straddled him, grabbed his collar, and started wailing on him. While punching, he asked, 'Giving up? Are you giving up?' Fighter #5 stubbornly refused to speak. So #3 kept hitting him, even after he'd lost consciousness, he didn't stop! The referee was from the Thyania Martial Arts Association. He just watched as the Zhinora fighter passed out and didn't blow the whistle! Elliot, Evan, and Emmett were going crazy in their seats. This was obviously unfair! According to the rules, you had to stop hitting someone once they were unconscious. This was supposed to be a friendly competition, after all! Due to the incident with Bernard years ago, the relationship between Thyania and Zhinora fighters was already strained. And recently, because of Punikon's father, the Thyania fighters had an even bigger chip on their shoulder regarding Zhinora fighters. Now, with a fighter unconscious and the ref not stopping the match, it was clearly personal revenge. Evan was furious. He yelled at the top of his lungs, 'He's unconscious! Stop the match!' Elliot also shouted, 'Stop hitting him! He's already passed out!' The Koryonian fighter and the referee just pursed their lips, glanced dismissively at Elliot and Evan, and pretended not to hear. They weren't about to listen to a couple of kids. Evan was about to explode. Just as he was ready to rush the stage to save the man, Fighter #3 lazily stopped and got up. Only then did the referee blow the whistle! He didn't even glance at #5's injuries, simply declared #3 the winner, and then waved over a couple of guys to carry #5 away. Evan’s eyes burned with a mix of worry and rage as he watched #5 being taken away. He was eager to get on stage, but he looked at his number card: 9. There were still a few fighters ahead of him. Fighter #6 was also from Zhinora, a young man of 19. Provoked by what happened to #5, he came out swinging, his rage palpable. Fighter #3 didn't take him seriously at all. He didn't knock him out; instead, he toyed with him like an angry monkey, making him a spectacle for the crowd. Many of the martial artists in the audience roared with laughter. The Koryonian fighters were the most excited, chanting from the stands, 'Trash! Trash! Zhinora fighters are all trash!' The Zhinoran fighters in the audience weren't having it. Their blood boiled, and they looked ready to start a brawl. Thyania police stepped in to maintain order, but they were shouting at the Zhinoran fighters! This only made the Koryonian fighters cockier, and they started flipping off the Zhinoran fighters. On the stage, #6 was furious and flustered, his face red with rage! He was young and hot-blooded, with a heart full of desire to beat #3, but he just didn't have the skill. He charged again and again, but #3 dodged him easily every time. In the end, he exhausted himself without landing a single punch. Fighter #3 taunted, 'Is that all you've got? Kneel, bow your head, and say 'I'm trash,' and I'll let you go.' This sent #6 over the edge, his eyes turning red with fury. 'Aaaargh!' He roared and charged, as if ready for a fight to the death. But #3 easily knocked him to the ground. Just like with #5, #3 began punching him relentlessly, with no regard for his well-being. The referee had the same attitude as before, turning a blind eye... The Koryonian fighters in the crowd were yelling, 'Finish him! Finish him! Finish him!' The Zhinoran fighters all frowned, their fists clenched, watching their countryman nervously. Elliot, Evan, and Elijah also held their breath, their hearts aching for the older boy on the stage. The pain was so much that they almost wanted him to just say, 'I give up.' At least if he gave up, the beating would stop... After a moment, #6's eyes suddenly closed. He was unconscious. Elliot, Evan, and Elijah all said in unison, 'He's out!' Normally, you're not supposed to hit an unconscious opponent, but— Fighter #3 was still hitting him! The referee still hadn't blown the whistle! Evan finally snapped. In a single bound, he leaped onto the ring and kicked Fighter #3 square in the chest! Fighter #3 went flying, tumbling like a bowling ball right into the referee! The referee let out a grunt as the two of them stumbled backward... 'THUMP!' Both of them flew out of the ring and crashed into the audience.