Martial Arts Worlds

Kiernan ran down the stairs and saw the exit of the castle ahead of him. It was still open. The guards were letting the late guests in.

"Hey, Kiernan!"

Suddenly, a familiar voice came from behind him.

Julian was running after him, hopping down the stairs, and soon caught up to him.

"Where are you going?" Julian grabbed his shoulder and made him stop. "Are you leaving?"

"Yes, I must go." Kiernan said, his eyes slightly red.

"Have you been crying?" Julian asked in surprise.

"Of course not, the fuck?" Kiernan shook his head. "I just have something in my eye."

"Then why the hell are you leaving?" Julian asked. "Let me go tell Raquel first, then I'll come with you."

"No need." Kiernan said and patted him on the shoulder. "Maybe you should stay here. In this island, I mean. You'll find happiness with Raquel here, I am sure of it."

"Hey… What the hell are you talking about?" Julian asked. "I'm coming with you."

"What for, honestly?" Kiernan asked. "You have a chance to start fresh and have happiness; you deserve it after the Swording Port and everything we've experienced."

"Exactly, the Swording Port!" Julian shouted that scared the nearby guests.

"I can't let go of my revenge. I just can't. Staying here with Raquel is making me soft, and I am afraid that I'll forget about my revenge altogether.

"I don't want that!"

"Your parents would like you to be happy, I am sure of it." Kiernan said with a sigh. "I can finish your revenge for you. You just focus on being happy with Raquel."

SLAP!

Julian suddenly slapped him in the face.

Kiernan's eyes shook as his cheek turned red from the slap.

"You don't get to choose that for me!" Julian grabbed him by the collar. "I want to become stronger for my revenge, and I believe the fastest way to get strong is with you."

"Your slap hurt, shit." Kiernan touched his cheek and looked into his eyes. "You really want to do this? You might come to regret it."

"Heh!" Julian grinned. "I live for regrets."

"Sigh…" Kiernan massaged his temples. "Well then, go say your goodbyes to Raquel. I need you to go to the harbor to get us a ship. I don't want to go through passenger vessel; it's too slow, and we won't be able to reach Irio before the school starts.

"Purchase a proper ship for us."

"What will you do?" Julian asked.

"I've got to leave my mark on this island." Kiernan cracked his knuckles. "I am pissed the fuck off. I am going to show who they're dealing with."

"Oh shit…" Julian muttered under his breath. "Don't burn the city to the ground, alright?"

"It's nothing like that." Kiernan rubbed the back of his neck. "See you later, I will be back shortly."

…

Through the dark forest, Kiernan walked through the thinning forest. He had abandoned his three-piece suit as he tossed it into some trash can on his way.

He was now wearing his casual clothes that maximized his flexibility. He didn't want to wear anything that would hinder his movements.

After reaching an empty clearing, he came across the cave of the Game—he returned here once more.

As he walked to the entrance, he checked the leaderboard.

***

[LEADERBOARD]

[1. Zeus Abracadabra - 06:21.012]
Read the latest on My Virtual Library Empire

[2. Christmas Abracadabra - 06:30.535]

[3. Rain Abracadabra - 06:31.985]

[4. Light Abracadabra - 06:44.234]

[5. Yvette Montrose - 07:01.022]

[6. Cash Abracadabra - 07:05.456]

[7. Messiah Abracadabra - 07:21.195]

[8. Gaius Alderwood - 08:34.444]

[9. Valtin Fox - 08:55.323]

[10. Casmiri Peverell - 08:59.355]

***

'6 minutes and 21 seconds.' Kiernan thought and cracked his knuckles. 'The time to beat.'

He took deep breath, tightened his powerful muscles, and then kicked off into a sprint.

The wind rushed through his hair as the time on the stone tablet started ticking up.

With a quick sprint, he rushed through the darkness and came across the climb. He put all his effort into his right leg, then sprang off the ground and launched himself into the air.

He skipped the first holds with the jump, then climbed up the wall with ease, keeping up an insane pace that could rival Gardner's climbing speed!

Soon, he reached the halfway mark and arrived at the jump. He didn't hesitate, used his new, stronger right leg, and jumped the gap with ease.

He grabbed the holds, kept going, and soon arrived at the top.

It was easily the fastest he had done the climbing, and he didn't even feel exhausted yet!

Kiernan immediately bolted forward and dashed through the hallway like a flash. He soon reached the second challenge.

The ceiling collapsed, and the stone golems came crashing down, standing in his way like silent guardians.

'Let's see just how much stronger my right leg is!'

Kiernan gritted his teeth, sprang off the ground, and reeled his right leg way back before whipping it into a kick.

"Iron Style, Celestial Scythe!"

The kick cut through the stone golems like a knife through butter. The stone golems shattered like fragile glass.

All the stone golems were annihilated with a single kick.

"Whoo!" Kiernan breathed heavily.

The word "Iron" vanished from his first finger.

'The strength of that kick wasn't bad!'

Kiernan bolted past the destroyed stone golems, and with gritted teeth, soon arrived by the third challenge.

With his current speed, which had increased since acquiring his new right leg, he effortlessly outran the chains and arrived at the fourth challenge, the swimming challenge.

"Iron Style, Water Walking!"

SPLASH!

With a splash, he started running on top of the water and crossed the challenge without any hiccup.

BANG!

The bullets exploded out of the gun's barrel.

"Rendering Edge!"

With the sides of his hands, he steered away the bullets and kept running ahead, the muscles on his legs burning with exhaustion.

However, he already saw the exit in front of him.

'Faster!'

Kiernan screamed, and with one last burst of speed, he ran through the exit and, with exhaustion, fell down to the ground outside the cave.

As he panted heavily, he raised his head slightly to look at the frozen time.

[FINAL TIME!]

[5:59.223]

***

[LEADERBOARD]

[1. Kiernan Hunter - 5:59.223]

[2. Zeus Abracadabra - 06:21.012]

[3. Christmas Abracadabra - 06:30.535]

[4. Rain Abracadabra - 06:31.985]

[5. Light Abracadabra - 06:44.234]

[6. Yvette Montrose - 07:01.022]

[7. Cash Abracadabra - 07:05.456]

[8. Messiah Abracadabra - 07:21.195]

[9. Gaius Alderwood - 08:34.444]

[10. Valtin Fox - 08:55.323]