[center][img]https://i.postimg.cc/WbB6nZmm/373e0ca06a44ee67c49939abb2f77c34.png[/img][/center][hr] Julian had been hoping for easy wins. The last couple contestants hadn't seemed all that impressive -- and the match in the quadrant next to her had already ended before her opponent even reached the stage. If she could just get a pushover like that to fight too, then she wouldn't even have to resort to using any of her tools this early! ...Or so she'd thought, until she set eyes on the person who took up his place in the arena opposite her. "You've gotta be kiddin' me. [i]This[/i] is my opponent?" The boy -- no, the [i]young man[/i] across from her could easily have passed for a knight already -- in size, at least. He was a head and a half taller than Julian, and built like a brick house. He held his sword with a confident and practiced hand, his stance rigid and his grip firm. That was as far as his resemblance to a proper knight went, however. His scruffy tunic and the tattoos adorning his bare arms, coupled with his scornful smirk as he gazed down at her with the air of a predator sizing up its prey, instead made him resemble a common thug more than anything else. At a glance, it was hopeless. Even someone as dense as Julian could tell that there was no chance of her winning this fight. The hot anticipation coursing through her blood had suddenly chilled to an emotion that ran as cold as ice and as heavy as lead. So, in the face of this all-too-familiar feeling, she did the same thing she always did. She smiled. [color=#EDC700]"Got a problem with that? If you're feeling scared, there's always next year to try again."[/color] She shot back, tapping her short wooden sword against the stones in front of her, then leveling it in a way that she was pretty sure looked reasonably intimidating -- or would have, if she was about a foot taller. The chorus of laughs that followed from the spectators' gallery indicated that her attempt at looking cool was... somewhat less than successful. ...Actually, judging by the look on his face, rather than intimidating him, it looked like she'd just pissed him off. He raised his sword with a scowl and began to advance, his brows tying themselves in so many knots she almost couldn't see his eyes. Well, angry was fine, too! She could work with that. He was more likely to slip up like this, which meant that just so long as she kept her cool, she could -- "Who're you callin' scared? Me?! Of a scrawny little runt like you?! I'll wipe that smirk off your face, you little brat!" ... ...... .........What. Did. He. Just. Say? [color=#EDC700]"...A runt?"[/color] Julian murmured, her knuckles whitening as they clenched around the handle of her sword. Her opponent raised his own weapon, bringing his two-handed down with a mighty yell. [color=#EDC700]"...A [i]runt?![/i]"[/color] She hissed once again, stepping just far enough back that his first swing missed her. Undeterred, he lunged forward and swept the blade back up -- or [i]tried to,[/i] only to find his footing thrown off as, with every last ounce of strength her spiteful little body could muster, Julian ducked low beneath his swing and [i]stomped[/i] down on his toes. He recoiled in pain, stumbling from the momentum behind his own mighty swing -- and in the next instant, toppling forward completely as the blonde's knee connected directly with his groin. His roar of anger gave way to a breathless whimper, which was in turn silenced completely as, raising her wooden sword over her head, Julian brought it wildly, artlessly, but [i]violently[/i] down with both hands. [color=#EDC700]"I'M NOT A RUNT! I'M STILL GROWING, YOU BIG!"[/color] [i][b]THWACK![/b][/i] [color=#EDC700]"STUPID!"[/color] [i][b]THWACK![/b][/i] [color=#EDC700]"OAF!"[/color] [i][b]THWACK![/b][/i] ... ...... .........Everything got really quiet after that. Julian slowly drew back, then took a deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale again. Right. She had almost forgotten. She was supposed to keep smiling. She turned to the knight in charge of her quadrant, then glanced back to the man sprawled groaning on the ground in front of her. He reached for his training sword. She smirked, and kicked it away. She looked back to the knight. He looked strangely pale all of a sudden. [color=#EDC700]"...Hey. Heeeeey. Mr. Knight? He dropped his sword. That means I won, right? Or am I supposed to keep going?"[/color] She raised her sword again, miming yet another another swing with it. The young man on the ground curled into a ball and covered his head. "Uhh... The winner is, Julian Baker!" [color=#EDC700]"Yahoo!"[/color] She cheered, thrusting her sword up at the sky. Nobody else cheered with her. ...Well, at least it had turned out to be a pretty easy win after all. Although, come to think of it... who even [i]was[/i] that guy? She'd completely forgotten to get his name. Oh well! One down, however many more to go! Fortune favored the bold, and right now, Julian felt bolder than anyone! She could [i]do[/i] this thing!