Chapter 641 - Day UNKNOWN: Versus Vazasse, Part IV

Vazasse dropped his shield and rose both hands in the air. The silence continued. Then he said something, and for me, it was clear that he gave up.

- He said that you won - said Druoag confirming my thoughts.

I found it so strange, that it actually couldn't settle down in my head.

They blasted some music to get rid of the awkwardness, as the whole audience still was speechless. Then Vazasse himself went forward straight to me and extended a hand. I reacted without thinking and shook it, and I immediately felt him squeezing my fingers slightly more like he was giving me some kind of sign.

I had no idea what the fuck was going on and stood there like an idiot watching him pick up his equipment and leave the sandpit. Meanwhile, the music stopped and the announcer started speaking, probably saying that I was the winner. The audience started booing.

- Leave - said Druoag.

- Ok.

I immediately rushed towards the tunnel and joined him outside. He escorted me back to the waiting room, where I was greeted by smiling Bashan. He said something to me, which got translated by one of the Atri.

- Congratulations.

Yagg on the other hand was completely out of it. He didn't seem to care at all. I kinda ignored them all and went straight to the bathroom. Before I reached it, Druoag entered the waiting room, and he had a lot to say, sadly I couldn't understand, and I didn't have my earpiece on.

I washed my face and went out to put the earpiece in, but the argument was over. Still, I looked at my trainer.

- Misunderstanding - he explained.

- He thought someone out of us bribed Vazasse - explained Bashan.

- It was a stupid idea, but... This fight was strange - said Druoag.

- Yeah - I immediately agreed.

- You simply got lucky - said the old man smiling at me. - People will demand a rematch though, and they will speculate a lot, but for now, you are the winner.

- I will take it from now - said Yagg, suddenly joining the conversation. - The rest of you should escort him back to his apartment.

By 'him' he clearly meant me. Druoag without hesitation left the room, and Bashan gestured towards me to follow him. Even the three Atri left the couch.

Shortly after all five of us boarded a flying vehicle, and we departed from the arena complex. It didn't take long to arrive at the place where I was living. While the rest stayed inside the ship, Bashan escorted me all the way to the very top of the hotel, where my apartment was located.

- I believe this fulfills Yagg's wish - said the old man, as we reached the door.

I stopped, and turned around towards him, as I was at the front.

- Yeah - I agreed.

My face had to very loudly tell how I was feeling inside, as Bashan easily picked up on that.

- You seem to be very confused about what happened out there, in the sandpit - he pointed out.

- Because I am. I had this constant feeling like he was playing with me throughout the whole fight, but then I suddenly knock the weapon of his hand? Not to mention it felt like that asshole made this opening on purpose.

- Maybe he wanted to counter you, but made a mistake?

For me, it was such a half-assed explanation, that I was actually surprised he even proposed such a thing, considering his knowledge about the matter.

- Mistakes happen even for the best, you know - he continued. - You shouldn't look at this as a bad thing. Evetever everybody else might think you fought there fair and square and won. That's not a bad thing. It's a good thing. A very good thing. Maybe this is your breakthrough to reach the championship?

I almost said to him that I don't give a shit about the championship, but I managed to bite my tongue before the words left my mouth.

- Well... I have to go - he finished his little speech and extended a hand for me to shake it.

I did sob, but just before we both let go, he squeezed my fingers slightly, and I immediately had Vazasse in front of my eyes.

- What the f... - escaped my mouth.

He just smiled slightly, turned around, and left without a word. I watched him slowly making it to the elevator and then vanishing from my eyesight. I had a storm of thoughts inside my head and like a drunk a stumbled backward, trying to grab onto something with one arm.

It slid open as AI recognized me, and I almost fell inside. I caught myself, and both wings shut closed.

- What the fuck? - I asked myself, this time completely conscious.

"Did Bashan really bribe the alligator?", I kept asking myself over and over.

The whole idea seemed so ridiculous, and just completely out of the blue. I tried to connect some dots, but there weren't that many of them. I simply had no idea of what the hell was going on. Suddenly I felt like I really need a drink, so I just turned around and walked straight to the bar to pour myself something.

My knowledge about the alien liquors was very limited, so I just grabbed some stuff I was familiar with, and filled a glass. Then I emptied it in one go.

One thing was definitely cristal clear. Underneath all of this, there was something going on. Something I had zero idea about, but for some reason, I was very much wrapped in it whether I wanted it or not. The question remained if it was something that would help me return back to Earth or only cause problems.

I was unsure about it. The last thing for me was to somehow get involved in a gambling scandal or something of a similar sort.

The truth was to be revealed sooner than I actually anticipated, and in a way, I would never expect it to be revealed to me.