'If it weren't for my speed, I would be the one on the ground instead. That's what pisses me off the most.' Nikolas thought to himself, unamused at his flawless win streak coming to an end.
"Winner: Nikolas. Alex ends with Nine wins and One loss. Nikolas ends with Ten wins and Zero losses."
The AI's voice echoed through the arena, announcing the end of the fight.
The crowd erupted into chaos, applauding both fighters for their incredible display of skill and power.
***
Alex woke up in his dorm room, groggy and disoriented. His head throbbed with a migraine, and his vision was blurry.
He looked around in confusion, trying to piece together how he ended up there. The last thing he remembered was losing the fight against Nikolas.
'What the hell happened?' he wondered, rubbing his temples. 'I remember losing... and then nothing.'
Alex grabbed his head and groaned, as the pain from the continuous hits to his head all hit him at once. Combined with the migraine he was experiencing, it made for quite a nasty combo.
As his vision slowly adjusted, he noticed a blurry figure in the corner of his room.
'Huh, my head's so messed up that I'm even seeing things now.'
He thought it was just a hallucination caused by his migraine. He blinked several times, trying to clear his sight.
But no matter what he did, the blurry figure just wouldn't go away.
'Weird.' Alex thought.
The blurry figure began to speak. "You fought impressively against Nikolas. Although you lost, I know the outcome will be different in the future when you grow stronger."
Alex was startled. 'Am I hearing things too?' He dismissed it with a grunt, grumbling, "Great, now I'm seeing and hearing things."
He stood up from his bed, waving his arms about randomly as he tried to swat away the image of the blurry figure.
Alex's heart raced. "And?"
"You ended up in third place in your batch for the combat assessment," General Marks said, a hint of interest in his voice. "And 37th overall across all the assessments in the city."
Alex clenched his fists. "I deserve to be higher. If it weren't for Nikolas's speed..."
General Marks nodded. "I understand your frustration. But rankings are just numbers. What matters is how you use this experience to improve."
Alex sighed, feeling a bit more at ease. "I guess you're right."
After a moment, he looked up, curiosity burning in his eyes. "General Marks, do you know of a girl named Mira? What place did she achieve in the overall combat assessment rankings?"
General Mark's expression shifted slightly, a glimmer of surprise in his eyes. "Mira? You know that girl?"
Alex didn't notice the increased focus on General Mark's face and answered out of instinct. "Yeah, she's my friend. We travelled here and enrolled in the university together. We even took part in the same entrance examination and both achieved a joint first place."
He explained his relationship with Mira to General Marks, which only caused the general to look away, deep in thought.
But a few moments later, he looked back at Alex, and answered his question.
"I suggest you go and check with her yourself. You should hear it from her, rather than from me." The general spoke, but quickly moved on.
"You have potential, Alex," General Marks continued. "With the right training and mindset, you can achieve great things. Don't let this loss discourage you."
Alex nodded, feeling a renewed sense of determination. "I won't. I'll train harder, push myself further."
General Marks stood up, a satisfied look on his face. "That's the spirit."
As General Marks turned to leave, Alex called out, "Thank you, General Marks. For everything."
The general paused at the door, looking back with a serious expression. "Words mean nothing, Alex. Don't thank me yet. Show me your gratitude through your actions, not your words."
With that, General Marks left, leaving Alex alone with his thoughts. He lay back on his bed, staring at the ceiling, his mind racing.