Chapter 617: The Fighting King Tournament (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 617: The Fighting King Tournament (4)
Kaio did not answer, instead staring at Jin for a long time with cold eyes.
“When our turn comes in the tournament, as your brother… I will give you a lesson you will carve into your very bones.”
“You speak of brotherhood so easily while wearing such a murderous gaze. Looking back, it seems you and the other Fighting Kings have never been particularly fond of me.”
“Brother Jin!”
“What are you saying? That’s going too far! How could you view the Fighting Kings in such a way…!”
Several members of the Pluto Tribe watching the exchange cried out in shock. Even Garmund’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Do you think I’m wrong, Brothers? When I inherited Sigmund from the Fighting God, I don’t recall receiving any congratulations from the Tenth Fighting King. And now, he goes out of his way to disparage my victory in front of everyone.”
While a few others had also failed to congratulate him at the time, Jin deliberately spoke as if Kaio were the only one.
“That was because the Tenth Fighting King was angry with the Eighth Fighting King…”
“If he were truly only angry with the Eighth Fighting King, he wouldn’t have brought up ‘diapers.’ That word clearly reveals what he has always thought of me. Furthermore, the Twelfth Fighting King fought with everything he had. So why does the Tenth Fighting King speak as if it’s a disgrace to lose to someone like me?”
The Pluto Tribe members couldn’t immediately find the words to refute him. Jin continued quickly, not giving them a chance to interject.
“Moreover, the reason the Tenth Fighting King stepped forward to cause this commotion had nothing to do with my honor.”
“What makes you think that?”
“The Tenth Fighting King expressed his rage because he assumed the Eighth Fighting King lost to me on purpose. But what did he say immediately after?”
Jin scanned the brothers around him.
“‘And you call yourselves the great Fighting Kings of the Pluto Tribe?’ That was it. If I were in his position, I would have said something else. I would have said that fighting in such a manner is an insult to Brother Jin. Shouldn’t looking out for a brother who never asked for a staged victory come before the pride of the Fighting Kings?”
Silence fell over the hall.
Jin had spoken with intentional spite, but his logic was sound. To drive the point home, he locked eyes with Kaio once more.
“Tenth Fighting King, I’ll leave you with one last thing. You are the one who shouldn't tarnish the honor of the great Pluto Tribe. You just insulted the Eighth Fighting King and me based on mere assumptions, and you even laid hands on your brother. The brotherhood I’ve seen since becoming one of you was certainly nothing like this. I’m disappointed.”
“Brother Jin, that’s enough. Both the Eighth and Tenth Fighting Kings simply made a mistake. It’s too much to jump to the conclusion that the Tenth Fighting King has disliked you all along.”
Jin shook his head at Baltirok’s words.
“I am merely speculating on his motives, just as he did mine, First Fighting King. And I am rarely wrong. I’ll see you during our match, Tenth Fighting King.”
As soon as Jin turned and left the Main Hall, Tantel hurriedly chased after him, leaping toward the surface.
“Brother Jin! What are you trying to do? Did you already forget everything I told you?”
“I did it on purpose.”
“What?”
“I needed to provoke their competitive spirit. Seeing the Eighth Fighting King throw the match made me realize that something like this was necessary.”
“Hah… Explain yourself.”
“Fine, but only you can know this, Brother Tantel. Swear it on the honor of the Fighting God and all our brothers.”
*
After that day, the atmosphere in Laprarosa shifted.
First, the gambling involving Jewel Liquor vanished.
Jewel Liquor gambling was essentially a harmless pastime where no one truly lost. Whether one won or lost, everyone ended up sharing the liquor, laughing and chatting together. It was just a way to set the mood—an entertainment only possible because Jin’s arrival had allowed time to flow in Laprarosa again.
With the gambling gone, the laughter among the Pluto Tribe members participating in the Fighting King Tournament also faded.
Even when they unleashed their Fighting Spirit and pushed each other to the brink of death, the tournament was fundamentally built on a foundation of good-natured competition.
That atmosphere was now gone.
Invisible factions had formed, reminiscent of the era before Fighting God Ban’s peaceful reign.
One side argued that they must accept Jin as the designated successor of the Fighting God, while the other side claimed that his designation alone was not enough.
The former took the stance of unconditionally supporting Jin as a beloved brother, while the latter argued that since the situation had changed, a rigorous evaluation was now necessary.
“It would be one thing if we were to remain trapped here forever, but if we can actually leave, the succession of the Fighting God must be handled with absolute certainty.”
“Exactly. That’s better for Brother Jin as well. If the successor isn't someone everyone is forced to acknowledge, our tribe will eventually weaken. We wouldn't be able to properly help Brother Jin once we're out in the world.”
“Brothers, you’re talking nonsense! Brother Jin is the one the Fighting God chose himself. Are you doubting the Fighting God’s judgment?”
“No. But back then, there was no hope of returning to the human world. The Fighting God had no choice but to pick Brother Jin.”
“Bullshit!”
“If that’s not it, then why did the Fighting God just walk away when the Tenth Fighting King stepped up during the seventh match? It’s likely because he realized that coddling Brother Jin, like the Eighth Fighting King did, is no longer right. If the Fighting God intervened directly, it would look bad.”
“That is an insult to the Fighting God! And since when did the Fighting King Tournament become a contest to decide the successor?”
“It’s always been that way implicitly. The final winner of the tournament has almost always become the next Fighting God.”
“Dammit, Brothers! To me, this just looks like a pointless fight. Is our affection for one another really this shallow? You want to test Brother Jin again when he’s already been chosen? I’m ashamed to even look at him, seeing how we’ve split into factions over this!”
“Blood is thicker than water, after all. I bet there are brothers who still see Jin as an interloper. Ungrateful bastards…!”
“Brother Shaku, don’t say that. No one thinks that way!”
“You don’t know that. Honestly, I think that’s exactly how the Tenth Fighting King sees him. When Brother Jin suffered those two consecutive losses, was I the only one who saw the Tenth Fighting King smirking in contempt?”
Two consecutive losses.
Jin had been defeated by Palem in the twelfth match and by Dalpir in the seventeenth. Unlike his victories against Teto and Garmund, these were crushing defeats.
“Besides, it felt like the Third and Sixth Fighting Kings were getting quite emotional when they faced Brother Jin. They didn't end the fight even after they had the upper hand. Would they do that if they truly cared for him? And those two are very close with the Tenth Fighting King.”
“Everyone in our tribe is close! You’re speculating again!”
“Even if those two Fighting Kings intentionally made things difficult for Brother Jin, it was likely to give him a realization as a warrior. And regardless of the reason, Brother Jin lost. It means he has moved further from being qualified as the successor.”
“Are you quite finished, Brother Mouka? As it happens, we’re both fighting today. Shall we see whose opinion is right based on who wins?”
“Hmph, so that’s how you want to play it. I’m not backing down. Don’t regret this!”
With every passing day, the conflict among the Pluto Tribe deepened. It was hard to believe these were the same people who had lived so peacefully and ideally until just recently.
Those trying their best to remain neutral felt as if they were walking on thin ice every day. The peace hadn't shattered yet, but the situation was so volatile that it felt like everything could explode at any moment.
“Good heavens… I thought that in our era, at least, we wouldn't have such petty conflicts. Aren't they ashamed before our fallen brothers? How can this be?”
Watching from afar, Belize pressed a hand to her forehead. She had been one of the first to welcome and cherish Jin, but she was currently staying neutral out of fear that the conflict would escalate.
“Fifth Fighting King, has the Fighting God said anything?” Belize asked Boras, who was sitting beside her.
Boras shrugged.
“I don’t know if he’s just sick of looking at them or if he has something else in mind. Outside of the matches, he spends all his time playing with Ling Ling.”
“This is driving me crazy. I feel like a disaster is going to happen when Brother Jin meets the Tenth Fighting King…”
The twenty-second match—the fight between Jin and Kaio—was fast approaching.
Jin was still recovering from the injuries sustained in his previous losses, while Kaio was already in peak condition despite having fought more matches.
“…It doesn't look like the Tenth Fighting King has any intention of going easy. He’s holding a grudge.”
The conflict was a powder keg, and the match between the two was the spark.
Every member of the Pluto Tribe predicted an overwhelming victory for Kaio, and they knew the rift between the factions would only deepen afterward. One of them needed to back down to stop this conflict, but neither Jin nor Kaio seemed to have any intention of apologizing.
“Hah… surely the Tenth Fighting King won't actually kill Brother Jin, right?”
“As if he’d do something that insane! He’s just angry. What’s wrong with you, Seventh Fighting King? Do you not trust the Tenth? There’s no way this will lead to brothers killing each other.”
“Dammit, I don’t know. The way he’s acting reminds me of that time… when the Tenth Fighting King was truly out of his mind.”
The time when Kaio was out of his mind.
Belize and Boras remembered exactly what Kaio had been like during that period. Back then, Kaio was always ready to cross the line.
While everyone worried and anticipated, time solved nothing, and the day of the match between Jin and Kaio finally arrived.
In the Main Hall, all the members of the Pluto Tribe gathered, watching Jin and Kaio with bated breath.
Ban’s face was calm and unreadable, as always.
“We finally meet, Tenth Fighting King.”
Kaio nodded at Jin’s words. He replied in a voice as cold as ice.
“If you think you’re going to die, scream for your life. Otherwise, there’s no telling what kind of accident might happen.”