Martial Arts Worlds

Bright lights cascaded down from the ceiling of the news studio, illuminating the polished desks and bustling employees.

A large camera was mounted on a tripod in the corner. It pointed at the anchor's desk, which was crescent-shaped and had a stack of papers neatly organized on top.

It also had a guest sofa that was elegantly upholstered in a deep shade of burgundy.

The "Live" sign was dark.

The broadcast hadn't started yet, but the anchor was sipping her coffee and reviewing her notes one final time before going live.

At that moment, a door opened at the back, and a gray-suited man, named Stone, led a well-suited young man behind him into the studio.

When the employees saw him, they immediately straightened up and greeted him warmly.

"Welcome to Irio's Sunshine News. We have expected you, Mr. Kiernan!"

The news anchor, who had been preparing for the segment, smiled and extended her hand in greeting.

"My name's Aurora, and I'll be doing your interview for today!"

She was an auburn-haired woman with a professional suit that complemented her dignified demeanor.

"Nice to meet you."

Kiernan shook her hand and looked around the room, taking in the bright lights and cameras.

'It's my first time being in the news, strangely enough. I had my fair share of infamy back on Earth, but I never ended up on actual television.'

With Kiernan just standing around, makeup artists quickly surrounded him and began touching up his face.

They added some powder to reduce the shine and evened out his skin tone but otherwise left him looking natural and handsome.

They didn't touch his suit.

He bought it just this morning—a navy suit with a black tie and shiny black shoes.

It made him look polished and put-together.

At that moment, they worked a little bit with his hair, giving it a subtle comb-over that completed the look perfectly.

"One minute till we go live!"

The producer shouted.

"Alright!"

Aurora clapped her hands together and took her seat behind the crescent-shaped table, with Kiernan sitting down on the guest sofa.

"No need to feel nervous. I am just asking some easy questions to answer, but if you don't want me to ask some questions, that's completely fine as well."

Aurora said.

"I am fine with whatever."

Kiernan said and did the final touches to his suit.

"Good!"

Aurora said, and then turned her head to gaze at the mounted camera.

The producer showed three fingers. Lowered one. Lowered his second, and then lowered his final finger.

The "Live" sign started flashing red.

"Good morning, Irio!"

Aurora flashed a smile.

"We have a special guest with us today. A young man who has gripped the hearts of citizens of Irio with his incredible talent.

"Started as just an ordinary young man at the bottom of the rankings of his school, he had a meteoric rise to the top of New Rakuya's youth martial arts world.

"And now, he is the second person ever of Irio's origin who has been chosen as New Rakuya's representative for the upcoming Junior Martial Arts Championship.

"The first one was Azer Karuza, the principal of the school he is attending, and back then, he was the ace of Xaru High.

"It's like a repeat of the past—Kiernan Hunter, the ace of Karuza High, how are you doing, and congratulations on becoming the representative."

Aurora shifted in her seat and turned to the guest sofa, where Kiernan was sitting with a calm look on his face.

'I didn't know Azer had also participated in the Junior Martial Arts Championship. He doesn't really talk about that time of his life. I guess it is because he feels ashamed of his past… betraying his father.'

Kiernan thought to himself, cleared his throat, and answered.

"I am doing well, thank you."

"We, of course, have to talk about the upcoming Junior Martial Arts Championships. It is starting soon, only a week away, and it will have more eyes watching than any New Rakuya nationals could hope to achieve.

"You must be feeling quite nervous, right?"

Aurora asked.

"Yes, of course. I doubt there is anyone in the world who wouldn't be nervous with so much at stake."

Kiernan said.

"A mature answer, but you must also be trying to achieve what other New Rakuya representatives have failed to achieve—top hundred in the rankings."

Aurora said with a smile.

"Uh, no one from New Rakuya has reached the top hundred before?"

Kiernan asked with a frown.

It took him by surprise.

"Oh, you weren't aware of that fact? Yes, haha. In the few hundred years of Junior Martial Arts Championship history, only a couple of our representatives have even made it to God Island.

"Before the start of the official main event, there is an off-camera event that weeds out the weakest fighters.

"About three hundred or so get to participate in the main event, and none of our representatives have reached the top hundred."

Aurora said.

"Oh, I see."

Kiernan nodded.

"What is your goal for the championship? First of all, reaching the main event must already be a great honor, but what position would make you happy?"

Aurora asked with a curious smile.

"What position would make me happy… Winning would."

Kiernan said.

"Ahaha…"

Aurora laughed awkwardly, cleared her throat, and asked.

"I meant which position in the rankings would at least make you satisfied."

"Top one."

Kiernan said and looked into her eyes.

"If I were satisfied with losing, I would never have the motivation to keep improving. Thus, winning is the only acceptable outcome for me."

Kiernan said.

Within the deep inside him, the brilliantly bright martial soul started shining like a beacon in the darkness.

It showed slight signs of peeling.

"Oh…"

Aurora turned stunned, and then she heard the producer whisper to her—psst, psst, psst—she looked over, saw him wave his hand as "keep going", and she then forced a smile back to her face.

"I appreciate the honesty… You sure have a lot of confidence in yourself, don't you?"

"Confidence? It's not about confidence. It is…"

Kiernan was about to say, but then he saw someone run in the corner of his eyes and came shouting.

"The ship has arrived!"