Chapter 41: Provocation
From this, it was clear that the man had a habit of provoking people.
\'I\'m surprised he\'s still alive with that kind of an attitude,\' Jin thought to himself. From how reckless the man was it meant he was either crazy or extremely skilled.
The woman too was not someone to take a loss. She shoved a middle finger right in front of the man\'s face.
"Oo this one got some attitude, totally my type," The bulky man said lasciviously as he licked his lips.
*Tch*
The woman could only click her tongue in frustration and walked to her seat. She had arrived just a couple minutes before 2300 Hrs. Therefore, she didn\'t have to wait for long as an anchor soon stepped onto the stage.
"Good morning, Killers and Agents. Welcome to the 35th edition of the Killer Selection Test. Are you all ready to see some blood?!"
"YESS!" The crowd roared crazily. As the earlier placid atmosphere started gaining momentum.
\'This looks more like an event rather than a test…\' Jin thought in his mind.
"Alright! So, without wasting any more time let me brief the participants about today\'s test. Participants!" The man\'s voice spread across the room as all the lights were directed towards the participants.
Jin noticed the other participants standing up after hearing the man\'s words. He followed them and waited for the anchor\'s next words.
"Gentlemen and the lady, the test at hand today is a Knife fight!" Cheers echoed all around them when the following words left the anchor\'s mouth. It was clear that they were looking forward to what was going to happen.
"From all the cheers you all might have already guessed that this test has one of the highest failing rates," The anchor said as hardened expressions slowly formed on the faces of the participants.
The anchor snapped his finger and a person distributed tag numbers to all the participants. It was distributed in the order in which they all entered the place. Jin got the number 6 and the woman after him got the number 7.
"You\'ll be made to compete with our killers who are at the bottommost ranks. You\'ll either kill them and take their place or it would be them who will kill you and secure their position.
There are no time limits. It\'s survival of the fittest so be prepared to lose your life…or take one if you\'re competent enough. That\'s it for the rules," The anchor called up number 1 to the stage after finishing up with his explanation about the test.
Jin and the rest stood there and watched the events unfold. They had no intention of taking a seat. It would be foolish to relax their body it needed to be used to its fullest a few moments later.
Seven Killers soon made their way. They stood on the side opposite where the participants were standing. A bald man soon walked up to the stage. He was Number 1\'s opponent. Their bodies were checked and after they were cleared, they were handed a combat knife.
"The match will begin at the sound of the bell," The anchor said as he retreated down the stage.
Silence ensued as the two opponents stared into each other\'s eyes. Waiting anxiously for the bell to ring.
*RING*
*THUD*
The bell rang and a body fell on the ground. It was Number 1. A knife had gone through his forehead.
It was only after a few seconds that everyone realized that Number 1\'s opponent had thrown his knife right at his forehead the moment the bell rang.
Thus came the end of round 1. It was now the turn of Number 2. The Killer was also changed since he had secured his position with a kill earlier.
The rest of the matches up to Number 4 ended up with the Killer\'s side winning. Gouged eyeballs and throats were a common sight and by the time it was Number 5\'s turn the brownish stage\'s colour had darkened because of continuous wiping of the blood after each stage.
Number 5 was the burly man who had mocked Jin.
The deaths so far didn\'t seem to phase him at all as he leisurely made his way towards the stage.
His opponent seemed to be a bit intimidated by his build as the moment the match began, he threw his knife towards the man in order to finish the match in the quickest manner.
\'You think that would work?\' The man grinned as he deflected the incoming knife with his own before rushing towards his opponent.
The Killer tried to put up a fight but his techniques didn\'t prove better when compared to the man\'s strength. He overwhelmed his opponent with strength and under the futile resistance of the Killer twisted his neck.
The Killer\'s lifeless body fell on the ground but that was not the end as the man plunged his knife straight into the Killer\'s heart as a finishing move as blood spurted out of the wound and covered the stage. Only then the man was satisfied.
He then turned towards Jin and said, "Watch your back, you bastard,"
Jin responded to the man\'s provocation with a silent stare. It was true that the man was quite strong but Jin wasn\'t scared. He had no intention of getting into a fistfight with a man much heavier than him, he\'d directly shoot him thrice if the need be.
After the stage was cleaned once again. Jin was called up.
He walked onto the stage. Jin felt the knife which he was given and familiarized his hand with his weapon.
A sense of excitement once again took over him as the bell rang.
Both the Opponents attacked each other. Taking lessons from the previous match the Killer had no intention the knife out of his hand. This was exactly what Jin wanted. He thrusted, parried and slashed at his opponent one after the other.
While one side seemed to be struggling for life the other seemed to be trying to wring everything out of his opponent.
Clang!
Clang! Clang!
A series of sounds of knives clashing with each other enthralled the crowd as they all cheered with everything they had. This was by far the most exciting and the longest any match had got and they were all for it.
Jin had already gauged his opponent\'s strength. He was much stronger and more skilled than the thugs he had faced at the mall. In short, this man was exactly what Jin had been looking for.
Like a wild beast, Jin devoted himself to slashing and parring.
\'This madman! \'The killer as he dodged a knife thrust right towards his eyes.
The crowd cheered like rabid dogs. This was the most energetic they had been today.
Unfortunately, like all good things, this exciting moment was short-lived.
"Good match," Jin muttered as he changed the trajectory of his attack. The sudden change took the Killer by surprise as he helplessly saw Jin\'s knife plunging deep into his neck. He wanted to take Jin down along with him but Jin had long anticipated that and quickly distanced himself from the Killer who soon drowned in his own blood.
The crowd immediately went silent before roaring like madmen in excitement.
Jin didn\'t forget to return the provocation as he stared back at the bulky man for a few seconds before making his way down the stage.