~Chapter 7- Quarterfinals~

Emil abruptly left the Finalist's lobby, kicking the door and leaving a dent in it as he stormed out. During that fight with Kika, he seemed desperate.

Aero said, "I feel bad for him. I think he needed the money badly. "

"Serves him right!" Jirro replied.

Cho called all of the combatants back to the Finalist's lobby and asked all of those who lost within the first round to leave. The remaining eight fighters were given a reprieve as the tournament went into intermission before the second round.

The second round would begin with Jirro facing the Densius Cuartz, the one that eliminated Nout during the preliminaries. Emer would fight the Densius known as Jewel next. Cmar would battle Tyro after that. The second round would end with Aero facing off against Kika, the woman who handily defeated Emil.

"Some good talent among these competitors."

"The Fighting Academy will still win. Two of their students are still fighting."

"Those Densius seem pretty powerful. Especially that green-eyed Densius, Emer."

"That Phantine Cmar is pretty strong though. Look at his size!"

"Size doesn't matter. That boy Aero was able to defeat someone who must've been thrice his weight."

"I didn't expect those boys to make it to the quarterfinals."

Emer and Cmar sat with the boys. Emer asked them, "How're you boys feeling?"

Aero gave a big smile, "Great! This is fun!"

Jirro rolled his eyes at his cousin's over-exuberance but nodded in agreement. He hoped his father was impressed by his performance so far.

The quarter-finals began, and Jirro and Cuartz were called up to the stage together. The four-armed Densius walked with a haughty step; it made it this far through sheer aggression. With that many limbs, engaging Cuartz at close range would be difficult.

But Jirro had already figured out a strategy for dealing with the Densius. He noticed that while Cuartz was so busy with his arms, he didn't pay any attention to his legs. As long as he kept his distance, he could beat the four-armed Densius.

"You can do it, Jirro!" Nout shouted from the bleachers. He was sitting beside the others. Jirro looked at his friend and gave him the subtlest of nods.

The drum signaled the beginning of the match, and like always, Cuartz charged forward, swinging all of his arms. Jirro waited for him to approach, ducked down, and kicked his legs, knocking him face first onto the ground. The drum was drummed.

"Point to Jirro! 1-0! Return to your starting positions."

"That kid is skilled."

So far, Cuartz had won every single match through pure offense. Instead of this habitual aggression, the Densius cautiously approached this time. That didn't work to Jirro's advantage though.

Jirro threw a very light jab at the air, and the faintest of blue lights floated towards Cuartz and struck him. A Focus Burst. Cuartz was confused as to why it felt like the kid hit him; it must not have been familiar with Focus. Jirro delivered a few more light Focus Bursts and watched the four-armed Densius get frustrated.

Cuartz charged forward, playing directly into the blonde-haired boy's plan. Jirro effortlessly landed a kick to the Densius' side once he was in range.

"Point to Jirro! 2-0! Return to your starting positions!"

"Ha! That kid is great!"

Cuartz appeared to be in deep thought - it had to do something different if it wanted to win.

The drum signaled them to begin and Cuartz tore one of its rocky arms off of its body. With a weighty lunge, he threw it at Jirro.

Jirro barely batted the rocky arm flying at him away when Cuartz came upon him. The boy sidestepped his attack and unleashed a strong Focus Burst, one that sent Cuartz torpedoing back. Jirro followed up with a kick to its torso.

"Point to Jirro! 3-0! Return to your starting positions!"

"Impressive that kid was still able to score after that."

Cuartz went through a flash of emotions. Anger transitioned to admiration. "I want to be mad, kid. But honestly, I'm just impressed."

They shook hands at the center of the ring.

"Thanks! That trick with your arm at the end almost got me!" Jirro replied.

"Almost," Cuartz smiled. Before leaving the stage, it picked up his arm and bonded it back to its body.

Emer and Jewel are called to the stage shortly after them. Jewel was a Densius from a northern mountain range. The rocks making up their body were colorful and bright, very unlike the grey stones from Platt Mountain that made up Emer's body.

Jewel was a fine opponent, but Emer was swifter, stronger, and more skilled. Emer lived for 212 years; it made sense that it would bat away everything that Jewel could throw at it.

Emer defeated Jewel, 3-0. Jirro was a little bit nervous at the sight. He would have to fight him in the semi-finals, and he didn't see any weaknesses in Emer yet.