(Now I'm probably going to rewrite this chapter, I don't think it's that good.)
A man covered in muscles that were, by extension, covered in swollen blood vessels walked up to the stage. "Ladies and gentlemen," the announcer boomed once more, "Boulder has taken the stage! A brute of a man, this four hundred pound monster is pure muscle, and he annihilates everything in his way. His opponent?"
Matthew walked slowly toward the stage, face covered by his incredibly long scarf. He held his battle staff as if it were sheathed beside him, but it was simply in his hand as he crept forward, the audience's attention directed at the brute before him. It wasn't until his feet touched the stairs leading up to the mat that everyone noticed and began cheering for him. the roar of the crowd was one; not a single person wanted Matthew to lose this tournament.
When he got up to the mat, Boulder held out a hand. "It's an honor, Nameless Combatant."
Matthew shook his hand firmly. "Please, call me Matthew. Give it everything you got, yeah?"
Boulder gave him a determined smile that hinted at his disdain for having been pitted against Matthew first. The announcer hyped up the fight as the two combatants took their places across the mat from each other, preparing to do glorious battle with one another. Boulder could only stare, but Matthew breathed in as deeply as possible, clearing his mind. Emilia raided his thoughts repeatedly, but he realized that the more he thought about forgetting it, the more it stayed. He closed his eyes, and when the announcer counted down to zero, he opened them, swinging his staff in a fan motion so fast that it blew Boulder's hair a little. When Boulder tried to approach, Matthew connected the inertia in his staff to the monstrosity of a neck that Boulder carried on him. He took the blow to his thyroid with nothing more than a wince as he reeled his gargantuan of a fist back, ready to pummel Matthew with the might of Zeus.
Matthew made an all out attempt to gator roll himself free from Boulder's grasp, but he was firmly held in place, clamped by the might of a fist the size of his head. A fist equally as large flew toward Matthew's gut, plunging it's boney yet muscly knuckles into his unclenched belly at full force. Matthew hacked out a cough and almost threw his lunch up and onto the mat in front of him. Boulder pulled his fist out of Matthew's now tender belly and reeled back once more, but Matthew saw it coming. Just as the balled fist came flying at him, he clenched his stomach so hard that he made himself grunt. Boulder's fist connected, but Matthew didn't flinch; he slid his staff through his fingers until he held it almost at the tip, then took a mighty swing at Boulder's foot. Just as he connected with the pressure point on top of his foot, a mighty blow struck his now girded abs with a load of pressure that made Matthew fly back a few feet as Boulder let him go, stepping back a few times before he gathered himself enough to shake off his foot.
Matthew knew he couldn't give his opponent time to react, so he took swift action, crouching as he ran so he was out of normal fist shot for the towering enemy he was faced with. before Boulder could turn, Matthew jumped toward the cage, propelling himself toward the staggering monster in front of him and knocking him over. Matthew was ready to finish the job, but Boulder landed and hit his head, knocking him unconscious. Matthew nodded at the ref, who nodded back, letting Matthew know the man would be fine.
The crowd roared once again, chanting for Matthew as he spun his staff deftly through his fingers and backflipped off the mat. He jogged through a small alley-like hall and made his way into a special training room meant especially for those in his situation, that being not wanting to reveal his identity to everyone. After changing quickly, he ran back to his seat, sitting next to Emilia without so much as a squeak of the seat he sat in.
"Next up, after such an exciting second round, we have two other veteran contestants! we called out a list earlier, so I feel announcements will no longer be necessary until just before a match."
Matthew shrugged, assuming that to be a fair development. He listened as Alias ranted to Emilia about Matthew and his battle skill for a few minutes. When he accidentally brushed against Emilia's leg, she smiled.
"Dude, that was crazy stuff up there," she marvelled as she leaned on his arm.
Matthew cleared his throat and looked away. "Yeah..."
Alias butted in and yelled "Holy crap, Matthew, that was insanity in the form of a fight! Where's your battle staff, I gotta see it."
Matthew pulled his shirt up, revealing a sheath that looked to be for a sword. "I'm surprised more people don't notice it." All that sealed it was a velcro strip, which Matthew quickly unstrapped before taking out his staff and handing it to Alias to hold.
Alias almost dropped it and frowned almost immediately. "It's... actually got rather terrible balance."
Matthew shook his head. "It was a gift from my father, and it's got magic properties. the tighter you grip it, the lighter it is. The lighter the grip, the heavier it is."
Alias squeezed a bit harder, and lifted it with ease. He was used to seeing weapon refinements like this with knights at the castle, but this was a bit of an awkward one. "...So you can make it... easier or harder to hold?"
Matthew shrugged. "I said it weighs more if I loosen my grip. If I loosen right before I make contact, it hits even harder."
The twinkle in Alias' eye was immediately reignited as he held the staff in his hands. As he gave it a few light swings, Emilia looked back at Matthew.
"When you said you had a battle staff, I didn't know it was a serious thing. I thought it might be a hobby or part of a collection." As she said it, she leaned in even closer to Matthew, making him look away again.
"I wish you wouldn't toy with me like this."
Emilia sighed, turning the other way and resting her head on Matthew's right leg and looking up at him. "I'm not toying with you."
Matthew could do nothing but chuckle sourly. "I see. I suppose you were just tired then?"
Alias burst into laughter next to them, and even Matthew smiled at his sarcastic comment. Though not really amused, Emilia wasn't entirely angry either. "Matthew Aidest, you stop it."
Matthew looked back down at Emilia and smiled. "I can't believe you're doing this. I have a match in a little bit, Emilia."
She grinned, and rolled over, looking out at the fight. "Well, you'll have to win it for me."