The Ghosts stood around, mourning in silence.
Everyone was overpowered by grief, and Marie sang an ancient lament, her eyes shining with tears.
The atmosphere was heavy and miserable, and there was no more taunting of the other side's martial artists.
Hugo and Kenneth stood in place, shocked at how everything had worked out.
As Hugo tried to work out what to do, Marie suddenly got hysterical and started to scream, "Kill Alex! Avenge Jacob!"
It was a terrible idea. After all, everyone had seen how powerful Alex was.
One of the Ghosts was overcome with grief and not thinking clearly, so he advanced on Alex, brandishing his sword and determined to fight.
"Do you want to join Jacob?" Alex asked, his expression cold. His inner power welled up, and he struck out, shoving the man away to land in a heap. The man didn't get back up.
Then Alex hit out behind him, knocking over the Ghosts approaching from behind. Both attackers flew back, groaning as they hit the ground.
The other Ghosts retreated, still feeling hostile but aware they couldn't act so rashly.
"Alex, stop that!" Hugo yelled, furious at Alex's display of power. "They are understandably upset, so try to have some compassion. There's no need to be so rough with them."
Kenneth spotted the opportunity to fan the flames and called out, "Alex, don't you pay attention to Mr. Sherridan and the Martial Arts Association?" He shook his head. "Do you even know what the association does? It connects the various martial arts sects and ensures we all follow the same rules. When you don't obey Mr. Sherridan, you damage his authority, and that risks the entire association. And if it collapses, it will be the end to the peaceful coexistence of the different sects. Chaos will result!"
He took a breath and stared at Alex. "You will bear the blame, and then you will be killed."
Although Kenneth confronted Alex, he was afraid of him, so he was all bark and no bite.
"I'm really not interested in anything you say," Alex said, shrugging.
"Alex!" Marie yelled. "You will pay for what you've done." Tired of waiting for her colleague to act, she grabbed a sword and rushed right at Alex.
She swung fiercely at him, putting all her strength into the strike, determined to remove his head.
Alex remained calm. His inner power was depleted, but he had plenty of other skills, so he wasn't worried.
He stretched out his hand and knocked the blade out of Marie's hand, sending it falling harmlessly to the ground.
Marie trembled as she stared at Alex. She knew exactly how much power she had put into her blow, and yet Alex had stopped her effortlessly. She simply hadn't been able to hold on to the sword, and even now, her arm still tingled.
"Marie!" called one of the Ghosts.
"What happened?" cried another.
"Why is he still standing?" asked a third.
Marie looked desperate. She was exhausted, and her surprise attack had failed. Now she had to face Alex, knowing she couldn't defeat him.
She closed her eyes and waited for death, but just as Alex's blow was about to land, Seth stepped in, blocking the strike.
Seth stood there, holding his sword, defending Marie from attack. He glared at Alex with resentment. "Do you intend to attack us all?" he demanded.
"My fight with Jacob was a fair one," Alex said, shrugging. "He even admitted he had lost. Now your colleague has attacked me, and I was merely defending myself." He met Seth's gaze. "Marie made the first move, and you know it."
"Marie was Jacob's beloved disciple, and you killed Jacob," Seth told him. "Clearly, she has been overcome by her loss, so she should be excused for her actions."
Everyone else agreed with him. It was only natural that Marie sought revenge for her master's death. How could she be blamed for such a thing?
"So, I should have let her kill me?" Alex asked, raising an eyebrow. "Why should I take the blame for her behavior?"
Alex stepped forward, his attention locked on Seth. He was still unarmed, and his inner power had not yet recovered, but he was still confident he could win.
No matter how many of the Ghosts attacked, he would prevail. He refused to entertain the possibility of defeat.
Seth recognized Alex's confidence, and a sliver of fear snaked through him. His heart beat a little faster as he readied himself for attack.
Alex launched into action, kicking out and sending Seth's sword flying.
Marie screamed, and Alex turned to see her collapse, clutching at the wound caused by the sword when it had inadvertently hit her.
She lifted her head, glaring at Alex, using her last breath to curse him. Then she fell forward to lie on the ground, unmoving.
The other Ghosts turned pale as they looked at her.
Seth yelled incoherently, stunned by how quickly Marie had died. For the first time, he felt incompetent and unable to act.
Hugo began to panic. Things were getting out of control, and he had no idea how he could smooth this over with the Ghosts.
Alex, no matter how skilled you are at martial arts, and even if you can defeat entire armies, you won't succeed against me, Hugo thought. I have more than twenty years of experience, and you have no idea what I'm capable of.
As far as he was concerned, Alex had violated all the rules of martial arts, and he would have to pay for that with his life.
But despite his determination, he was still deeply afraid of Alex, and he was wary about confronting him.
"Alex, you're going to pay for this!" he yelled. "I tried to protect you, but you wouldn't listen, and now you're on your own."
Alex was tired of listening to Hugo's bluster, so he simply dismissed him and turned to Seth. "Get out of my way, or I'll go through you."
He stalked toward Seth and the other Ghosts, who still held swords as they watched him. They were extremely calm and seemed ready to fight.
But they only intended to defend themselves and not launch an attack. They had seen Alex's strength, so they were reluctant to provoke him.
Kenneth was furious at their inaction and tried to spur them on. "Kill him!" he screamed. "Kill Alex. He's out of power, so this is the best time to attack him!"