Kaida exhaled slowly, accepting the reality of the situation. No matter how hard she thought, she found no way to get out of this predicament.
"I concede," she said.
The crowd erupted into cheers filled with genuine warmth for both fighters.
Kaida had pushed Morgana harder than anyone else in the tournament had managed, and the stadium knew it.
Morgana unclenched her fist.
The vines retreated, unwinding from Kaida's legs and arms and sliding back into the cracks in the arena floor until no one could see them again.
She lowered her sword, looked at Kaida directly, and gave her a single nod.
Kaida returned it, a wide smile breaking across her face despite everything.
She rolled her shoulders, shook out her arms, and walked back to her chair knowing that she'd given everything in the tournament and had nothing to regret about it.
Rollo allowed the cheers from the crowd to settle before speaking.
