C324 The Opening Of The Training Hall

The employees who had doubted the idea at first began whispering among themselves. "Wow, it looks like a real gym centre." Another employee immediately disagreed. "A gym centre doesn't usually have a shooting range. Look closely. There's even a boxing ring." Someone else looked around in disbelief. "The Director really built all of this for us?" Another employee asked his colleague quietly, "Have you decided which contract you are going to sign, or are you still not interested?"

Questions and discussions spread throughout the hall. Alicia and I exchanged glances as we listened to them. It was clear that the Training Hall had already changed everyone's opinion. I slowly picked up the microphone. "Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the Lucia Goods Training Facility." The conversations immediately died down. Everyone turned toward me. I continued. "By now, I think everyone knows that we weren't joking when we announced the Training Facility. I also understand that some of you still have unanswered questions."

I paused and looked around the room. "However, not every question can be answered if you don't ask it." A few employees nodded. I turned slightly toward Alicia before continuing. "As you can see, this facility has been divided into several sections. On the left, we have the boxing ring. In the middle, we have the martial arts training area, and on the right, we have the shooting range." Everyone looked toward the different sections. "The professional coaches who will train our contracted members have not arrived yet. They will come later."

I pointed toward the martial arts section. "But earlier today, I asked whether there was anyone here who already had experience in martial arts." I smiled. "If anyone knows martial arts and would like to demonstrate their skills, please feel free to step forward." Everyone looked at one another. Nobody moved. I waited for a few seconds. Still nothing. I pointed toward the boxing ring. "If you have boxing experience, you can also enter the ring. You can even use the punching bags if you simply want to exercise."

Again, silence. Nobody volunteered. Alicia started looking slightly nervous. She leaned closer to me. I could tell she was wondering whether the opening was going to end without anyone participating. I smiled and raised the microphone again. "Well, if nobody is willing to volunteer..." I paused dramatically. "...then I will personally step into the boxing ring." The entire hall became silent. Everyone looked at me. I continued. "I, the Vice Director of Lucia Goods, hereby challenge Vice Director Chambers of Wood IT Company."

The hall erupted in whispers. Chris looked at me in disbelief. "Why me?" I laughed. "Vice Director Chambers, you are allowed to forfeit. If you do, I will automatically become the winner." Everyone burst into laughter. Sarah turned toward Chris. "Husband, if you don't know how to box, you can simply forfeit. I don't want to see you get injured." Chris laughed. "He asked for it." He stood up. "So wait and see." The employees cheered as Chris walked toward the boxing ring. He picked up a pair of gloves and put them on. I did the same.

Alicia took the microphone from me. "Does anyone want to volunteer as the referee?" For a moment, nobody responded. Then, unexpectedly, Faith raised her hand. "Can I?" Some employees immediately protested. "No! How can you be the referee? You're a woman!" Faith slowly lowered her hand. Almost immediately, several other employees raised their hands. "I volunteer!" "I can do it!" "I'll be the referee!" Before anyone could be chosen, an elderly employee suddenly climbed into the ring. "I may not have enough strength to fight because I'm old," he said with a laugh, "so I'll be the referee." Everyone laughed.

The atmosphere became even more relaxed. The old employee raised his hand. "Are both fighters ready?" Chris and I nodded. The bell rang. The match began. It wasn't a serious fight, but both Chris and I had some basic boxing experience. We knew how to throw punches, block and move around the ring. The first few exchanges were cautious. I threw a punch. Chris blocked it. He immediately countered. I stepped aside. The employees began cheering.

After several exchanges, I managed to push Chris toward the corner. "Come on, Vice Director!" Someone shouted. Chris smiled. Just when everyone thought I had the upper hand, Chris suddenly fought back. He landed a quick combination that forced me to step backward. The hall erupted. The match suddenly became much more interesting. Sarah immediately started shouting. "Come on, Chris!" Chris looked toward her and grinned. "That's my wife!" Several employees joined her. "Go Chris!" "Come on, Vice Director!"

Alicia refused to let Sarah have all the support. "Mike!" She shouted loudly. "Come on, Mike!" Several employees began laughing before joining in. "Go Mike!" "Go Chris!" The hall became incredibly loud. The two of us continued exchanging punches. Neither of us wanted to take the match too seriously, but neither wanted to lose either. After several minutes, both of us were breathing heavily. Chris threw another punch. I saw it coming. Normally, I would have blocked it. But after everything we had been doing, I decided to let it land.

The punch struck me in the chest. I dramatically fell backward. The entire hall gasped. I landed on the floor. The referee immediately started counting. "One!" The employees became silent. "Two!" Chris stared at me. "Three!" I remained on the ground. "Four!" Alicia covered her mouth. "Five!" Sarah started laughing because she knew something was wrong. "Six!" Chris looked increasingly confused. "Seven!" "Eight!" "Nine!" "Ten!" The referee immediately rang the bell. "The winner is Vice Director Chambers of Wood IT Company!"

The hall erupted. Some employees started arguing. "He just let him win!" Another shouted, "Vice Director, did you let him win on purpose?" Chris laughed and raised his gloves. "A win is a win." I stood up and shook his hand. "Congratulations." We both climbed out of the ring. However, before anyone could give further instructions, one of the Development Department employees suddenly jumped into the ring. It was Colen. He grabbed the boxing gloves.

A Production Department employee named Kayla immediately stepped forward as well. Alicia smiled. I took the microphone. "Well, it seems we already have volunteers for the second match." Everyone laughed. I looked at Colen. "Do you have any words before the match begins?" Colen grabbed the microphone. He laughed confidently. "Today, we are going to prove that the Development Department is better than the Production Department." The employees immediately began cheering.

Colen continued. "And all those orders that keep failing are because the Production team keeps making mistakes. We develop good products. They're the ones who ruin them." Alicia and I laughed. I handed the microphone to Kayla. "Well, do you have any words to defend yourself and your department?" Kayla confidently took the microphone. "Of course." He looked directly at Colen. "They make faulty products and then expect us to produce them!" The Production Department employees cheered.

Kayla continued. "The Production Department is the best. We are the ones deciding your fate." He raised the microphone. "And today, we will decide it in this boxing ring!" The entire hall erupted with laughter and cheers. "Development Department!" "Production Department!" The employees split into two groups. One side shouted. "Go, Kayla! Go, Kayla!" The other shouted. "Go, Colen! Prove that we're the best!" The referee entered the ring. Both fighters put on their gloves. The bell rang.

Round One began. Kayla immediately took control of the fight. He moved quickly and landed several clean punches while Colen struggled to keep up. The referee eventually called the end of the round. "Round One goes to Kayla from the Production Department!" The Production Department erupted in celebration. Colen shook his head. "That was just the first round." Round Two began. This time, Colen came out stronger. He moved forward aggressively and managed to land several punches.

Kayla tried to defend herself, but Colen kept pressing. When the bell rang, the referee raised his hand. "Round Two goes to Colen from the Development Department!" Now the score was tied. Everyone understood what that meant. Round Three would decide the winner. The final round began. Both employees fought harder than before. Although it was still a friendly match, neither wanted to lose in front of the entire company. The employees were screaming from both sides. "Go, Kayla!" "Come on, Colen!" "Development!" "Production!"

The two fighters exchanged punches and blocks. For a moment, it looked as though Colen would win. Then Kayla found an opening. He quickly countered. The final bell rang. The referee raised his hand. "Winner. Kayla from the Production Department!" The Production Department exploded into applause. Kayla raised both hands proudly. Colen laughed and shook his head. "Fine. You got me this time." The two shook hands. Alicia and I laughed as we watched them. The atmosphere inside the Training Hall had completely changed.

People who had entered the facility uncertain and nervous were now laughing, cheering and interacting with one another. Then, suddenly, another employee stepped forward. Faith entered the ring. At almost the same time, Samantha also jumped in. Sarah and Alicia exchanged amused glances. I picked up the microphone again. "Well, it seems our final fight will be between Faith from the Human Resources Department and Vice Director Samantha Wood of Wood IT Company."

The employees immediately started cheering again. I looked toward Samantha. "Vice Director, do you have any words before the fight?" Samantha confidently took the microphone. She looked around the hall with an energetic smile. "Well, Wood IT Company won the first round." She paused dramatically. "This round is to prove that it wasn't just luck." She pointed toward the Lucia Goods employees. "Lucia Goods is far inferior to Wood IT Company!" Sarah immediately burst into laughter.

The employees gasped and laughed at the same time. Samantha smiled confidently. "I said what I said." I laughed. Then I turned toward Faith. "Faith, will you bring faith to the Lucia Goods reputation?" Everyone laughed at the pun. Faith took the microphone. She smiled confidently. "All I can say is that Lucia Goods is stronger and more united than everyone thinks." The Lucia Goods employees cheered. Faith continued. "With the support of my fellow colleagues, I will make sure I humble the Vice Director of Wood IT Company." The hall erupted again.

Unbeknownst to us, several employees were recording videos of the entire opening on their phones. The first fight had been recorded. The second had been recorded. And now almost everyone was recording the final match. The entire hall suddenly became quiet as Faith and Samantha stood opposite each other. The referee stepped between them. Both women raised their gloves. The bell rang. The final fight began.