No one would be asked to prove their worth in front of an audience.
Others believed Victor had made the academy too cautious.
Victor listened to the concerns without dismissing them.
"If our training methods depend on students being afraid to refuse a round, then we need to change our methods," he told the instructors. "Competition should make us more disciplined, not less responsible."
Derek had spent the previous three months rebuilding his place at the academy.
On the morning of the open training day, Derek arrived early to help arrange the mats.
"Where do you want these?" Owen asked.
"Near the beginner area, but keep the white belts separate from the colored ones."
"Are you helping with demonstrations today?"
"No. I'm helping with the beginner drills."
"That's probably better anyway. People get nervous when they see someone doing complicated stuff."
Derek laughed.
"You're not wrong."
The doors opened at nine.
Melissa welcomed visitors at the front desk.
Victor explained the schedule.
Nia arrived shortly before the first beginner session.
Nia greeted Victor, then joined the group near the mats.
Derek was helping a middle-aged visitor named Robert learn how to maintain balance while moving backward.
"I'm not sure I'm doing this right," he said.
"That's normal," Derek replied. "You're learning a movement your body hasn't practiced before. We can slow it down."
"Sorry," Robert said immediately.
Derek shook his head.
"No need to apologize. Let's reset."
Nia watched from a short distance.
Derek did not notice her.
But it showed more about Derek's progress than any statement he could have made.
Victor also confirmed that students could request alternative training partners without being required to justify their decisions publicly.
But they made it more difficult for complaints to disappear simply because the person involved was popular.
After the announcement, Melissa approached Nia.
"Do you think this place has really changed?"
Nia looked around the room.
A child near the entrance was laughing because he had accidentally put his belt on backward.
Derek was helping Robert repeat the same basic movement for the fifth time.
"I think it's changing," Nia said.
"Is that enough?"
"It's a beginning."
Melissa considered the answer.
"I used to think that if people apologized, everything should go back to normal."
"And now?"
"Now I think normal wasn't necessarily working."
Nia smiled.
"That's a good observation."
Melissa laughed.
"I'm learning from the best."
"Don't let that go to your head."
Nia agreed to participate.
Nia adjusted her hips, protected her space, and worked toward a better position.
"Good. Now let's look at what happens if I change the angle."
They repeated the sequence.
No one shouted that a champion had been defeated.
Nia stepped off the mat and returned to the edge of the room.
Victor approached her.
"Thank you for helping today."
"You're welcome."
"I've been thinking about what you said at the forum."
"Which part?"
"That a student shouldn't have to win a round to earn respectful treatment."
He looked around the academy.
"I wish I'd understood that earlier."
Nia studied him.
"You understand it now?"
"I'm trying to."
She nodded.
"Then keep trying."
Victor smiled faintly.
"I intend to."
Across the room, Derek was speaking with a young visitor who wanted to join the competition team immediately.
"I want to train with the best athletes," he told Derek. "I don't want easy rounds."
Derek listened.
"That's understandable. What do you want to get better at?"
"Everything."
Derek laughed.
"That might take a while."
"I'm serious."
"So am I."
"You'll build the skills first," he said. "Then you'll increase the intensity as you're ready."
"But how will I know if I'm good enough?"
Derek considered the question.
"You'll know you're improving when you can do things you couldn't do before. You don't need to be better than everyone else in the room."
Derek understood the feeling.
"Come back for a trial class," he told the boy. "We'll start with the basics."
Melissa packed the registration materials.
Nia helped carry equipment into the storage room.
Derek approached her while she was folding a set of training pads.
"Can I ask you something?"
She looked up.
"Sure."
"Would you be willing to do a controlled round with me sometime? Not for an audience. Not to prove anything. Just to train."
Nia considered the request.
Now she could see that his request was not an attempt to erase the fourteen-second submission.
"Yes," she said. "We can arrange something."
Derek smiled.
"Thank you."
"But we're following the same rules as everyone else."
"Of course."
"And if either of us wants to stop, we stop."
"Agreed."
Nia picked up the final training pad.
"Then we have a deal."
Derek started in a dominant position.
Nia worked to escape.
He adjusted his balance.
She changed angles.
Derek caught a mistake in her positioning.
Nia corrected it.
He laughed.
"Good catch."
"You're welcome."
They continued.
The round was difficult.
Derek wiped his forehead with a towel.
"I understand something now," he said.
Nia took a drink of water.
"What?"