From Bullets To Billions

"So, I wanted to ask… what did you say to Mayson before he stepped into the cage?" Aki asked, her curiosity getting the better of her.

She knew that the students from Seaton and Konsoon weren't as close to Max as the others by his side. In truth, they were more like auxiliary members, there to fill numbers rather than play a central role. Still, Aki didn't mind. Despite that fact, she was genuinely glad to be here.

She wanted to make herself useful. If her turn to fight came, she hoped she could do something impressive, something that would make Max remember her, maybe even consider her for something more next time.

"Did you give him some kind of tips?" she asked again, tilting her head with genuine interest.

She had seen it herself, right before Mayson had gone into the cage, Max had pulled him aside and whispered something into his ear.

"I had a feeling they might retaliate after my little display," Max said calmly, his arms folded. "Rick's the kind of guy who doesn't let things slide, so I figured they might send him out directly."

He turned his eyes toward the cage, where the next match was already heating up.

"So yeah," Max continued, "I gave Mayson a few simple words of encouragement. Nothing fancy, just enough to fire him up."

Eventually, Gi came to.

When he woke up, he was lying on the ground just outside the cage. He groaned, clutching the side of his face, which still throbbed painfully from the hit that had taken him down.

"Right… that Max guy took me out," Gi muttered, his pride a little bruised. "What's going on now?"

As he sat up and glanced into the cage, his eyes landed on a familiar face, Mayson. The same student from Konsoon Academy.

"Huh? That guy?" Gi said, eyebrows raised. "He goes to that snooty school, Konsoon, doesn't he? This fight's gonna be over in seconds."

"Right, right," one of the students nearby chimed in. "That school only has a handful of delinquents, right? We're about to see the same thing that happened to you, happen to this guy too."

Just as the two were laughing and talking trash, a heavy shadow suddenly loomed over them.

A chill ran down their spines as they slowly turned their heads.

Gi was standing right behind them, towering over them like a storm cloud ready to burst.

The two students gulped, immediately silenced by his intense glare.

"Don't be so sure of that," Gi said firmly, his voice laced with conviction. "There's a reason Bekert hasn't been able to deal with Konsoon."

He took a step forward, eyes narrowing as he looked toward the fight.

"You need to think about it. A school like Konsoon, with so few delinquents… why would someone even choose to be one there? Why become a fighter in a place like that?"

His voice dropped, more thoughtful now.

"There has to be a reason why those few stand out. Why that kind of situation even exists in the first place."

"There are two reasons for that," Gi said, his tone steady. "First, they're naturally strong. Even in an environment like that, they stood out, they knew they were the strongest among the people around them."

He paused for a moment, his gaze distant as if recalling something personal.

"And the second reason? They don't just fight with their fists… they fight with their minds. They figure out what you're trying to do, and they use anything and everything, especially things you wouldn't expect, to make the fight feel off. Awkward. Uncomfortable."

If Gi had said all this before getting knocked out in two clean hits, maybe his words would have carried more weight. But now, after what happened in the cage, his credibility had taken a serious hit. The respect people had for him had visibly diminished.

"Alright, let's get this damned fight started already!" Rick shouted, full of pent-up energy and arrogance. He raised his hand high into the air, as if waiting for someone to slap it. Then slowly, dramatically, he curled in his fingers one by one until his hand formed a tight fist.

The crowd watched with bated breath.

The moment the last finger closed in, the fight began.

Rick didn't waste a second. He took a quick hop to his side, winding up his arm like a baseball pitcher preparing to throw a fastball.

There was only one thing Mayson could do in that instant, react.

His instincts kicked in as he brought both arms up, guarding his face tightly.

'There's a low chance I'm going to win this fight,' Mayson admitted to himself, his thoughts clear even in the chaos. 'If we go head-to-head, I probably won't even land a decent hit. He's stronger, faster, maybe even more experienced.'

His grip tightened as he braced himself.

'So all I can do… is survive. Block as many of his hits as I can. Make him waste energy. Make him tired. Then, when the time is right… when he finally slows down, I'll give it everything I've got and throw the strongest hit I can manage!'

Mayson didn't see it coming.

Behind his guard, his vision was completely cut off. But Rick, he was already there.

He had a dozen options. He could've curved the punch around Mayson's guard. He could've gone for a body blow. He could've stepped to the side and kicked him from behind.

But Rick didn't choose finesse.

He chose brute force.

With his full bodyweight behind it, Rick threw a punch straight through Mayson's guard.

The sound was sickening.

A crack echoed in the air, a sound that made several students wince. Some even claimed they saw a faint ripple in the air, a shockwave created from the sheer force of the hit.

The impact crushed through Mayson's defenses like paper. The punch slammed directly into his face, snapping his head back violently. His entire body followed the momentum, lifted off his feet, and crashed down hard against the cage floor.

For a split second, there was only silence.

Then the entire crowd erupted.

Cheers, gasps, and wild shouting filled the air, all mixing into a wave of noise that shook the place.

"AHHHHH!"

The crowd exploded in cheers, voices rising in a wave of excitement that surged through the arena. Rick stood at the center of it, the crowd roaring his name like a battle cry. If Max had taken out his opponent in two hits, Rick had just one-upped him, knocking Mayson down with a single punch, and that was with a block in place.

"I told you," Print said confidently, arms crossed as he watched the aftermath. "Rick has one of the hardest punches out of anyone in this whole damn competition."

Even the boys from the Bloodline group winced when they saw Mayson hit the ground. Some of them even flinched, those reactions weren't limited to Konsoon students anymore. The power behind that hit had shocked everyone.

"I don't know what you said to try and encourage Mayson," Crondo muttered, leaning closer to Max, "but… I guess it didn't work."

"Man," Joe sighed in relief, "I was actually getting worried there for a second. Max was talking like he had everything figured out, predicting this and that. I thought maybe it was all sounding a little too good to be true."

Inside the cage, Rick brushed off his knuckles and started walking toward the exit gate, fully confident the match was over.

But then,

"WAIT!" Max's voice rang out loud and clear from across the cage.

Rick paused mid-step, turning his head with an annoyed look. "Where are you going?" Max called out again. "The match isn't over yet."

Rick blinked, confused. "Not done?" he repeated, a smirk creeping across his face. "What do you mean 'not do, '"

He didn't get to finish.

Because when Rick turned back toward the center of the cage… he froze.

Mayson was standing.

Blood dripped steadily from his nose, but he was up. Arms raised. Stance firm. Eyes locked onto Rick like he wasn't going anywhere.

"You really want to keep going?" Rick asked, blinking in disbelief. "After taking a hit like that?"

From across the cage, Mayson simply nodded. No words, just resolve. That was enough.

Rick felt something shift inside him. Not fear, but confusion. Genuine surprise. Clapton and Konsoon weren't exactly mortal enemies. That role belonged to Bekert. So if this had been a fight against Gi, sure, maybe he could understand the pride and fire behind it.

But this? Why now? Why him?

Why get back up after taking such a clean hit? There was no way he thought he had a real chance of winning… right?

It couldn't be out of loyalty, they had just talked about that. None of them were particularly close. So then… what the hell was driving this guy to stand again?

"Wow," Joe said, his eyes wide. "He actually got up! I guess your words did work!"

Aki turned toward Max, her voice softer but just as curious as before. "And… what exactly were those words?"

Max smiled, his eyes still fixed on Mayson like a proud coach.

"They were simple," he said coolly. "I told him… for every time he gets up off the ground during this fight, I'll give him ten thousand dollars."