Chapter 64

“Keuk!”

Billy winced as something landed heavily on his stomach, the force of it creating a rush of wind even before impact.

Fortunately, his quick step backward lessened the impact of the blow by a considerable degree.

‘A-ahh…!’

Still, a sharp burning sensation spread across his abdomen, making him grit his teeth to suppress a cry.

It stung him, to say the least, but he endured the pain.

He also tried to hide his downright shock, but Billy failed woefully at that.

His bulging eyes were glued to Rey, who had resumed his standby stance—almost as if prepared to deliver another volley.

‘D-did Rey just land a hit… on me?’ Billy stared in disbelief.

Sure, Billy was aware that he lacked the advantage of using his incredible Skills, but his Stats were meant to be superior.

How was Rey able to do something like that?!

‘Calm down, Billy. He just got lucky. Yes… I was distracted and he had a lucky shot.’

After chalking it down to a fluke, Billy found himself regaining composure.

There was no way Rey could beat him, not in a thousand years.

‘I’m a lot stronger now! I’m one of the Top 5 in Alpha Class!’

“Let’s try that again. I wasn’t paying enough attention.” Billy quickly spoke, eager to redeem himself.

He had been unable to show everyone the proper counter to the Martial Arts move that Rey performed.

He never thought he would make such a blunder, but Bully quickly took it in stride.

"Next time, I'll be ready!" he reassured himself.

“Begin!”

Upon Billy's declaration, Rey used the same footwork technique as before but with a drastically different rhythm.

As such, instead of reaching Billy in six steps, he closed in within eight.

‘He’s too… slow!’

Reacting quickly, Billy began his counter the moment he saw Rey start to approach him, determined not to be caught off guard again by Rey's speed.

Unfortunately, by acting too early, Billy’s counter failed woefully.

And the moment it failed…

~WHOOOSSH!~

… Rey closed in with a powerful fist.

~CRUNCH!~

This time, Rey’s heavy blow landed right on Billy’s face, sending him stumbling backward.

The awful cracking sound he heard indicated that his nose had likely broken from the impact.

‘E-eh? Again? How…?’ Billy was in shock.

How was this happening?!

Gritting his teeth in frustration, Billy shot a heated glare at Rey, who, for the sake of the training, had returned to his initial position and assumed a fighting stance once again.

It pissed Billy off to an absurd degree to see Rey remain so calm.

“Twice in a row, huh? Interesting…” Billy winced as he touched the bridge of his nose, adjusting the shifted cartilage.

Despite managing a smile, he was burning with rage within.

“Let’s try this again.”

At this point, Billy didn't care about holding back or causing serious damage to Rey in the next round.

‘I planned on inflicting some light punishment here and there on him throughout this training, but now… I’ve changed my mind.’

It was better to break him as early as possible.

‘Come on, Rey! I’ll show you the difference in our abilities!’

The third try for Rey was the very opposite of the second.

Rather than utilizing six steps to draw closer to the target, Rey completed the process in four.

His quick movements enhanced his momentum, allowing him to reach Billy much faster by eliminating the unnecessary steps.

Sure, it would come at the cost of some stamina, but the increased speed made the improvisation worth it.

‘Hehehe! I can see what you’re doing, Rey!’ Billy grinned internally.

Whether or not Rey was speeding towards him, it didn’t matter.

He was going to counter perfectly!

Billy began to propel his body forward for a counter.

‘I’ll match your speed! You can’t escape me!’

As Billy lunged forward to grab Rey, who was now within his reach, Rey executed the final two steps with a quick change in direction for his blow.

‘E-eh…?!’

Billy was taken by surprise as Rey smoothly sidestepped to his right, completely evading his attempted grapple—a counter that would have otherwise been flawless.

The result was inevitable.

~WHAM!~

Rey’s blow hit Billy right in the cheek, causing Billy to stumble and finally fall to the ground.

Gasps echoed around them, forming a chorus of astonishment as everyone's surprised gazes locked onto the unexpected winner.

Several voices whispered in disbelief:

“H-how?!”

“What the hell?!”

“Rey actually won?!”

It was nothing short of amazing — even inspiring — to see a Beta Class student defeat an Alpha Student, especially considering it was Rey Skylar, widely regarded as the most average among them all.

“WHAT DID YOU DO?!” The voice came from the ground.

Billy rose to his feet, his expression a mix of fury and shock.

He glared at Rey with hatred, not even bothering to hide his emotions any longer.

“That wasn’t the Martial Arts Technique you were supposed to use. What the hell did you do?!”

Billy’s words sounded like the ramblings of a sore loser, but no one could dare accuse him of such.

They only waited patiently for how Rey would respond.

“But I used the Martial Arts Technique. Six Steps and a Thrust,” Rey replied calmly.

It had all happened in their presence so no one could deny that was what he did.

Yet, Billy couldn't let it go.

“B-but you—!”

“I delayed for a brief moment and feinted—which is allowed in Martial Arts.”

The veins on Billy's forehead visibly bulged, a sign of his increasing frustration

“What of the second round? You took eight steps before the thrust!”

For a moment, there was silence.

Billy was being petty about the moves, and everyone knew that, but he wasn’t wrong.

Rey hadn’t been faithful to the technique he was meant to use.

“I made a mistake in my footwork and ended up with eight instead of six. But, you never corrected me or said I was in the wrong back then.”

As Rey said this, everyone’s eyes widened instantly.

"I don’t understand why you're bringing it up now... Bill,” Rey added, his words dripping with condescension but delivered with an outward show of respect.

The idea of the underdog prevailing over the top dog, even if it was just due to technicalities, brought a sense of satisfaction to everyone watching.

While everyone understood that Billy could easily defeat Rey using his Skills, Rey's ability to improve without relying on them was impressive.

In a surprising twist of fate, the apparent nobody had found a way to grow stronger.

And whether Rey knew it or not, his action had managed to inspire a lot of his peers.

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[A/N]

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