Chapter 45 A Spar With Billy

45 A Spar With Billy

"Keuk!"

Billy winced the moment he felt something land on his stomach.

The fist carried so much force that he could already feel a heavy wind pressure before it even touched him.

Fortunately, he had been fast enough to take a step backward, so that mitigated the blow by a considerable degree.

'A-ahh...!'

Billy did his best not to clutch his stomach despite the burning sensation that now swirled on it.

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 bloodshot 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?'

Sure, Billy was already aware that he wasn't using any 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 score.'

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

There was no way Rey could beat him in a thousand years.

'I'm a lot stronger now! I'm among the Top 5 in Alpha Class!'

"Let's try that once again. I wasn't paying enough attention." Billy quickly spoke.

He had been unable to show everyone watching the proper counter to give to the Martial Arts that Rey displayed.

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

'Next time... it won't happen again!'

"Begin!"

As soon as Billy said this, Rey used the same footworks as last time, but he drastically changed the rhythm.

As such, instead of arriving at Billy in six steps, he did so in eight.

'He's too... slow!'

Billy had already begun his counter the moment he saw Rey approach him, already ensuring Rey wouldn't be too fast and catch him off guard again.

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, causing him to stumble backwards.

And to think it was the most average of all of them—Rey Skylar.

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

Billy was rising from his feet, having a furious expression.

He glared at Rey with a passion, 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 sayings of a sore loser, but no one could say that.

They only waited patiently for how Rey would respond.

"But I used the Martial Arts Technique. Six Steps and a Thrust."

No one could deny that was what he did.

However...

"B-but you—!"

"I delayed for a brief moment and gave a feint—which is allowed in Martial Arts."

The veins on Billy's face increased slightly.

"What of the second round? You used 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 know why you're mentioning it now... Bill."

Rey's condescending words were laced properly with a respectful tone. It clearly made a mockery of Billy and his pride, but no one was complaining.

Something about the weak beating the strong—even if it was merely on the grounds of technicality—made them feel good.

Sure, they knew that if Billy was to use his Skills, he would destroy Rey.

However, the apparent nobody had found a way to grow stronger without relying on his Skills.

And whether Rey knew that or not, his action managed to inspire a lot of his fellows.

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[A/N]

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