"Why are you just standing there, huh?! Are you scared?!"
Vernon sighed heavy. It seemed like he had no choice but to accept the challenge. If he didn't shut Colin's loud mouth, he would never stop bothering him.
"Alright. I accept your challenge—"
"Stop. You can't fight him." Mico suddenly came over to them.
Vernon froze, his eyes fixed on Mico's bandaged jaw, and his guilt only grew stronger.
"Don't interfere, Mico!" Colin protested. "Just go back to your room!"
"He's my fighter, Colin," Mico glared at him coldly. "So you can't fight him without my permission as his coach. The boss also forbids group fights outside of the Vagon tournament."
"Mr. Robinson isn't here, so he won't know." Colin insisted.
"The difference in power between you and Vernon is huge. Vernon will be killed if you push this," added Mico. "What will I say to Mr. Robinson if that happens, huh?"
Colin grinned confidently. "So, you're afraid I'll kill your weak fighter! What a shame, I wanted to prove how weak he really is. I still wonder how he managed to beat a former rank B boxer like you."
Mico was silent. His face showed irritation, but he tried to hide it.
Seeing this, Vernon felt even guiltier.
"Don't you want revenge, Dude?" Colin sneered. He could see Mico tense up. "Let me break his legs to restore your pride."
Mico didn't respond at all.
Colin circled around him. "Do you know what will happen when Mr. Robinson hears about your loss?"
"He'll fire you, and Vernon will take your place. Haven't you thought about your family?" added Colin.
"You can't manipulate me, Colin," Mico replied firmly. "You better go to your own training room. This is the rank F training room."
"Alright, alright." Colin chuckled casually and left the room.
"Why do you underestimate me, Coach?" Vernon said, a little annoyed. "I can beat him, even though he's a rank B boxer."
"Care to explain how your hand healed in just a few hours?" Mico challenged.
Vernon stiffened and instinctively looked at his hand. He had forgotten about that.
"The doctor said your hand was broken. It should take six to eight weeks to heal."
Vernon remained silent.
***
"You're so annoying, Mico." Colin scoffed as he approached his bestfriend, who was changing in the coaches' locker room. "Why did you stop me from beating that jerk? I was really pissed because he embarrassed you."
Mico didn't bother to answer.
"Haven't you heard the rumors from your fighter's? They're starting to doubt your ability to train them."
Mico slammed his locker shut, the loud bang echoing. Even though he tried not to care, Colin's words clearly bothered him.
"I know, but haven't you noticed?" Mico's voice was irritated. He couldn't deny the disappointment of losing to an inexperienced Boxler.
Colin frowned. "What do you mean?"
"He has an unusual power," Mico replied.
Colin listened carefully.
"It's like he has some kind of regeneration ability." Mico expressed his confusion. "His hand healed within hours."
The blond-haired young man burst out laughing, and Mico shot him a dirty look.
"You're stupid, dude! Faking an injury is a cheap tactic often used in the Death Black Tournament." Colin explained.
"You don't understand." Mico sat on the bench, recalling his match with Vernon. "I'm sure I broke his hand so he couldn't fight anymore, but strangely, he beat me with that same hand. That hand shouldn't have worked for weeks."
Colin fell silent, hearing that. Even though Mico hadn't used all his strength, he didn't treat the fight like a game. His usual indifferent eyes had shown ambition to defeat Vernon.
It was impossible that Mico had faked his loss just to end the match quickly.
"His punches were unbelievably strong, like I was hit by a car."
Colin rubbed his forehead, becoming even more intrigued by the mystery surrounding Vernon.
"Isn't it a good thing he healed? Mr. Robinson won't fire you for injuring his star fighter."
Mico let out a deep sigh.
"You must focus on training Vernon so he can make it to the next round. That way, I can fight him in the ring." Colin grinned slyly.
"You're an idiot, Colin." Mico cursed. "You'll be eliminated if Vernon moves on to the next round next week."
"Eliminated?" Colin laughed mockingly. "Why do you think he's going to beat me? He's not on my level."
Colin showed off his fists with a smug grin. "I'm a top fighter from Rank B. I've always made it to the semi-finals, even though I haven't advanced to the Black Death tournament."
Colin's expression grew irritated. "If that jerk wasn't like a monster, I would've beaten him. But I'm sure this time I'll defeat the Annihilator and move on to the Black Death Tournament."
"Don't underestimate Vernon. You'll see just how terrifying he is when you fight him."
"You're underestimating me, huh?!" Colin snapped.
"No. I'm just stating the facts."
"I've been boxing since middle school! I'm confident I can beat Vernon when we meet in the elimination round and advance to the Black Death Tournament!"
***
Vernon entered his dorm room at Boot Camp Vagon, which Robinson had set up, to rest after a long day.
"Hey, look who's here. Robinson's golden boy," one of his roommates, Tian, sneered.
Vernon ignored them and headed to his bed in the corner near the wall. He was tired of arguing. His mood was terrible today.
Each room had four people, all of them ranked F.
THUD!
Vernon nearly stumbled when the buzz-cut guy stuck out his foot.
"Oh, crap! Where are your eyes, huh?!" the guy yelled.
"I should be the one saying that," Vernon shot back sarcastically.
Tian grabbed Vernon by the collar roughly. "Where's your respect?! I'm the leader and the top fighter in this group! So, you have to respect me."
"Coach Mico didn't mention anything about that." There was no fear on Vernon's face.
"YOU BASTARD!" Tian swung his fist at Vernon, but Vernon caught it easily and twisted it.
"ARGH!" Tian screamed in pain. "Let go of my hand, idiot!"
Vernon kicked Tian's butt, making him fall flat onto his bed. "Don't mess with me unless you want your hands and legs broken."
"Damn you!" Tian's two friends, Tony and Antonio, rushed Vernon, throwing combo punches, but Vernon dodged them easily.
"Hurry up and take him down!" Tian ordered.
"You must die, you bastard!"
Vernon's arrival had become an obstacle for them since they would be fighting each other next week to see who would enter the elimination round.
When they heard Vernon had beaten Mico, their coach, and that his hand had mysteriously healed, they planned to take him down.
Suddenly, someone opened their door without knocking. "What's all the noise?"
"M-Mister?" Tian and his friends instantly trembled in fear.
Vernon frowned in confusion as a muscular man stood in the doorway. His jaw was strong, his expression cold, and his eyes filled with intimidation.
Vernon's gaze fell on a scorpion tattoo next to the man's left eye.
Vernon stiffened, swallowing hard without realizing it. The man radiated a murderous aura that filled the room. His hands were massive, as big as Vernon's head.
His fists looked like they could crush bones.
"N-nothing, Mister. We were just joking," Tian stammered nervously. "Right, Vernon?"
Amos turned his attention to the blue-eyed young man standing frozen behind Tian. "Who's he?"
"H-he's Vernon, the new boxer Mr. Robinson recommended."
"So, he's the one who beat Mico?"
Tian, Tony, and Antonio exchanged nervous glances.
"Y-yes."
Amos stepped closer to him, and the three boys quickly moved aside to give him room.
Vernon struggled to breathe as the man's footsteps echoed in the room.
Amos towered over Vernon. Vernon's head barely reached his chest. "I'm Amos, an S-rank boxer. People call me The Annihilator."
Vernon's eyes widened.