Another week passed - and since the combat class only held once in a week, Jesse had attended twice, and both times, he was smacked into a pulp by the teacher.
His daily quests had also increased, asking for more meat than usual when all he got as rewards were experience points. Therefore, Jesse has to increase his rank, but before that, he needed to help his two roommates up their rank so he could finally leave the dorm - since the teachers had already ordered him to leave.
"Too slow. Punch faster." Jesse instructed again.
Maxwell panted with every punch he threw.
The training room had durable punching bags made of strong materials, hence, it didn't even move no matter how hard Maxwell punched.
The unmoving punching bag moved ever so slightly, but the single movement was caught by Maxwell.
"See? It moved!" Maxwell yelled, victoriously clenching his fist with pure joy.
He faced the punching bag once again and resumed his exercise. The sweat that dripped from his face and his muscles that bulged excessively - one of those punches could leave a normal human at death's door - Jesse shivered unconsciously.
"Remember, you're going for Rank 245."
"Can't I just take it slow?" Maxwell leaned on the punching bag, "From Rank 335 to Rank 245, that's a huge leap."
"Avila is already in the second hundred ranking, Rank 223 if I remember correctly."
"That's because she duels with three people each day. She's strong." As if resigning to his fate, Maxwell sat on the chair beside Jesse.
"Without abilities, you will defeat her in a fight." Throwing in a few words to boost Maxwell's confidence, Jesse smiled.
"That's not something to be proud of. She's a girl, I wouldn't fight her if she had no abilities...no even though she does, I still won't." Maxwell shook his head.
Jesse chuckled - the morals that the young adult possessed were truly overwhelming.
"Anyway, back to business." Jesse stood up, "Your opponent has the ability of steel."
"What's that?" Maxwell asked.
"He can harden his body. Any part of it."
"I should just fight someone else, someone in a lower rank, maybe Rank 300." Maxwell turned away from Jesse.
"No. Our opponent has a very fatal weakness, probably the most exploitable weakne-"
"What do you mean our?" Maxwell's eyes glistened as he interjected Jesse.
"If you don't fight him, I will. Then I will be beaten into a mashy paste of blood and bones by his steel fists."
"..." Maxwell stared blankly at Jesse's nonchalant face. He left out a frustrated sigh and murmured, "Fine, I will do it."
"Great. His weakness lies in his ability. Ranker 245 can harden any part of his body, but only two at once." Jesse walked to the punching bag, "When both of his hands are hardened, other parts of his body are left bare. But the disadvantage you have is, he has mastered the act of hardening parts of his body at the speed of light. Your ability won't do much damage to him. So, if you are not fast enough, Aland and I will have to pack up your pasty body."
Ignoring the light joke that Jesse made to lighten up the atmosphere, Maxwell's lips twitched, "How do you know all this?"
"What was it you said before we came to the academy? Yes, a few bucks will do it." Jesse stood up, "Now, keep punching. You'll be meeting your opponent tomorrow."
"A few bucks won't get you that much information though."
Jesse had his second duel the previous day and upped his rank to 244.
He moved to his new dorm immediately to boost the morale of his comrades.
*
"-The duel will end when one party falls unconscious, falls out of the stage, or admits defeat-"
"-The last one standing would be proclaimed winner-"
The announcement was made and Maxwell's opponent walked up to the stage.
Maxwell who was already standing on the stage gulped - he had noticed this before, but his opponent seemed to be bulkier now than the last time they met.
"-Begin!-"
Maxwell charged in with determination, his fists flying in rapid succession. Each punch met the steely resistance of his opponent's hardened skin, and the pain in his knuckles was almost unbearable. But he didn't let up—he had to break through somehow. As he aimed another blow at his opponent's adbomen, his opponent countered with a swift jab of his own.
Maxwell saw the punch coming just in time and dodged to the side, feeling the rush of air as the fist whizzed past his ear. The close call only made his heart race faster. He danced around his opponent, trying to find an opening, but his opponent was quick—quicker than he expected for someone so bulky.
His opponent retaliated with a series of powerful punches, each one aiming to knock Maxwell out of the fight. Maxwell managed to duck under the first strike, narrowly avoid the second with a sharp pivot, but the third punch caught him off guard. A hardened fist slammed into his ribs with a force that knocked the breath out of him. Pain exploded in his side, and he stumbled backward, gasping for air.
But his opponent wasn't done. Seeing Maxwell off-balance, he pressed the attack, launching a crushing blow toward Maxwell's head. Maxwell instinctively raised his arms to block, but the impact sent a jolt of pain through his forearms, nearly knocking him to the ground. His opponent's strength was overwhelming, and the crowd roared with excitement as they sensed a potential victory.
Despite the pain, Maxwell gritted his teeth and pushed back, weaving through the next few strikes. His agility was his saving grace, allowing him to slip out of the way of his opponent's relentless attacks. But each dodge cost him precious energy, and he knew he couldn't keep this up forever.
Maxwell's eyes narrowed as he circled around his opponent, searching for an opening. He had to take a risk. With a burst of speed, he feinted to the right, drawing his opponent's attention, then quickly switched direction and closed the distance between them. This time, instead of aiming for the body, he went for the headbutt, hoping to catch his opponent off guard.
But his opponent was ready. As Maxwell's head drove forward, his opponent's face hardened in an instant. The impact was brutal. Maxwell's skull collided with his opponent's hardened head, and pain erupted in his forehead. His vision blurred, stars danced before his eyes, and he staggered back, barely able to stay on his feet.
The dizziness hit him hard, and he clutched his head, trying to clear the fog that clouded his mind. He could barely make out his opponent advancing, the crowd's cheers now a distant echo as he fought to stay conscious.
The large build of his opponent was also doing a great job at pushing him to the corner. And as if, he had the foresight ability, he could harden any part of his body as soon as Maxwell throw out a punch.
Maxwell staggered backward, his foggy vision was blurred further by the blood that dripped from his forehead.
However, to his own advantage, he could see parts of his opponents body that were bigger than the rest. Though, in a blur, he could still make out a slightly larger fist and a larger torso - the midsection where Maxwell always attacked.
He remembered the words that Jesse had said.
"Ranker 245 can harden any part of his body, but only two at once."
Maxwell ran forward, charging towards the blurry silhouette of his opponent. His threw a punch to his abdomen, however, at the last millisecond, he changed his trajectory to his opponent's jaw - a deadly hit that sent the big guy flying.
The spectators gasped in awe as the bloodied three hundred ranker made a literal jaw-dropping comeback.
Maxwell charged forward. Leaving no room for his opponent to retaliate, he attacked relentlessly, even faster than he practiced, whilst changing the trajectory of his attacks midway.
He had somehow managed to push his opponent to the edge of the stage, however, before he could land the final blow, his opponent grabbed him by his aching shoulder and tossed him to the other side of the stage.
Maxwell tumbled over before coming to a stop. He glanced at his opponent who was slowly standing up to his feet, and ever so slightly, he could see his fists enlargen.
Jesse never mentioned anything about such ability - the ability to enlargen certain parts of the body.
He couldn't afford to let the duel go on because his consciousness was waning even faster now.
He staggered back up to his feet and with a barely audible whisper, he used the last of his strength to conjure the most powerful attack he could use.
A horizontal lightning bolt struck his opponent on the chest, hurling him out of the stage.
"-The winner is Maxwell Ike!-"
The announcer announced and cheers erupted from the spectators that had been quiet all through the fight's last minute.
A victorious smile graced his lips as his consciousness faded.
His limp body, however, was caught before he could hit the ground.
"You did great." Jesse smiled.
"You didn't tell me he could enlargen his body at will." Maxwell murmured, letting out a few curses before giving up consciousness.