Tahir was clearly angry with the match's outcome.
"What's wrong, lad?" John asked Tahir.
"He was weaker than I thought. I need to fight, I need to let all this anger and power out. I need to fight someone strong," Tahir said.
It was clear he was still filled with energy. He had expected a lot from the fight, but somehow Ron had disappointed him.
"I'll take the joy I want from fighting that VR champion. I just hope he doesn't disappoint," Tahir thought to himself as he headed for his ride back to the academy. Just then, Lucius approached him.
"Hey, devil, I'm a big fan of yours. I thought you wanted to disappoint me when you weren't fighting back. What if you had died back there?"
"Died? Nah, I knew he was weak from the start. I just needed a reason to kill him. I have a law that allows me to refrain from fighting with weaklings. I had to let him push himself. I wanted him at his mightiest, but I guess weaklings will always be weaklings," Tahir ended his statement with a bow as he took his leave.
"You still haven't shown us your true power, right? I'm looking forward to seeing it," Lucius shouted as he waved.
"Isn't that a world leader?" Murmurs grew louder as Lucius decided to vanish from the scene, leaving people confused.
****
"How's the devil doing? Lost any matches yet?" Bloody Saint asked his assistant.
"No, sir. He's been winning. He's really serious about fighting you. I even tried to bug him by sneaking in a lot of stronger opponents beyond his current level, but he keeps winning. I believe, in about a day from now, he'll meet the criteria you gave him," the assistant replied, keeping his distance.
"Don't interfere in his fights again. I want to show him what true power is," Bloody Saint said.
Tahir had just finished his daily mission of over 2,000 push-ups and sit-ups when the system gave him 5 EXP.
"It's getting harder to get EXP. Aside from this training routine, the only task left is staying away from sunset for 8 hours, which will probably be taken away soon. I need to fight strong opponents soon. I need to evolve once more," Tahir thought to himself.
"Have you tried taking blood? A vampire's main food is blood-based, and each type of blood grants different forms of power and strength while still feeding you. If you take more blood, I'm sure you'll gain EXP much faster," Bruce suggested, as usual.
"And where do you expect me to get blood from?" Tahir inquired.
"You could ask your friends, or better yet, buy it online," Bruce replied.
"Or you could just round up all the bullies in the school and take their blood. If they resist, we kill them," Shaw chimed in.
"If we start killing now, we'll attract a lot of attention, and we might involve military officers on a much larger scale
"I see," was all Shaw managed.
"Anyway, I need to meet John for my training," Tahir remarked as he headed for the door.
In the training room, Zahra had just finished her session. She was panting as she took a sip of water.
"Don't be too hard on yourself," Jude offered, handing her a towel.
"Thanks," Zahra muttered.
"So, you're an original?" Jude inquired out of nowhere.
"It's complicated and personal," Zahra snapped.
"Okay," Jude mumbled as he walked away.
"So, why did you decide to join us? I mean, you literally tried to kill our friend," Zahra questioned, locking eyes with him.
"I just had a change of heart, I guess. It was because of him. He convinced me that true strength doesn't depend on power levels," Jude explained.
"You can say that again. I mean the last part," Kris chimed in, entering the room and handing them a bag of chips.
"There's something about Tahir that's different from the other kids. We don't really know him, but I'd give my life for him," Kris said, munching on his chips.
"I love how dedicated you guys are to him, but do you think he wants us to go that far for him?" Zahra wondered aloud.
"He doesn't need to. So we don't slow him down, we have to keep moving, keep fighting, and get stronger. That way, we won't hold him back," Jude reasoned.
"Let's go, I'm exhausted," Zahra groaned, and they all laughed while leaving the training room.
****
"Call Cassy. Tell her the school should be closing in two or three weeks. How's her planning coming along? And inform our other contact to keep an eye on Tahir's friend. Just in case that useless girl dies, we'll target them next," the man instructed, dismissing the messenger.
"I hope she pulls it off; it would at least save us the trouble," the mysterious man muttered.
Tahir was with John, discussing his VR competition, when Esha walked in.
"How's the preparation for your big fight, devil?" Esha teased, flashing a smile.
"Going well," Tahir replied with a smirk.
"What if you lose?"
"I'm not expecting to win; I just want to have fun. But I'm not planning to lose either. Even if I do, I'll train harder and win next time. It doesn't matter how many times I lose; I just need to make sure I win in the end," Tahir said, biting into an apple.
"You're not bothered about losing?" Esha asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Nah, I was trained not to worry about losing. I just have to stay determined not to lose. They sound the same but mean something totally different," Tahir replied confidently.
"Okay then, I hope you win though," Esha said. "Because nobody has ever seen the devil's first loss."
Tahir smirked. "I'm sure it would be fun to see me lose. It's been a long time since I last lost a fight. I'm starting to forget what failure feels like."
"Failure doesn't taste good, that much I know," John chimed in, and they all laughed together.