Chapter 188: I’m Still Standing
When Max spent his money in situations like this, it didn’t just feel like he was throwing away cash, it felt like he was losing experience points in a game. The problem was, he had no way of knowing exactly how much EXP he was losing with each transaction.Ever since he made the Vow, his strength had become directly tied to his wealth. But figuring out how strong he used to be before making the Vow, and how much of that strength had shifted, was nearly impossible to gauge.
There hadn’t been a drastic increase in his total wealth since then, but overall, there had been a noticeable enhancement in his physical abilities. With the test he had done using ten million, Max had confirmed that there was definitely a change, both upward and downward, depending on whether he gained or lost money.
Still, the difference in power wasn’t drastic. Losing a hundred grand in one fight or dropping ten thousand here and there wouldn’t cripple him, not in terms of the Vow’s effect. But just thinking about it sent a chill down his spine.
Max had even begun to wonder: if the Vow was influenced more by his mind than anything else, then did his perception of loss matter more than the actual number? If he truly believed the loss was massive, would that make him weaker? And conversely, if he convinced himself that his wealth had grown significantly, would his strength increase in kind?
It was a strange idea. Even if he tried to control how he felt, the Vow would always pick up on the truth buried deep inside him. And right now, even a hit like this, just a few tens of thousands, he could feel it in his body. Like an invisible weight pulling him down.
"Crudding crud!" Crondo blurted out, practically leaping to his feet. "He’s gotten up four times now! That’s forty grand! At this rate, the kid’s gonna make more from standing than from the fight itself!"
"How do we even know that guy’s gonna pay up?" a student from Konsoon muttered under his breath. "Bet he never thought the guy would get up this many times..."
Max could hear their whispering, clear as day. But he didn’t flinch, didn’t respond. Of course he was going to honor the deal. Even if Mayson stood up a hundred times, Max would pay every last cent.
The kid deserved it.
Just looking at his face, swollen, bloodied, and the condition his body was in, it was painful. He looked like he’d been through hell and still wasn’t done fighting.
Max clenched his fist by his side.
No matter what... I’ll pay what I owe.
Still, Max couldn’t shake the thought, surely Mayson would start to question things eventually. There had to be a point where he’d assume there was a cap on the payout. That the money would run dry. That Max would stop counting. Maybe then he’d stop standing up, give in, and stay down.
Or maybe... maybe he’d already been hit in the head one too many times to be thinking clearly at all.
That was when Rick dug his foot into the ground. His stance locked in, he grabbed his own wrist with one hand, bracing himself, and then unleashed a brutal punch, throwing his entire weight behind it. His fist slammed against the side of Mayson’s head.
The impact was immediate.
Mayson dropped like a stone, eyes rolling back as he hit the cold floor with a sickening thud. He didn’t move. Rick, for once, didn’t make the mistake he’d made so many times before. He didn’t turn away. He stood there, waiting, watching.
But this time, Mayson didn’t get back up.
Before anyone could process what had happened, Jay stepped into the cage. He walked over without a word, bent down, and lifted Mayson’s limp body with ease. The sight of it made several of the students watching gasp in quiet awe. Carrying another person like that, especially someone as battered as Mayson, took strength. And Jay did it like it was nothing.
As Jay brought Mayson back to their side, Max started clapping. Slow, steady, and full of respect. The students from Konsoon joined in, followed by the girls from Seaton. Before long, the entire gym was echoing with applause.
It wasn’t just for the fight. It was for Mayson himself. The kid had gone further than anyone expected, further than he ever needed to. And no matter how much this was going to cost Max in the end, the performance deserved every bit of it.
The sound of the cheers reached Mayson, and somehow, even through his swollen, bruised face, his eyes fluttered open. Just barely. But enough to know he was hearing his school behind him... and the others too.
Eventually, Jay gently set him down on the ground.
"Youshh..." Mayson mumbled through swollen lips. "Bettesh... Pash Upsh..."
Max smiled.
"I will," he said quietly. "Don’t worry about that. I will."
On the other side of the cage, Rick was seething.
When he returned to his group, none of them said a single word. Not a whisper. They didn’t need to. Everyone could feel it, it hadn’t gone the way Rick expected. Not at all.
"For someone who’s supposed to have the hardest punch in the school," Print muttered, breaking the silence, "struggling that hard to take down his opponent... that’s gotta shake your confidence. Anyone’s."
Regardless of how the last fight ended, things needed to keep moving. From the Clapton Alliance side, the next fighter stepped forward, a woman named Bazma.
She had a dark tan that made her features stand out, and her physique was lightly muscular, enough to make it clear she could hold her own. Her long nails glinted as she walked confidently toward the center of the ring, radiating calm strength.
"Hey, this could be an easy win for us, right?" Joe said, his voice bubbling with excitement. "I mean, it’s a woman. And even if she’s strong, we can just send out Jay. He’ll pick her up and slam her straight into the floor."
There was a heavy pause.
Aki and the other girls from Seaton turned to stare at him, their eyes wide with disbelief.
"Do you seriously have no shame?" Abi asked sharply. "It’s obvious I should be the one to go out. If I don’t take her, then who am I supposed to fight later? One of the guys? What if they end up slamming me to the ground?"
Aki, rough around the edges, a well-known delinquent from Seaton, wasn’t new to fighting. She’d been in more scraps than she could count. Sometimes, she even found herself up against guys when situations escalated. But more often than not, those fights didn’t end clean. She’d either be forced to retreat, or worse, rely on threats and blackmail to come out on top.
She hadn’t been born a fighter. She’d been made one, shaped by her circumstances and the streets she grew up in. That’s why, to the male delinquents who fought for fun and pride, she was never going to be on equal ground. Not in their eyes, at least.
Even if she was squaring up against another woman, it wasn’t going to be easy.
But this... this might be her only real shot.
"I don’t think it matters that much," Joe muttered, sulking. "I mean, Jay’s the Pink Ranger, so he’s already got a vibe going."
That was it.
The Seaton girls started glaring daggers into his back, and Joe finally caught on that he’d said way too much. Before he could say anything else, Aki was already walking toward the center of the ring.
Her pace was firm. Steady.
No hesitation.
As she moved forward, Max suddenly felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He slid it out and glanced at the screen. His eyebrows twitched. Seeing who it was, he made a quick decision and answered.
"Hey kid," the voice said, calm but urgent. "We need you to come over here... now."
It was a call from the Rejected Corps.
And by the tone of their voice, it wasn’t a request, it was a demand.