Cyrus collapsed a few meters away into the dirty ground of the arena. A swirl of dust formed around the boy after he made impact with the ground.

The crowd chanted Max’s name.

* * *

Sakura smiled from the observation box at the top of the arena.

She placed her hands on the glass, and looked down at Max, who was standing ready for a retaliation attack from his opponent.

“Your pupil is putting up quite the magnificent display, Sakura,” said the climber president.

“Thank you, sir,” said Sakura. “I only nudged Max a little bit, this impressive display is mostly down to him.”

Max was truly remarkable though, she thought. The amount of abilities and moves he’s learned in so short a time was incredible. Even more amazing was how quickly he’d ranked up and raised his stats. If Max could get this powerful in a matter of months, who knew what heights he might reach as he trained and grew in strength.

Samuel tried to conceal his irritation, though his face was noticeably red.

It must be tough to watch his own son get smacked down like this, thought Sakura.

“Sakura’s pupil is really giving your son a run for his money, isn’t he, Samuel?” laughed the climber president.

Sakura tensed at the president’s words.

Don’t add salt to the man’s wounds, sir, Sakura thought to herself.

Samuel just looked down at the swirling dust and dirt where Cyrus had landed.

“Just you wait,” he said, gritting his teeth. “My boy isn’t down for the count just yet.”

* * *

Casey and Toto cheered with glee in the student climber waiting area.

“Aw, yeah,” she cheered. “Go Max! Beat Cyrus to a pulp! You can do it!”

The other students grumbled and looked at her.

“Will you shut up, we’re trying to watch the match!”

Casey sighed and felt her elation deflate a little bit.

The match definitely wasn’t over yet and Cyrus hadn’t even revealed his trait yet. Even though she’d grown up with the boy, she still had no idea what his special power was; it must have been very rare otherwise it wouldn’t be kept such a highly guarded secret. Then there was his hereditary trait—the passive ability the Archer family was most famous for—blood eyes.

Be careful, Max, she thought to herself as she petted Toto’s fur. You can do this, but be careful.

* * *

Samuel clenched his fists as he stood between Sakura and the climber president.

He was trying to steady his breathing without calling too much attention to himself.

What the heck was Cyrus doing?

He was supposed to initiate the plan before any blows were delivered.

The idiot. He probably thought he could land a punch on Max before they started the plan. Prove to himself that he would have won this match fairly if it weren’t for their other plans.