Joel reigned supreme as the top fighter in his age group at the Viper's Den South River Branch.He had proven his worth to Jude through his contributions. There had been whispers that Joel was a protégé of a senior in the West State. Apparently, Joel was with the South River Branch to hone his skills to be the next branch leader. Joel’s competence even rivaled Hannah, the top ten most promising members of the Viper’s Den West State. That was only a year ago. Joel would have become stronger by now. Rumors went around, saying that Joel would represent Jude in fighting Hannah and Collier in the ring. Joel rose to be a hot commodity in the Riverbank higher society. The feud between Joel and Luis started six months ago. Luis came to Drake Gym and took a fancy to a female student. He started feeling her up. For the first time, Luis met his match. The female student was involved with Joel. Joel was not going to stand by as his woman was harassed. He showed up, beat the
Joel’s crew were Jude’s core members in the Viper’s Den South River Branch, and they were skilled fighters. However, Luis’ socialite group was no pushovers. They did not just rely on their family’s connections. They had equipped themselves with skills to go against Joel’s party. It did not take long for both parties to engage in a fierce brawl. Nevertheless, they kept things physical without involving weapons. Both parties were rooted in powerful organizations or families. One was affiliated to the Viper’s Den South River Branch while the other had the backing of Zoro, Casius’ right-hand man. Injuries were to be expected in fights. However, the trouble was when fatality was involved.Still, the fight quickly got out of hand. “These clowns have the nerve to show their faces at Drake Gym. Did they forget the time we threw them out?” “I’d kill you if we weren’t here at the gym!” “Bastard!” The fight got serious really quickly. Luis was beside himself with rage,
Reality hit Rose. “So you stirred the pot. You’re not in it to help them, right?” It nearly slipped her mind that Luis and his friends did not call Kaze to Drake Gym with good intentions. Kaze did not owe them anything. He was doing Luis and his friends a favor by not making things worse for them. “Let’s get further away from them. If anything happens, we can make our escape.” Rose pulled Kaze to the door and watched the drama from afar. “Bastard!” Catching Rose and Kaze from the corner of his eye, Luis, who was beaten black and blue, made a sour face. Kaze started the fight, and yet he fled far away. Luis had never met anyone as shameless as Kaze. Dismissing the evil look from Luis, Kaze watched the fight and gave pointers. With Kaze’s help, Luis and his friends rose and fought back. Luis’ party was on the losing end at first. They would probably last three minutes against Joel’s crew. Thanks to Kaze’s guidance, the fight went on for ten minutes with no end i
“Go to hell!” Joel yelled angrily while pouncing on Luis. He pulled a punch, smashing Luis right in the face. The intensity hit Luis before Joel’s fist touched him. Scared stiff, Luis tried to dodge. Kaze’s voice boomed in Luis’ ear. “Step back on your right foot and punch his ribs.” Luis got the message loud and clear. As if a lightbulb went off in his head, Luis followed Kaze’s instructions. “Smack!” Luis stepped back to the left and dodged Joel’s punch. At the same time, he threw his fist and struck Joel on his unprotected ribs. “Ugh!” Joel staggered back and spat out blood. “This isn’t possible.” Barely finding his balance, Joel looked at Luis in disbelief. Luis’ sidekicks paused and stared at him, dumbstruck. Zenika and the other socialites looked up in surprise. What was going on? Luis made Joel bleed. Just six months ago, Joel beat Luis to a pulp. This was beyond anyone’s imagination. “Um…” Luis stared at his hands in a daze, wondering whe
Gritting his teeth, Joel struggled to get off the ground. His expression was menacing. His ribs were his weak spot from a past injury.He had always been cautious to protect his ribs when fighting. However, he underestimated Luis and paid for it. Joel dismissed Luis’ first attack on his ribs as a fluke. However, Luis went for his weak spot the second time due to Kaze’s guidance. “Shut up, bastard! Once I’m done with Luis, I’m going after you!” Joel was out for Luis’ blood. He would not rest until Luis was defeated. “Die!” Joel screamed and jumped on Luis. This time, Joel shielded his ribs with one arm to prevent another attack from Luis. “What an idiot!” Kaze called Joel out before saying indifferently, “Drop your head to the left, jab his right shin, and for added measure, palm strike his left armpit.”Luis followed the instructions to a tee. As the crowd watched on with dropped jaws, Luis swept Joel’s shin and struck Joel’s armpit. Since Joel was occupied
Luis felt like a God. He was all puffed up. The crowd was too distracted by his authority to put a stop to things. “Ugh!” Joel’s throat was slit, and blood quickly spilled.Blood gushed out of his throat. “Uh… You…” Joel let out an inaudible grunt, his half-raised arm going limp. Throwing his head to the back, he breathed his last. Even to his death, he could not believe he lost to Luis. “Argh! Murder!” Zenika and the other women shrieked. Kaze buried Rose’s face in his chest to shield her from the gruesome scene. “Clang!” Luis dropped the knife as he regained composure from his manic episode. He retracted his foot from Joel’s chest and backed away, his eyes fixating on Joel’s dead body. “I-I didn’t kill him.“I didn’t mean to kill you!” Luis raised his trembling hands, his body shaking. He was done for. Luis killed Joel. His plan was to get rid of Joel through Kaze. How did he end up killing Joel instead?Luis turned to Kaze and yelled angrily,
“Thud!”Luis slammed into the corner of the wall, feeling the pain in every inch of his body. The physical pain, however bad, was nothing compared to the fear of death that gripped him.Fighting back the agony, he raised his arms and crawled his way back to Zoro. Luis coughed out copious amounts of blood, his insides churning violently as he stayed on all fours.However, he did not care one bit. Luis understood that he would not live to see another day without Zoro’s help. “I didn’t mean to kill Joel, Zoro. “I was only following through with your plan, but Kaze somehow walked up to Joel and slapped him in the face. “Most importantly, Joel wasn’t as great as rumored. He got upset and swung a knife at me after I beat him down to the ground multiple times. I was only defending myself. “Tell him, guys. That was what happened, right?” Luis snapped an angry look at Zenika and the others. They were all in the same boat now, so they were in it together. Zenika and the ot
“It’s all my fault, Zoro. I’m a fool! I’m a loser!“But Joel is dead, and nothing can change that. Yelling at me won’t solve anything. “Please help me, Zoro!” Luis got down on his knees, his back hunched over. “Given our years of brotherhood, I’m begging you for one last favor.”He was freaked out. It was a good thing Luis rushed to Bronze Sparrow when things went awry. Otherwise, he would be stuck at Drake Gym and killed by the people of the Viper’s Den. Even now, the Viper’s Den members were scattered outside Bronze Sparrow. If Luis were to step outside Bronze Sparrow, he would be drowned in the deep ocean. “Help you? “Are you expecting me to risk my life to save yours?” With a callous look, Zoro kicked Luis away. “Jude called me just now. I should hand over the killer by tonight, or he’ll come straight to Bronze Sparrow for you. “Do you know what that means? “It means he has the means to carry out his promise. “Don’t forget that Joel trained under a senior me