Akemi was the younger sister of Shion, the director of Koyo Women's Academy.
She had been the student council president since her first year and had won the "Miss Koyo Women's Academy" contest two years in a row. Although she was a severe muscle fanatic, there was no denying that she was a very popular beauty.
Wealthy.
Excellent grades.
Good at all sports.
Polite.
Kind.
It was completely understandable that people would try to hit on a girl like her.
As for Sakura Hibiki, who was with her-
That girl was a landmine.
And not the ordinary kind.
Even among "landmine girls," she belonged to a very special category.
After all, there were many types of landmines in the world, but someone who could punch a sandbag until it burst when she got angry was extremely rare.
And those two guys who tried to hit on them had very clearly detonated that landmine.
Although they didn't know exactly what they had done wrong, that punch-powerful enough to burst a sandbag-had definitely landed on the man now lying on the floor.
He was still alive.
But he was completely knocked out.
As for his subordinate-
Even though he was holding a pistol, the moment he drew it, his body instinctively stepped back two paces before he even realized what he was doing.
Only then did he finally pull the gun out properly.
Although Sakura Hibiki was genuinely terrified when she saw the gun, the man holding it was not doing much better.
His gaze flicked toward his Big Bro lying on the ground.
Fear washed over him again.
His Big Bro was known to have some close-quarters combat skills.
Yet someone like that had been knocked out by a single punch from the girl in front of him.
This...
His hand trembled as he aimed the pistol at Sakura Hibiki.
"-You monster, I-"
He wanted to fire immediately.
But just as his finger touched the trigger-
Just as Akemi stepped in front of Sakura Hibiki-
Just as Sakura Hibiki reacted and tried to push Akemi away-
The finger resting on the trigger was pinched.
"What-!?"
Only then did the man finally realize something was wrong.
A lazy-looking person had appeared beside him at some point.
One hand casually scratched messy, bird's nest-like black hair.
The other hand firmly pinched his finger.
The man subconsciously tried to speak.
But before he could get a word out, a sharp pain shot through his finger.
The gun was taken from his hand.
"You-"
"Trying to kill someone over something like this is going too far."
The voice was calm.
Unhurried.
"Also, if you take your Big Bro to the hospital now, his condition isn't serious yet. But if you let him keep bleeding like this, he'll be in real trouble."
Ah.
Only then did the small-time thug truly react.
He dropped to his knees, scrambling to pick up his Big Bro.
As he did, he noticed something.
When his Big Bro first passed out, it was just a small nosebleed.
Now-
There were streaks of blood at the corner of his mouth.
"Big Bro!"
He didn't hesitate any longer.
Carrying the unconscious man, he ran out of the bar in a panic.
Jaden's gaze followed them briefly.
Then it fell on Akemi and Sakura Hibiki.
"Just like they went too far," he said calmly, "you two also went too far."
He paused.
"You should figure out a way to handle that guy's medical expenses later."
"...Yes. I understand. We're truly very sorry."
Sakura Hibiki nodded repeatedly.
She had only recently started working out.
She had no idea how strong her punches actually were, so she never anticipated something like this happening.
But since it had happened, she wouldn't dodge responsibility.
Even if it was troublesome.
After hearing her response, Jaden nodded.
Then he turned, carrying the gun, and walked toward the bar counter.
This matter needed to be handed over to the O-uchu.
Fortunately, it wasn't serious.
If someone had actually died, the bar would likely be sealed until tomorrow.
And that would completely ruin Erina's plan to compete with the Totsuki Resort for sales the next morning.
After Jaden left, Sakura Hibiki finally let out a long breath.
Relief washed over her.
Then she looked at Akemi.
She felt genuine gratitude toward this friend who had stepped in front of a bullet for her after only just meeting her.
But-
She noticed something.
Akemi was staring at Jaden's back.
Drooling.
Ah.
...This.
Sakura Hibiki knew exactly what kind of person Akemi was.
When they first met, Sakura Hibiki had also assumed Akemi would be interested in clean-cut, handsome guys.
But-
Reality had corrected her again and again.
Koyo Women's Academy's most popular student, Akemi-
Was a severe muscle fanatic.
Earlier, when Sakura Hibiki first saw Jaden, she didn't think he looked particularly clean-cut.
The faint dark circles under his eyes.
That lazy, unmotivated aura.
If anything, he looked like someone who hadn't slept enough.
Though, at the very least, his face was handsome.
But Sakura Hibiki knew something else.
Akemi wasn't the type to care much about looks.
So-
Her mind involuntarily drifted to the muscular man at her gym.
The kind who looked completely normal with clothes on.
But once he got serious-
The head-to-body ratio became wildly disproportionate.
Could it be...
Could it be that this guy was also a muscle freak?
...
After handing the gun over to the bar staff and watching Ohya Ken come out to say they would handle the matter, Jaden returned to Erina's side.
Erina looked him up and down.
That alone made Jaden feel a bit confused.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Erina replied. "It's just... the speed at which you rushed over earlier."
She adjusted her glasses.
"I thought you were joking when you said you wanted to be a fighter. But you actually have some ability, don't you?"
Erina had clearly seen his movement earlier.
Her eyes hadn't even fully registered it.
In the span of a single breath, he had already crossed a considerable distance.
She had only recently started learning about Kengan after some issues arose with Totsuki.
So her understanding of fighters was limited.
She only knew that the representative fighter Ohya Ken could send seemed to be a rookie.
As for that rookie-
Ryo Himura.
She didn't know much about him.
But since he was a rookie...
-Maybe Jaden really could win?
That thought crossed her mind.
Jaden shrugged after hearing her words.
He always gave Erina this impression.
His attitude, paired with his lazy appearance, made him seem like someone who didn't care about anything.
But once you actually got to know him, you'd realize something else.
This guy was like a very thick book with plain packaging.
The more you read, the more you understood.
Every page revealed something new.
At that moment, Jaden slowly shifted his gaze to the side.
A stout man in a waiter's uniform with silver hair was walking over.
His eyes were fixed on Jaden from start to finish.
"You must be the fighter I'm facing this time."
His voice was steady.
"'The Wild Tiger' Jaden. Both your title and your earlier movements show you have some skill."
Hearing this, Jaden immediately recalled the information Erina had been insistently telling him earlier.
"The rookie fighter recently recruited by Ginokuniya," Jaden replied calmly. "Known as 'The Icy Emperor,' Ryo Himura. Right?"
After inheriting the Jack Hanma template, Jaden only needed a brief observation to understand what kind of person the man was.
He wasn't just stout.
His entire body was packed with explosive muscle power.
"That's right."
Ryo Himura nodded, then placed a cocktail he had mixed on the table.
"I didn't see what happened earlier. It almost turned into something serious."
He paused.
"Anyway, thank you. The Kengan match preparations have already started. It should begin in about twenty minutes."
He looked at Jaden directly.
"Although I want to say I'll hold back, I probably won't be able to against you."
"In any case, I just came to notify you."
"See you later."
With that, Ryo Himura turned and walked away.
For the first time, Jaden aimed the Curse skill at a person.
There were twenty minutes left.
Just to be safe, now was the perfect time.
He genuinely wanted to experience what fighting felt like.
But this was his first real match.
So he had no intention of holding back.
Curse was his ability.
If you don't like it-
You can curse me back.
Jaden selected Curse.
Just like before, the instant-cast skill landed directly on Ryo Himura.
Jaden himself felt nothing.
But this time, there was a difference.
After it landed, a vague sensation surfaced.
A choice appeared.
Lethal.
Or non-lethal.
Although Jaden personally felt that most illnesses were technically lethal, he still chose the non-lethal option.
Then he saw the abnormal status applied to the opponent.
-Full Body Muscle Spasms
(Duration: One hour)
[Non-Fatal]
[Cannot be cured midway]
-Explode now?
Feeling this option, Jaden slowly delayed the activation time.
This state...
He had already won.
So-
Jaden leaned back in his chair.
He listened to Erina, now wearing her glasses, continuously explaining various things to him.
At the same time, he calmly thought about the upcoming match.
His first time participating in this kind of fight.
He felt so excited that his body was trembling.
But once he actually stepped into the ring-
Would it really be interesting?
He didn't know.
But-
Since he had insurance-
He could fight boldly.
And without worry.
More Bonus Chapters!!!!
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