Peter rose slowly from the impact, his body sprawled outside the room like a doll tossed out a window. A low growl escaped him as heat spread along his jaw.
"Damn brat…" he muttered, still unable to accept that the kid he had looked down on had launched him out like a bullet. His gaze lifted, and there was Rio, walking closer. His steps were steady, breathing heavy, eyes sharp.
As Peter looked more carefully, his caution spiked. Something about the way Rio moved felt wrong, like his body was mapping Peter's fighting style from the remnants of their earlier exchanges. That adaptation is insane… dangerous if I let it continue.
Peter clenched his fists and forced himself upright. For the first time, he knew he had to finish the opponent in front of him.
Rio stopped right before the cracked wall. His breath mixed with dust, but his stance stayed firm. Both of them knew there was no more delaying this. The tension stretched like a bowstring pulled to its limit.
Without a signal, they charged.
Their footsteps struck the ground almost at the same time, right hands rising in identical motion. Two right hooks collided in near perfect sync, the impact sounding like one massive punch tearing through the air.
Their fists landed on each other's faces. Rio's head snapped to the side, while Peter's face twisted from the blow.
The collision sent them both skidding back, heels dragging across the ground, as if their bodies welcomed the brutality of the duel. Neither fell, but their balance nearly broke.
They steadied their breathing, shoulders rising and falling. Their bodies had been pushed to the brink. A metallic taste filled their mouths, arms felt heavy, and the world spun slightly each time they blinked.
Yet neither showed surrender.
Both fighters stood, battered, stubborn, fully aware of one thing.
Rio held his ragged breath. This is insanely hard… Peter was the toughest opponent he had ever faced. His body kept evolving in battle, but now he could feel that limit crashing back against him.
His legs trembled, his back bent, his breath like a tiny ember about to die. Across from him, Peter was no different. The giant frame no longer looked solid. He swayed like a ship without a helm.
Peter wiped his face, but his hand shook. "What is this…? My vision's blurry…" he muttered.
Rio saw the opening and moved. Peter saw it too and charged.
Two exhausted bodies clashed again, not with clean technique, but with the scraps of survival instinct left. They pummeled each other with punches that had lost form, driven only by whatever strength remained.
At the final second, Peter forced his arm up for one last right hook.
"This is my last strength…!!!" he roared.
Rio felt the meaning of that attack before it even landed. His right hand was numb, so he twisted his body, forcing his right heel to swing toward its mark.
"This is my last kick…!"
Their final attacks claimed each other.
Peter's hook smashed into Rio's face, snapping the boy's head sideways. But at the same moment, Rio's heel struck Peter's neck, cutting through the big man's momentum like flipping a master switch.
Peter fell first, hard, and did not rise.
Rio remained standing, though bent like a fragile branch after a storm. His breathing was heavy, but his eyes stayed open.
In the distance, Peter's lips moved before consciousness faded. "Never thought… I'd be beaten by a junior…" His voice disappeared as his body gave in to its wounds.
Rio's awareness clung on, like an invisible hand refused to let him fall.
I won… right? I have to see Rani…
He forced his legs to move. Blood dripped with each step, leaving uneven trails on the ground. When he stepped out to the street, onlookers could only stare in horror and disbelief. A wounded boy walking as if chased by time itself.
He kept going, enduring the pain screaming through his body, until the park came into view. The same place, but his body now weighed like iron.
At the park, Rio finally arrived. He could barely stand, swaying as if a light breeze could knock him over.
"Ugh… this hurts…" he said weakly.
From afar, he saw Rani smiling with Riko and Eliza. His gaze softened.
"Good… she looks happy…" he whispered, more breath than voice.
Riko, standing guard, turned and froze. "RIO!!?"
Rani turned too and ran as fast as she could, throwing herself at her brother just as he sank down, unable to stand.
"Big brother… you came back…" Her tears burst out again, this time from relief.
Rio lifted himself slightly, forcing his body up just enough to kneel before her. His battered hand gently stroked her head, a soft gesture from a body that looked crushed by the world.
"I'm back…" he said with a closed-eye smile.
He struggled up, breathing hard, and looked at Riko.
"Hehe… told you it'd take a little time…"
Riko could only shake his head, caught between awe and disbelief that this wreck of a boy could still joke.
But Rio's body finally gave out. His legs buckled, and he fell forward. Riko moved instantly, catching him before he hit the ground.
"No… you were fast," Rio murmured faintly.
Riko held him with a small smile.
Rani clung to her brother's arm, crying again, this time because he truly came back
Eliza stood a few steps behind, hand over her mouth, stunned at the real condition of the boy who always seemed so ordinary at school.
Even with ragged breaths and a broken body, Rio kept smiling. There was quiet satisfaction in his eyes.
He had kept his promise.
For Rio, that was enough.