In the blink of an eye.
Prince Ganlongdao was already in front of Dragon Garden. He landed a side kick on Dragon Garden's arm, and the powerful impact sent him staggering several steps to the right.
Monster.
Dragon Garden shook his arm, which had gone somewhat numb, and cursed inwardly.
If his long experience with fighting hadn't made him instinctively raise his arm to block, he probably would've been knocked down again before he could react. Even so, the powerful force had left him feeling awful.
But,
his opponent should be feeling even worse.
Feeling pain in his calf, Prince Ganlongdao furrowed his brow and glanced at Dragon Garden's arm. As expected, Dragon Garden had to be hiding something like a steel pipe on him.
If he hadn't trained his body hard in the past, building strength and endurance far beyond an ordinary person's, that kick would've left him in a world of hurt.
"What's wrong? Doesn't feel good, does it?"
Dragon Garden gripped the two steel pipes that had slipped out of his sleeve, looking rather pleased with himself.
"Don't blame me for being underhanded. This is how I fight. I'll do anything to win."
"Why would I?"
Prince Ganlongdao glanced at the two steel pipes in his hand, then at Dragon Garden's legs. Dragon Garden might have weapons hidden elsewhere, maybe even a knife.
"If anything, my opinion of you has gone up. I'm impressed you managed to find such handy weapons in such a short time."
"Ah~ Well, thanks for the compliment!"
Dragon Garden sneered and pushed off the ground, charging at him.
"I want to see how long you can keep up that haughty look!"
As he spoke,
Dragon Garden hurled the steel pipe he'd fashioned from a mop handle with his left hand. Prince Ganlongdao easily dodged it by stepping aside.
Next,
he pulled a handful of flour from his pocket and tossed it forward. Like a cloud of white mist, it instantly enveloped them both.
Through the white haze, Dragon Garden could just make out Prince Ganlongdao's silhouette.
His expression alight with excitement, Dragon Garden swung the steel pipe at him without hesitation.
However,
the next second,
a figure burst out of the white haze.
Prince Ganlongdao's hand clamped around his jaw like an iron vise. His voice was calm and detached.
"A frog in a well knows nothing of the vastness of the sky."
With that,
Prince Ganlongdao grabbed Dragon Garden by the jaw and slammed him into the ground with a thud. The powerful impact immediately knocked Dragon Garden unconscious.
Glancing down at Dragon Garden,
Prince Ganlongdao clicked his tongue in annoyance and brushed the flour off himself in disgust.
He was already used to fighting when his vision was obscured. It was just that getting his clothes dirty was rather irritating.
After straightening his clothes a little, Prince Ganlongdao walked over to Dragon Garden.
Now he could consider how to bring this venomous snake to heel.
Dragon Garden had known he would lose and still chosen to come up and take a beating. That was enough to show that people like him were generally hard to subdue with violence.
Even if he was beaten to the brink of death,
Dragon Garden would probably only acknowledge his opponent and see him as someone he had to surpass—or simply lie down and give up.
It was nearly impossible to subdue someone like that through violence.
In fact,
he might even be like a venomous snake, always ready to strike from behind.
It would probably take quite a bit of effort to bring this snake to heel.
Still,
that was fine.
Prince Ganlongdao wasn't in a hurry.
He grabbed Dragon Garden by the back of the collar, dragged him off the rooftop, and tossed him into the elevator, taking it straight to the fifth floor.
Sakagami had said that bullying was strictly forbidden at this school, but based on how Sakagami and the building supervisor had acted today,
Advanced Nurturing
was clearly operating on the principle that officials wouldn't intervene unless someone filed a complaint.
As long as the victim didn't report it to the school, the administration basically wouldn't get involved.
So Prince Ganlongdao didn't bother with the cameras on the rooftop or in the elevator. He also wanted to see how the school would react.
502.
Dragon Garden's dorm room.
"Ah..."
When he opened his eyes,
Dragon Garden felt a sharp pain in his back and sucked in a breath. Only then did he realize that his wrist was cuffed with a plastic restraint, attached to a plastic chain whose other end was fastened to the bedpost.
"What's wrong? Hurting?"
"..."
Dragon Garden turned sharply toward the voice.
Prince Ganlongdao was sitting at the desk, eating a banana and smiling at him.
"Where am I?"
"Your dorm room."
"..."
Dragon Garden turned back and raised his hand, indicating the plastic chain around his wrist.
He spoke coldly.
"What's this supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
Prince Ganlongdao casually tossed the banana peel into the trash can.
"I just want to lock you up in here and make you realize who's in charge."
"Heh."
Dragon Garden glanced at the chain on his wrist and scoffed.
Even without any tools, he could break a chain like this if he spent enough time on it. It was hardly enough to keep anyone locked up.
Besides,
the cameras on the rooftop had already recorded the two of them fighting.
If he suddenly disappeared, stopped going to class, or starved to death,
the school would soon find out, and Prince Ganlongdao would obviously be responsible.
Being locked in his dorm room would be miserable for him, but Prince Ganlongdao would also have to face pressure from his classmates and the school.
Whoever could hold out the longest
would win!
Simply put,
this was a battle of wills!
"Fine. Since you want to lock me in here,"
Dragon Garden was naturally unafraid. He leaned against the bed, his face full of mockery. "I'll see it through with you."
"Now that's courage!"
Prince Ganlongdao clapped,
then took two student ID cards out of his pocket and tapped away at them. After that, he tossed one to Dragon Garden.
"There's some instant noodles in the kitchen. I'll bring you food every three days. My number and Sakagami's are saved on that student ID."
"If you have any problems, you can contact us anytime."
Prince Ganlongdao spoke with a hint of derision.
Whether Dragon Garden contacted him or Sakagami, it would mean Dragon Garden had lost.
Catching the phone he'd been thrown, Dragon Garden understood that perfectly well. His snake-like pupils didn't waver in the slightest.
"All right."
"Then I'll be going."
"Thanks to you, I have to take another shower."
With that,
Prince Ganlongdao turned and left the dorm room.
Hearing the door close,
Dragon Garden yanked hard at the handcuff on his left wrist with his right hand. His left hand slipped straight out of the slightly deformed cuff.
He tossed the restraint to the floor and glanced at the phone.
The contact list did indeed contain the numbers for Prince Ganlongdao and Kazuma Sakagami. He could report the matter to the school or ask someone for help at any time.
But
Dragon Garden would never do that.
Lose a fight and go running to the teacher?
There was nothing more humiliating in the world. Dragon Garden couldn't bring himself to sink that low.
Soon,
he noticed.
[Points: 0.]
There was no doubt about it.
Prince Ganlongdao had transferred all of his Private Points.
"Phew..."
He took a deep breath.
Dragon Garden walked to the balcony and gazed toward the school with a cold look in his eyes.
He hadn't expected
Prince Ganlongdao to challenge him to a battle of wills.
Fine.
It was only a hundred thousand Private Points. He didn't care about them.
As long as he could beat Prince Ganlongdao,
none of this would matter.
Getting beaten up by Albert today and by Prince Ganlongdao as well—
although things hadn't gone quite as he'd imagined, Dragon Garden was, overall, satisfied.
The stronger his opponents were, the more excited he became.
Besides,
the stronger his underlings were, the better.
Albert was a little simple-minded, but he was well-built and skilled at fighting.
There was no need to say anything about Prince Ganlongdao.
He was not only exceptionally skilled at fighting, but also ruthless when he struck. He had a good temperament, too. The fact that he'd easily found out where Dragon Garden lived showed he was adaptable, and he was quick-witted as well.
Clearly,
Prince Ganlongdao was a rare, versatile talent.
Once he had subdued this lion, Prince Ganlongdao, and unified Class C, they would all become his capable right-hand men.
Dragon Garden naturally didn't mind waiting.
As it happened,
Prince Ganlongdao thought the same way.
Before you continue