"First, the first team to pass the selection please enter."
As the gate slowly opened, Ryan, Aryu, Chigiri, Bachira, and Kunigami walked out from the passageway.
The five of them entered the hall.
It was completely empty.
"Looking at it now… this place feels really spacious."
Kunigami glanced around the vast, vacant hall and couldn't help but sigh.
"Well, of course. We are the first team to clear it."
Chigiri said so, yet his eyes still swept around the surroundings, subconsciously feeling a little uneasy.
"Hey, hey, Ryan who do you think will make it through?"
Bachira leaned over to Ryan and asked.
"We'll know soon enough. Anyway, to me, the ranking doesn't really matter."
To say Ryan wasn't curious would be a lie but only a little.
After all, unless there was some shocking upset, the players who advanced would probably just be the few he already remembered as being decent.
At that moment, the broadcast sounded again.
"Next, please welcome the second team to pass the selection."
Everyone's attention was instantly drawn toward the gate.
They all wanted to see if there would be any familiar faces.
As the gate slowly lifted, everyone's hearts rose to their throats.
When it finally opened, a burst of white light spilled out
revealing the figures inside.
Rin, Tokimitsu, Isagi, Barou, Zantetsu.
"Yo. All familiar faces. Pretty much what I expected."
The moment Tokimitsu saw Ryan, he froze like a mouse spotting a cat, nearly scared to death.
"Eek! It's the Demon King!"
"Hey, hey antisocial guy, don't make me sound that scary. I'm actually very friendly, you know?"
Ryan spoke as he casually walked toward Rin and the others, stopping right in front of Rin.
Then
he said nothing.
He just stared at Rin.
"Staaaare "
Rin had already been annoyed the moment he saw Ryan.
Now that Ryan was pulling this, his irritation skyrocketed.
Veins popped out on Rin's forehead as he desperately tried to suppress the rage boiling inside him.
In the end, Rin couldn't take it anymore.
Being stared at like that made his skin crawl. He opened the eyes he'd shut just to avoid seeing Ryan
only to find Ryan still staring at him.
Grinding his teeth, Rin finally snapped.
"You bastard… what the hell do you want?"
Seeing Rin finally speak, Ryan mercifully let him go and stopped staring.
"Rin-chan~ this is a greeting method I just learned online. Pretty cool, right?"
"But I greeted you, and you ignored me. I thought you'd be happy to see me."
"I was really looking forward to meeting you again… looks like I gave my feelings to the wrong person after all."
Ryan pretended to wipe away nonexistent tears, leaving Rin and the others utterly speechless.
Seeing Ryan acting so shamelessly, Rin wanted nothing more than to punch him straight in the face
but he held back.
After all, he didn't want to get disqualified for fighting.
Definitely not because he knew Ryan was terrifying in a fight and feared being pinned to the ground and beaten senseless.
Seeing Rin practically steaming with rage, Ryan finally stopped teasing him.
After all, he only wanted to mess with him a little he couldn't let Rin actually explode.
(Though, to be honest… Rin was already furious.)
After finishing with Rin, Ryan shifted his gaze to Isagi.
The moment Isagi noticed Ryan looking at him, a bad premonition spread throughout his body.
"Long time no see, Isagi. I really missed you."
"While I wasn't around, did you eat properly? Look at you, you've gotten thinner."
"Tell me did Rin-chan bully you? Don't be afraid, I've got your back. He wouldn't dare mess with you."
Hearing Ryan's concern, Isagi let out a sigh of relief.
" Ryan, Rin didn't bully me. I've been eating well too. You don't have to worry, I can take care of myself."
The moment he said that, Isagi suddenly felt a piercing gaze disappear.
He turned his head to look around but couldn't find its source, so he eventually stopped thinking about it.
But Ryan knew exactly who it was.
Because he'd seen it.
He pushed up an imaginary pair of glasses, imitating a certain high school detective.
There is only one truth.
That person was
Rin.
He must have been listening closely when Ryan mentioned him, wanting to hear whether Isagi would badmouth him behind his back.
Thankfully, Isagi didn't say anything weird.
Otherwise, if Rin had heard Isagi speaking ill of him, he'd definitely have turned into a wolf and bullied Isagi relentlessly afterward.
(All of the above was purely Ryan's wild imagination.)
Seeing Isagi's earnest expression, Ryan looked as satisfied as a parent watching their child grow up.
He patted Isagi's shoulder warmly.
"That's wonderful, Isagi. You've truly grown into someone who can stand on his own."
"I'm really happy for you."
With that, he walked off toward Barou, leaving behind a completely bewildered Isagi standing there in the wind.
"Yo, Mr. King. Long time no see."
Seeing Ryan finish harassing others and then come for him, Barou immediately decided
No matter what, I won't let this guy have his way.
"Tch."
Not getting a response from Barou, Ryan didn't get angry.
After all, when you're doing something bad, you never get tired of it.
He kept leaning into Barou's line of sight, trying to provoke a reaction.
But Barou remained unmoved, pretending Ryan didn't exist.
Seeing this, Ryan had no choice but to pull out his ultimate trump card.
"Barou look at this."
The voice drew Barou's attention.
But the instant he looked at Ryan, his heart sank.
This is bad.
He tried to turn away but it was already too late.
Ryan struck the signature pose of a certain famous football star.
The same move he had used back when he faced Barou in their previous match.
A phantom crown appeared above Ryan's head.
To Barou who proudly called himself the King this was nothing less than a direct challenge to his bottom line.
" Ryan, you bastard !"
But just as Barou was about to erupt, Ryan bolted away like a gust of wind.
Knowing full well that he couldn't catch him, Barou could only swallow this humiliation whole
silently vowing that the next time he faced Ryan in a match,
he would make him pay dearly for daring to provoke the King.
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