Chương 109: Arrogance

"Contestant Aren Voss has lifted Floor Master Tour. Is he preparing to deliver the final blow?" After seeing Aren grab Tour and raise him into the air, the commentator's voice carried a hint of nervousness. In truth, Aren had held back a great deal. After training with Biscuit for so long, he had fully learned how to communicate with opponents through his fists. Of course, that communication could also be one-sided. Simply put, at the instant he struck Tour, Aren could roughly analyze Tour's physical state.

Muscle strength, bone density, and the approximate range of force his body could endure. Of course, this kind of analysis only worked on people weaker than him. But there were not many people stronger than Aren now. The punch he had used on Tour had landed exactly within Tour's limit. It was force Tour could bear, but only barely.

"Hey, hey. Come on. Weren't you so proud just now? I thought you were actually strong. I haven't even used much force, so why did you fall over already?" Tour's eyes, which had rolled white, slowly refocused as if he heard Aren's mockery. The moment his consciousness returned, pain, numbness, and dizziness all surged into his mind. But his brain felt like mush after Aren's heavy punch and could not give clear orders. After forcing air into his lungs, Tour tried to speak.

Because half his face had swollen and several teeth were missing, his words came out slurred.

"Why... why..." The calm confidence he had shown at the start was gone. Blood still flowed from his forehead and the corner of his eye. Half his face was swollen beyond recognition. His shining blond hair had been dulled by dust after being smashed into the stone wall. Every detail told the audience how miserable he had become. After regaining consciousness, Tour understood one thing. The harmless-looking boy smiling in front of him was not human. He was a monster. A demon.

To Tour, Aren had become an embodiment of terror beyond his understanding. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. After recognizing that, Tour's first reaction was not hatred. It was regret.

'Why was I stupid enough to request a deathmatch against this monster?' If this had been a normal duel, he could have admitted defeat by now. He wanted to go back and strangle the version of himself who had called Heavens Arena's executives the day before. After becoming a Floor Master, Tour had been surrounded by flattery for too long. His arrogance had grown enormous. When everyone around you calls you the strongest and treats you with respect, you truly start believing you are the strongest.

You lose awe for the world. You begin treating everything and everyone around you as beneath notice. When Tour first received Aren's basic file and saw that unusually young face, he had not taken Aren seriously. After learning that Aren's ten wins on the two-hundredth floor were controversial, Tour dismissed him even more. A kid who had no idea how far out of his depth he was. Someone who thought scraping together ten wins meant he could obtain a Floor Master seat.

Once a person's understanding fixed into place, it became very hard to change. No matter how Darwin tried to persuade him, Tour had never taken Aren seriously. After returning to Heavens Arena, the more Tour thought about the challenge, the more offended he felt. A piece of trash who had barely managed ten wins dared to challenge him by name. That was an insult. So, in a moment of arrogance, Tour called Heavens Arena's executives and made the proposal he now regretted deeply. A deathmatch.

Aren looked at the plea and regret in Tour's eyes. He knew what Tour wanted to ask. Not why Aren had appeared in Heavens Arena. Tour wanted to ask why Aren had named him specifically.

"Where should I start? Do you remember a group named..." Aren stopped halfway. He suddenly realized he did not even know the one-eyed man's name.

"Well, a group of hyenas who targeted Heavens Arena's odds. They specialized in watching contestants with low odds, then used threats and benefits to manipulate match results and profit from gambling." After hearing that, Tour searched his memory for several seconds. At last, he found traces of such a group in some corner of his mind. After becoming a Floor Master, too many interest groups had formed around him. That group was only one insignificant piece among them.

But when Tour remembered what they did, he instantly understood why Aren had targeted him. With Aren's flawless record below the two-hundredth floor, his odds must have been extremely low at the time. If Aren had not displayed Nen during those matches, that group would naturally have targeted him.

'So I was dragged into this by a few small fries?' For a moment, Tour felt too many emotions at once and lost the ability to speak.

"Looks like you understand why I came after you." Aren could tell from Tour's expression that he had figured it out. The hand gripping Tour's face began to tighten slowly. Just like before, the pressure stayed within Tour's limit. At first, Aren had targeted Tour because of those hyenas. Now, he wanted to torment Tour because of his attitude. No one was allowed to be more arrogant than Aren. As Aren's right hand tightened, the pain in Tour's face dragged him back from his thoughts.

At this point, peaceful resolution was impossible. Even without their personal grudge, the deathmatch Tour himself had proposed meant only one of them could survive. Since death waited either way, he might as well fight. Determination flickered through Tour's pain-twisted expression. Enduring the pain, he forced his aura to move and gathered it into his hand. The aura slowly turned dark green. Bone-Melting Touch. Once he formed his ability, Tour reached for the right arm Aren used to hold his face.

If he wanted even the slightest chance of survival, he had to destroy that arm first. Otherwise, he felt as if his head might be crushed at any moment. Unfortunately, when he had been in perfect condition, his attacks could not touch Aren. Now, injured and weakened, his speed was even worse. But when Aren saw Tour use his ability, his eyes brightened. This was perfect. It could satisfy his earlier curiosity. He wanted to know how strong Tour's Bone-Melting Touch really was.

Aren casually blocked Tour's ability with his left hand. Then his right hand increased its strength, crushing Tour's jaw completely. The intense pain destroyed Tour's focus and made it impossible for him to maintain control. Then Aren guided Tour's ability-covered right hand down onto Tour's own left shoulder. Tour's scream tore through the air like something from hell.