Chapter 101: Team Million Vs Team Fang

Narrator

Clang!

The starting whistle echoed sharply across the water, cutting through the tense, hushed murmurs of the gathered spectators.

Max stood near the edge of the stone platform, crossing his muscular arms over his chest as he glared across the ring at Team Fang.

"If we win this... I’m still getting my seat on the council, right?" Max asked aloud, though deep down, he didn’t truly believe he had a clear, fighting chance of winning.

Yes, Jax had somehow possessed enough unnatural, freakish strength to carry them this far through the rounds, but this was the final tier. These were the elite princes of Moonside Academy, and alongside them stood an insignificant little mole in who they would probably have to carry through the entire match.

Everyone in the crowd already knew Team Fang was going to win. There wasn’t a single person who believed Jax’s luck could survive the might of the royal bloodline. His luck had officially run out.

"As long as you give it your best, Max. This match better be fun," Vance laughed from Team Fang’s side, cracking his knuckles.

Max nodded, forcing a tight smile. "We’ll try. Last five minutes." He glanced sideways at Jax, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Right? You can last that long, can’t you?"

A slow, chilling smile spread across Jax’s face. A strange, unnatural glint of light flashed deep within his terrifying, luminous blue eyes. "I am going to win this..."

Max tilted his head, a sudden, cold knot forming in his stomach as a creeping thought whispered that his childhood best friend had completely lost his mind. And for the very first time, Max noticed something deeply wrong, the color of Jax’s eyes had completely changed.

"Since when did y—" Max started, but he couldn’t even finish his sentence.

BAM.

A heavy, lightning-fast fist collided violently with Jax’s jaw. The sheer impact sent Jax flying sideways across the wet stone ring, his body tumbling hard and nearly rolling off the edge straight into the freezing lake water.

"Big talk for a man that’s on the floor," Vance laughed, shaking his right hand out. Even though he’d never admit it out loud, that punch felt like he had just struck a solid block of cast-iron, sending a sharp, stinging pain shooting all the way up his forearm. Still, he forced a brilliant, cocky smile.

Jax spat a thick mouthful of dark blood onto the stone. But instead of looking defeated, a twisted, macabre smile stretched across his lips as he pushed himself back up to his feet. He reached instinctively toward his belt, only to realize his leather point-sack was completely gone.

"Looking for these?" Vance laughed, casually swinging Jax’s heavy sack of points around on his finger by the leather strap.

Max’s eyes went wide. "Shit," he breathed. When the hell did that happen?! Panicking, Maximus barked an order to Dax across the platform. "Dax! Go grab someone’s pouch, quick! Before Team Fang gets any more pouches!"

Dax nodded, a cocky grin spreading across his face as his sharp eyes scanned Team Fang for the weakest possible link. His gaze landed directly on Keali and Aina, who were standing slightly apart from the others. Dax lunged straight for them.

The moment Dax charged, a cold, suffocating wave of pure panic crashed over Aina.

Oh, Goddess. Oh, Goddess, oh, Goddess, Aina screamed, her heart slamming violently against her ribs like a trapped bird. This is it. I’m going to die right here on this stupid rock. I don’t know how to fight! I can’t fight a werewolf!

Her legs locked up completely. She didn’t move. She couldn’t move. She stood there frozen like a terrified rabbit caught in high beams, her eyes wide as saucers as Dax closed the distance with terrifying speed, his hands outstretched to grab her.

I am going to die. I’m actually going to die—

Before Dax’s fingers could even brush her tunic, Keali moved. with a chilling calm, Keali didn’t ask for permission. He didn’t warn her. In a blur of motion, Keali reached out and grabbed Aina firmly by her forearms and waist.

What is he— Aina thought, her mind short-circuiting as Keali suddenly yanked her forward. She didn’t have a single ounce of control. Keali used her body entirely like a doll, a puppet on strings, He shoved her weight to the left, ducking her head down so Dax’s wild swing whistled harmlessly through empty air right over her hair.

"What the—!" Aina shrieked, stumbling blindly as Keali violently twisted her around, using her momentum to pivot in a tight, fluid circle.

I’m a prop! He’s literally using me as a shield and a pivot point! This better not fail she panicked, her arms flailing uselessly as Keali jerked her to the right, forcing her body to block Dax’s line of sight.

Dax lunged again, snarling, "Get out of the way, you useless mole!"

"I’m sorry! I don’t want to be here!" Aina cried out in sheer terror, her voice cracking as Keali abruptly hoisted her up and spun her backward, using her trailing foot to trip Dax up just enough to break his stride.

Aina was entirely the passenger, tossed from side to side like a ragdoll while Keali played Dax like an absolute fiddle. She had no idea what she was doing, but she liked where it was going, not being punched in the face was enough for her.

And then, in the middle of a dizzying spin where Keali whipped her arm out of the way, his hand darted forward with lightning speed.

Rip.

Keali cleanly snatched Dax’s point-pouch right off his belt. Dax stumbled backward, staring down at his empty, swinging waist in absolute shock. "What?!"

Down on the other side of the platform, Max clutched his hands frantically over his own belt. "Oh, come on!"

Across the lake, the crowd murmured in utter disbelief. Well, that is an ending, a noble in the front row whispered. They’re definitely going to win this now.

And that was precisely when the real match started.

Jax came out of nowhere.

With a terrifying, unnatural roar, Jax materialized beside Vance, pulling him sharply to the side and flinging him across the stone ring like a broken toy. At the exact same second, his hand lashed out, grabbing Theo by the hair and violently smashing him down onto his knees against the jagged rocks. With a lightning-fast jerk, Jax ripped the remaining point-pouches straight off their belts, tossing them through the air.

Clack.

Maximus caught the flying sacks against his chest in absolute, trembling surprise as the crowd erupted into a roar of confusion. How did he do that?!

Jax stood tall in the center of the crimson-stained stone, wiping a smear of blood from his lip, his voice a low, gravelly rasp. "That was just a warm-up."

Vance hauled himself up from the ground, wiping blood from his nose, his eyes burning with a competitive rage. He charged blindly back into the fray, launching himself one-on-one straight at the monster.

It ended in absolute, horrifying disaster. Jax didn’t even bother to dodge. He caught Vance’s swinging fist mid-air with a dull thud, twisted the wrist until a sickening crack echoed through the stone, and drove his knee directly into Vance’s ribs. Vance let out a gurgling shriek, coughing up dark blood as he collapsed hard onto the platform, staying down, severely injured and clutching his broken side in absolute agony waiting for his wolf to begin healing him but for some reason it was extremely slow.

"Vance!" Theo screamed, scrambling to his feet. Blinded by fury, Theo lunged next, taking the one-on-one fight directly to Jax.

It ended just as brutally. Jax sidestepped Theo’s furious swing, drove a violent, bone-crunching elbow straight down into Theo’s spine, and sent him crashing face-first into the unyielding rock so hard Theo’s nose shattered instantly, rendering him unconscious in a pool of his own blood.

Keali stepped forward next, taking his turn one-on-one with eerie calm. But it ended just as disastrously. Jax closed the distance in a fraction of a second, grabbed Keali by the front of his tunic, and with one brutal, effort-filled heave, hurled Keali entirely off the platform and out into the deep, churning waters of the lake below.

And the worst part? Keali was holding most of the team’s point-sacks.

"Shoot!" Aina ran to the edge of the platform and dived after him.

Malric stared down at the broken bodies of his brothers, his chest heaving as his blue eyes burned with a dark, imperial fury. He stepped forward, his fists clenching so tight his knuckles bled.

"Is this it?" Jax taunted, tilting his head with a cruel, mocking smile. "Is this all the great royal bloodline has to offer?"

Malric lunged forward, the air whistling as his right hook whistled toward Jax’s head. He put every ounce of his blood, every shred of his pride, into the strike.

CRACK.

His fist connected dead solid with Jax’s jaw. The force of the blow was enough to snap a bear’s neck, but Jax’s head merely snapped sideways. He didn’t stumble. He didn’t gasp. He didn’t even flinch.

Instead, Jax slowly turned his head back, his dead, luminous blue eyes staring right through Malric with a chilling, hollow vacancy. A thick string of dark blood dripped from his lip, but his expression remained utterly blank, as if he hadn’t just taken the full force of an Alpha’s strike.

Malric’s eyes widened in horror. He didn’t even feel it— Before Malric could pull his arm back to guard, Jax moved.

Jax’s hand lashed out like an iron vise, wrapping around Malric’s wrist with brutal, unnatural grip strength. With a sudden, savage twist, Jax yanked Malric forward into his space, driving an open-palm strike straight into Malric’s sternum.

BANG.

The sound of shattering ribs echoed over the wet stone. Malric let out a choked, bloody gasp as air was violently blasted from his lungs. The agony was blinding, shooting through his chest like molten iron, but before he could hit the floor, Jax grabbed him by the throat with his other hand, arresting his fall mid-air.

"Damb, the royal bloodline really fell off, you are WEAK." Jax rasped, his voice dropping into a dry, gravelly whisper. Jax lifted Malric off his feet by the throat and drove his knee straight up into Malric’s face over and over again.

THUD.

Malric’s vision exploded in red and black spots. A gush of hot blood burst from his mouth, spraying across Jax’s shoulder. Jax released his grip, letting Malric crash face-first onto the slick, crimson-stained rock. Malric laid there for a second, his body trembling violently, his lungs screaming for air that wouldn’t come. Every instinct in his brain yelled at him to stay down, to surrender, to save his own life. But his ego refused to face such humiliation and not win.

Get up, Malric ordered himself, his teeth grinding together so hard they cracked, his wolf was not healing him for some reason to he had to bite through the pain. You are an Alpha. You do not stay down.