Spectacular Mustache Man truly didn’t expect this.
He and Chieftain Arika had overseen countless mock battles together over the past few years. She always picked her strongest student first—it was practically tradition.
As for him, he chose Riley for the sole fact that he said that the na Spectacular Mustache Man sucked. Of course, he knew what Riley was capable of since they all reviewed the demonstration, and he watched the footage when he casually tore off a piece of the platform.
So, in a way, Riley was actually a good contender as his class’s strongest student.
But truthfully? Spectacular Mustache Man had expected him to lose—badly. He also knew what Silvie Savelievna was capable of.
Never did he expect to see what he was seeing now.
His mustache quivered along with the ground beneath them, and the surrounding air seed to hum. Car alarms scread to life, their shrill cries echoing through the mock city. Window panes across nearby buildings vibrated, and dust danced in slow suspension, as if the laws of gravity were beginning to falter.
All of it—centered beneath Riley’s feet.
But Riley stood completely still, blood still dripping from his nose, yet everything around him shook like the prelude to an earthquake.
"He’s... crazy," Spectacular Mustache Man narrowed his eyes at Riley, "What else should I have expected from Bernard’s son?"
"The two siblings are both monsters," Chieftain Arika said, standing beside him and crossing her arms. A faint smile tugged at her weathered face as she watched Riley. "But this is why they are here, and why we are here—to nurture them."
"What we need..." Spectacular Mustache Man huffed, "...is to keep them as far away from that bastard as possible."
"Why do you hate Whiteking so much?" Chieftain Arika sighed as she glanced at Spectacular Mustache Man, her eyes that almost looked close due to her age, slightly widening, "He is a normal man who was able to overco all adversities and beco one of the best superheroes of your ti."
"Normal?" His mustache twitched. "That man is a freak of nature, more so than us Supers. With a recorded IQ of 284. 284, who even recorded that ridiculous record? How many supers are there in the world? And how many have the sa IQ as him, or even in the sa range? None. Absolutely none! I heard people with an IQ like that think of everyone else as inferior, as ants."
"For soone who hates him, you sure do know a lot about him," Chieftain Arika chuckled, her laugh wheezing through her throat from how aged it was.
"Because he’s dangerous. Don’t be fooled by that bumbling act," Spectacular Mustache Man huffed again and looked away, "And now he has two spawns that are as ridiculous as him."
Spectacular Mustache Man turned his gaze back to Riley, watching him intently. He understood what Riley was doing, he just couldn’t believe the absurdity of it all.
Riley... he was trying to lift the slab of concrete beneath his feet—no. From how much the entire street was shaking, he was trying to lift the entire street.
For soone who’d supposedly awakened his powers less than two weeks ago, it was insane. Impossible.
"Even the strongest mind-movers alive would struggle with what he’s attempting," he said quietly. "The only one who might’ve co close was... Ms. Phoenix."
"Ah, I rember her," Chieftain Arika whispered, her smile fading as she shook her head. "A sha what happened to her. That kind of power can shatter even the strongest mind. I t her once or twice... never did I think sothing like that would happen."
Spectacular Mustache Man’s eyes narrowed further as the tremors subtly deepened.
"It’s our job to make sure that never happens again," he said.
"Yes," Chieftain Arika nodded solemnly, her voice lower now, heavier.
"We must guide these young souls—to help them grow wings that won’t crumble the world when they fly."
"Hm..." Spectacular Mustache Man’s eyes slid toward Riley’s opponent.
"You might have your hands fuller than I do with that one. She’s a live one."
"Oh, you have no idea," Chieftain Arika chuckled, folding her arms.
Spectacular Mustache Man’s mustache twitched with every thunderous boom of Silvie’s strikes. She soared into the air and then dove, spinning several tis as she swung her leg in the empty air—no.
Not empty air, but directly into the invisible barrier encasing Riley like a do.
As for Riley, he just stood inside that invisible do with his arms still stretched outward, the blood from his nose now streaking across his lips and chin.
He wasn’t the only one bleeding, however, as Silvie’s skin also started to chaff. The cuts, getting deeper in deeper with each contact with Riley’s seemingly unbreakable invisible do.
But the do wasn’t unbreakable, not really—Riley simply kept generating more layers, shielding himself even as he pushed his power to its limits.
And it showed.
The veins across his arms and neck bulged like cables under his skin. The veins on his neck throbbed and showed themselves, and his face started to twitch—but almost as if reflecting them, the ground beneath his feet also started to crack.
"Kh..." Riley gritted his teeth as his entire body started to convulse—yet instead of faltering, a smile began to crawl across his face as he looked up at Silvie.
"Heh..." Silvie, seeing that expression, grinned back. She took a deep breath, the air around her vibrating as she finally stopped her barrage and gently landed just outside the periter of Riley’s invisible do.
And then, with another breath, she dropped into a stance and drew her arm back.
And when her hand curled into a fist, all the floating dust around her burst outward with the sheer force of her muscle contracting. Steam drifted from her lips as her body trembled—every fiber focused on that single point.
"You’re right," she muttered, her voice low and thrilled. "I’ve never had this much fun before."
And with that, Silvie bared her teeth and let out a wild, exultant roar.
As for Riley, his arms quivered violently as he began to raise them—almost as if he was trying to lift sothing impossibly heavy... and perhaps he was, as the crack beneath his feet started to crawl faster and wider.
But before either of them could strike—
"That’s enough, child."
Chieftain Arika appeared behind Silvie like a wraith, her arm slipping smoothly around the girl’s waist. In a fluid motion, she yanked Silvie back against her chest, grabbed her wrist, and nudged the back of her knee, toppling her into a soft but complete submission.
Across the field, Riley was now on his knees—his entire body ensnared in thick, silky strands.
No. Not strands.
He was completely wrapped by Spectacular Mustache Man’s mustache, which ca and protruded from the ground like vines and instantly wrapped him, leaving only his nose and mouth visible.
And just like that, the first match of the first mock battle was over—leaving both classes standing in stunned silence, more uncertain than ever about why they were even here.
"Your brother..." Gary slowly turned to Hannah, his neck almost making a sound, "He’s not gonna be one of those kids that randomly snap and go full violence, right? Like... he’s not the quiet kid? Just—remind to be extra nice to him from now on."
"What? What are you talking about?" Hannah rolled her eyes, scoffing,
"My brother’s harmless."
And as the rest of the Baby Crew and nearby students heard that, their jaws collectively dropped.
Harmless...? Did... she watch the sa thing they did? Which part of that was harmless?
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