CHAPTER 51: CHAPTER 51: THE FIGHT

Aiden straightened his back, meeting Mr. John’s skeptical gaze without flinching. "I’m not crazy, Mr. John," he said with a steady voice. "I really want to challenge Carl to a fight."

Mr. John stared at him for a long moment, as if trying to decide whether Aiden was joking or had truly lost his mind. Finally, he gave a short nod, his expression grim. "I see," he said, "so you really are crazy. Maybe you’ve been possessed, maybe a spirit has taken over your head and filled it with suicidal thoughts. That must be it. Because there’s no other reason someone like you would willingly ask for death." His tone was dry but serious. "I am your teacher, Aiden. My job is to make sure you live long enough to see your power manifest and for you to also graduate, so no — I will not allow this nonsense."

Even Carl, the very person Aiden wanted to fight, looked at him as though he had sprouted two heads. His earlier smug expression had vanished, replaced by one of stunned disbelief. The rest of the class — sixteen students in total — were already whispering among themselves, their voices low and filled with curiosity and excitement. "Has he finally gone mad?" someone murmured. Another voice replied, "There’s no way he’s serious." The room buzzed like a nest of startled bees.

But Aiden was past the point of caring what anyone thought. He had made up his mind. This was his chance to prove himself, and he wasn’t about to back down. He turned back to Mr. John and spoke with conviction. "Mr. John, you really have to believe in me," he said. "Believe that I can do this. I wouldn’t ask you if I wasn’t sure. Just agree to it. Please."

For a moment, Carl was silent, seemingly too shocked to speak. Then a slow grin spread across his face, and he let out a low chuckle. "Well, well," Carl said, his voice full of mocking amusement. "If he’s so desperate to throw his life away, who am I to deny him? Mr. John, let me fight him. I’ll make it quick."

"Shut your mouth, Carl," Mr. John snapped, turning on him with a glare so sharp that Carl visibly shrank back, the grin slipping from his face. Then Mr. John turned back to Aiden, his voice hard. "What exactly are you planning to use in this fight, Aiden? Carl has super strength, super speed, heightened senses. He can crush you before you even lift a hand. Tell me — what exactly do you think you can use to win this fight?"

Aiden merely shrugged, a small, mysterious smile tugging at his lips. "I brought a weapon."

That caught everyone’s attention. The entire class leaned forward, their curiosity piqued. What kind of weapon could Aiden possibly have that would let him take on Carl? Some sort of enchanted artifact? A hidden magical tool? Aiden slowly crouched and unzipped his backpack, taking his time as if deliberately building suspense. Then, with a calmness that bordered on arrogance, he pulled out an ordinary hammer and held it up proudly for all to see.

For a moment, there was silence. The students blinked, as though unable to process what they were seeing. Then Mr. John’s brows twitched, his face cycling through surprise, disbelief, and finally fury. His teeth clenched, his jaw tight as he spoke. "That—" he said slowly, his voice rising with each word, "is your weapon? That’s your brilliant idea, your grand solution to winning against Carl? A hammer?" His voice now rang with anger. "Are you trying to drive me insane? Carl can knock that stupid thing out of your hands in an instant. And you’re standing here presenting it to me as though it’s some divine relic."

Aiden let out a long sigh, though his expression didn’t waver. "Mr. John," he said carefully, "I respect you. That’s why I’m asking you to be our referee. I don’t trust Carl. If we fight without you present, he’ll possibly find a way to deny the outcome later. I don’t want that. I need this to be fair. Please stop opposing me and just allow it."

For several long seconds, Mr. John simply glared at him, his eyes narrowing. Then he threw up his hands in exasperation. "Fine!" he barked. "Do whatever you want. I don’t care anymore. You want to die? Go ahead. Don’t come crying to me afterward."

Relief and determination surged through Aiden as he turned to face Carl. He gripped the hammer firmly, his knuckles tightening around the handle. His voice rang out clearly. "Carl," he said, "do you dare battle me?"

Carl’s grin returned, wider this time, his teeth flashing. He gave a short, mocking laugh. "Why wouldn’t I fight you?" he said. "But I’ll give you a fair warning. Blows don’t have eyes. If I hit you hard enough to break bones, don’t go running to Mr. John or the school authorities later, demanding to have me punished."

Aiden let out a short laugh of his own, one that dripped with disdain. "If you want to fight, then fight," he said. "Why are you talking so much?"

Carl chuckled darkly, then without warning, he moved. His figure blurred, vanishing from where he had been standing. Aiden’s eyes darted instinctively, but Carl was moving too fast to follow. He became a shifting blur of motion, circling around Aiden so quickly that it seemed as though the air itself shimmered with his passage. Aiden could feel the rush of displaced wind against his skin, hear the faint hum of Carl’s speed.

"You can’t even follow me with your eyes," Carl’s voice taunted, coming from every direction at once. "If you can’t even see me, how do you expect to fight me? This isn’t even my top speed. I’ll give you one last chance. Kneel down and admit defeat. Maybe then I’ll forgive you."

Aiden snickered, his voice calm and steady despite the taunt. "Of course I can’t match your speed," he said. "I’m not an idiot. That’s why I’m not going to run after you. I’ll just stand right here and wait for you to come to me. If you can hit me once, I’ll kneel in front of you. I’ll even call you ’father’ every time I see you for the rest of my time here."

Carl stopped abruptly, materializing several paces away from Aiden. His lips curled into a wicked grin. "Don’t worry," he said mockingly. "I’ll make sure to grant your wish. I never knew you wanted me to be your father figure. I’ll attack now — and this time you won’t have an excuse to call me a bully."

Overhead, Rainbow had been circling anxiously, his bright feathers glinting as he flitted from one perch to another. His voice rang in Aiden’s mind, filled with exasperation. "Stop this madness", Rainbow begged. "You’re going to get yourself killed. This isn’t bravery ,it’s stupidity!" But Aiden ignored him completely, just as he had ignored Mr. John earlier.

When Rainbow saw that Carl was truly about to attack, he let out a panicked screech and flew higher, well out of range. If Aiden was about to get pummeled into the ground, Rainbow was not going to be collateral damage. "Fine", the bird thought grimly. "When you’re lying in a hospital bed later, I’ll say a prayer for your recovery every morning".

Carl tensed, his muscles coiling like a spring about to release. Aiden tightened his grip on the hammer, his mind razor-focused. He had already studied Carl’s earlier movements carefully. He knew Carl was underestimating him, and that was exactly what Aiden was counting on. His plan hinged entirely on timing.

As soon as Carl vanished from sight, Aiden shut his eyes. Instead of trying to follow with his gaze, he calculated. He replayed Carl’s earlier pattern in his mind, the rhythm of his steps, the angle of his approach. He couldn’t afford to miss. If his timing was even slightly off, he would be the one lying on the floor, broken and humiliated.

The moment came — faster than any normal person could process — and Aiden moved. He dropped low, bending his knees, and swung the hammer in a perfect tight arc toward where he had calculated Carl’s knee would be. There was a loud, sickening crack as metal met flesh and bone. Carl’s speed betrayed him; his own momentum amplified the blow.

Carl let out a strangled yell as pain shot through him, his leg buckling. He stumbled and fall on the ground, clutching his knee, shock written across his face. The sound of bone creaking filled the air, followed by a sharp hiss of pain. He had been completely unprepared for the attack.

The room went silent. Every student stared, eyes wide, mouths open. Even Mr. John froze, his expression unreadable. He had half-expected Aiden to be flung across the clearing the moment Carl struck, but instead, Carl was the one on the ground, groaning. Rainbow, who had been bracing for the worst, stared down at the scene in stunned silence. No one moved.

It had all happened in a blink of an eye, too fast for most of them to even follow. But there was no denying what had just happened, Aiden had struck first and Carl had just walked Into Aiden’s strike.