Rankings

After six months of training, not much had changed in terms of rankings among the students. Gary remained in first place, while second place was held by someone from another school.

Ray didn't pay much attention to it. He didn't care about rankings. The only reason he knew what he did was because Kyle had become obsessed with them. 

He was like their personal bulletin board, always updating them on the latest rankings after their special Black Knight training sessions.

They had just finished training and were now resting in the mansion's accommodation. It had become routine for them to talk before heading back to their dorms, each of them lying down on their beds.

"Did you hear? Slyvia just beat Peter to take third place. Everyone's saying she could be a challenge for you, Gary. How our king might become a queen," Kyle said with a sparkle in his eyes.

"I'm not too worried. There's only one person here who can beat me anyway."

Kyle glanced in Ray's direction, but no one else seemed to notice. Even if they had, they likely wouldn't have taken him seriously.

Ray's ranking had shifted from 300 to 280. He had tested the Black Knight skills he had learned in ranking matches, and while his opponents struggled to deal with them, the techniques were difficult to use effectively in open combat. Many were meant for stealth or quick eliminations.

After testing his new skills, he had begun focusing on controlling his power. While sparring, he matched his strength to his opponents, ensuring he only lost by a fraction. It was exhausting but greatly improved his control.

"I wish I was in your monster dorm. You've got most of the top ten in there," Kyle continued. "Gary's ranked first, Slyvia second, Ian fifth… Even Dan and Martha have good rankings despite not being White Knights. Heck, even Monk made it to number fifty."

Monk flushed slightly at the compliment. "It's all thanks to the special training we've been doing."

"That useless garbage? I haven't used it once and I'm still on top," Gary scoffed.

Gary had been reluctant to use the skills they had learned, struggling to get the hang of them before eventually giving up.

"It's not useless. Just because you're bad at it doesn't make it worthless," Monk shot back, standing up and facing Gary.

Ray had never seen Monk like this before. He had become more dedicated to training than anyone else, almost like a completely different person.

Kyle quickly stood between them. "Calm down, you two. We're all Black Sashes—we need to stick together."

Gary grabbed the black sash around his neck and tossed it to the ground. "This useless thing? I don't even need it."

While Monk had changed for the better after earning the Black Sash, Gary had gone in the opposite direction. Every day, he seemed more frustrated with training. Perhaps he had finally hit his breaking point.

"Pick it up," Monk said, his voice heavy with anger.

Gary stared at him. "Make me." He pushed against Kyle's hand, pressing forward.

Kyle looked toward Ray. "Ray, can you help out here? I don't think I can hold them back much longer."

Ray remained seated on his bed, uninterested in getting involved. Their fight was their business. But their arguing was beginning to irritate him, so he offered a simple suggestion.

"Why don't you two just have a ranking battle?"

Kyle's eyes widened in horror, as if Ray had just made the worst suggestion possible.

"Fine," Gary said. "Tomorrow, after basic training, we'll duel. Let's see if your Black Knight skills are as good as you claim."

Kyle shook his head in disbelief as Monk and Gary left for their dorms.

"Why would you say that?" Kyle asked, turning to Ray. "Did you forget that you all live together? What are you going to do if they keep fighting in your room?"

"If they keep doing that, I'll step in and teach them both a lesson."

Kyle laughed at the thought. "I know we're both Black Knights, but you and I are miles behind them. I'm ranked 160, and you're even lower than me. How could you stop those two?"

Ray didn't answer. Instead, he walked off toward the dormitory. Explaining would have been pointless—Kyle wouldn't have believed him anyway.

By the time Ray arrived at the room, Gary and Monk were already there. The atmosphere was thick with tension, and neither of them spoke.

Slyvia approached him. "What happened? They've been like this since they came back."

"They had an argument." Ray didn't feel like explaining further—it wasn't his place.

Just then, Dan burst into the room, practically vibrating with excitement. "Is it true? Are Monk and Gary really going to fight tomorrow?!"

The room fell silent. It wasn't common for a high-ranking student to accept a match against someone ranked significantly lower unless there was a personal grudge involved. But that wasn't the only thing that made it shocking—this was a fight between two people they all knew well.

"From the looks of things, I think you hit the nail on the head," Slyvia said.

Seconds later, it seemed like the entire school was talking about the upcoming fight between Gary and Monk. Ray could only guess who had spread the news so quickly.

Kyle.