Matching the peerless part II

Rin looked serious; he didn't let Kelly's declaration of war shake him.

"It's a little too late to join your childish game."

"In the previous tests, you were the last to participate. Are you afraid that I might surpass you if you go first?"

"What a stupid assumption. The reason I usually go last is obvious."

At that moment, Izuru understood. Not only did he recharge his energy by resting, but he also always took the last look.

"He wants the sect's masters to focus solely on him," he said to himself in a whisper that Pyo Wol overheard.

"Took you long enough to figure that out, kid."

Izuru only gave him a look of disgust before continuing his thoughts.

"If he draws all the masters' attention, even if the rest of us perform well, there's a chance we'll be left without a master."

Rin Ikari was ready and set to start the third test. As usual, he glanced at the instructor, aiming to go a step further.

"Just three seconds. In three seconds, I'll memorize every button."

"You're starting to resemble your brother more and more."

A grimace of disgust crossed Rin's face before he began. His eyes needed only a quick look at each button; nothing more was necessary.

He even had the nerve to yawn, bored, while waiting for the buttons to finish shuffling.

The moment the buttons stopped moving, in the first five seconds, Rin had already pressed the first three. He continued running from left to right, and as the seconds passed, his score kept climbing. In just 40 seconds, he had hit 36 correct buttons.

Izuru could only watch helplessly as his record was about to be shattered by a genius even greater than him. His pride stung. He couldn't help but think about the possibility of Rain noticing and deciding to discard him. However, all those thoughts vanished when the sound of one of the pillars creaking caught everyone's attention, including Rin's. It was the pillar that Rin had struck with the stone, and it seemed to be on the verge of collapsing.

However, that brief moment of distraction caused him to make a mistake. Rin tripped and, to avoid falling to his knees, he leaned on the board with the buttons, pressing one in the process.

That button was incorrect. It no longer mattered how quickly he finished the test; his score wouldn't be perfect.

Rin looked rather annoyed, but he resigned himself to completing the test.

One minute and 39 seconds were enough to finish the test, with a score of 49/50. If only he hadn't struck that column, if only he had stayed focused, if only he resembled his brother a little more…

Regardless, Rin had made a mistake. A mistake that was solely his fault.

And Izuru would make sure to remind him.

"What happened, your majesty? Couldn't you surpass a commoner? Now do you see why Rain chose me?"

Every question from Izuru was accompanied by a mocking tone, one that deeply displeased Rin, who merely signaled at him.

"Two to one. No matter how hard you try, you won't surpass me."

Now Izuru's goal was clear: in the next test, he would tie with the number one, no matter what.

It was Kelly's turn, and determined to make an impression, she asked for only five seconds. According to her expectations, she could score 50/50, twenty seconds faster than Izuru.

The five seconds began, and as they passed, Kelly appeared motionless, her mind seemed elsewhere. A thin string of saliva even dripped from her lips.

Immediately, Robert and Rin realized it. Kelly's level of concentration had reached its peak.

"I can't help but feel jealous of such intense concentration. That's exactly what I lacked to crush them all," Rin thought before giving Kelly his full attention.

The 15 seconds for the buttons to shuffle had ended, and Kelly immediately vanished from the audience's sight.

Kaina was astonished by Kelly's speed, yet she decided to stop her after 19 seconds.

As impressive as her speed was, Kelly was still a child, and her body couldn't endure such strain for long.

Afterward, Kelly's score was 49/50 in just one minute and 38 seconds.

The elders were thrilled with the prodigy competition unfolding before them. They even agreed that their disciples would compete in a grand tournament two years from now.

"Even though she was stopped and stumbled, she still managed a better time than mine."

"Everyone here is very fast, but I want my moment to shine too, you know?"

Pyo Wol and Hyu were visibly excited; however, Kaina set a limit for them.

"Sorry, but if you two compete, it'll shake the other participants' confidence. You're not required to accept my request, but still, would you be willing to…"

"No."

Both dark-haired boys said bluntly as they stared at the scoreboard.

"Why should I care if those losers doubt their abilities? It's their own fault for being so weak," Hyu said, wrapping his eyes in Qi and stepping onto the platform before Pyo Wol could get there first.

At the top of a tower far from the others, a man who appeared to be around 60 watched and listened to what was happening in the testing area. A wicked smile crossed his face as he said to himself:

"What selfishness… this year, I'll definitely have new toys."

"Master Liu, you're showing your true face again."

"Oh, Sae, you're still here. I thought you'd go see your brother."

"Would that do me any good? I told him what I wanted a month ago; I don't need to interact with him again."

"Ah, right. You told me you wanted to become the sect's pillar. You're not far from achieving that goal, but as long as I'm alive, that's all it will be: a goal."

Back with Hyu…

"Getting a perfect score is better than doing it fast but poorly,"

he thought as he carefully observed the buttons. Thanks to his Qi, he could keep his mind sharp and process information much faster; however, he didn't rely solely on that. Unlike the others, he had been lazy: he trained nothing but his Qi control, earning himself the reputation of being the weakest in the dojo. His body wasn't as trained as the other prodigies, but he had something they didn't…

"I'm ready."

Immediately after, the buttons began shuffling at high speed. Hyu could see them no matter how fast they moved; he already knew where they'd be even before they moved. Thus, he moved to where he knew the first two buttons would be.

The 15 seconds were up, and in the first second of the test, Hyu had already scored three points.

Maybe his body wasn't as trained as the others, but as long as his Qi control remained as strong as it was, he would continue to rival the most talented.

At 20 seconds, he had 18 points. The test had turned into a race against the clock from the start.

"You're very proud of your eyes, aren't you, Izuru? Well, watch as someone surpasses you in your strongest skill!"

Hyu thought as he raced up and down, pressing the correct buttons one after another. And in just 2 minutes and 57 seconds, the test was over.

The result showed 50/50 points.

They had surpassed his record, not only in reaction speed, one of his strong suits but also in a memory test.

Was there nothing in which he could outshine them?

His strength and technique hadn't been enough to beat Robert, let alone get close to Rin.

His reaction speed hadn't been enough to surpass Robert either, and once again, he hadn't even come close to Rin.

Damn it… even in the one test where he could have outperformed him, it was only because he had tripped. As reality hit Izuru like a cold bucket of water, he could only grit his teeth and clench his fists in frustration.

"No matter what I do, this is a damn barrier I can't cross."

"It's my turn! I want to beat them too," Pyo Wol shouted excitedly.

He had found rivals who consistently surpassed him; however, no matter how good they were in the tests, in a real fight, he was the best.

Or so he believed.

He knew it, and he was sure they did too.

He decided to reach the highest score, and he achieved it, relaxed, in just four minutes. Now, he only had to wait patiently; in the next trial, he would prove where his true brilliance began.

End of chapter.