Chapter 192:

They blinked, and it was done. It had taken all of two seconds for Ace to put her down. Once that happened, the people in that room stared at each other. One of the girls laughed, "What did you say about chances?", Cho just stared out the window, at the slowly retreating figure of the boy. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, for one, this boy had tarnished his word and reputation. There was nothing he could do - or wanted to do for that matter. Carrying any sort of action now would just destroy him, and for all he knew, this boy had solid backing behind him, no, it would be better to cease conflict early, and actually think this through properly.

The boy clearly had influence, and he most certainly did not need more heat on his establishment, it was doing well on its own, and was only a pet project of his anyway, an excuse he could use with his family to just drink and enjoy some time with friends when he felt like it.

He turned back at the room, already having an idea of how to turn this into his favour, whilst also ensuring that he earned favour with the boy. "Wow. That just happened. This is amazing, she was highly trained, and I assure you, there should be no way he could take her down. And yet, he did.", he stared at them so they could see how serious he was.

"Now, I know that none of you ladies have seen her fight before, but as I am sure my friends here will tell you, this is most astonishing. However", at this, he grinned, lightening the mood, "I think I may be able to get your friend to join us - if you so wish, of course."

At this, the girls all smiled, and Cho knew right then that nothing would happen today, they all seemed infatuated with the boy, and he could understand that somewhat. Now, his plan had evolved, if he could somehow get them to establish a relationship with the boy, it would be because of him, and both whichever girl he chose and the boy would be in his debt.

Nai and the others understood the situation, even if the girls did not appear to do so. They looked at him forlornly, but made no suggestions to handle this in any other manner, this could be very good for them, and plus, chances where, the boy had a girlfriend, right?

***

Ace walked straight into the changing room, where he stood under the hot water, and ensured his muscles would not get sore - they would not, he had not even gotten hit, really. He had to keep up appearances, and just in case, ensure he did not smell bad. He used the oils offered, which made his body smell of a mixture of herbs and incense. Not his favourite, but it would do.

As he dried up, he put on a new change of clothes, he had brought exactly for this purpose. Once he had put everything away neatly inside his backpack, he slung it over his shoulder, and walked out.

***

Once he got out, he made his way out, his purpose for today was fulfilled, and it was time to head back home anyway. However, he spotted a young man that was clearly waiting for someone. That someone ended up being him, as when he was spotted, he made a beeline for him.

The young man bowed, and Ace bowed as well, matching the depth of the bow, even if he had no reason to do so, since this young man had come to find him first.

"Thank you for your respect. You probably do not know me, but I am the owner of this establishment. You may call me Cho.", he then bowed again, and so did Ace.

"I am Ace, may I ask, why is it you wish to see me? I understand for my first fight, it was not commonplace to do what I did, but there should be no problem, since it was instated by…", and here, for the first time since he had come to this place - no, not the bar, but Japan, Ace was surprised. The man cut him off.

"No sir, that is not an issue, I merely wanted to extend my congratulations, offer an apology for the behaviour of the female fighter, and also wondered if you would like to join me in the VIP room. I was there during the fight, but I was not alone, there were some classmates of yours, and they asked if you would like to meet them, they wanted to come down themselves, but since I also wanted to meet you…", he looked slightly worried at the end, but Ace appeased him with a light smile and a shake of his head.

"I understand, do not worry, I would be happy to join you, but I am unsure as to how much longer I will be able to stay, I am quite tired, after all, fighting was certainly not in my plans today, as I am sure you have heard.", he said this last phrase with a cheeky grin, which also made Cho smile.

"Me, and the rest of the establishment, I am sure, regardless, it would be wonderful if you could join us. Come, I shall lead the way.", he motioned with his hand, and walked across the bar to some steps, which he also skipped through, until he was in front of a simple door. He opened it, and they found themselves at an elevator, with a tap of his finger, it began to rise.

"I am not sure if you have met them, since they have told me it is your first day, their names are…", he looked slightly ashamed at doing this, and Ace stopped him.

"Do not worry, I am sure you will know them, there is no need for you to do this.", Ace said with a reassuring smile.

Cho let out a breath, "Thank you, I was certainly not looking forward to doing that, I hope you do not think less of me because of it."

"Of course not, I understand that the culture I grew up in is different from the one I currently find myself in, but regardless, you were trying to help out a friend who may have needed it, I will certainly not think less of you for it. If anything, the fact that it clearly made you uncomfortable, and yet, still went on with it, makes it even more impressive in my eyes.", this, as everything Ace did, was calculated, but regardless, it made Cho let out a breath, and smile widely once he realised the implications of the statement. He had been called a friend, and it had been explicitly said that Ace commended his actions, this was certainly going better than he thought it would be.

At first, he was slightly scared of how he would take the statement. It was not disrespectful, per se, but was certainly not the norm, and considering that part of the group were ladies, it could even be seen as tarnishing their honours, and therefore their families'. Now, he just hoped that Ace would not make it awkward for anyone.