Chapter 23
The scoreboard settled at one–zero, its light reflecting across the glass walls of the BeyMall stadium. For a moment, no one quite knew how to react. Then the sound returned all at once, not as cheering, but as voices overlapping in surprise and disbelief.
People leaned forward along the railings, pointing toward the stadium while replay screens lit up overhead. The slowed footage showed Drago drifting wide, Spryzen cutting inward at the perfect moment, the center claimed without force.
"Did you see that angle?" someone said nearby.
"That wasn't luck. He planned that."
A girl near the front laughed breathlessly. "He didn't even attack."
The announcer's voice rolled through the atrium, drawing the attention back toward the arena. "An incredible opening round! Storm Spryzen takes the lead with absolute control of the stadium!"
Applause followed, mixed with whistles and rising chatter as the replay ended. The atmosphere didn't calm. It tightened.
From the upper level, Valt leaned against the railing, eyes fixed below. "That's Shu for you," he muttered. "He makes it look easy, but it's not."
Rentaro folded his arms beside him. "He didn't overpower Drago," he said quietly. "He denied it space."
Ken remained silent. The puppet on his arm tilted its head slightly, its voice low. "…the fire was pushed aside."
Down on the platform, Ryo stood where he was. The noise washed around him the crowd, the announcer, the hum of the stadium but none of it reached far inside. His eyes stayed on the floor, tracing the pattern again in his mind.
He hadn't lost because he was weaker.
He had been read.
Across from him, Shu placed Storm Spryzen back onto his launcher with the same calm precision as before. His posture hadn't changed, but his focus had sharpened. His eyes followed Drago carefully, as if expecting something new.
The referee stepped forward, raising his arm.
"Second round. Bladers ready!"
The shift was immediate. Conversations died down, replaced by anticipation. Phones were raised again. The air felt heavier, charged with expectation.
Ryo clipped Drago into his launcher. The familiar warmth answered beneath his fingers, steady and alive.
"Three!"
The crowd fell quiet not silent, but focused.
"Two!"
Valt's hands tightened against the railing. "Come on…"
"One!"
"Let it rip!"
The crack of the launch echoed sharply through the stadium. Drago struck the floor hard, its left-spin carving outward before snapping inward with far more aggression than before. Sparks burst instantly as it collided with Spryzen, the impact ringing against the glass walls.
"Oh that was heavy!" someone shouted.
Spryzen slid back slightly, just enough to force a correction. The announcer reacted at once, voice rising. "Ryo wastes no time this round, coming in with pressure right from the start!"
Drago didn't slow. It struck again, then again, forcing Spryzen away from its preferred center line as collisions echoed one after another.
Shu adjusted his grip once.
Spryzen responded immediately, slipping sideways just before the next impact and redirecting the force rather than meeting it. The movement was clean, almost graceful, and the crowd reacted instantly.
"He dodged that!"
"That timing's insane!"
Ryo felt it again that resistance, that invisible wall that refused to break no matter how hard he pressed.
Drago struck once more, but this time the collision sent it bouncing backward. Its spin dipped as it scraped along the slope, sparks flaring dangerously close to the edge.
The announcer's tone sharpened. "Drago's losing balance this could turn dangerous fast!"
The stadium leaned forward as one.
The next hit came harder, driving Drago back again. Its rotation screamed under the strain, speed bleeding away too quickly.
"Ryo!" Valt shouted without meaning to. "Now!"
Ryo's voice cut through the noise, steady and clear.
"Reverse Inferno."
The moment the impact landed, Drago twisted inward instead of breaking away. Its rotation folded around the recoil, the force snapping back into itself. The air warped as sparks spiraled upward and its speed surged violently forward.
The reaction was instant.
"What?!"
"It got faster!"
"He used the hit!"
The announcer's voice rose in disbelief. "Incredible! Drago converts the impact directly into momentum!"
Drago tore forward like a released flame, slamming into Spryzen with explosive force. The sound cracked through the stadium, sharp enough to steal the crowd's breath for a heartbeat.
Spryzen was launched high along the slope, its rotation wobbling as it struggled to recover. Shu corrected quickly, but the rhythm was gone.
Drago pressed the opening. Another hit followed Then another.
Spryzen tilted as the crowd cried out.
"Is it going down?! No wait!"
Seconds stretched, unbearably long.
Then Spryzen's rotation slowed.
Stopped.
The referee raised his arm. "Spin finish! One point to Ryo!"
The BeyMall erupted. Cheers surged upward, rolling through the atrium as the scoreboard flashed and updated.
1 – 1.
Valt threw his arms into the air, laughing. "Yes! That's it!"
Rentaro let out a slow breath. "So that's how he fights back."
Ryo picked up Drago, the Bey warm and heavy in his palm. The drain lingered in his muscles, but beneath it was something solid certainty.
Across the stadium, Shu looked up Their eyes met.
The announcer's voice echoed once more as the crowd continued roaring. "One round apiece! This match is completely even!"
Ryo straightened, adjusting his grip on the launcher.
The next round would decide everything.
And this time, neither of them would hold back.