"Bastard!"
The delinquent, furious, swung a punch at Caleb's face.
Finding no more amusement in the situation, Caleb didn't bother to play along. He easily raised his hand, grasped the delinquent's fist, then smoothly pulled him forward and drove his knee upward.
"Ough."
Intense pain shot through the delinquent, making him double over and dry heave. Seeing that the guy could still stand, Caleb raised his elbow and slammed it against the delinquent's temple.
The delinquent, who hadn't expected the seemingly harmless Caleb to be so ruthless, didn't have a chance to resist. His eyes rolled back, and he instantly fell unconscious.
The other delinquents in the alley, having witnessed Caleb's quick and clean victory, started thinking about retreating.
"Boss, what do we do? Should we find another target?"
The pompadour-haired leader glared at the subordinate who spoke, displeased. "There are seven or eight of us! Are we going to be afraid of just him?"
The subordinates exchanged looks. But you were the one who said we should give up if he was trouble… Fine, you're the boss, you're right.
"You guys, come with me."
The leader beckoned to his subordinates. "Remember, don't use your hands. We just saw a friend collapse on the road and are helping him to the hospital. We're not scared."
The subordinates: "..."
"The boss is brilliant!!!"
Caleb nudged the unconscious delinquent with his foot. After confirming he was only knocked out, Caleb let out a sigh of relief.
"I really need to hold back on the strength…"
Caleb muttered to himself, ignoring the surprised looks of passersby. With so many witnesses, he genuinely worried about causing serious harm and getting tangled up in trouble—the thought alone gave him a headache.
The leader and his subordinates surrounded Caleb. Seeing this, the pedestrians scattered immediately. Ordinary people would rather avoid associating with delinquents than even the Yakuza. The legally registered Yakuza still followed rules, but delinquents were minors; the police could only detain them for a few days and give them a stern lecture. Because of this, some Yakuza groups deliberately maintained delinquents to carry out acts like arson and kidnapping.
The leader stepped forward, and Caleb's eyes narrowed—it was a familiar face.
"Bro, it was a misunderstanding."
The pompadour-haired leader had his men lift the unconscious delinquent, projecting an air of compromise.
"Look, my brother's face is swollen. Just pay for his medical expenses, and we'll call it even. What do you say?"
Caleb chuckled. "What if I said I don't have any money?"
"No money is fine. I'll cover it. Consider it a way to make a friend."
The leader grinned, flashing his yellowed teeth. "I think you're good, you've got skills. Wanna join my crew?"
The subordinates looked at their boss, utterly impressed. No wonder he's the boss—his ability to talk tough is unmatched.
"Join your crew?" Caleb also started smiling.
This is truly amusing. They had refused him when he had proactively dyed his hair yellow and tried to join, and even extorted a large protection fee from him. Now, they were actively inviting him.
Caleb wasn't in a hurry to fight, opting to chat instead.
"Boss sure is forgetful. You forgot me so quickly?"
"Huh?" The leader looked confused. "Have we met?"
"Two months ago, Caleb Uesugi," Caleb reminded him kindly. "You even charged me a large 'joining fee,' Boss."
The leader couldn't remember the exact time or name, but the mention of money sparked a memory.
"Oh, it was one of our guys! I knew it was a misunderstanding all along."
The leader gave a strained laugh, sensing trouble, and tried to bail. "Well, how about we hang out properly next time, Brother Uesugi? I need to take my guys to the hospital now."
"Wait." Caleb stepped on the leader's shoe, smiling genially. "Since we're 'one of our guys,' shouldn't you return the 'joining fee' I paid before?"
The leader, having failed to extort money and now being extorted himself, was beside himself with frustration. I shouldn't have been so full of myself. If I had just bolted, none of this would be happening.
"Uh… Brother Uesugi, we really need to get this guy to the hospital. Can I give you the money next time?"
The leader tried to pull his foot free as he spoke.
"Sure, but I'll take a little interest first."
Caleb sharply pressed down, and the leader's face instantly contorted in pain.
"DAMN IT! You're pushing your luck!"
The pain was too much, and the leader dropped the pretense. He didn't want major trouble, but having someone literally stepping on him was too much. If he didn't retaliate now, he couldn't be a delinquent anymore.
"Get him! Break his leg today!"
The subordinates glanced at each other, then charged. The boss had given the order, and if anything went wrong, the boss would take the fall. What did they have to lose?
"That's more like it. You wasted so much of my time."
Caleb sent the leader flying with a sweeping kick. "I was almost ready to forget you worthless trash, but you actively delivered yourselves to my doorstep."
With the Insight Eye at full power and Intermediate Physical Mastery engaged, Caleb moved like a seasoned martial artist. The delinquents' attacks were either smoothly dodged or blocked. Conversely, every time Caleb struck, one of them went down.
For these thugs, Caleb naturally hit where it hurt, ensuring they wouldn't die but would be in considerable pain. The leader was a priority target; even as he writhed on the ground, Caleb didn't spare him, occasionally stamping his face with a shoe print.
Five minutes later, Caleb brushed off his wrinkled uniform and walked away smoothly.
He left behind a pile of unconscious delinquents. This gang had been operating in the area for a long time. Besides the "joining fee," Caleb had been mugged by them multiple times, giving them over 300,000 Yen in total, though he never suffered physical harm. With this lesson, they were now even. That 300,000 Yen could be considered their medical expense.
Meanwhile, Reina Hamasaki and her three companions finally completed all their assessments.
Their test results were highly ideal. The four, who had been on the verge of expulsion, had suddenly become high-potential dark horses. This dramatic improvement occurred in just two months since the entrance exam.
Two months ago, apart from Yuki Shinomura, who was a Devil-Human hybrid, the other three were close to failing out. Yuki's strength wasn't great either, but as a hybrid, she was exempt from expulsion due to lack of power. This speed of progress naturally aroused much curiosity.
If it were just one person, it might be attributed to exceptional talent, but all four of them? Even the most skeptical person wouldn't believe there wasn't a secret involved.
Curious as they were, no one was foolish enough to cause trouble right here. Having escaped the crisis of expulsion, Reina and the three were thrilled. After getting a taste of the supernatural world, they had no desire to return to ordinary life.
"Should we report the Uesugi situation?"
"We can't hide it anymore; so many people are watching us."
Sensing the curious and greedy gazes surrounding them, the four promptly reported Caleb's situation to the Student Council President present at the scene.
Sona Shitori adjusted her glasses, gazing at the four girls. "Understood. I will send someone to verify this. Once confirmed, someone will contact you."