Chapter 43: Totsuki Monster (Patreon)

No! More like… he found it absurd.

Nakamori assumed Gin Dojima was deliberately shielding a junior, and he grumbled about it in private. Look at him: a three-hundred-pound frame, weighted training year-round. How could a frail-looking boy possibly overpower the entire sumo club? It was ridiculous exaggeration.

Before he could object, Gin Dojima had already turned to Ramsay. "Show them. Grip the rope like before and go up against them alone, one more time."

Ramsay nodded. He walked to one side of the tug-of-war rope and took hold of the thick hemp with one hand, easily. Then he looked up at Hiroshi Nakamori and his group and said flatly, "Send as many people as you like. If you can pull me, you win."

The whole place erupted in an uproar.

Hiroshi Nakamori was both startled and furious. Convinced the boy was talking big, he sneered. "What an attitude!"

"I don't need that many men. I can drag you over the center line all by myself!"

He strode to the other end of the rope, clamped his thick hands around it, sank his hips, planted his legs in a firm horse stance, and heaved backward with everything he had.

But then something strange happened.

No matter how much force Nakamori put in, Ramsay stood there steady as a boulder. His feet didn't shift an inch.

Nakamori's face went purple. The veins stood out on his forehead. He simply turned around, slung the rope over his shoulder, tensed every muscle in his body, and let out a deafening roar, pulling with all the strength of his life.

The next second, Ramsay's wrist gave a light flick, and his arm drew back with it, gently.

The enormous force traveled down the rope. Three-hundred-pound Nakamori couldn't hold his footing at all. His whole body pitched forward out of control.

With a dull, heavy thud, the fat body slammed into the ground and dust flew in every direction.

The noisy arena fell dead silent.

Everyone's eyes were wide. They stared at the scene in a daze, breathing so softly they barely noticed it. The same thought filled every mind: this delicate-looking boy had, with one hand alone, yanked a three-hundred-pound Nakamori, who'd trained in sumo for years, clean off his feet!

Quite a few club members muttered to themselves in disbelief.

Nakamori slumped on the ground, staring blankly at Ramsay, who held the rope in one hand with a calm expression. In that moment, he finally understood the real reason they had lost the tug-of-war so badly.

"You okay?" Ramsay asked. "I only used a little strength."

Showing off or not, to Nakamori those words landed like a thunderclap! His head snapped up, his eyes full of utter terror. He stared at the boy, his voice trembling uncontrollably. "You… what the hell are you? How can you have such terrifying strength?"

Ramsay shrugged and smiled lightly. "What, is being strong against the law?"

He casually let go of the rope. Ignoring the astonished stares from the whole room, he walked over to the weightlifting area, turned to the coach there, and pointed at the heaviest barbell on the equipment rack. "Coach, can I try this one?" he asked quietly.

The weightlifting coach followed his gaze. When he saw the two-hundred-kilogram barbell, he hurried to wave him off. "Student, that's a professional two-hundred-kilo load. It's not something ordinary students can touch. Try a lighter one."

"No need."

"This weight is just right."

His eyes were firm. Without a flicker of hesitation, Ramsay hoisted the barbell.

In an instant, the whole training hall went deathly still. Everyone froze mid-motion, and the air itself seemed to solidify.

The coach's pupils shrank and his eyes went wide. Staring at the sight, he couldn't help but gasp. "Sss… I… I'm not dreaming, am I?"

Gin Dojima's body stiffened, his composure shattered completely, shock filling his eyes. Joichiro was just as incredulous as he watched that calm, upright figure. And Nakamori, who had just been humiliated, was even worse off. His brain simply shut down and he stood rooted to the spot!

Kazuko Minami's eyes sparkled with a bright light, full of admiration. Beside her, Leonora's silver-white eyes rippled with emotion, and her breathtaking face was full of disbelief!

In short, everyone was utterly stunned by this scene that overturned everything they knew.

No one could have imagined that a slender-looking boy hid such terrifying explosive power. This was not the strength of an ordinary person. It was monstrous strength!

Only one thought remained in everyone's mind: Ramsay was no ordinary person. His strength had long since exceeded everyone's estimates!

Then Ramsay eased off and set the barbell down steadily.

"Bang!"

The heavy barbell hit the ground with a deafening thud. The hard floor instantly buckled into a clear dent, and fine cracks spread outward across the surface.

The impact shook every heart in the room. Nakamori's legs went weak and he nearly collapsed, his pride and resentment completely crushed by fear.

Ramsay turned to look at him, his voice calm and even. "Nakamori, do you still doubt my strength?"

Nakamori shuddered and came back to himself. He looked at Ramsay with awe and dread, shaking his head like a rattle drum.

In those few seconds he had fully grasped the gulf between them. "I was wrong… and I'm completely convinced!" he said. "I lost this tug-of-war, and I accept it wholeheartedly!"

Nearby, the weightlifting coach still hadn't recovered. At last he hurried over and couldn't help asking, "Student, were you a professional weightlifter before? That strength is incredible!"

Ramsay raised an eyebrow and answered offhandedly, "Not really. I just used to carry bricks at construction sites."

The words had barely left his mouth when a sweet fragrance swept toward him. Kazuko Minami, her face flushed with excitement, dashed up to Ramsay and, making no effort to hide her delight, threw her arms tightly around him.

"Wow… Ramsay, you're amazing!"

"I… I just like you so much!"