"You should really stop with the sneak attack. You're too old for something so childish, Raven."
The person on Mark's neck frowned before she flipped over Mark's shoulders and easily landed in front of him with a flourish! Mark stared at the tall woman who was just about to hit him and he couldn't help but smile as he saw the frown on her face.
She was wearing a black tank top and tight trousers that showed off her impressive bust and ass proportions, and there was a cigar in her mouth that she took out as her frown deepened.
"What the fuck have you been doing to yourself? You're far stronger than you were last week."
"Hello to you too, teacher."
Raven licked her tongue and took a puff from her cigar. She put one hand under her breast and eyed Mark from head to toe as she waited for him to say something to her. They both knew what Raven was waiting for, and Mark decided to just bite the bullet.
"I had to go fight against that calamity class. didn't have a choice."
"You always have a choice, you brat! Don't go starting your conversations like that! What did I tell you about going out to fight things that are stronger than you!? You struggled against disaster classes and once a calamity class shows up, the first thing you think is that you should go fight it!?"
Mark shrugged.
"What should I have done? Let all those people die because I didn't want to put myself in danger. There were no superhumans in the area that could handle it and it was going to kill everyone that went to confront it. I had to help."
Raven glared at Mark in anger once she heard him say that, and she took out her cigar and threw it to the side.
"Are you trying to say something to me, brat?"
"And what if I am?"
Mark stepped closer to Raven, and Raven felt some of Mark's pressure push down on her as his enormous build towered over her. mark was probably not even doing it on purpose, but Raven could feel a great increase in Mark's aura. It felt like his presence and power quadrupled from the last time they were in a ring together.
He was a monster of a man, and even though Raven was a very tall woman, she still only reached his shoulders with the top of her head. She glared up at him and clicked her tongue.
"In the ring. Now."
Raven and Mark entered the ring in the middle of the room, and Mark took off his hoodie and only wore his black tank top. He put on his gloves while watching Raven put on her own gloves on the opposite side of the ring. Mark could understand why Raven was angry.
Raven had been Mark's teacher for some time now, and she was also one of the few people who knew Mark's identity as GHOST before he revealed it to the public.
Mark first met Raven two years ago when he was looking for a place to train without risking revealing his superhuman strength to others. He searched for more than a week before he learned about this dilapidated gym that didn't have any members. It sounded like the perfect place for Mark to train, so he came here and met Raven.
Her father was the one who opened this gym a long time ago, and now that he was dead, she was finding it hard to keep it afloat because of the way houses were all being demolished.
Raven didn't want to let go of her father's gym, so she refused to move it. Luckily for her, that was when she met Mark.
Before agreeing to train Mark, she made him promise that he would not go to fight against monsters that were above Disaster class. Raven had no desire to train someone just for them to go get themselves killed while trying to fight against something far stronger than them. that is why rAven felt betrayed by Mark's actions against that Calamity Class.
"You know the rules. Two downs and you win. I don't know what sort of steroid you've been taking, but you better remember that strength isn't going to be enough to help you here."
Mark turned around and nodded to Raven as they both advanced towards each other. Raven stretched out her two gloves, and Mark fist-bumped them with his gloves.
Woosh!
Mark immediately had to step back as Raven tried to lash out with a low sweep! Mark dodged to the side as Raven shot her leg up and almost slammed it into his face, and he used that chance to try and slam his fist into Raven's liver. But she managed to dodge around it quickly enough, and she retreated to the other side of the ring.
Mark narrowed his eyes at Raven as she slowly started to stalk around him. Raven was a superhuman as well, but her blessing and strength were not something that she liked to talk about. The only thing that Mark knew was that Raven was blessed by a god who focused on athletics, and her blessing was weak. So weak that she could not advance past the high B rank no matter how hard she tried.
Mark took a step back and used a quick analysis on Raven as he got a look at her stats.
...
Name: Raven Brown
Race: Human
Title: Nil
Rank: B
Potential: D
Skill: [Rush]
Description: The [Rush] skills give Raven a boost in athletic abilities during times of intense stress. It is similar to but stronger than an adrenaline rush and it improves her overall strength, speed, and reaction time. She is an extremely athletic woman whose potential has held her back from achieving any real purpose.
Affiliation: Lawful Neutral
...
Mark was surprised by Raven's potential. Was that why she couldn't advance past the B rank no matter how hard she tried? She was stuck in a low rank because of how bad her potential was. In fact, her having a B rank was a testament to how much work she already put into her training and improving herself.
It has only been four years and she was able to rise to B rank with a potential of only D rank! That was really impressive.
At least Mark now knew how she was able to keep up with him even when he was as strong as an A rank without his system before. Mark was always surprised by her bursts of speed and the sudden quick reflexes she seemed to gain whenever he was about to land a hit on her, but now Mark knew that it was just due to her [Rush] skill.
Raven always told Mark that strength was not everything in a fight. What was the point of having all the power in the world if none of your punches ever hit?