I Will Fulfill the Role of the Villain

The words were harsh, but perhaps that was exactly what would work best for someone like Hayes. In fact, after hearing Luke’s words, his pupils wavered slightly, as if he had fallen into deep thought.

"You bastard is strong."

Hayes finally gave his answer, but Luke just smirked as if it didn’t matter.

"You’ve fought me before."

Both Benji and Hayes had a history of fighting Luke. Moreover, they had been utterly overwhelmed by his strength and momentum in those battles, leaving them still somewhat intimidated by him.

"What do you think you’re going to do with that hand…"

Hayes struck a nerve, and the smile on Luke’s face cracked slightly as his eyebrow twitched.

"Kids these days really have no manners. Hey, isn’t that my line?"

"I had no choice back then—I had to survive. But you, on the other hand, were an adult, yet you were so desperate to catch a kid like me."

"You must not know, but in a fight, age doesn’t matter. Winning is all that counts."

Luke had no desire to engage in a petty argument with a brat, but he also couldn’t let the comment slide. More than anything, back then, he hadn’t even considered Hayes’ age—he had been desperate in his own way. After all, he had wanted to do whatever he could to stop the war in the empire.

Hayes glared at Luke with a resentful expression, while beside him, Benji anxiously held onto his friend’s hand, trying to calm him down. As the two exchanged childish remarks, Theo, standing beside them, sighed once again.

"Yeah. That bastard used to say the same thing to us. Winning is everything."