In this sweaty MMA gym, one by one, the students of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class gave Ben a "warm welcome."
Warm like urine in the eyes…
At one point, on account of it being his first class, even instructor Valentina gave him a "private lesson," showing Ben the dangers of cranking too hard on some of the submissions…
She wasn't seeking any gratitude, but believed it was her duty…and everyone else shared a similar mindset, endeavoring to show their cordiality by wrapping it around his neck…
Like that, each white belt received their time in the sun, by laying on Ben like he was a beach towel…and digging his face into the ground…
After all, it was human nature to seek some shine, basking in the warm glow of someone else's tragedies…
Meanwhile, having lived in the darkness, Ben was suffering was seasonal depression…
*Pant* *Pant*
By the end of it, all his joints were sore, as he laid flat on his back, struggling for air. Even though he'd taken multiple potions for strength, agility, and stamina, BJJ was famous as a martial art that focused on using technique to overcome strength. It wasn't possible to brute force his way out of things when he possessed zero idea what was happening.
Struggling to raise his head, Ben observed all the white belts in class snickering and pointing at him, satisfied with their hazing. A few even walked by him, bending down to pass on a few kind words as seniors.
"If I see you here again, you're dead…"
"You made a big mistake defiling my goddess…"
"May God have mercy on your soul, but I'll be hunting you to hell until I know the dimensions…"
…
Even the priest wouldn't let Ben's soul pass in peace…
Watching this all from the edge of the class, the beautiful female instructor smirked, and soon left the room, forgetting about Ben because she expected him to never come back. She was certain of that, having never seen someone take half the beating he took today and return.
At this time, Fariq also entered the room, sighing when he saw Ben lying on the blue mats, twitching from time to time. He approached and sat down next to him. "Sorry, bro. I should've warned you that many people in this gym are secretly in love with Valentina. It seems there was some misunderstanding between you two. I should've expected this."
When Ben didn't respond, Fariq also shook his head, understanding this was the end of Ben's MMA career that never even started.
*Tap* *Tap*
However, at that moment, Ben sat up with shaky movements, and posted his hands on the mat. Looking up, he then took a deep breath…
His lungs burned…
Every muscle ached…
And he didn't have a joint that didn't hurt, not even a finger…
Yet, despite all that, he was smiling!
Seeing this, Fariq's eyes expanded!
As for what Ben was smiling about, it was obvious!
The thrill of surpassing one's limits?
The chance to face strong enemies?
The desire to never give up and never surrender?
No, he copped a feel!
…
When he rolled with Valentina, although she put a beating on him, he made sure to get his little revenge. Since in this place, it wasn't innocent before proven guilty when it came to grabbing melons…then he figured, he might as well commit the crime!
Although at the time, she'd wrapped up his hands in various joint locks, Ben learned how to use the rest of his body! His shoulder! His elbow! His chest! His back! With each one of them, he pushed a little harder against Valentina's chest or thighs…so that by the end, his mind stored a 3D image of her exact proportions!
This was the true form of data fighting!
…
It wasn't about who won the fight, but who jizzed at night!
….
While they rolled, even Valentina sensed something was off. Yet, since she was already cranking Ben's joints to the point where any more would break them, and due to the fact that this type of contact was normal in BJJ, she didn't cross the line. When they finished though, she couldn't help but narrow her eyes at Ben. It was the moment when the genius master saw an unexpected bit of talent in the rookie!
A talent at indirect contact with a woman's private areas!
…
Watching Ben smile, Fariq asked the question he thought he knew the answer to, but now wasn't sure. "Will you…come back?"
Turning to him with a jittery neck like a puppet in a horror movie…Ben smirked. "Come back? I'm already here! Isn't there another beginner's class after this?"
Fariq's eyebrows shot up. "You mean…"
"That's right. I'm going to keep training!"
Although Ben was beat up, he could feel his body recovering a bit with every passing minute, and the reason was evident—the enhanced recovery effect from the mid level stat multiplier!
Back when he used a low level one for looks, he was able to train for hours in the gym every day. Now, with a mid level one that provided 10x the effect, he didn't even have to sleep it off to rest. After half an hour, he believed it'd be enough to return to a passable condition!
Ben wasn't willing to waste this opportunity to learn. Even though he was getting tortured by all the students in the last class, he sensed his movements improving a bit by the end. Since he only had a week for this multiplier and the special event, he planned to attend every class he could!
Twenty minutes later, as the next class was about to start, Valentina walked into the room, and observed Ben sitting against the wall with his head down on his knee. 'He's still here? Is he unconscious?" Walking towards him, she was about to poke the corpse…when Ben lifted his head an inch, and they exchanged gazes.
At that moment, she went wide-eyed, because he wasn't unconscious at all! No, he didn't even look demotivated from the beating he took! Instead, Ben's eyes had a certain glow, giving her a strange feeling.
In his gaze, she saw a glint of determination, the look of a budding warrior, or of a tiger cub about to grow up. These, were the eyes of a hero…a protagonist…
Then, Valentina frowned, because she realized it wasn't that. No, these were the eyes of someone who visualized her naked.
——
*Author's Note: Added a photo of Valentina in the comments. I also put up a gallery of her on the discord – https://discord.gg/xkkQZCCCuh (case-sensitive)
