Two years ago in the year MM-18, march twenty-second as the 18 year old Caesar stood in front of her parents graves with her younger brothers during the funeral, her ears flinched as she heard something approaching which made her turn to the direction and saw five black cars.
The black cars stopped and out of the black cars, the Mizukais stepped out, each accompanied with their bodyguards.
Caesar's eyes widened as she seemingly recognized the five.
While the five siblings approached Caesar, she subconsciously used her hands move her brothers behind her.
The Mizukais stood in front of Caesar and Raizan spoke.
"Greetings, young woman. We are in search of the Moon couple and were informed that this is where Albagon and Silvia were to be buried.
Is that correct?"
Caesar paused for a while before speaking.
"Yes. This... This is where Albagon and Silvia are buried."
"Ah. So, the sources were true. They did go off dying." Akari said with a smile as she elegantly fanned herself.
"Humph." Rin said.
"I see. Since they are dead, I suppose we move unto the daughter and since you are here, there is no need to waste time and resources to search."
"Huh?" Caesar said in confusion.
"You're their daughter, aren't you?" Gendo asked with a smirk, "I mean it is so obvious. You have Albagon's beastfolk traits but also have Silvia's eyes and face."
Raizan glanced at Rai and Eyo, observing their frightened demeanor before shifting his gaze back at Caesar.
"What I'm about to discuss with you is very important. Deeply important. I suggest you leave the little ones out of it for now." Raizan said to Caesar.
Caesar stared at Raizan for a while before she turned to her brothers.
"Go wait for me at that tree." Caesar said as she pointed at a withered oak nearby.
Rai and Eyo hesitated until Caesar nodded softly at them.
"It's okay. I'll be fine." Caesar said.
The boys obeyed and walked away, leaving Caesar alone with the Mizukais.
After they had gone, Caesar shifted her gaze back to the Mizukais.
"Now... Back to what we were saying." Raizan said, "We came to see the place they were buried and meet their daughter who goes by the name Caesar Moon... Which is you, of course.
You see, months ago, your parents came to us and borrowed some money... Five million yons. They promised they would pay it by this month but unfortunately, death caught up with them."
Caesar hearing those words, her eyes widened.
"Five million? From them?! Papa... Mama... What the hell is wrong with you?" Caesar said within.
"Our sources told us that your parents borrowed the money in hopes of gambling it and gaining double but it didn't work as they planned." Raizan said, "In the end, those two died without paying a single rux."
"Pathetic, really." Rin said, "They came at our feet, begging for money they promised to repay but in the end, they didn't touch a single thing."
After hearing them out, Caesar stayed quiet for some time before speaking.
"Okay, but what does that have to do with me?" Caesar asked.
"Oh, it has everything to do with you, Miss Moon." Gendo answered with a grin, "Have you heard of the saying 'The fathers have eaten sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge'?
You see when a parent dies, the debt doesn't die with them, it passes on to their children and they have to pay for their parents sins."
"That's bullshit." Caesar replied with a scowl, "I never came to you to ask for money. I never went on my knees to beg like they did and I never will."
"If you want your money back, go ask them." Caesar said as she pointed at the graves of her parents, "But as of right now, I am not bound by any means to pay for something I did not collect."
Right before Caesar could walk away, one of the bodyguards clamped her wrist, stopping her in her place and leaving Caesar to glance at them
"I don't think you understand... Miss Moon." Raizan's voice sounded, causing Caesar to turn to the direction.
" 'This' is not a suggestion." Raizan coldly said as he slightly tilted his head while the upper half of his face was overshadowed, leaving only his blue steel eyes gleaming through.
Currently as Caesar sat in the passenger seat of Balland's car while staring at her phone screen, Caesar softly smiled at the picture of Rai and Eyo in a white long sleeve top, blue tie, blue trousers and black shoes.
"They've already gotten their uniforms, huh?" Caesar said within.
Balland glanced at Caesar and noticed the smile on her face.
"Well that's new." Balland said.
"Hm?" Caesar said as she glanced at Balland.
"Since I employed you, I've never seen you like that. In fact I don't think I've ever seen you smile at all." Balland said, "You always carry this gloomy look. The look of someone who is done with life."
"Oh... Uh... It's my brothers. I... I'm just happy for them and what they have gotten." Caesar replied.
"Oh. I see." Balland said as he resumed facing forward, "That's good. Whatever it is."
Silence stayed in the atmosphere for sometime until Caesar spoke.
"Are we there yet? The gym?"
Balland nodded and replied
"Just about there."
The car eventually slowed down as they approached a large, gritty building with a metal sign that was written "SANITY".
Caesar, in seeing label, stared at the building with a blank face and a raised brow.
"Y'know... I'm starting to have second thoughts about this place." Caesar said.
Later in the gym, Caesar and Balland were walking and discussing with each other.
"So Caesar, remember what I told you." Balland said to Caesar, "Don't piss him off. No backtalks, no ego-"
The conversation came to a halt as a man flew past them with a pained yell and crashed against a wall, leaving a bloodstain as his head clashed against it.
The man slowly slumped to the ground and laid unconscious while twitching which made Caesar's eyes widen in horror while Balland sighed and shook his head.
"Pathetic!" A masculine voice sounded from across the gym.
Caesar and Balland turned to the direction of the voice and saw a bald, muscular fair-skinned man wearing a a navy tank top, white shorts and black sneakers while having a thick black Garibaldi beard and tattoos covering his arms and scalp, approaching the unconscious man.
The bearded man stood close to the unconscious man and crossed his arms while glaring down at him.
"You think Magoi won't be able to take points from you?! With this pathetic display, do you think you she won't be able to break you in half?! You're so fucking stupid!!" The bearded man said.
The bearded man glanced at Balland and Caesar and Balland stared at him with a raised brow.
"You done here here, Cedric or should we go wait outside?" Balland asked the bearded man.
"No, I'm done. Just needed to put the message into his thick skull." Cedric replied.
"Yeah... I can see that." Balland said, "Anyway, I informed you that today, I will bring the person I'd like you to train.
So..."
"Caesar Moon, this is Cedric Gray." Balland said to Caesar as he gestured towards Cedric.
"Cedric Gray, this is Caesar Moon." Balland said to Cedric as he gestured towards Caesar.
"Ah, yes. I know you." Cedric said to Caesar, "You're the one who skipped the line to get in through Mizukai connections.
You're currently one of the most hated performers in the roster. Your debut alone gained more heat than the combination of what others have struggled for in a lifetime."
"That says something." Cedric continued as Balland's eyes shifted towards Caesar.
"Anyway, with that being said... Your performance in your debut was ass. Terrible." Cedric said as he turned his back, "You were backed up expensively, dressed in an expensive gear, only to get an expensive ass whooping."
"Which is kinda funny if you look at it." Cedric said as Caesar crossed her arms while staring at him with a plain expression, "So, what's gonna happen is..."
"I want you to punch me." Cedric said as he hastily glanced at Caesar with a grin.
Silence stayed for some time and Caesar slightly tilted her head.
"Huh?"
"You heard me. Punch me, right now. As hard as you can." Cedric said.
Caesar's right brow twitched and she let out a sigh.
Caesar walked towards Cedric and cracked her knuckles.
"Okay. As you wish."
Caesar then balled her right fist and swung it across Cedric's jaw, however, her attack barely moved his face.
Caesar gruntted in pain as she held her wrist and stepped back a little.
"What the hell?!" Caesar said in her mind.
Caesar instantly recalled the same incident in her debut with Cardinal.
"Just what in the world are these people's faces made of? Steel?!" Caesar asked within after the recollection.
Cedric stared at Caesar then glanced at Balland before shifting his gaze back at Caesar and shaking his head like a disappointed father.
Without a word or warning, Cedric swiftly slammed his fist into Caesar's belly which made her cough out spittle and left her laying flat on the ground.
Balland, seeing this, slightly winced while Caesar's cough resonated.
Cedric then glanced at Balland again before shifting his gaze back at Caesar who at the time was clutching her belly and coughing.
"What the hell was that? You call that a punch? That felt like a fucking paper." Cedric said to Caesar, "I've seen EBW women hit far harder than you. How the fuck are you supposed to survive with this kind of fist?"
Cedric extended a helping hand towards Caesar and Caesar though hesitant at first, took it and was pulled up to her feet.
"You just don't throw your arm like that, otherwise you would be hurting your hand. You gotta use your core, your hips... Gosh!" Cedric said as he turned his back on Caesar while placing his arms on his waist, "I can't believe I have to tell you this. Now, I gotta teach you how to throw a proper punch."
"Have you ever been in a fight before?" Cedric asked as he glanced at Caesar with a raised brow.
"A couple of fights from work and a lot from street fights." Caesar answered while still clutching her belly.
"I find that hard to believe. Especially with the way you punched right now." Cedric replied, "Did you at least have some wrestling training elsewhere before coming to the company?"
"No." Caesar answered.
"Ah. So no training, no tough enough, nothing. Not to mention you've got a terrible punch." Cedric said,"The Mizukais just used their connections to put you in the ring like that. No wonder you were ass in your debut. They set you up for failure.
'Backedbyprivilege', apparently, money isn't everything."
"Looks like I gotta start from the basics." Cedric continued as Caesar and Balland exchanged glances.
"Anyway, before we begin, I'll need to see if you are truly worth my time." Cedric said to Caesar, "So, I have a question for you and I need you to be honest with me.
You have definitely seen what we ero-wrestlers do on the internet and television. You yourself have had your first match in EBW.
Tell me..."
"What do you think of the company?" Cedric asked as he crossed his arms and slightly tilted his head, "How you answer will determine how you will be trained... 'If' you'll be trained."
"You want an honest answer?" Caesar asked.
"You deaf now?" Cedric asked as his face hardened.
Csesar the exhaled and spoke.
"Fine. It's a porn industry pretending to be a wrestling company. That's all it is."
Hearing Caesar words, Balland face-palmed himself.
"Damnit, Caesar." Balland said within.
Hearing those words, Cedric's visage changed into a terrifying glare. He slowly brought down his arms and clenched his fists so hard that the popping of his knuckles could be heard, drawing Caesar and Balland's eyes towards that direction.
"Woah, Cedric..." Balland said as he slowly extended his arm forward.
Cedric narrowed his eyes at Caesar and stayed silent for a while until he erupted into laughter, catching Caesar and Balland off guard.
Cedric's laughter boomed and tears began to well at the corner of his eyes.
Caesar subtly glanced at Balland and Balland shrugged his shoulders.
"That's a good one! You're really good!" Cedric said to Caesar.
Cedric exhaled as his laughter died down and turned his gaze towards Balland.
"Many of the guys I rejected or trained half-heartedly, they lied to my face and told me what they thought I wanted to hear. This one didn't." Cedric said.
"Congratulations, kid. You've just got yourself a personal trainer." Cedric said to Caesar, "From now on, I'm not just going to teach you how to throw a punch, I'm going to teach you how to survive in this company."
Cedric then laughed out loud again which made Caesar stare at him with a blank face while her eyebrow arched.
"Yep. He really is crazy." Caesar said within.
After Cedric had finished laughing, Cedric then sighed and placed his hands on his waist.
"Now, when I asked you of your opinion about EBW, I liked how you gave your honest views." Cedric said to Caesar, "Though it is strange that a woman who was backed by the Mizukais to enter would say something like that, but honesty is honesty."
"Anyway..." Cedric said as he turned his back on Caesar and started walking slowly towards the ring, "I did like how you came clean. When I asked you your thoughts about the company, you called it a porn industry playing wrestling.
You're not particularly wrong. To the outside world, that's what it looks like... A house full of freaks and degenerates."
"But..." Cedric said as he placed his palm on the pole of the ring, "Life is not that simple. Everything is not black and white.
Sure, there are many that entered for cheap fame. Many that entered to prove a point to whatever or whoever... I don't know. There are also many that entered because they are too horny for their own damn good. But..."
"Majority that are in this company are here because life shoved them here. Victims of circumstances." Cedric said as his voice softened while he tilted his head down, "People with nowhere left to go. People who are trying to provide for their family and loved ones. People who gave up their pride and body because they had no other choice, and they are willing to bear the judgement of the public just so that they can either survive or their loved ones can."
Caesar's ears drooped as she was stunned by his words.
"Fathers, mothers, uncles, aunts, friends, elder brothers..." Cedric said as Balland glanced at Caesar.
"Elder sisters." Cedric continued as Caesar tilted her head down.
Caesar recalled the faces of Rai and Eyo before she glanced at Balland.
"To the outside world, EBW is a disgusting place, but to the workers here, it is food, rent and medicine." Cedric said as he turned his gaze to Caesar, "Don't get me wrong, many of us hate what we do and have to do in the ring in front of people.
It's a shitty job, yes. Disgusting ... Absolutely disgusting... But it is a second chance to those the world spat out and an olive branch to the desperate.
And something tells me that even though the Mizukais got you in..."
"You're one of us." Cedric said with a smile.
Caesar's mouth slightly hung open as she was caught off guard by Cedric's words.
Cedric then stepped into the ring and extended his arm forward.
"Get in. Its time for your training." Cedric said with a grin.