'So we are all E-ranks?' Leon's gaze flickered between his group and the four young men closing in.
They all wore outfits similar to his mates', but in a different style that sent Leon's nerves on edge.
"What rank are they?" Leon asked, placing a hand on the broad-shouldered boy's damp shoulder.
The boy shook him off roughly. "D-ranks. The first group we… they were E-ranks." He corrected himself, not crediting Leon with any part of the victory.
'E to C? What about the D-ranks?' "Fine," Leon said aloud. He repositioned himself, raising his empty hands to a guard position as he settled his weight.
Twenty feet away, the new group, wearing masks, stopped and raised their arms. Cheers rose from the audience sitting in the far distance.
The one in the center, a skinny boy without a mask, whose eyes looked calm, knelt and placed his palms on the ground.
