Roy chose the tactic with the most "comments" – basically, the most trash-talking style.
It was arguably the most disrespectful move you could pull in a boxing match. Many professional boxers couldn't stand it, let alone Roy's opponent, who was a hot-blooded student boxer.
Being taunted like that by a newbie in his first match? If Shawn didn't react, he might as well forget about ever making it in the boxing world.
Plus, Roy was so handsome it made Shawn incredibly jealous!
So, Shawn gritted his teeth on his mouthguard, took a step forward, and threw a lightning-fast straight punch right at Roy's handsome face.
Shawn was the type of boxer who usually relied on defense and counter-attacks. His initial step back was just out of caution, wanting to observe Roy's fighting style. He never expected Roy to completely disregard the usual approach.
If that punch had landed, Roy might have been looking at a serious disfigurement.
Seeing his fist about to connect with that annoying face, Shawn could practically see the goddess of victory smiling down on him.
But at that moment, Shawn saw Roy simply tilt his head and dodge the punch, which utterly shocked him.
That kind of split-second evasion required incredibly fast reflexes. Muhammad Ali was famous for that kind of dodging, often leaving his opponents feeling completely hopeless.
Young Tyson was a huge fan of Ali and had deliberately studied his footwork, but Tyson's fighting style didn't really need that kind of dodging – he just needed to be aggressive.
But any technique Tyson knew, Roy knew too.
No way, right?
It had to be a fluke, right?
An uneasy feeling crept into Shawn's heart. Then he noticed Roy still had his guard wide open, pointing his fist at his own face.
Gritting his teeth, Shawn continued his attack.
But unfortunately for him, none of Shawn's combination punches landed on Roy. Every single one seemed to miss by just a hair, forcing him to keep attacking relentlessly.
The more Shawn punched, the more alarmed and terrified he became.
Roy was surprised to find that he was actually collecting fear. He hadn't expected to gain fear in this way.
He'd been too hasty! If he were still on the football team, would he be able to collect the fear of an entire team by beating up the opposing players?
But that was just wishful thinking. Having teammates around would lessen the feeling of fear.
Besides, Roy's football skills weren't good enough to carry him to victory against an entire team. It was a team sport, after all, and even if he was amazing, he couldn't carry a bunch of useless teammates.
Relying on his agility, which far surpassed that of his peers, Roy retreated to the edge of the ring. Calculating that the timing was about right, he suddenly ducked low.
Shawn was in the middle of his flurry of punches when he suddenly realized Roy had disappeared from his sight. He instinctively pulled back his fists to protect himself, but by then it was clearly too late.
Surprise! Uppercut!
Roy's fist connected squarely with Shawn's chin. Even with the protective gear, Shawn was lifted slightly off the ground by the force of the blow.
Roy had practically squeezed every last bit of power out of his 15 Strength points!
Shawn crashed to the canvas, causing a brief silence in the arena, followed by a roar of cheers that could have lifted the roof.
The referee immediately started counting down over the fallen Shawn, while Roy raised both hands in celebration towards his parents, Jennifer, and Needy.
Shawn barely managed to get back to his feet as the countdown was about to end. However, after checking his state of consciousness, the referee decided that his concussion was quite severe and declared him unable to continue the match.
After all, this was just an amateur high school boxing match, not a professional one. A conscientious referee would always prioritize the physical and mental well-being of the children.
And so, Roy's first boxing match ended with a technical knockout of his opponent.
The match ended very quickly, with still a few seconds left in the first round, but the audience had been thoroughly entertained.
Seeing such incredible dodging and footwork in an amateur boxing match made the ticket price totally worth it.
"Roy!"
"Roy!"
"Roy!"
Many spectators in the arena had already become Roy's fans. They would probably come to watch Roy's next match as well.
After the referee announced the victory, Coach Lambert rushed into the ring and hugged Roy.
"Great job, Roy! You really are a genius!"
"I've always been a genius!"
Roy's friends and family climbed onto the stage to hug him, turning the scene into a sea of joy.
In stark contrast, a defeated loser, having lost his dream, was being helped away, a towel draped over his head.
Reporters at the scene captured this moment with their cameras, and it would appear in the sports sections of newspapers across Texas tomorrow.
The next day, Roy went to class as usual.
"Roy, you're in the newspaper again!"
Needy excitedly walked up to Roy, holding a newspaper. The one in her hands was from Austin, the capital of Texas.
The headline read: "Former Football Quarterback Turns Boxer, Shocks the Audience."
"Why did the reporter emphasize that I was a former quarterback?"
Jennifer, who was standing nearby, leaned in and answered Roy.
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"Because it grabs attention! The jump from quarterback to boxer is huge!"
During high school, many talented students would participate in several sports just to get more scholarship opportunities.
For example, a certain "GOAT" (Greatest Of All Time) candidate in high school played both basketball and football until they entered college or the draft, at which point they would make their professional choice.
But it was rare for someone to participate in boxing while also participating in other sports, because boxing was the most injury-prone competition.
Once a boxing match started, unless someone directly surrendered, the outcome was almost always one person getting injured and the other winning. Or one person getting seriously injured and the other winning with minor injuries – there were no other possibilities.
As soon as you got injured, you had to rest, so there was no time to participate in other sports.
Unless, of course, the boxer never got injured.
Was that even possible?
"Maybe you're right. By the way, Needy, I heard the school might be having a trip in a few days. Is that true?"
As a top student, Needy had a particularly good relationship with the teachers and often got inside information about school events.
Needy pushed up her black-rimmed glasses and answered Roy, "It's true. The principal decided to organize a group outing after the exams in December. The exact date isn't confirmed yet, but it will definitely be before winter break."
Winter break in America usually starts in late December and lasts until early January, mainly for Christmas and New Year's.
Generally speaking, schools wouldn't organize any group activities so close to the holidays, but who told Oak High to be a private school?
Private schools didn't have as many rules; it all depended on how generous the principal and the board of trustees were.
Sometimes, the principal of a private school would organize group activities to reward students for their outstanding performance in sports competitions.
"Jennifer, Needy, where do you think we'll go?"
"Maybe we'll go to Austin to visit universities and museums. After all, we're graduating soon," Needy replied.
"That would be too boring! I bet we'll go to an aquarium or a zoo," Jennifer guessed.
*Ding-dong-ding*, the school bell rang.
(End of Chapter)