VISION GRID SYSTEM: THE COMEBACK OF RYOMA TAKEDA

Meanwhile, Ryoma is already surrounded by a handful of Japanese reporters who have flown all the way to London just to talk to him. Actually, there is supposed to be a separate press conference for him after Malik’s session, but apparently, waiting is not one of their strengths.

By now, they have already been talking for quite some time, and Ryoma seems to be enjoying the conversation more than he expected.

”You’re still asking me about that sparring session?” Ryoma says with a small chuckle. ”Come on. It’s been weeks already. Don’t you people ever get tired?”

”Unfortunately, your title fight ended rather quickly,” says a middle-aged journalist.

”Yeah, we’ve been following you for quite a while now, and tonight we barely got to see the things you usually do best,” adds another one.

”Sorry to your management team,” a female journalist says, ”but it seems like they picked a rather soft opponent for you this time.”

”Hey, hey…” Ryoma immediately cuts in. ”If Malik or the local fans hear that, we might get thrown out of here.”

They all burst out laughing, the room suddenly feeling more like an old friends’ reunion. Tanaka, however, never quite lets himself get carried away with the laughter.

”So, Ryoma, when are you going to fight Elliot Graves?”

”Still as hungry for a headline as ever, Tanaka-san?” Ryoma replies.

”Well, what can I do?” Tanaka shrugs. ”My boss didn’t pay for this long trip expecting me to come back with jokes.”

”Fair enough.” Ryoma nods.

The mood shifts as the other reporters turn their attention toward him, clearly interested in the answer as well.

”Elliot’s management and I do have plans for that,” Ryoma continues. ”We’ve already agreed on a working arrangement, and we’re going to do something similar in Japan later. This time, Elliot will come to Tokyo.”

”So, are we going to have a unification title fight at home?” one of the journalists asks.

”No, no.” Ryoma shakes his head. ”You see, we’re both newly crowned world champions. We still need to prove ourselves a little more before we start talking about unifying the belts. So, at least two title defenses first. If we both manage to keep our titles, then we’ll fight each other.”

”Will it be at the Tokyo Dome again?”

”Nope. We have our sights set on filling Wembley Stadium.” Ryoma pauses casually. ”Unfortunately, that probably means you lot will have to fly back here again.”

The reporters stare at him for a moment, visibly stunned by the scale of what he has just proposed.

A few seconds later, notebooks come out almost simultaneously as the reporters begin scribbling down the details.

Before another question can follow, a staff member appears. ”Mr. Takeda. I’m sorry to interrupt, but it’s time. Your official press conference is about to begin.”

”All right, everyone,” Kurogane says. ”You can continue pestering him outside. His press conference is waiting.”

The reporters gradually disperse, some still chatting among themselves while others continue scribbling in their notebooks as they walk.

Ryoma and his team have just finished gathering their things and are preparing to leave the room when someone suddenly appears in the doorway, immediately drawing everyone’s attention.

”Oh, Reika…” Ryoma walks toward her. ”You… what are you doing here?”

”Hi, Ryoma.” Reika greets him with a sweet but slightly awkward smile. ”Congratulations on your win.”

Ryoma pauses, genuinely surprised that she has actually gone this far just to watch his fight. He knows how Reika feels about him, but he hadn’t realized it had reached the point where she would fly all the way to London for him.

”You came alone?”

”Not really.” Reika says. ”I came with my dad.”

Ryoma’s expression changes immediately.

”Your dad…”

”Yeah. He wanted me to congratulate you for him.” She pauses briefly. ”Unfortunately, he had to leave earlier. He ran into a friend from Russia, and that person invited him outside for a chat.”

Ryoma blinks slowly, and his mind already begins putting the pieces together. Considering Logan Rhodes’s reputation, and the fact that tonight is a world title fight, there are not many Russian names which would have any reason to come to his mind.

Nakahara and Sera approach a moment later. Ryoma glances toward them and immediately catches the same realization in their expressions.

”Well, let’s talk again later,” Nakahara says. He gives Reika a brief nod. ”Sorry, Reika, but it’s time for the press conference.”

”Yeah, of course.” Reika takes a small step back.

The group eventually leaves the locker room together, with Reika falling into step beside Ryoma as though she has already found herself a place among the team.

This time, Ryoma doesn’t object to having her so close. His doubts about her father, however, have just returned.

***

The thing is, Ryoma isn’t the only one with questions tonight. Logan Rhodes has a few of his own to answer.

Not long after leaving the venue, Logan finds himself seated across from an old acquaintance in a quiet private room, far enough from the arena to escape the noise and cameras that have followed them throughout the evening.

Erzhanov sits opposite him, surrounded by two trusted men who remain mostly silent throughout the meeting. Logan has brought only two of his own.

Neither man needs an introduction. They have crossed paths often enough through the international boxing circuit, usually from opposite sides of whatever negotiation happened to put them in the same room.

Tonight, however, there is no contract waiting between them. Their conversation remains deliberately casual at first, drifting between the night’s results, the changing landscape of professional boxing, and the increasingly valuable young champions reshaping it.

Erzhanov listens more than he speaks, carrying himself as though he is enjoying the meeting. Internally, however, NSN’s partnership with Ronin is anything but pleasing to him.

After indulging the small talk for long enough, Erzhanov finally sets down his glass and brings up the matter that has been bothering him.

”You seem to have invested quite a bit in that boy.”

Logan’s mouth curves into a faint smile. ”I invest in opportunities. The boy just happens to be a very interesting one.”

As usual, Erzhanov says very little. After Logan’s answer, he simply sits there in silence, his expression remaining flat as he studies the American across the table, almost as though he is trying to read what lies behind the answer.

Logan doesn’t need long to understand what kind of conversation this is going to become. Whatever polite small talk brought them here is unlikely to survive much longer.

He then leans back slightly before speaking, ”I heard a story about that kid getting kidnapped in Tokyo. Russian men. One of them looked French.”

His eyes shift briefly to the right. One of Erzhanov’s men sits there, his appearance carrying an unmistakably French character. Logan knows enough faces in the boxing world to recognize one when he sees it.

His gaze returns to Erzhanov. ”I hope those weren’t your people.”

”And what if they were my men?” Erzhanov replies without a hint of emotion. ”What would you do? Play the boy’s guardian? Or are you simply another man trying to monopolize a valuable asset before anyone else can get their hands on it?”

Logan smiles before letting out a quiet chuckle. ”Well, I did try that once. Tried to acquire the kid’s potential.”

”And you failed?” Erzhanov asks.

Logan’s head tilts slowly while his eyes briefly move toward the French-looking man before returning to Erzhanov.

That short question is enough, and Logan understands that Erzhanov himself has tried the same thing before, and failed just as he did.

Now the possibility that the men behind Ryoma’s abduction in Tokyo once worked for Erzhanov is no longer just an assumption.

Logan exhales slowly. For the first time, his expression loses the usual ease he carries when dealing with business matters. There is something more serious in his eyes now, the look of a father protecting his daughter.

”Listen. I’ve known that kid since he was very young,” Logan says. ”I didn’t find him. My daughter introduced him to me, right after his debut.”

Erzhanov raises an eyebrow slightly. ”A daughter?”

”Yes. And she’s with him right now.” Logan’s gaze hardens. ”Before long, that kid will be part of my family.”

He leans forward slightly, his voice remaining calm but carrying considerably more weight than before.

”So, Erzhanov, whatever you’re trying to do to him, whatever you’re planning, I’m asking you to stop.”

Erzhanov says nothing at first. He recognizes the threat beneath Logan’s demand, but it does nothing to unsettle him.

”I’ll try,” he replies with a slight shrug. ”But I won’t promise the boy will remain safe from me forever.”

Logan’s eyes narrow, only slightly, but Erzhanov notices the change. So he shifts slightly in his chair before leaning forward as well, meeting Logan’s stare without hesitation.

”A world champion trying to climb the rankings on another circuit is unusual, Logan. But that boy, despite already holding the WBO title, had his fight tonight sanctioned by the WBA as a ranking bout.”

He leans back again, his expression remaining calm. ”And I’m not naive enough to ignore that. I know what he’s after. So don’t tell me what I should do, when the boy himself is knocking on my door, trying to take something that belongs to me.”