Chương 61: New Members

After the debate, Max and the others went to the cafeteria for lunch. During this time, Devon finally asked why they came to this place if they didn't like the food.

"I need to go to the bathroom. You can eat my food if you want." Devon stared at Max's untouched food tray and wondered why he even bothered taking the food if he wasn't going to eat it.

Max, who could perfectly read Devon's thoughts, replied, "You know I take the food because if anyone finds out we're not eating, they might call our parents—or in my case, my guardian—and talk to them about our situation at school."

"Does the school really do that?" Ryan, who was sitting next to him, asked, a little confused.

Devon, who had already stood up, said, "They even call if you miss school for a few days. You can't skip here, or the police end up getting involved."

"I experienced that police thing a few years back..." Max recalled when the police showed up at his house because he had missed a few days without notifying anyone. He'd been training at the time—that was before he left for China.

Watching Devon leave, Max turned slightly and asked Bert, who was eating, "Does anyone bother you at school?"

"Huh? No, but even if they did, I couldn't defend myself." Bert replied while casually eating his jelly.

Ryan leaned in, gave Bert a light nudge with his elbow, and, looking at Max playfully, advised him like an old friend: "Then you should visit Cobra Kai. They'll make your muscles grow, and they'll teach you never to tell anyone you can't defend yourself—especially if there's a girl around."

"In that regard, Ryan's right."

One of the basic rules for any guy is to never say you don't know how to defend yourself or that you simply can't. In certain aspects of life, those words should never be uttered lightly.

Bert understood this thanks to Max, who was mostly indifferent, but Ryan wouldn't let it slide.

"I'll go today."

"Perfect! If you can handle the classes and become a good fighter, you might even get to fight me," Ryan said, excited at the idea of finding rivals his age. So far, Max was the only one who had beaten him.

Tory would also be joining Cobra Kai. Eli and Demetri said they'd come along, so Cobra Kai's influence was growing at an alarming rate.

Even if most didn't stay, Max felt reassured about having ordered the construction of a true mixed martial arts school, like the ones in China.

Once Cobra Kai had a school of that caliber, it would be one of the best in the country.

Max even dared to say that throughout America, Cobra Kai would be recognized as one of the best places to train and produce skilled fighters.

...

Cobra Kai Martial Arts School

"Why did I let you talk me into this? This goes against all my principles," Demetri said, much more nervous than he wanted to admit, standing among all the new students enrolling that day. "This feels like an extra hour of gym class for no reason."

"We need to give it a try," Eli insisted, convinced they should train at this place.

"Yeah, I don't think so."

"Didn't you see the fight?"

"That was brutality that could easily land us in jail for being accomplices to that beating. I see nothing fun in this. Dude, you need to understand we won't learn how to defend ourselves here."

Eli was frustrated. He knew that if Demetri hadn't stayed in the bathroom during that fight, they might have been able to stand up to Kyler's friends. But when Demetri decided to flee, all of Eli's desire to fight faded. Now, he wanted to learn from Cobra Kai so he'd never back down from a fight again.

At that moment, Johnny, seeing more than fifty students in his dojo, most of them new, shouted, "Attention, we're about to start."

But when he saw no one paying attention, he shouted again, "Quiet!"

All the youths, especially the new ones, fell silent, and a wave of pressure washed over them.

With their attention focused, Johnny stood in front of them and barked, "Everyone, face forward!"