Chapter 25 - Three Seconds
Ryan swung.
Elias moved just far enough to avoid the strike.
He did not counterattack.
Security officers rushed forward.
Ryan shoved one of them and attempted another strike, but three trained officials restrained him without prolonged violence.
The confrontation lasted less than three seconds.
Yet it ended Ryan’s final defense.
He had spent weeks claiming that Claire and Elias were unstable aggressors.
Now cameras showed the opposite.
Elias remained composed.
Claire stood behind him, still holding the drive.
As officers escorted Ryan away, he shouted toward the audience.
“You all needed me!”
No one answered.
The championship belt remained inside the empty cage.
Reporters surrounded Claire, but Maya raised a hand.
“She has already made her statement.”
Elias and Claire walked toward the exit.
Outside, Claire began trembling.
Elias opened his arms but waited.
She stepped into them.
“I thought he was going to hurt you.”
“He wanted me to forget why we came.”
“You didn’t.”
“Neither did you.”
Behind them, Vanguard’s lights shut down one section at a time.
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For years, Ryan had used the cage as proof that he was stronger than everyone around him.
In the end, he lost because Elias refused to enter it.
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