old friends.

Noah found himself among 249 other fighters in the arena, but at first glance, no one caught his interest. As the announcer declared the start of the battle in Arena 4, the combatants began their assaults. Noah, however, focused on dodging attacks and waited for enough participants to be eliminated.

Monica, watching from the sidelines, overheard someone mentioning Noah.

"I told you I saw him; I can't mistake him, though he's even more handsome now," Marta exclaimed.

"So, he's fighting in this tournament? And he's already a rank 4? Truly a monster," Sara commented.

Tom Mosby, a friend of Sara's who had trained with Marta in North Domaine, asked, "Who are you talking about, Sara?"

"He's a friend from Windhaven. He's quite talented," Sara replied.

"Hmph, I don't see anything special; he's just running around," Tom scoffed.

Monica didn't hold back, mocking, "Loser."

Tom turned back, visibly upset. "What did you call me?" he fumed.

"I didn't call your name, but you turned around, and I suppose you know yourself well," she taunted.

Embarrassed, he threatened, "You think I can't take you on?"

"Give it a try, but be prepared. If my master finds out you've touched his only disciple, I can't predict how he'll react," she retorted sarcastically.

Sara, who seemed to know Noah, asked, "Is Noah your master?"

Monica nodded, and it seemed that Sara was familiar with Noah.

Marta, surprised, murmured, "He already has a disciple."

"I'm Sara. I know Noah from Windhaven City. My friend here didn't mean what he said, so please forgive him," Sara said with a smile.

Tom, however, remained steadfast. "No, I mean it, and if he survives the arena, I'll beat his ass in front of his disciple."

Marta sighed, "You really want to make trouble. Don't involve me. I want to maintain a good relationship with Noah."

Tom was shocked but still held onto his pride. "I see the monkey of the group," Monica mocked.

Furious, Tom threatened, "Listen, girl. I'll cripple your master, and then I'll come here to see what you can do about it."

Monica simply smiled and turned her face away. Meanwhile, Sara decided to steer clear of trouble and said, "I'll go prepare for my fight. Marta, stay here and watch."

Monica introduced herself, asking, "So, how do you know my master? Oh, by the way, my name is Monica."

Marta replied, "I knew him; he was my sparring partner, and he gave me a pill that helped me break through."

Monica noted, "Oh, AuraCleanse. It's indeed helpful. I took it as well, and I'm now at peak rank 3."

Marta nodded, "Yes, I was childish back then and offended him a lot, but thank God he didn't hold a grudge against me."

While the girls chatted, Noah finally began his fight, demonstrating that his attacks were simple but devastatingly effective.

In the midst of the battles, a man aimed a punch at Noah's face, but Noah smoothly sidestepped and delivered a punishing blow to the man's liver, swiftly taking him down.

Sara, fighting in another arena, displayed remarkable skill with her two short machetes, slashing through her opponents like a war god. Her arena was the first to finish, leaving only four participants, all women, with Sara among them.

In Arena 2, Lily fought using her bare hands, kicking and breaking the arms and legs of her opponents. Her arena was the next to conclude, leaving three boys and Lily.

In Arena 1, Jones emerged victorious quite easily, with two other boys and one girl.

Noah's own arena had wrapped up, and he was now waiting for a fierce battle between a guy and a girl half his size. The girl's agility and speed were reminiscent of a monkey, and she eventually won. In the end, Noah and three other girls emerged as the victors.

Noah, seemingly unphased and not even breaking a sweat, contemplated a modification to his technique. He had already made up his mind.

Returning to Monica, he spotted Sara, Tom, and Marta.

"Hey, it's been a while," he greeted with a smile, offering a brief hug to Marta and Sara. Tom, on the other hand, stood at a distance, giving him hostile stares, which Noah chose to ignore.

"It's definitely been a while, and you've become truly incredible," Marta praised.

Noah chuckled, "Haha, you've grown strong as well. I see you haven't been slacking."

Marta beamed with pride and took a seat. "Sara, you use machetes. I've never seen someone fight with those. I hope to face you in battle soon," Noah remarked.

Sara smiled and replied, "We'll have our fight if you don't stumble along the way."

Curious, Noah looked at Monica and asked, "Why is that guy giving me those stares? Did you do something?"

Noah's keen awareness surprised them all. Little did they know that Monica held a deep admiration for him and would fiercely defend him if anyone gave him a wrong stare.

Monica confirmed, "He said he'll cripple you."

Noah gazed at the guy with a hint of amusement and asked Sara, "If he dies, will you blame me?" in a casual tone.

"Please don't go that far," Sara replied.

"Alright, just for you," Noah responded.

Tom, realizing he had made a mistake, decided to leave. He had been confrontational, but Sara's intervention had averted a more serious situation.

Noah settled down, closed his eyes, and began contemplating modifications to his technique. The tournament was a one-day event, so he needed to make adjustments immediately.

"Monica, get me a paper and a pen," he instructed.

Monica already knew what he was going to do and promptly provided him with the requested items. Noah identified some flaws in his technique and began considering potential solutions. His primary issue was with his footwork, so he contemplated three possibilities: boxing footwork, Taekwondo footwork, or Capoeira.

He received word that his fight would be the fourth one, and he requested Monica to keep an eye out for any interesting fighters and show him video footage of their matches in case he had to face them.

Monica nodded.