Chapter 285......
Neo nodded once, sharp and decisive. The moment the words settled in his mind he triggered his speed skill. The world blurred. Trees, roads, and distant rooftops streaked past in a single rush of wind and motion. He reached the Adventurers’ Guild in seconds, boots slamming down on the stone steps hard enough to crack a small chip from the edge.
He pushed through the heavy double doors. The hall opened wide around him, loud with voices and the clink of armor. Right in the middle of the floor stood a massive poster, tall as a man, edges pinned tight. Bold letters announced the competition. Neo walked straight to it, eyes scanning the rules, then turned to the reception desk.
The same woman from earlier looked up. He told her he was joining. She took his name, his age, and asked for his power level. The competition limited entrants to strength level fifteen. Neo placed his hand on the smooth crystal ball on the counter. Numbers flared across its surface: twenty-two. The receptionist’s eyebrows rose a fraction, but she only nodded, wrote the number down, and handed him a metal tag stamped with a number. "Tomorrow morning. Be here early."
Neo clipped the tag to his belt, turned, and left. Outside he slipped into Torch Man Mode. Flame-like energy wrapped his body without burning, lifting him off the ground. He rose above the rooftops and began to explore the kingdom at a steady glide, eyes taking in streets, markets, and the distant walls. Hours passed. The sun dropped. Night settled over the land.
He found a quiet stretch of forest outside the city and dropped under a broad tree. Before he slept he checked the barrier he had set the day before. It still held, a thin invisible shell that kept monsters and scavengers away. Satisfied, he stretched out on the cool ground and closed his eyes. Sleep took him cleanly.
Morning light woke him. His body felt stiff from the hard earth. He rolled his shoulders, shook out his arms and legs, then shot upward into Torch Man Mode again. Fire-bright energy carried him in a straight line back toward the guild. He landed outside the doors and walked in. The same receptionist was already at her post. She handed him a thin wooden pass without comment. "Royal arena. Show this at the gate."
Neo took it and left at once. He activated his speed skill the moment his boots hit the street. Buildings whipped past. In minutes he stood before the high stone walls of the royal arena. Guards checked the pass and waved him through. He stepped inside.
The open ground was already crowded. Dozens of fighters stood in loose groups, some talking, some silent. Auras pressed against one another—some bright and open, others tightly controlled and almost invisible. Neo ran a quiet scan. Every single one of them sat above level twenty-five. The posted limit had been fifteen. These people were far past it.
He moved through the crowd until he reached a tall man in red armor. A single white feather hung from a thin string fixed to the knight’s helm. Neo tapped the man’s shoulder. The knight turned.
"Why is everyone here so strong?" Neo asked. "The notice said level fifteen."
The red knight laughed, a deep easy sound. "The notice is just the door. The real fight sits higher. Everyone who shows up already knows that. Look around. These people came from every corner of the kingdom. Some crossed half the continent. They didn’t travel that far for a practice match."
Neo waited. The knight’s eyes stayed on the crowd.
"The reason is simple," the knight said. "They all want the same thing you came for. Vel. The Golden Knight. Her teaching. Every one of them is serious about it."
Neo felt the words land. He rubbed the back of his neck, the motion slow. He had come for her body—system orders first, teaching second—but the system would only unlock the teaching after he slept with her. Saying he wanted the teaching was not a full lie. He met the knight’s gaze and gave a short nod.
"Then let the strongest win."
The red knight nodded back, still smiling.
A butler in clean black stepped into the center of the arena floor. He held a long sheet of paper and raised his voice. Two names rang out across the open space. Everyone else was ordered outside the marked circle. Fighters shifted at once, moving to the low walls and the stands. Neo found a spot on the stone rim and sat, legs hanging. Two men faced each other in the circle and began to fight. Steel rang. Dust rose. Neo kept his eyes moving, scanning faces, looking for gold armor or a familiar outline. He saw none.
He turned to the fighter sitting beside him—a lean man with a scar across one cheek. "When does Vel show up?"
The man shrugged without looking away from the match. "When something interesting happens. A strong move. A secret technique. Same as every other year. She waits until the arena gives her a reason."
Neo nodded. The idea settled in his mind. If that was the rule, he would give her a reason.
He did not know that Vel was already there.
The moment he had stepped through the arena gate she had appeared on a high ledge above the stands, half-hidden by shadow and stone. She watched him without blinking. Her eyes tracked every movement—the way he scanned the crowd, the way he spoke to the red knight, the way he sat on the wall. She had heard the entire conversation. A tight pressure rose in her chest, the kind that came before a full release of power. She crushed it down at once so the air around him would not change. She would not scare him off. Not this time. Last time he had used that vanishing skill and disappeared before she could finish speaking. She would not let it happen again.
Her hand rested on the hilt of her sword. A small grin touched her mouth. She spoke under her breath, voice low and sure.
"Don’t worry. I’ll appear at the best moment. You’ll wish I never had."
Below, Neo kept talking with the scarred fighter, eyes still searching the stands between exchanges of the ongoing match. Time stretched. Names continued to be called. Matches ended. New pairs stepped into the circle. Then the butler’s voice rose again and Neo’s name left the paper.
He stood. The fighter beside him gave a short nod of luck. Neo walked down the steps and into the open circle. Dust still hung in the air from the last fight. He stopped at the center line and looked across to the opposite side, waiting for his opponent to appear.
Vel stepped out of the crowd and walked toward him.
Neo’s eyes widened. The gold of her armor caught the morning light. The sword at her hip moved with her stride. She stopped opposite him, calm, as if this had always been the plan.
He turned sharply to the referee standing at the edge of the circle.
"Is this against the rules?"