Neo fell silent for a moment.
He calmly looked at Dante.
"...Okay."
Diana immediately turned to Neo, worry written across her face.
"Why did you accept his challenge? He's Rank D!"
Neo looked at Diana.
"I just don't want him to keep bothering you."
Neo then clenched his fist.
"Leave this to me, Diana. I'll fight to become stronger."
Dante, who had heard those words, merely smiled disdainfully.
"All right, kid. Don't get too confident."
Dante turned around and began walking away from them.
However, before he could actually leave, he stopped.
"You don't even know who I am yet."
Dante glanced back.
"I'll give you three days. We'll fight in the village tournament."
Neo answered curtly.
"Fine."
Dante then left the guild.
Several adventurers who had been watching the whole incident began whispering among themselves.
"He seriously challenged Dante?"
"That new kid's crazy."
"Dante's one of the best adventurers in this village."
"He only recently became Rank F..."
Those whispers could be heard clearly around Neo and Diana.
Diana then looked at Neo anxiously.
"Neo..."
Neo turned to her.
"Relax. I'll be fine."
But deep down, Neo knew that fighting Dante wouldn't be easy.
He only had three days to prepare.
Prepare for the Village Tournament
Night fell.
After finishing their business at the guild, Neo and Diana finally made it home.
As soon as they entered the house, Diana went straight to her parents.
"Dad, Mom... something happened at the guild earlier."
Elara, who was inside the house, immediately turned around.
"What happened?"
Diana told them what had happened at the guild.
"Dante challenged Neo to a fight three days from now."
At the mention of Dante's name, Aldren immediately looked at Neo.
"Neo... is it true that you want to fight Dante?"
Neo nodded.
"Yes, Uncle."
Aldren was silent for a moment.
"Why?"
Neo answered calmly.
"I don't want him to keep bothering Diana."
The room fell silent.
Aldren studied Neo for a moment.
Then a small smile appeared on his face.
"Thank you for protecting my daughter."
Aldren grew more serious.
"But Dante isn't an easy opponent, Neo. He's a great adventurer in this area."
Neo nodded.
"I know, Uncle. But I won't back down."
Neo clenched his fist.
"I'll try training the fighting skills I still remember."
Aldren watched Neo's clenched fist.
He had no idea how strong Neo's abilities really were.
It was as if he had just realized something.
"Wait..."
Aldren stared at Neo seriously.
"You can still fight?"
Neo gave a small nod.
"I don't really understand it either."
Neo looked down at his own hands.
"I did lose my memories, but it seems my body still remembers some ways to fight."
Aldren fell silent.
He tried to understand what Neo was saying.
Meanwhile, Diana suddenly looked excited.
"That explains it!"
Everyone turned to her.
Diana immediately stood up and began describing what she had seen earlier.
"I saw it myself! When Neo fought the goblins, he was so cool!"
Elara looked surprised.
"Really?"
Diana nodded quickly.
"Yeah!"
She then raised both hands and began imitating Neo's movements as he fought.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Diana swung her hands through the air as if she were holding a sword.
"His movements were so fast! The goblins didn't even have a chance to attack."
Elara watched Diana's exuberant display.
Aldren, meanwhile, remained silent as he thought about something.
Then Aldren and Elara looked at each other.
It was as if they had reached the same conclusion.
Aldren looked back at Neo.
"Hmm..."
He rubbed his chin.
"In that case, maybe your fighting abilities really are still stored in your body."
Neo looked at his hands again.
He didn't know where those movements had come from, either.
His memories of the past were still blank.
But whenever he was in a fight...
His body seemed to move on its own.
As if he had learned those skills long before losing his memories.
Neo slowly clenched his fist.
"Maybe..."
He stared at his hand seriously.
"In that case, I need to find out who I really am."
The room fell silent once again.