Aren spent the rest of the day with June. They went out and ate more, then returned to his place and played a few matches against each other. He watched her smile with every win. She was genuinely happy, and that made him happy, but beneath all that joy was the fear of what was to come.

Regardless, he smiled through the night.

When the sun rose again, he got ready to leave.

"I guess this is it for now," she said, standing outside the room and looking at him.

"Yeah, for now. But I'll be back. And when I come back next time, I'll bring something very special for you, maybe a martial art," Aren said.

Her eyes lit up, excitement written all over her face.

"Really? That would be awesome."

"Really," he replied.

With a wave of his hand, he turned and left. She watched his back grow farther and smaller until he disappeared from sight. The smile on her face slowly shifted into a resolute look.

Her brother was Shadow, the strongest new Awakened.

She now had a standard to live up to when her time came.

[ ...… ]

Stepping back into the Domain, Aren took a deep breath of the air.

"Alright. Everything's settled. Time to actually get into things," he muttered.

He shoved his hands into his sweatpant pockets and swaggered through the city, head held high as he looked around.

The place was filled with a massive number of newly Awakened. It seemed the trials had officially ended, and those who survived were finally out.

Different organizations had already begun mass recruitment. Representatives rushed toward Awakened, trying to get them to sign contracts. The entire city buzzed with activity.

Aren, on the other hand, had no need for any of that.

He wandered for a bit until he found exactly what he was looking for, a noodle stand. A place where he could get actual hot noodles.

It was more of a stand than a shop, meaning he would be sitting outside.

He walked over and sat down.

The man behind the stand was a tall, middle-aged man, clearly a Trueborn at first glance.

"A Trueborn making noodles…" Aren thought. Guess the culture really settled into the Domain over time.

"Hello, young Awakened," the man said enthusiastically, clasping his hands together in respect.

"Hello. I'd like whatever you consider your best noodles," Aren replied.

"Oh? Right away."

The man immediately got to work behind the stove, almost putting on a performance. His knife skills were insane, hands moving with precision while his eyes tracked everything around him.

Aren was completely drawn in.

Minutes later, a steaming bowl of noodles was placed in front of him. He was given the option of chopsticks or a fork. Not one to show off, he picked the fork.

A small smile formed on his face as he leaned in for the first bite.

And at that exact moment,

A group of young Awakened rushed past, clearly chasing something. Aren paid them no attention, fully focused on his food, until a thick arm slammed into the bowl.

The bowl flipped.

Time slowed.

Aren's eyes followed it, his body already reacting, hands shooting out to catch it, but the same bulky guy who had knocked it suddenly stopped. Aren's body slammed into him, throwing him off balance.

The bowl hit the ground.

Crack.

Noodles splattered everywhere.

Aren dropped from his chair to his knees, staring at the broken bowl on the ground, pure sadness written on his face.

"Hey you," the guy said, looking down at him. "You bumped into me and spilled your food on my feet."

Aren froze.

Not out of fear.

Out of anger.

"Hey! Can't you hear me?" the man continued. "Stop crying over a bowl of noodles and pay me for the"

BOOM!

A clean uppercut smashed into his jaw.

Bone rattled. Brain shook.

The world spun as his massive body lifted off the ground and slammed back down hard.

The entire area fell silent.

Aren calmly pulled out a silver coin and placed it on the counter for the noodles. Then he turned to look at the man.

The guy staggered to his feet, rage exploding from him.

"How dare you?" he bellowed.

Aren stood relaxed, but his eyes glowed red with fury.

"You wasted my food and didn't apologize," Aren said coldly. "That's worthy of death."

Everyone had stopped to watch.

"Screw you, bastard! I'll make you pay for that cheap shot!"

Bones popped.

Muscles expanded.

In seconds, the man transformed into an eight-foot-tall ogre-like monster, a single horn protruding from his head. His skin turned ash-gray, black patterned markings spreading across it. His eyes burned red.

"ROARRRR!"

The roar thundered through the street, shaking the ground. He slammed his foot down twice like a bull preparing to charge.

Then he launched.

Each step cracked the pavement as he rushed Aren, leaping into the air and interlocking his hands before swinging a massive hammer fist downward.

Aren kicked back, narrowly dodging.

The hammer fist smashed into the ground, blasting apart the well-paved road.

The ogre lifted his head, eyes wild, searching.

Aren was not there.

"Behind you," Aren said calmly.

The ogre spun, swinging with full force, but Aren leaped into the air, his expression cold and furious.

"I'll make this fast," he muttered.

Wolf guard formed around his right hand, he launched downward. But the ogre reacted at the last moment and pushed back, dodging the attack and thinking it had escaped Aren

"Think again." Aren said before unleashing a powerful blast of lightning that slammed right into the chest of the ogre, leaving a massive burn wound, and stunning the ogre, allowing Aren instantly cover the distance and deliver a close up punch right into the guts.

The ogre was launched back, as pain shot through his body, he looked up and saw the small human figure walking him down. He wondered how Aren in that small figure was so indomitable.

Aren was about ti finish it next when a voice cut through.

"That's enough!"

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