Number 1 versus number 1

As Noah left the arena floor, the adrenaline still coursing through his veins, he expected to find Lila waiting with that knowing smile of hers. Instead, when he spotted her in the competitor waiting area, her expression stopped him cold.

She looked mortified—eyes wide, face drained of color. When their gazes met, she turned abruptly and walked away without a word. No congratulations, no acknowledgment of what they'd been practicing together, nothing.

'What was that about?' Noah wondered, a knot forming in his stomach. If anyone should be pleased with his performance, it should have been Lila. She'd been the one pushing him to explore other aspects of chi manipulation.

Before he could process this, Kelvin bounded up, slapping him on the back hard enough to make him wince.

"Dude! That was insane!" Kelvin's face was animated with excitement. "You just took down a third-gen mirror user! How did you even—"