Gon's Harem System
Chapter 115: Will Gon choose success over friendship? part 1

Chapter 115: Will Gon choose success over friendship? part 1

Gon stepped into the arena, the sun bearing down on him like a relentless hammer, its heat shimmering off the cracked stone beneath his boots.

The roar of the crowd filled the air, a cacophony of cheers and jeers that seemed to press against him from all sides.

Dust swirled in lazy eddies around his feet, kicked up by the frenetic movements of the previous fighters, but he barely noticed.

His mind was elsewhere, still sluggish, still tangled in the memory of the night before, a memory that clung to him like a stubborn fog, refusing to dissipate.

It felt surreal, standing here now. Less than twelve hours ago, Dina had been in his arms, her breath warm and uneven against his lips, her body pressed against his in a way that had nothing to do with combat and everything to do with something far more dangerous.

The scent of her, jasmine and sweat, still lingered in his memory, as did the softness of her voice when she’d whispered his name in the flickering candlelight of her chambers.

Now, she stood across from him, a competitor in this brutal arena, her stance rigid, her eyes locked onto him with an unsettling stillness that sent a shiver racing down his spine.

Gon exhaled slowly, rolling his shoulders in an attempt to shake off the tension coiling in his muscles.

He forced a smirk onto his lips, the same cocky grin he always wore before a fight, and called out to her across the dusty expanse. "Remember, you promised not to take it easy on me."

Normally, Dina would have responded, maybe with a sharp retort, her voice dripping with sarcasm, or maybe with an exaggerated eye roll that would’ve made him laugh despite himself.

They’d always had that kind of banter, a playful back-and-forth that had grown over months of training together, fighting side by side, and eventually... something more.

Today, though, she didn’t even blink.

She just stared at him, her expression unreadable, her body coiled like a predator waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Her hair was pulled back tightly, accentuating the sharp lines of her face, and her amber eyes, usually so warm when they looked at him, were cold, distant, like the glint of a blade catching the sun.

A strange sensation crawled up Gon’s spine, a mix of unease and something he couldn’t quite name.

He shifted his weight, his hand brushing against the hilt of the sword at his side, but before he could make sense of the feeling, the announcer’s voice boomed through the arena, amplified by the runestones embedded in the surrounding walls.

"Begin!"

Dina moved instantly.

She shot forward like an arrow released from a taut bow, her hands blurring through the air as she summoned three identical clones, each one a perfect mirror of her, down to the cold determination etched into their faces.

They fanned out around him, closing the distance with terrifying speed, their movements synchronized in a way that spoke of countless hours of training.

Gon barely had time to react before the first Dina struck.

He twisted away, narrowly dodging her fist as it sliced through the air where his face had been a moment before.

But another came at him from the side, her movements a blur of motion.

He ducked, rolling backward just in time to avoid a spinning kick aimed at his ribs.

The force of her strike sent a gust of wind past him, carrying with it the faint scent of ozone, a telltale sign of the magic she wielded.

A sharp whistle cut through the air as her fist grazed past his face, close enough that he felt the heat of her knuckles against his cheek.

She wasn’t holding back.

Gon kept dodging, his movements fluid, almost instinctual, as he slipped through the relentless barrage of attacks without countering.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight back—he’d fought opponents far more dangerous than Dina and walked away victorious, but something held him back.

His sword remained sheathed at his side, its weight a familiar comfort against his hip, while his mind struggled to reconcile the woman before him with the one who had kissed him just hours ago.

The memory of her lips, soft and urgent against his, flashed through his mind, and for a moment, he faltered.

But Dina didn’t hesitate.

She came at him again, fists flying, clones shifting in and out of reality like flickering mirages.

Every time he avoided one strike, another was already incoming, forcing him to stay on the defensive.

Her attacks were relentless, a storm of motion and intent that left no room for error.

He could hear the crowd roaring, their voices a distant thunder in his ears, but all he could focus on was the rhythm of her strikes, the deadly precision of her movements.

Still, he didn’t fight back.

And Dina noticed.

Her expression remained unreadable, her body a blur of motion, but beneath it all, frustration began to simmer.

He wasn’t engaging. He was dodging, weaving, escaping, but he wasn’t fighting. It was as if he didn’t take her seriously, as if he thought he could afford to hold back because of what they’d shared the night before.

The thought gnawed at her, a splinter of irritation that burrowed deeper with every evasive move he made.

Her jaw tightened, her amber eyes narrowing as a single thought echoed in her mind: Don’t let feelings stop you from doing your job.

And her job was to win.

Her attacks grew sharper, faster, more ruthless.

She drove her knee toward his ribs, he sidestepped, the movement almost lazy. She swung a backfist toward his jaw, he leaned away at the last second, the air hissing as her knuckles passed within an inch of his face.

Even her clones struck in perfect synchronization, their movements a seamless dance of violence, but he continued to evade them with frustrating ease.

It was as if he was toying with her.

The thought sent a hot spark of irritation through her veins, igniting something fierce and primal within her.

She’d trained for years to become a fighter worthy of this arena, to prove herself against the best of the best.

She wasn’t here to be underestimated, not by Gon, not by anyone.

With a sharp inhale, Dina shifted her stance, drawing all her clones back into herself in a shimmer of light.