Although Margaret was eager to return, she was still late, and the melee round had already begun.
Noah hadn't received a reply from Margaret and pretty much knew that Margaret might not make it in time to save the day this time, so she could only activate Plan B. To prevent any problems, Noah had already thought of many solutions. In any case, Maria absolutely couldn't get into trouble, otherwise, how could Noah face Margaret again...?
However, her thoughts weren't reflected on her face. That very day, she sent invitations to Mackey, Candle Knight, and others to watch the match, reserving seats early.
She was just waiting for the melee round to begin, with two spokespeople directly on stage. While this might not deter those who wanted to harm Maria, at least they shouldn't be too blatant.
Not only that, Noah also brought Hintleyya along this time.
Ever since Hintleyya came to Noah's company, she had practically worn 'slacking off' on her face. Forget about murderous intent, Hintleyya even felt a bit fatter now – the cafeteria food was too good, plus there was virtually no work pressure as a front desk assistant.
Her cold face wasn't really suitable for reception, but Noah's company basically had no reception needs. Essentially, the front desk assistant was an idle position, and Hintleyya was completely unburdened, acting as a salary thief.
Moreover, her frequency of visiting the cat cafe was alarmingly high – as long as she wasn't at the front desk, she was definitely at the cat cafe.
Others got paid to take bathroom breaks; she got paid to pet cats. She had mastered the art of slacking off.
However, Noah didn't mind these things. Instead, she felt that this might be a symbol of Shieldless League expressing that they had no intention of threatening her.
After all, sending an assassin to slack off and be a salary thief doesn't look like something a legitimate organization would do, does it? It couldn't be that Hintleyya herself was enjoying it too much to leave, could it?
Bringing Hintleyya by her side was, in essence, also a declaration to Shieldless League that she had no intention of being their enemy.
"Look, I even have the assassin you sent by my side. How could I possibly go against you?"
Then there was Uncle Manner, but he was simply accompanying her as a personal assistant. However, one person was missing from this lineup…
Hintleyya was the first to notice that Kuro, who had always been inseparable from Noah, was gone. Although she didn't ask immediately, her eyes were already searching everywhere for Kuro's trace.
But no matter how much she searched, she couldn't find Kuro nearby. If someone said Kuro had left Noah, she would be the first to disbelieve it.
Kuro had never left Noah's side since she infiltrated the company, so how could she be away from Noah during a trip?
Hintleyya's thoughts were actually correct, but Noah didn't just have Kuro by her side now. To be honest… with a blond middle-aged corporate drone sitting next to Noah, she felt extremely safe.
No one would really think Manner Lim Kwong was weak, right?
Noah sincerely felt that if anyone really underestimated Manner Lim Kwong's strength and tried to attack her while he was with her, then that person's IQ was probably a bit problematic.
As for Kuro… of course, she went to do other things.
Noah smiled and said to Hintleyya beside her, "Are you happy to come out and watch the match with me?"
"Happy, of course happy." Hintleyya nodded, "I've never watched a match from this perspective before."
—In the past, she was basically either in the dark or acting as security; she had never watched a match from the VIP seats. This perspective really offered an unobstructed view, no wonder the VIP seats were ridiculously expensive.
Hintleyya mentally grumbled while subconsciously scanning the audience. As expected, several Shieldless League assassins were lurking among the spectators.
Although they were well-hidden, to Hintleyya, an insider, they were still quite obvious. However, the number wasn't very large.
Based on Hintleyya's experience, either there were a few troublesome individuals in this melee round, or it was purely for defense. In any case, Shieldless League's reasons for being here were just those two.
Maria's reputation had indeed grown significantly recently, and she had likely attracted Shieldless League's attention. However, Maria Nearl was, after all, a member of the Lingguang Family.
No matter what, they couldn't just casually make a move. Her uncle was sitting on the stage, so at least Shieldless League shouldn't be that foolish.
While she was still guessing the reason for Shieldless League's presence, the various Knights had already begun to enter. Although Noah couldn't see, she almost knew Maria had appeared just by listening to the audience's reactions.
She smiled and waved, indicating her presence. And Maria naturally saw Noah in the VIP seats, a subconscious curve forming on her lips. Sure enough, Sister Noah was still worried about her and came to watch the match.
"Is this Xia Guang Knight?" Mackey beside her nodded, "She indeed has the grace of her elder sister, Shining Knight. It seems Miss Noah favors this Knight this time?"
"In fact, I also invited her to join the San Hua Knight Order I sponsor, but unfortunately, she declined," Noah said with a smile, not mentioning her relationship with Maria.
Although those with intentions could surely find out, she had to maintain a sufficient distance on the surface. "So, as an active Knight, Viviana, what do you think?"
"Full of spirit and vitality, she should be a very promising Knight. Her future is bright." Viviana nodded. To be honest, she felt there were too many people in the VIP seats this time.
If possible, she still wanted to watch the match alone with Noah. With so many people, Noah's tone even became so polite when asking her questions. She was a little dissatisfied inside.
If it were just the two of them, the atmosphere would definitely not be like this.
"Indeed, if I sponsored a Knight Order, I would definitely be tempted too." Mackey was beaming, even very grateful that Noah could invite Candle Knight along.
After all, being able to talk to Candle Knight so closely was a gain. Accepting the invitation back then was truly a good decision. At this moment, Mackey was immensely grateful to Noah for inviting her, as such an opportunity was rare.
"Excellent appearance, outstanding strength, full of potential. Whether in economic value or strength, she is a top choice."
"…Uh…" Noah and Viviana both fell silent simultaneously. How were they supposed to respond to that? Although it was a public occasion, they weren't here to poach people; they were just starting a conversation.
But Mackey's remark directly derailed the topic.
Finally, Noah smoothed things over, "Alright, it's about to begin. Let's watch the match."
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