There were many reasons why Dash cared about his friendships before waking up in this reality, but the main one was that he felt everything the same way and because he wasn't the little devil to his original self without the illness that once plagued him.
That's why he cherished Devon; she would be his friend in his past life if he had known her. And right now, Dre was a friend who needed help. Maybe before, this wouldn't matter to him, but Dre trusted him, and he hoped that by the time he left this country, all of Dre's problems would be solved.
After arriving at the infirmary, Dash briefly knocked on the door, and a few seconds later, it was opened by Mr. Han, who was surprised to see them here.
"And your match?"
Upon hearing Mr. Han's question, Dash smiled and said, "I just won. I'm in the final, Mr. Han."
"That was faster than I thought. Congratulations, kid. You totally deserve to be in the final." Mr. Han, who was typically rigid with his words, did his best to craft this robotic congratulations for Dash.
"How's Dre?"
"He can only compete once more, but he may not be at his peak for a long time. Still, it should be enough for him to fight in the tournament semifinal."
While Mr. Han answered, Dre came out of the room, and upon seeing Dash talking with Mr. Han, he immediately approached and asked, "Did you win?"
"I'm in the final, so now it's your turn to face your biggest rival."
"It's not like that. I was forced to participate in this tournament."
"But now you love the feeling of participating in a tournament, don't you?" Dash's question made Dre grin from ear to ear, remembering the feeling of winning those fights.
Now that his match was about to start, they spoke little, and Dre began asking Dash questions on the way about how he had learned such an aggressive Kung Fu.
"I'm not usually aggressive outside of real competitions. Do you remember I told you my opponent attacked me from behind? Since then, I don't show mercy in fights. Otherwise, I'm really a saint for everything else."
"I guess you're right. I hope you forgive me if I can't make it to the semifinals. I'll give it my all, but I'm even more confident knowing you're in the final."
"You're strong, and I'm sure you'll win." Dash's response was brief, but he was very surprised that Dre would say this to him.
The trust one can place in another person can be much or little, all depending on how close they are. For Dash, to have Dre trust him in such a way was very significant. He hadn't thought that he could ever be so trustworthy for someone, and he was genuinely glad about that.
While Dre, who felt good with Dash's presence and the fact that he had come all the way to China to be his companion in this tournament, filled him with strength.
"Are you sure I'll win?"
"Absolutely sure. Don't you believe it?" Dash looked at Dre, who was more serious than usual, perhaps due to nervousness or something else.
"I'll win and let you rest. If you win the tournament, it's like I won it too. We belong to the same Kung Fu school, so the achievement should be for both of us, right?"
Dash nodded and said, "Remember to give it your all in this fight. Holding onto grudges is not good, and you have to make it clear by giving it your all in this fight. Beating the one who bothered you might be amazing, but fight knowing that all your problems would be erased in this battle."
With not much else to say, Dash advised his friend to leave all his hatred in this fight and turn it into fuel. Maybe he couldn't do it yet, but the idea of exploding alongside his negative emotions was becoming less present.
Now that he has a friend and that his hatred can perhaps be erased in a fight, for Dash, it would be much better to advise him to give it his all and forget about it afterward than to never do it, and the problems continue to escalate.
By the time Dre heard this, they had arrived at the arena. The audience, who believed Dre would be disqualified, erupted in cheers and excitement at seeing him enter, limping a bit.
"I'll do my best, Dash, but I'll also fight knowing that you've got my back."
"Go and finish this tournament." Dash raised his fist and sat near Mr. Kim, who was on the side of Mr. Han.
"It seems the contestant will continue fighting, so there's nothing more to be done." The presenter left it to the referee to take charge of the match and stepped down from the platform.
Dash's eyes gleamed with excitement, and he truly wished to see his friend win. But if it didn't turn out that way, then everything would fall on him, who was the first finalist.
"Ready? Fight!"
Dre looked at Cheng, who stared at him with a hateful expression. Obviously, both had their problems, but Dash believed that everything would be resolved just as it happened in reality. Even if it's not the final, the confrontations remain the same.
Dre positioned himself for the fight, and with total seriousness, he began to receive the powerful blows that Cheng sent forcefully at him. This wasn't so complicated to do as he had focused on defense and delivering key blows to win the fights. And in a few seconds, the impressive blows began to resonate on the combat platform.