Ethan stepped out of the inn alone. Leon stayed in the room with Risa, while Hissy stood guard beside her, loyal as ever to his new close friend.

With Leon and Hissy by Risa's side, everything would be fine.

He ran into a few players along the way. One thing that made Ethan feel less threatened than before was the absence of his PK title and red username.

Ever since he entered the Tower, for some reason, both his PK status and red username had temporarily disappeared.

Because of that, other players only saw him as an ordinary player, not as a killer.

Even so, a few of them recognized the name EthanArk, especially those who came from Porco City.

Just by reading that name, they knew he was a PK listed on the Red Notice.

Ethan stopped when he reached the village tavern. Unlike the last village, Ahren Village actually had a tavern that served food and drinks.

He pushed the door open and saw the place was quite lively. Nobody paid much attention to him; they treated him like a regular visitor, not someone special.

"Welcome," greeted the tavern owner, turning to look at him.

Surprisingly, the owner had a green cursor above his head—different from the pure NPC receptionist earlier.

Ethan walked up to the bar, where the man immediately approached him.

"Want a drink?"

"What do you have?" Ethan asked.

"Plenty. From cheap drinks to expensive ones."

From beer to wine, everything was available here. Still, since this was a game, Ethan couldn't find real-world liquors like whiskey, vodka, or tequila.

Wine was still the best choice compared to beer, even if it cost more.

"I'll take a bottle of wine and some food for takeout," Ethan said.

"Good choice—luxurious and smooth taste," said the owner.

He summoned a bottle of wine right in front of Ethan's eyes. Not only that, he also selected food suitable for takeout, like burgers or burritos. Ethan chose a burger.

I guess this kind of food will be strange for Risa, but she'll eat it anyway.

The owner walked into the kitchen to prepare everything. Since the day Ethan had entered this game, he had never seen someone cook like that before.

Normally, to cook properly, a player needed to own a house or a condo.

With the money Ethan had now, that was impossible. Maybe he'd do it someday.

Before long, the man returned carrying three paper bags—three cheeseburgers: one small and two medium.

"How much?" Ethan asked.

"$22,5."

"Seriously?"

"Haha, I'm kidding," the man laughed, "It's 22.5 gold total."

That meant 22,500 gold. Players shortened the pronunciation to make it simpler.

In other words, one "gold" wasn't really one coin, but 1000. It was probably a common habit among players, so Ethan needed to get used to it.

He paid, and the transaction went through. Ethan kept the wine bottle stored, while carrying the three paper bags in his hands.

"New around here?" the man asked.

"Yeah, just came from the first floor."

"I see. Enjoy the village then. And if you ever want to stay up all night, come by my tavern."

"Sure."

Ethan left the tavern with the food in hand. His goal was to return to the inn and bring dinner to Leon and Risa.

Back in the room, he handed the food to Leon. When Leon opened the bag, his eyes widened in surprise—inside was a cheeseburger, something he never expected to see in this game.

"Cheeseburger?" Leon asked.

"Yeah. You're not lactose intolerant, are you?" Ethan asked.

"Of course not. I'm fine."

Ethan handed another one to Risa. She got up from the bed and accepted it, looking confused as she peeked inside the bag.

"What kind of food is this?" she asked.

"We call it a burger."

"And how do you eat it?" she asked again.

Leon eagerly showed her how to do it. He told her if it was too big to bite, she could press it down to flatten it a little.

Risa did just that, then opened her mouth wide. Leon had already started eating, Ethan hadn't. Both of them watched Risa curiously, waiting for her reaction.

"THIS IS DELICIOUS!" Risa exclaimed excitedly, jumping up and down with her mouth full.

"Of course. Cheeseburgers are America's greatest invention," Leon joked.

Ethan smiled. He had already guessed she'd like it. He opened his own bag and took a bite of his burger.

Then he placed the wine bottle on the table for him and Leon to share.

That night, they ate heartily. About thirty minutes after Risa finished her burger, she began to get sleepy.

Full stomach, soft bed, and the cool air all made her drowsy. It didn't take long before she was sound asleep, with Hissy curled up beside her.

Now only Ethan and Leon remained awake. Their burgers were gone, and they were relaxing with wine.

"So, she's a native of this tower?" Leon asked, glancing at Risa.

"More or less. That red cursor proves she's an enemy that drops loot."

"That's dangerous. Other players will notice it easily," Leon said.

"Yeah. If we're not careful, we could lose her."

"What happens if she dies?" Leon asked.

Ethan went quiet. He was still sitting on the long sofa, holding a wooden cup of wine.

"Then I die too."

"Sounds like your side quest risks your life," Leon said.

"Unfortunately, you're right," Ethan replied.

They continued drinking the wine Ethan had bought. But before the bottle was even half-empty, Leon passed out—completely drunk.

Ethan, on the other hand, couldn't get drunk no matter how much he drank, thanks to his Toxic Resistance ability from his pet contract with Hissy.

He stopped drinking once Leon fell asleep. He wasn't drunk, and he didn't plan to finish the whole bottle by himself tonight. It'd be better to save it for later.

After both Risa and Leon were asleep, Ethan called out to Hissy. Hearing her master's voice, Hissy slowly opened her eyes.

Ethan took a piece of meat from his inventory and gave it to her—her favorite food.

"Stay here and watch over them. I need to go out."

Hissy hissed softly while eating the meat. Ethan trusted her strength completely; low-level players were no match for the snake anymore.

With that, Ethan left the inn and walked into the forest alone. He was planning to hunt monsters and also search for the Tower Artifact and the Blood-Cursed Tribe's village.

According to Risa, the Blood-Cursed tribe was scattered into small villages across each floor. If there was one on the first floor, there could be one here too.

Ethan entered the forest without anyone following him. He summoned Bloodblade Ashura in his hand, and as he gripped it, the blade's form changed—activating Ashura Mode.

[Ashura Mode Activated]

I have five hours to hunt monsters. I'll be back before they wake up.

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