***

The next day.

Second Floor Village.

Ethan woke up after Risa had roused him. He opened his eyes and saw Leon asleep on the long sofa, while he himself had been sitting on the floor, leaning against the mattress.

"I can't wake Leon," Risa said.

Ethan's eyes narrowed; he yawned once, still sleepy. He glanced at the top-left corner and saw the clock read 9:00 a.m.

"He won't wake up until he wakes up," Ethan answered softly.

He looked to the side. Risa was nearby with Hissy on her shoulder, faithfully doing her job of watching over Risa no matter what.

Ethan asked about breakfast. Risa shook her head. She hadn't prepared anything because she didn't know what to do.

If she dared to go outside, the people out there might kill her because she had a red cursor above her head.

The only thing she could do was wait until Ethan woke up, even if that meant waiting hungry.

Now that Ethan was awake, he would prepare breakfast for them. Leon? He would get breakfast later. His main focus was to serve food to Risa.

After getting ready, Ethan and Risa stepped out of the inn. They didn't plan to bring food from the shop back to their room; Risa preferred to eat outside so people would get used to her.

Unlike at night, morning was the best time for people to get ready. They went shopping for equipment and items to start new explorations.

Some were new to the second floor, some only planned to explore, and others intended to challenge the floor boss.

Ethan didn't know what he would do today; everything would be decided later after he talked to Leon.

But he was certain he would still challenge the floor boss and move up to the next floor. In terms of strength and equipment, Ethan was more than ready for that.

"Yo, Cheeseburger man!" called the shop owner. Ethan only responded with a sigh.

"What brings you here?" the owner asked.

"Food. Something light, not a burger," Ethan replied.

"Sure. I can make that for you."

The owner prepared a meal that fit Ethan's request. Ethan and Risa went up to the second floor of the shop after seeing the first floor full of customers giving them cold stares.

News that Ethan had killed someone in front of the shop had spread among them. Some regretted the act, but those who had seen the real cause of the fight understood what Ethan had done.

They took a table near the shop balcony. There, Risa could eat while watching the crowd on the village street.

"Is Leon okay?" Risa asked, worried.

"Don't worry. Last night he drank too much and got very drunk. I think it's normal for him to be out cold like that," Ethan said.

"He can find his own breakfast."

Soon, a shop staff member came with a tray holding two bowls of chicken soup for Ethan and Risa. The man had prepared a light breakfast for them.

Ethan and Risa ate slowly. Risa liked the dish again, though she admitted cheeseburgers were still her favorite.

They ate while talking now and then. Risa brought up last night, when Ethan had defeated Aries.

"That ability —I think it's a type of sacred magic," Risa said.

"Can you use it too?" Ethan asked. Risa shook her head.

"A powerful, sacred spell like that can only be learned by men in the tribe chief's bloodline. I am the tribe chief, but I'm a woman," Risa explained.

It made sense; men's stamina and physical strength were generally greater than women's.

"I understand."

"If you want, I can ask my elders to teach you that spell later."

Ethan smiled, thankful, but he had to refuse. It wasn't that he wasn't interested in the power; he already had a skill with the same, even greater, effect than that spell.

Besides, he was a warrior with the advanced Omniblade class, not a Magic Swordsman.

It would be better if Risa offered the technique to them rather than Ethan, though he knew it would be hard for the Blood-Cursed Tribe to pass their sacred magic to outsiders.

"No need, thanks. I have a skill with the same effect as that spell," Ethan said.

"Really? Then why didn't you use it yesterday?" Risa asked.

"The effect of that skill can kill an enemy. I used it when I killed the Eternal Banyan Monster."

"Imagine if I had used it on Aries. He would have died before he could try to attack me."

Risa fell silent, not knowing Ethan's skill could be that terrifying. Only Ethan knew the exact details of the skill's effect. Risa couldn't argue.

An hour passed. Ethan and Risa finished their breakfast, but Leon hadn't come to the shop. That made Ethan sure last night's alcohol had hit him hard.

Curious about Leon's condition, Ethan and Risa decided to return to their room. The door opened, and Ethan was shocked to realize Leon wasn't there.

Where did he go?

Ethan opened his digital map and saw a blue dot. One dot was at the inn room, another was outside and not at the shop. That was Leon.

He guessed something might have happened to Leon, something dangerous. Ethan told Risa and Hissy to stay in the room.

"I'll be back quickly with Leon. Stay here," Ethan said.

Risa nodded. She didn't know what had happened to Leon, but with Ethan there, everything would be fine.

Ethan left the inn and followed the digital map to Leon's location. Leon wasn't on the village road but in an area on the outskirts of the village, quite far away.

The further Ethan chased, the farther Leon went. That forced Ethan to quicken his pace to catch up.

When Ethan reached the place, he saw Leon battered, his clothes torn and his body full of wounds. Ethan was shocked and angry.

Leon wasn't alone; he was being held by three men dressed entirely in black. Ethan squinted and hurried over to rescue him.

"What are you doing to my friend?!" Ethan demanded.

Leon turned as they dragged him. The three men looked toward Ethan, their faces serious with intimidating stares.

"We're teaching him a lesson! He assaulted a member of our party," one of the men said.

"Assaulted?"

"No, Ethan! I only accidentally bumped into her, but that damned woman screamed like I had grabbed her tits!" Leon insisted.

This is complicated.

Ethan stepped closer without drawing his sword. If he used Ashura Mode or Tempest against them, they would be finished.

"I'm sure this is just a misunderstanding. Can we talk it out?" Ethan asked.

"What kind of talking?" one of the men replied.

"Let go of my friend, bring your woman here, then we'll check with a UV Scan."

"UV Scan? There is no such thing in this game."

"There is. If you check the equipment shop, UV Scans are used to track monster footprints or blood traces."

"I'm sure a UV Scan can be used on your woman," Ethan said.

"O-Okay! Let's do the UV Scan."

The three men looked at each other, then nodded. They didn't really need proof, but since Ethan asked, they would do it.

They could also extort Ethan and Leon if it turned out Leon had actually molested their woman.

"All right. But if he really did molest her, I want fair compensation," one of the men said.

Ethan agreed, not entirely sure, but he didn't think Leon would do such a thing. He trusted Leon.

"If my friend is not guilty, your woman should accept the same consequences as what Leon is going through now!"

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