Crowne arrived at the inn. After that, he immediately went to the adventurers' guild in Doomsty City. When he entered, several people turned their heads toward him. However, they quickly looked away. No one seemed to care much about Crowne. From their expressions, it was clear they were troubled about something.

Crowne walked straight to the receptionist. "Can I get information about the sea monster that's been attacking the fishermen?" he asked.

At that moment, everyone turned their heads back toward Crowne. They were surprised, including the receptionist herself. She looked at Crowne's body from head to toe. His body wasn't particularly muscular, just like any other young man. That alone made the receptionist doubt him.

She even considered ignoring Crowne. "Why are you asking that?" the receptionist asked back.

Crowne immediately took out his adventurer card. "I was sent by the guild master of Stromhall City to complete the mission of defeating the sea monster in this city. That's why I need the information you have," he explained.

The receptionist stared at Crowne once again. A second later, she burst out laughing, followed by several other adventurers.

"Are you joking?" the receptionist scolded. "Do you even know what kind of monster you're dealing with? How strong that sea monster is? If you don't, you'd better leave. I'm not in the mood for jokes."

Crowne truly didn't know what kind of monster he would face, but he intended to defeat it with his strength. By doing so, he would earn enough merit to increase his rank again. All of this was for one purpose: to reach Moonlight City. Crowne wanted to go there because his father once said that his mother had been seen in that city.

He wanted to make sure whether that person was really his mother or not.

"I don't know, but I'll defeat that monster," he said firmly.

The receptionist wanted to shout and kick Crowne out, but she restrained herself since she was working. She took Crowne's adventurer card to check his identity. Yet, when she saw the information written on it, her forehead furrowed deeply.

She glared sharply at Crowne. "You…" she took a deep breath, trying to calm down, but her emotion was barely contained. "You're mocking me, bastard! Get out of here! If you don't, I'll use force!"

Crowne was startled by the sudden yell. He remained standing there, staring at the furious receptionist in front of him. He was honestly confused why she was so angry. He felt he hadn't done anything wrong.

"Wh—"

Before he could say anything, the tip of a knife appeared right in front of his face. Seeing that, Crowne's calm expression turned serious. His hand was already ready to draw his weapon.

"Put down that knife or…"

"Or what, huh? Get out before I beat you up and humiliate you here," the receptionist threatened.

Slash!

Blood trickled down the receptionist's cheek. At the same time, the knife in her hand was cut cleanly in half. Her eyes went blank. For a brief moment, she saw the afterlife when the broken tip of her own blade flew past her face. The shattered piece was now stuck in the wooden wall behind her.

"I don't like what you just did. I'm not the type who stays kind all the time. So don't make me angry," Crowne warned.

His mood had turned bad. He took back his adventurer card, then turned around and walked away. As he headed toward the door, every gaze in the room was fixed on him. The adventurers were shocked, since it was the first time anyone had ever dared to harm the receptionist.

Some were enraged by what Crowne had done, but for some reason, none of them could move, as if something was restraining them from standing up and attacking him.

Finally, Crowne exited and closed the door behind him. Only then did several adventurers rush toward the receptionist. A second after Crowne left, the receptionist collapsed into her chair. Her eyes were still empty, filled with shock and fear mixed together. She swallowed hard a few seconds later.

"Are you alright?" one male adventurer asked.

"Do you need a potion? Use mine," another said, placing a potion bottle on the table.

But the receptionist didn't respond to any of them. Her mind couldn't focus on anything else but what had just happened. She kept remembering the moment she saw death right before her eyes. Her hands trembled as she tried to stand, but she fell again moments later.

Eventually, several adventurers helped her up, all eager to assist. The receptionist was a young woman, only 23 years old, with a very beautiful face and striking blue eyes. That made every man there admire her. She was the idol of Doomsty City.

"Are you sure you're alright?"

The receptionist shook her head. "I'm fine."

She stood up, though her hands were still trembling from what had just happened. It was truly terrifying for her. She looked at her shaking hands and swallowed again.

She spaced out for a moment. "Who was that young man?" she muttered in her heart.

"We'll find that guy and make him apologize to you! Just wait here," said one of the male adventurers.

The others nodded in agreement. They quickly prepared to leave, gripping their weapons. Sixteen adventurers in total, all between the ages of 25 and 40, were ready to go. But the receptionist immediately stopped them.

"There's no need. I'm fine," she said.

Some adventurers shook their heads. "You're too kind. If he doesn't get taught a lesson, that guy will never learn any manners."

"Don't worry. We won't kill him."

"Just wait here," another added.

But the receptionist shook her head again. "I already said I'm fine. Go back to your seats."

A few of them wanted to argue since they had already made up their minds to beat Crowne up, but the receptionist's sharp gaze stopped them cold. Seeing that, they exchanged glances and finally nodded.

"Alright then. We'll go back."

"Let's go."

They returned to their seats. Some murmured about Crowne's fate, saying he was lucky the receptionist had stopped them. Otherwise, Crowne would have been beaten badly and left traumatized.

"He's lucky. If Kyrielle hadn't stopped us, he'd be living with trauma right now."

The receptionist heard those words and swallowed.

"You have no idea what I just saw," she whispered to herself. "That was a monster."

"I wasn't the one who saved that young man. You were the ones who were saved."

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