She only smiled. Vio just responded with a smile and a laugh. Ethan sighed, stood up, and focused his eyes straight ahead, watching Vio's face closely.

Leon seemed to have no idea about this. He didn't even know who Vio was or which guild she came from. But Ethan's closeness with Vio clearly showed there was something between them.

"I have to go back there, you know. Don't ever visit that lake again," said Ethan, pointing at Vio.

"What kind of crazy person would want to go there again? Luckily, I'm not crazy," Vio replied.

"So? Can we go on an adventure together?" Vio asked.

Ethan refused. Luckily, he said he was from Sword Liberation. A scavenger-type guild party like theirs wouldn't notice anything.

It would be troublesome for Ethan and Leon if they knew Leon's party was from the LionArk Guild, considering the two guilds were strongly hostile toward each other.

Adventuring with them wouldn't benefit Ethan and Leon.

"No. We'll go on our own," said Ethan.

"Sigh! Alright then, if that's your decision. We'll go hunt monsters in the north before challenging the floor boss. If you want, you can come there," said Vio, exhaling deeply.

Without thinking too much, Vio said goodbye to Ethan and Leon. She walked away from the village with her three party members, occasionally glancing back to see if Ethan would follow her or not.

Apparently not. Vio's behavior seemed strange to her teammates. They immediately asked about her relationship with that man named Ethan, but Vio only gave a small smile and didn't tell them much about it.

Elsewhere, Leon asked Ethan about Vio. Ethan explained while walking away from the grassy field.

Leon looked shocked, not expecting that Ethan had gone hunting monsters last night and obtained a Tower Artifact.

Ethan opened his item panel and chose the items he had gotten from the Tower Artifact. He handed Leon a Wind Element Spirit Crystal of uncommon rank. Whether Leon would use it or not, Ethan didn't know.

"Thanks, Ethan."

Just as they were walking down the main road of the village, Ethan stopped when he saw an item and accessory shop.

He glanced at Leon's blue-and-white LionArk uniform. Many other players recognized that outfit.

That could be dangerous if they ran into an expert party from one of the Big Three Guilds. They would attack Leon's party just because they were from LionArk.

"Do you have another outfit besides that uniform?" Ethan asked.

Leon nodded. He still had a uniform from his previous guild, as well as a casual outfit he had bought from a boutique.

Ethan told Leon to change his outfit to avoid drawing suspicion. That way, no one would recognize the LionArk party identity. They'd only know if Ethan or Leon told them.

Leon didn't know what Ethan was planning, but he would still obey. He was sure Ethan had a reason—probably for their safety.

Ethan opened his inventory again and put on his black robe. Leon was amazed, feeling nostalgic seeing Ethan dressed like that again.

"Should I buy the same black robe as you?" Leon asked.

"If you don't mind, go ahead," replied Ethan.

"That store. They should be selling it," said Ethan, pointing to the item and accessory shop beside them.

Leon turned to look. There were a lot of people shopping there, meaning it was a reliable and well-stocked shop for a village on a tower floor.

He stepped inside to buy a robe like Ethan's, while Ethan waited outside. Not long after, a woman's voice called his name from the direction of the inn.

Ethan turned and clearly saw Megan coming with her four party members. Megan looked shocked—the last time she saw Ethan was at the floor boss castle.

"Ethan?"

"Megan?" Ethan replied.

"I thought you already challenged the floor boss and went up to the second floor," said Megan.

"I did, but we decided not to continue and to rest in this village," Ethan said.

"You fought that monster? Can you tell me what it was like? How does it attack? Does it have any debuff powers?"

Ethan glanced briefly at Leon, who was still choosing items and waiting in line at the shop. That gave him enough time to describe what kind of floor boss it was.

Megan and her team listened carefully. They started to understand what kind of boss it was and how strong it could be.

Megan was the first to react with surprise when she heard that the floor boss they faced was a kobold with magic attacks.

"Kobold boss, level 40, with 12,000 HP. Its attacks are long-range magic," Ethan explained.

Megan nodded several times, agreeing with Ethan's words. To her, that was valuable information—not something easy to get.

Few people were willing to share this kind of info with other parties.

"How long did it take you to kill that kobold boss?" one of the men asked.

"I don't know... maybe five to ten minutes," Ethan answered flatly.

"That's really fast. Are you sure you're not lying?"

"Why would I lie to you? I'm just strong," Ethan replied, sounding slightly arrogant.

Ethan turned and saw Leon walking toward him, now wearing the same black robe. When Leon arrived, he noticed Megan and her team, and immediately greeted them.

Megan smiled, and her teammates greeted Leon warmly. Still, they couldn't help but laugh a little at how Ethan and Leon looked.

"What are you guys wearing?"

"Camouflage. Ethan told me to," Leon said.

"Camouflage? What for?" Megan asked.

"For a lot of reasons. You don't need to know," Ethan replied.

Megan fell silent for a moment, then nodded in understanding. Once Leon was ready, Ethan started walking away from the village.

They didn't head north—but west. Ethan briefly explained what he needed to do there.

He told Leon not to interfere, of course, to keep him safe.

Ethan had clearly prepared a backup plan in case Risa's decision ever went against his own.

When they reached the crossroads, Ethan stopped and turned around. He clearly told Leon to wait there.

"This place is safe. No monsters except at night. I'll be back quickly," said Ethan.

"What if I wait for you back at the village? That's much safer," Leon suggested.

"Sure. I'll come back to the village after I'm done there."

Ethan summoned the Tempest Reaver sword in his hand. As he gripped it, his appearance began to change as he entered Tempest Mode.

[Mode Tempest Activated]

"I'll be back soon," said Ethan. Leon only responded with a quiet grunt.

Ethan dashed away from the crossroads at lightning speed. Leon squinted, trying to follow Ethan's movement in Tempest Mode, but failed.

Normally, it would take Ethan two to three hours from the crossroads to reach the Blood-Cursed Tribe village. But with Tempest Mode active, it only took him one hour.

As a result, Ethan's sudden appearance at the village gate shocked the two guards. They were startled to see a stranger appear so suddenly, looking aggressive.

"Who are you?!" one of them shouted.

"I'm Ethan."

"Ethan?"

"Miss Risa ordered us to open the gate for you. But you'll still have to enter under our escort," one of them said firmly. Ethan didn't object.

He walked into the village calmly, his eyes scanning around. He could see the villagers starting their morning activities.

News about the man who held Lord Gor's sword had spread among the villagers. Risa had told them he would return this morning.

"So, he's the one holding Lord Gor's sword?"

"He's handsome, but he's still an outsider," said another villager.

The mothers pulled their children closer to keep them away from Ethan, while the village guards surrounded him with their spears raised.

The noise in the village drew one of the village elders from the chief's stilt house. He didn't come alone—Nok came along, already recovered.

"Put away your weapon if you want to meet the chieftain," said the elder firmly.

Ethan stayed silent. He sheathed the Tempest Reaver and deactivated Tempest Mode. Now, people saw him unarmed.

Once they confirmed he no longer carried weapons, they allowed him to climb the stairs and enter Risa's residence.

Inside, the atmosphere was different from last night. Three elders stood near where Risa sat, and Nok was there too, guarding his cousin.

Ethan was the only outsider in the room. The three elders glared at him coldly.

Besides Risa, Nok and the elders also knew about the message. The reason Nok had attacked Ethan yesterday was because he wanted to take back the sword and give it to the strongest man in their tribe—to protect their tribe's reputation.

But Ethan's power had been far more terrifying than Nok ever imagined.

"We've heard your suggestion about taking Miss Risa away," said one of the elders.

"However, we decided she will stay in the village. It's safer to keep her here than to let her go with you," added another elder.

"That's her decision. Now do your job and start relocating our people to the 50th floor," said the elder.

Ethan smiled. He had already guessed they would refuse to hand Risa over. He didn't know what would happen to her if she stayed here.

"What if someone stronger than me attacks this village while I'm gone?" Ethan asked firmly.

"Then it's your responsibility to protect Miss Risa," the elder replied.

Ethan chuckled quietly. How foolish and careless they were to talk to him like that. That basically made him their errand boy—someone they could order around whenever they pleased.

"Miss Risa," Ethan called, making her look up at him.

"This is annoying."

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