The Gates of Freedom loomed in the distance.
They were like the gates to the heavenly kingdom, and for some, they were exactly that.
That was their exit to the outside world and to their freedom.
While there were many who enjoyed the Underground City, there were also many who wanted to taste the delicious feeling of freedom.
Everyone who had been sent to Warhaven were criminals who were too dangerous to be left alone in the outside world.
Ambrose didn’t know this, but if the Inquisitors had captured him, they would have thrown him inside the Warhaven.
“…” Ambrose had found a seat inside the bar near the window. With thoughts racing through his head, he turned to face the Gates of Freedom.
‘To think there is a battlefield and no one knows about it except Warhaven and the Inquisitors.
‘That would definitely be the best place to acquire experience points…
‘However, would I really want to increase my bounty?’ Ambrose was conflicted. ‘My bounty might disappear within a month, and when I leave the Dojo Temple, I wouldn’t need to look over my shoulder anymore.
‘However, I don’t know how long I will stay in the Dojo Temple, and when my bounty disappears, wouldn’t I be lower ranked than white-ranked?
‘If they were already servants, what would I be? A doormat or something…’ Ambrose bit his finger and pondered the possibilities. ‘The best choice would be to enter the battlefield, gain experience points, and ensure that my bounty gets increased.
‘As long as I don’t get a red bounty, my bounty would still disappear within time. I already dug this hole deep enough; I might as well keep going.’
Ambrose then sighed and looked away from the Gates of Freedom. He had made his decision. If his bounty didn’t increase, then it would disappear at least in a month and, in the worst case scenario, in a year. Therefore, he wanted to increase it at least a little bit.
‘Tomorrow, I will enter that battlefield.’ Ambrose stood up and walked over to the exit. But then he noticed the public board and went to check it out.
He was surprised that there were so many brown bounty posters and very few red bounty posters. There were also white ones, but they were hidden under other bounty as if they were garbage that didn’t deserve to be shown.
‘Those red bounties are crazy high!’ Ambrose thought with shock as he saw one of them.
[WANTED]
[ONLY DEAD]
[Rank: Red]
[Name: Cadogan “The Slayer of Moon” Duskless]
[Reward: 1,799,565 silvers]
‘That is insane.’ Ambrose inhaled a cold breath. ‘Only dead, huh? Nearly two million bounty. With a quick calculation, that is around 180k crowns. I would be able to live a life of luxury for several years with that much money.’
“Hey, you!” An arm suddenly appeared around his shoulders as a man with drunken breath appeared next to him with a flushed face. “Are you… white or brown? Nah, you are white… A baby-faced weakling like you is definitely white…”
“I am brown-ranked.” Ambrose said and slapped his arm away.
“Hah…” The drunken man grinned. “I don’t believe you…”
Ambrose narrowed his eyes and turned to the public board. He looked around, and soon his eyes widened in a surprise. He tore the bounty from the board and showed it to the drunken man.
“Hmm, Ambrose and 7,500 silvers…” The drunken man looked at the resemblance between the sketched image and the young man. He then smirked. “Only 7,500 silvers. A weakling, good!”
“Huh?” Ambrose frowned.
At the bar counter, the bartender sighed and facepalmed. ‘Never show your bounty if you are not certain that you have more than the person opposite you.
‘If your bounty is lower, then you will become a target. They always try to taunt and trick you into showing your bounty, but if you don’t, they won’t attack if they are not sure your bounty is lower.
‘That is the way of Warhaven!’
The drunken man reeled in his fist with a crazed look and massive grin. He threw a powerful straight punch.
“Ugh!” Ambrose crossed his arms, but his bones rattled as the punch broke his block. He stumbled back, feeling the force of the blow.
“Hehe!” The drunken man lunged forward and threw several quick jabs, each striking Ambrose’s block like a rain of sledgehammers.
Smack, smack, smack!
The drunken patrons laughed and enjoyed the fight while downing the alcohol.
The bartender sighed and looked away, as he was certain how the fight would end.
“Shit!” Ambrose crashed into a nearby table and had the alcohol spill over his cloak. His hood slipped off his head, revealing his bald head and the rest of his face.
The punches then rained on him relentlessly, leaving him bruised and bloodied. His health began to plummet rapidly, and he struggled to maintain consciousness.
At that moment, a cloaked figure arrived at the entrance and saw the two people fighting in front of him, blocking him from walking further. As soon as he appeared, the bar patrons turned quiet.
“Hahaha, punch, punch, punch!” The drunken man hadn’t noticed him yet and continued relentlessly punching the bruised young man in the face.
“Ugh…” Ambrose groaned in pain as he tried to shield himself from the blows. He then moved his hand down, moved the cloak out of the way, and grabbed the hilt of his sword.
Thousands of times he practiced the drawing of a sword flashing across his mind, and right now, it felt like second nature. He slowly unsheathed the sword from the scabbard, and once the black blade appeared, he could feel the power coursing through his veins.
“Punch Meteors!” The drunken man grinned and hammered his fists down.
As one of the punches landed on his cheek, Ambrose’s mind turned blank, and he slashed out with the black blade, cutting through an arm with deadly precision. The blood spewed and landed on his pale face.
The drunken man’s smile faded, replaced by a look of shock and pain. “Ahhhhhhhh!”
“Piss off!” Ambrose screamed and slashed through the man’s head. The man’s body fell to the ground, lifeless and motionless.
[You killed a Brown-ranked Criminal!]
[600 XP Earned!]
“Hey…”
He then heard a deep voice, and Ambrose slowly turned to look at the towering man. He was stunned as the cloaked figure seemed three meters tall and had a powerful presence.
“You are in the way…” The gigantic man clenched his fist and smashed it through Ambrose’s face. The skull shattered, and the blood splattered everywhere. “Insect!”
…
[You are dead!]
[Do you want to revive?]
[Yes/No]
‘Unbelievable!’ Ambrose thought as he floated in the dark expanse of space. He had a bad feeling that he had lost something valuable, as he wasn’t carrying much.
Thus, he pressed yes and soon reappeared in Honorable Zhen’s cottage.
When he opened his eyes, he saw the Black Sword in his hand, but he was only wearing a beige-colored robe. He then checked the inventory and came to one conclusion.
He lost his worn-out black cloak, which he had received from Crow Cave!
“Damn…” That made him slightly sad, as it had been with him for quite some time now. ‘I still have that red cloak I received from one of the Death Blade members, but it still saddens me.’
‘I didn’t expect to get attacked just by telling my bounty. I suppose they threaten bounties as measurements of strength?’ Ambrose rubbed his chin, feeling like he had learned much more. ‘Well, I only lost the black cloak, 100 silvers, and half of my XP. 𝐎𝗏xt.𝗰𝑶𝔪
‘It was a valuable lesson, which I will take to? heart. I will be much more careful when I am there next time.’