Tyler, following the guard, saw the dungeon exit and the bright light beyond. The contrast with the dungeon's darkness was stark. Bernardo, watching Tyler walk past his cell, wearing high-quality Gloom armor, thought, "What happened back there? One moment he wasn't wearing this clothing, and the next he was. How did he do that? How can an E-rank like him afford that kind of gear?"

Tyler stepped out of the dungeon and saw a man with striking white hair. He was dressed in high-quality grey clothing: black leather shoes, grey trousers, a grey shirt, and what looked like a fine grey blazer. A sword was sheathed in a scabbard at his waist.

"Sir," the guard said, "I've brought the hunter."

Dean looked at Tyler's necklace, his expression shifting from calm to anger. He struck the guard, causing Tyler to stumble back in surprise. "Why didn't you tell me it was just an E-rank hunter?" Dean roared. "You think I like wasting my time with worthless garbage?" He turned to leave.

"I'm sorry, my lord," the guard stammered, clutching his nose.

"Wait!" Tyler called out. "You're just going to take me back in there? Isn't there anything I can do?"

Dean paused. The guard, nose bleeding, looked at Tyler. "You can pay a fine of twenty silver for fighting in the street," he said.

"Oh," Tyler said, "then you should have told me that earlier. I have two gold coins. I can give you that."

A smile crept onto Dean's face.He looked at Tyler, assessing his gear. "He doesn't have a weapon, but that armor... the quality is high. There's no way that was cheap. He must be from no ordinary family," Dean mused.

"What's your family name, young man?" Dean asked.

"Huh? Evans. My family name is Evans," Tyler replied.

"Evans? I haven't heard of that family name before. It sounds as if the name itself doesn't hold any meaning. Oh, and the payment for the crime you just committed is to be four gold," Dean stated, extending four fingers.

The guard looked at Tyler, wiping the blood from his nose. Tyler was surprised the guard's nose bled so readily from a single slap.

"Four gold?" Tyler asked, surprised.

"Y-yes," the guard stammered.

"Alright then," Tyler said, reaching into his pocket. "People always get surprised when I summon things from my inventory and assume I'm a mage-hunter. I heard they're skilled, so I don't want any attention drawn to me right now." He subtly summoned the coins within his pocket, then withdrew his hand, revealing four gold coins.

The guard was surprised. He hadn't expected the E-rank hunter to simply produce the gold as instructed. Nevertheless, he accepted the payment.

"Useless piece of garbage," Dean muttered, walking back toward the guard. "You didn't think to take his belongings before putting him in the cell? I know you're a new recruit, but are you that stupid?"

"Sir, but he didn't look like he had anything on him at all—" the guard began, but Dean cut him off with another slap.

"You make sure you search for items, even if they don't look like they're carrying any," Dean snapped. He snatched the gold coins from the guard's hand and walked off.

The guard, looking at Tyler, said, "You're free to go."

Tyler said, "Why do you let him treat you like that?"

The guard glared at Tyler. "Like what?"

"Nothing," Tyler replied.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

The guard then approached Tyler and removed his shackles.

The guard turned to walk away.

"Wait," Tyler said.

"What now?" the guard said, turning back.

"I wanted to ask something. That girl who's in there... what's she in there for?" Tyler asked.

"Huh, a girl? Oh, that one. She's in there for stealing. She stole a lot of stuff recently, got caught, and the victims apprehended her. She'll be getting a punishment soon. Why do you ask?"

"I was just curious," Tyler said. "But is there a way she can get out of there? Is there a fine for stealing?"

"There is," the guard replied. "It depends on how much was stolen. With what she took... about three hundred copper and more... I'm guessing it would be about five gold to get her out."

"Five?" Tyler said, surprised.

"Oh, now that I think about it, it's probably closer to seven gold," the guard corrected himself.

Tyler looked at him with a disappointed expression. "Are you scamming me, too?"

"Scamming? I don't know what you're talking about," the guard said defensively. "What do you think? I'm like that man you just met? I'm telling you like it is. What? You want to free her or something?"

"Um, no, I don't even know her. I've only met her once..." Tyler said. "Can I go and speak to her?"

"You're really trying to make me do more work for something I'm not paid enough for, aren't you? Well, then, let's go. You can't go in there alone; you have to have a guard right next to you," the guard grumbled.

Tyler went back into the dungeon with the guard. He passed Bernardo's cell, and the two exchanged a brief, hateful glance before Tyler looked ahead.

Tyler arrived at the girl's cell. As soon as he stood before her with the guard, she looked up. Tyler smiled. "You're Emily, right?"

The girl started, "What? How did you—" but Tyler cut her off. "Do you want to get out of here?"

The guard interrupted. "Oh, so you really want to get her out? You're going to pay for someone's crimes you don't even know?"

Emily looked up at Tyler with a confused expression. "Mister, you're trying to help me?"

"Kinda," Tyler said. "Is there a way to reduce her sentence?"

"There is," the guard said, "but that's not really going to help her."

"Why?" Tyler asked.

"Don't you remember when I said she's about to receive a punishment?"

"Yeah, but what do you mean by that?" Tyler asked.

"She's going to get whipped tomorrow night," the guard said, "and that's not the worst part. How should I put this... some guards like to... have fun with female prisoners before they apply the punishment they were told to."

"What? Is that allowed?" Tyler asked, incredulous.

"Not really," the guard admitted, "but no one would know, right? She'll be bruised and battered from the whipping anyway, so no one will know she was... violated."

"That's so wrong! Are you just okay with doing this?" Tyler said, disgusted.

"Are you stupid? Didn't you hear the nobleman call me a new recruit? I've never done any of this shit. If you're trying to help the girl, you should probably pay for her crimes tomorrow evening, or she's just going to get whipped... and raped."

"What happens after that?" Tyler asked.

"She'll be put back in her cell to spend two months in it, and then she'll be let out," the guard said.

Tyler turned his attention to the girl. Fear was etched onto her face; her eyes were wide, and she was trembling slightly. She stood abruptly. "Pl-please help me," she pleaded, her voice shaking. "I'll never steal again, I promise. Just please get me out of here." She squeezed the bars of her cell. Tears welled in her eyes. Tyler, shockingly to himself, found his thoughts drifting to her appearance. "Why do I suddenly think she looks pretty? She looks scared,"he thought.

"Don't worry," Tyler said to Emily. "I'll try to get you out of here."

"Oh, we have a gentleman here," the guard said sarcastically.

The guard's playful demeanor vanished, replaced by a serious expression. He looked at Emily. "She's lying," he said.

"What?" Tyler asked, confused.

"This girl," the guard continued, "is probably an orphan. These people literally live off stealing. What are you going to do once you get her out? Are you going to offer her a place to stay, give her a job, pay her so she doesn't starve to death?"

"Yes," Tyler said, quickly, surprising both the guard and Emily. Emily's heart pounded at his words.

The guard said, "I didn't expect you to say that."

"I'll try," Tyler amended.

Emily looked down, a faint smile touching her lips. "Th-thank you," she whispered.

"Don't thank me yet; I still haven't done anything," Tyler said. "But don't worry, I'll be coming back tomorrow. I'm leaving now." He headed out of the dungeon.

Tyler muttered to himself, "Where was I headed to again? Oh, right, Hector's shop. I'm pretty far now, aren't I?" He started walking.

Back in his cell, Bernardo called out to the guard who was about to leave. "Hey! People just pay two gold as a fine for fighting in the streets, right? I have some with me."

"Oh," the guard said, "why didn't you say that earlier?" He approached Bernardo's cell, and Bernardo slipped two gold coins through the bars.

Tyler continued his walk, eventually reaching the marketplace and Hector's shop. He entered, finding Hector sitting behind the counter.

"Hey, if it isn't Tyler! I was wondering when you'd show up. I need some cleaning done here," Hector said.

"Oh, right, about that. I think I'll get to that later, but first, I need to talk to you about something," Tyler said.

"You want to talk to me about what?" Hector asked.

"I was thinking of a business proposal, but first, I need to check something out," Tyler replied. "Check something out? What are you talking about?" Hector questioned.

Tyler extended his hand, and his copper dagger materialized. He tossed it to Hector. "Catch!"

Hector caught the dagger and examined it. "Woah, is this the copper dagger you wanted to craft? You said you couldn't equip it..." He looked up at Tyler, noticing the E-rank hunter's necklace around his neck. "You're a hunter now?" he said, surprised.

"Yes," Tyler confirmed.

"I went hunting with Grone," Tyler began, "and I actually managed to reach the level of an E-rank, enough to become a hunter. I'm level 30, so I thought, why not?"

Hector shook his head. "But hunting is dangerous. You could have made a little more money just working in the shop."

Tyler scoffed. "Doing what? Cleaning? You know I can't really help you much with just cleaning. Plus, cleaning doesn't really make a lot of money. So, I kind of had no choice."

"All right. It was your decision to make," Hector said. "But what is this business proposal you wanted to ask about?"

"Right, about that," Tyler said. "I wanted to craft some weapons and sell them in the shop. But you'll be taking 25% of the money they make."

Hector considered this. "That's not a bad deal, but I want 35%."

Tyler considered for a moment. "Deal. 35% is okay."

"How are you going to be crafting, though? Are you going to use my metal ores to do that? Because I can't let you do that. You have to buy your own," Hector stated.

"Oh, so where can I buy them? Where do you get them?" Tyler asked.

"Oh, no, just go straight ahead to the marketplace," Hector directed. "You'll see a shop with a sign that says, 'We Sell Materials.' You'll find them there."

Tyler nodded. "Oh, alright," he said, and walked out of the shop.

He was surprised by the familiar face behind the counter. It was the woman from earlier, the one he'd saved from Barnardo. She was still wearing her red dress.

"Oh, hi," he said, a little awkwardly.