Ethan walked toward Liam with a faint frown on his face. Kneeling next to the headless body, he searched through the guy’s possessions while avoiding the pool of blood, but couldn’t find anything noteworthy. The man didn’t even have a spatial treasure, and everything on him was ordinary.

Standing up, he gestured at Liam. ‘’Let’s speak with the others. Bring that head as well,’’ he said and turned to Fraeya, ‘’You guys wait outside. The cabin should be cramped already.’’

They walked to the ship and got in. As he said, the spacious room was full of people, and even with the absence of any furniture, there was barely enough space for them. The prisoners were having a heated discussion, but they halted the moment the duo entered. All eyes turned at Ethan, then switched to the head that Liam was holding.

Ethan looked at the frightened faces and offered a sympathetic smile. ‘’I hope everyone is enjoying my hospitality. Sorry for the lack of preparation. You all kinda caught me off guard. So,’’ he said and clapped his hands before pointing at the head. ‘’The anti-mage. What can you tell me about him.’’

‘’H-He appeared out of nowhere,’’ a young merchant stated. ‘’We only discovered him when he was already speaking with Joey in private.’’

‘’Joey said that he will be helping us inside,’’ a female guard added, shifting her eyes. ‘’That’s how he convinced us to fight against you. Otherwise, no one would be stupid enough to attack you after your stunt with the sandworms.’’

‘’That’s all? None of you know where this man came from or what he wanted?’’ Liam asked, lifting the head.

‘’If anyone knew at all, it was Joey. He didn’t say anything. We assumed that the man came after seeing the chasm in the Dead Plains.’’

A thoughtful frown formed on Ethan’s face. ‘’Alright. Then tell me what’s going on outside. Joey said that the ones who didn’t want to join you will be sold in the Union as slaves. What did you do to those people?’’ A brief silence and a few ashamed-looking faces, made Ethan scowl, ‘’Speak up!’’

‘’S-Some died in a short battle, and w-we stuffed the rest into the carts. Since their cultivation was lower, we only left two tier-5s behind to keep an eye on them–’’

‘’Whatever happened, happened,’’ a bulky guard cut in, glaring at the young merchant. ‘’It was their choice to resist.’’

‘’What will you do to us, Ethan?’’ another demanded, eyes boring holes.

‘’We already surrendered. It’s not like you can kill us.’’

A few straightened their posture and some even sidestepped to clear their path toward him. Perhaps, it was because of the small and packed room, or an attempt to escape from their guilty conscience, but suddenly, many of them found the courage to look him in the eye.

A dark chuckle escaped from Ethan’s mouth as he turned to look at Liam. ‘’You were asking what changed in my skill, didn’t you?’’ He turned back to the crowd, speaking slowly and deliberately, ‘’After trying to kill me and enslave my friends, you have some nerve to question my decisions. It’s funny, really. Especially since I’ve done the worst things for much smaller matters.’’

His [Mana Aura] flared up inside the small cabin, giving shivers to everybody. [Shadow Spikes] followed after as the shadows of the prisoners rose at once, materializing in humanoid forms with shadow spears in their hands. As the light was coming from a single point in the middle of the ceiling, shadows were emerging on every side of the people. In just a second, before they even recovered from the effects of the [Mana Aura], the shadows thrust their spears toward their owner’s neck and stopped upon touch, drawing a drop of blood. The next instant, the shadows dissolved back to their original place and taunted in Ethan’s voice with a hint of menace, ‘’Do not push your luck.’’

Ethan withdrew his gaze from the pale faces and turned to leave, the stunned Liam following after, albeit with a slight delay.

Once they were on the deck of the ship, Liam tossed the head impatiently, looking at Ethan with stars in his eyes. ‘’What the fuck was that?! That wasn’t [Shadow Spikes], was it?’’

‘’Not anymore, I guess,’’ he said with a faint smile, and added inwardly, ‘Let’s call it [Shadow Army].’

‘Understood.’

‘’How could it change so much?! What’s the drawback? There is one, right?’’ Liam asked, jumping from the ship as he chased Ethan.

‘’Well, the ridiculous mana consumption is for one, low accuracy on moving targets for another, and lastly, just like Beet’s [Skeletal Hand], the mana that gathers in the shadows is warning the enemy,’’ he explained. ‘’But I can cover most of them when I combine it with [Mana Aura].’’

‘’Yeah, I didn’t catch any of that. Your [Mana Aura] is at rank 2, right? That’s why it even stuns the tier-5s shortly. Then, the worst part is the mana drain.’’

‘’Honestly, I’m cool with that. The skill is allowing me to use it everywhere inside my domain,’’ he replied merrily. Sadly, I can’t use it together with [Fabric Tear] anymore, but I finally have a fucking AOE skill!

They arrived next to the others and found them talking about Vivian, and judging from their tone, Ethan kind of understood Vivian’s choice to leave without a word. Though, he wasn’t sure what to feel about that himself. He was already aware of her being the thief, but her keeping so many secrets from them rubbed him the wrong way. Other than himself, it was only Liam who seemed to take it lightly, which he had no idea why, except him being, well, Liam.

They informed the rest of the group about the situation on the outside, and as expected, Fraeya lost her cool.

‘’Bastards!’’ she cried, her hands shaping into fists. ‘’I’m going out!’’

Ethan hesitated for a moment and found Liam’s hand on his shoulder.

‘’Don’t worry. I’ll go with her. You guys searched the city and meet with us on the outside.’’

‘’Do I need your protection?’’ Fraeya snarked. ‘’I can kill those two tier-5s in my sleep!’’

Liam rolled his eyes. ‘’I’m just trying to ease the others so that they can investigate the city with a light heart. Who wants to protect you, witch?’’

As the ice and fire started bickering once again, the others felt more relaxed, indeed. Soon after, they decided to go with this plan and separated into four ways. Liam and Fraeya went outside from the tunnels while Ethan asked Beet to be a gentleman and escort Hayley in case there were still goblins in the city. Along with Carl and himself, they divided the city into three parts and started searching the houses one by one.

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For sure, the city was big. That was why they decided to keep their search rather quick. They’d already looked for every tower, what was left was the one-story buildings without any furniture. The houses only contained some ragged items that belonged to the goblins, making it easy for them to explore them at a fast pace.

Ethan focused on his [Mana Sense] and relied on his sight to check every place he passed. The mundane task soon left him alone with his thoughts. In the absence of Beet, except for the times he’d arrived in this world for the first time, this was the only time he was on his own, causing all kinds of thoughts to surface in his mind.

With a [Blink], he appeared on top of the house’s roof that he was searching through and sat on it absent-mindedly to let his imagination run wild. He knew this was the best way to deal with the unwanted thoughts, unleashing them completely but also not engaging with them. Give or take, a year passed in Elisium, and what a year that was…

Tier 4 - Level 45

Health: 1500/1500

Mana: 1370/2200

Stamina: 780/1500

Vitality: 150

Strength: 122

Endurance: 120 (+30)

Agility: 220 (+20)

Intellect: 220

Perception: 100

*Available stats: 0

Skills(Rank 1): [Fabric Tear], [Mana Sense], [Mana Conceal], [Mana Connection], [Void Mute], [Blood Rush]

Rank 2: [Void Wrap], [Mana Aura], [Blink], [Overcharge], [Shadow Army]

He idly checked his status panel, and a silent feeling of contentment filled him with how much he progressed in such a short time. Not even the elementals of this world were able to advance in tiers so fast. Because no matter their speed of cultivation, the fastest way was to grind monsters and take their essence as your own. This advantage wasn’t anything permanent, and he knew that the said elementals would be shining among the high tiers. If he’d spend years between the bottlenecks, as many do, the ones with talent would breeze through the tiers, leaving him in the dust. Still, it was nice to be able to say that he did his best so far.

His gaze shifted from his bonus stats to his new artifacts. The green bracelet with a wing symbol on it was adding 20 Agility stats to his own, while his small golden necklace with a bull symbol on it gave him another 30 Endurance stats. Among the other artifacts he had, only one other was giving 30 stats, which enhanced the Perception, and the rest was all giving 20 to different stats. Regardless of being his lowest stat, he once again ignored the Perception. Because he felt that since his build was a rogue/mage, he had to give up on something. Dispersing his stats equally would only make him mediocre in every aspect.

After experiencing so much, there was no way he’d give up on either Intellect or Agility. For example, with their [Mana Sense], the enemy was able to tell his most useful skill [Blink]’s route without much trouble, but since his Agility was over the top, he was still able to attack or even kill them like greased lightning. It didn’t matter whether they were aware of his location or not.

As he let his thoughts wander, his gaze went up to the floating ship and the prisoners inside of it. His face showed a distressed expression as he let out a hopeless sigh. What was the best way to deal with this?

If it was Ethan from Cut-Throat, he would kill them with fanfare. Since they would appear in the game once again after three days, he would even seek his amusement in their deaths. If it was Ethan from the sewers, he would use them in his best interest as much as he could. What about the man he was now? What did he become after his encounters? Or what did he wish to become?

His cold eyes softened as Saruman’s words rang in his head. No matter what, he wouldn’t treat this world as a game, but he wouldn’t let others take advantage of him either. His perilous venture was only starting, and his plans for the higher realms didn't allow any mistakes.

Once he noticed that his mind relaxed a bit, he resumed his treasure hunt in a high spirit with firm steps that radiated confidence. Though, just like Vivian had guessed, the half-a-day-long exploration didn’t bring the desired rewards. The only noteworthy discovery was the few broken artifacts.

Finished with his designated territory, Ethan returned to the city center and found out that he was the first one to make it. Yet again, he arranged the table next to the pond and placed some snacks on it before fetching himself a cold beer. Then, he entered the cabin and gave a single order to the people inside; use everything at your disposal and clean the ship inside-out.

‘’I’ll be watching who works the hardest,’’ he said before smiling coldly. ‘’And who is not.’’

The bewildered crowd started their work with passion as Ethan made his way toward the table. Some were carrying water from the pond and some were cutting pieces of fabric to make cleaning clothes.

Ethan sat at the table and covered the pond along with everyone on it with his [Void Mute] before starting to enjoy himself. Half an hour later, Carl also joined him with the news similar to his. The broken artifacts he’d found were even worse than Ethan’s, though probably still worth a few mana stones. As they chatted casually, the ship crew worked with the same fervor, polishing every area thoroughly.

Soon after, Beet and Hayley also joined them. Their loot was a bit different than Ethan’s and Carl’s. They managed to find two more egg-sized red orbs. The same as they found in the tower before.

Ethan grabbed the three orbs in his palm and played with them in confusion. ‘’Maybe they are just precious stones from higher realms?’’

Carl shook his head. ‘’I don’t know. There is clearly something about them, but it’s… different. They have this mesmerizing aura and it doesn’t seem related to mana.’’

‘’Just keep them until you figure out more,’’ Hayley said. ‘’We’re all happy with our shares anyway.’’

‘’Alright,’’ Ethan replied with a shrug. ‘’So, can either of you explain what that manaborn talk was all about?’’

Hayley grimaced at the reminder of Vivian, thankfully Carl spoke up before she started cursing. ‘’It’s kind of a legend in the free cities. People say that they are even rarer than the elementals. A manaborn is supposed to be able to unlock the mana skills much easier than the others and advance them with little effort. Despite the elementals who are only able to cultivate a single element, the manaborns can cultivate any element they are talented in. However, another legend says that their talent is often trash and most of them die before their ascension.’’

‘’Interesting. Then, why did everyone seem to be afraid of Vivian?’’

‘’Do you have any idea how many mana skills there are?’’ Hayley remarked cynically. ‘’Had she been old enough, she would terrorize that crowd despite their difference in the tiers.’’

‘’Huh…’’ Ethan murmured as he gazed at the ship crew whose task became meaningless some time ago. He dispersed his [Void Mute] and called them out, ‘’That’s enough. Come here and get in a line.’’

They exchanged glances with each other and gritted their teeth before doing as they were told. Ethan collected their spatial treasures and took roughly half of whatever they had. He used the spatial bags of others he’d killed before, and without even looking inside them, he robbed half of their wealth in a heartbeat. They were quite surprised by the outcome, but none of them made a noise.

‘’You did a good job with the ship. Hence, you can keep half of your goods,’’ he said, staring coldly toward the 20-something newly formed bandits. ‘’I will lend your lives back to you. Oh, don’t be mistaken. Your lives belong to me. In the future, if I’m unsatisfied with what kind of life you’re living, I might take it back. Now, this city is yours to search through. You may get lost.’’

The group listened in stillness, and the moment he finished, they took their leave in haste, saying nothing at all. Apparently, his last show in the cabin left quite an impression on them. The looks he was getting had a hint in them like even his empty threats were being taken seriously. Not that he cared. He was ready to live with the consequences of his actions, no matter what they were.

‘’That… was unexpected,’’ Carl mumbled, looking at the swiftly escaping group with an unreadable expression.

Storing back his now shiny silver ship, Ethan walked next to him and patted his shoulder, grasping slightly. ‘’Come. Let’s meet with the others and leave this place behind.’’

They left the Imperial City from the tunnel they’d entered with hefty pockets. Especially Ethan, who wasn’t even aware of his current wealth, profited from this short adventure significantly. When they finally got out of the first tower they’d used, he was dreaming about his future shopping spree in Mirasatra.

Yet, his dream shattered with the scene that welcomed them. Liam and Fraeya were captured. They were standing next to the gorgeous blonde girl and stone-faced soldiers, beaten and restrained.

The mid tier-6 blonde with ice-blue eyes gave a cheery wave while the mana around the atmosphere got blocked at once. ‘’Finally! I've been dying to meet you, Ethan! Oh, I go with Veronica by the way. You can call me Vera.’’