[Inside the Temple]
Ethan had just finished sorting through the items from the treasure chest and was about to look up to see if there was anything else worth taking from the stone coffin.
The stone snake inside the coffin, which had been waiting so long it was nearly dozing off, suddenly opened its scarlet eyes again when it heard movement.
Ethan slowly raised his head.
The stone snake also lifted its head high, as if making it easier for the person outside the coffin to meet its gaze.
Just as...
The man and the snake were about to make eye contact.
"My Lord!"
Bird One's voice suddenly sounded beside Ethan's ear.
Ethan turned his head and looked at Bird One.
"What is it?"
"My Lord, we've already collected all the glowing pearls. We'd like to ask if there's anything else you need us to help with."
"Nothing for now," Ethan nodded, "Since that's done, wait for me to check the contents of the stone coffin one more time, then we can set off."
"Yes, My Lord!"
Bird One responded and prepared to leave.
The stone snake, which had been waiting for the human outside the coffin to look at it, had waited so long that its eyes were starting to feel dry. It impatiently closed them.
But when it heard that the human planned to inspect the coffin again, it quickly opened its eyes in excitement.
As long as it petrified one more person, it could leave this statue and return to where it originally belonged.
It was excited.
It was happy.
However...
Just as Ethan was about to turn his head back...
"Who are you people?"
Bird Three's voice suddenly came from outside the temple.
Immediately afterward, Ethan heard someone shout,
"Rakshasa? Get lost! Don't get in my way!"
"Ahhh!"
Right after that,
Ethan heard Bird Three cry out.
At that moment, he no longer cared what treasures might still be inside the stone coffin.
The instant he heard one of his people scream, Ethan rushed outside.
"Bird Three, are you alright?"
Bird Two ran over and helped up Bird Three, who had been sent flying by a palm strike.
Bird Three shook his head and held his chest.
"I'm fine. Quickly go inside and inform Lord and Lady Daji! Hurry!"
"Meow!"
Daji arrived even faster than Ethan.
Seeing one of her own being bullied, she charged straight at Harriet without a word. Her claws went directly for her neck.
When Harriet saw Daji attacking, not only was she unafraid, but a smile appeared on her face.
"Found it! This is the culprit that killed those goblins at the entrance!"
"Kaleb, what are you waiting for?"
"Shield out!"
"Got it."
Kaleb immediately took a large black shield about half a person's height off his back and gave it a hard shove toward Daji's direction.
A lion's head relief was carved onto the shield's surface.
At that moment, it suddenly let out a roar.
"ROAR!"
The next second, Daji was blasted backward by the powerful sound wave attack.
"Meow!"
Daji cried out.
If she hit the uneven stone wall, she would definitely suffer a serious injury.
Thump!
However, the hard impact she expected never came.
Instead, she felt herself collide with something soft.
Daji looked up.
Only then did she realize that Ethan had caught her.
"Meow!"
"Alright, don't be angry. I'll get revenge for you."
Ethan set Daji down.
Only then did he look at the two men and two women who had entered the temple.
The leader of the group was a tall, slender woman with a cold temperament.
Standing very close beside her, almost shoulder to shoulder, was a flat-headed man carrying a shield. He had a sturdy build.
Behind them followed another man and woman who looked comparatively weak.
The man was thin, almost like a bean sprout.
The woman wore thick round glasses and held a book in her arms, looking like a bookworm.
But after spending some time in this world, Ethan had already learned one thing.
Never judge people by their appearance.
After all... There was still a scarecrow in his home.
Could anything look stranger than that?
Actually, yes.
The scarecrow's wife, that rag doll.
But those two things, which didn't even look human, were unbelievably powerful.
For example, the scarecrow had easily ground several invaders from District Four into the dirt.
As for the Cursed Doll, there was no need to mention it.
No one in the entire manor wasn't afraid of it.
That strange ability of killing with a single touch was almost impossible to resist.
Yet... Looking at its soft appearance, who could tell?
So, in this bizarre world, never judge people by how they look.
Otherwise, the only one who would suffer would be yourself.
"You're the little thief who stole my treasure chest, aren't you?"
Kaleb set his large shield on the ground and rested an elbow on its edge as he looked coldly at Ethan.
"What district are you from? Let me tell you, I work for the Lord Flame Dragon of District Seven. If you know what's good for you, hand over the platinum treasure chest immediately. I might spare your life."
"Otherwise, when my lord leads an army to flatten your territory, don't blame me."
"District Seven?"
When Ethan heard the district number Kaleb revealed, it happened to be his own district.
His expression immediately became strange.
After all, every lord's district number was unique.
Otherwise, how would the Lord Elimination Tournament distinguish them?
"Heh! You're scared now, aren't you?", Kaleb saw Ethan's expression and assumed he was frightened, "Since you're scared, hurry up and hand it over. We still need to search other temples for treasure chests. We don't have time to waste here with you."
Ethan wasn't afraid at all.
Instead, with a strange expression, he asked again, "Who did you say your lord is?"
"Our lord is Flame Dragon of District Seven!"
Kaleb proudly announced his lord's name.
"Oh."
After confirming several times that he hadn't heard wrong, Ethan shook his head and sneered.
"Never heard of him."
"You're asking for death!"
Thinking Ethan was doing it on purpose, Kaleb immediately raised his shield and roared as he prepared to charge at him.
But at that moment, Harriet reached out and stopped him, "Kaleb, don't be impulsive yet."
"He's mocking our lord. I'm definitely going to kill him today!"
"I said be quiet."
Harriet glared at Kaleb.
Only then did he back down.
Afterward, Harriet looked at Ethan.
"You said you don't know the Lord Flame Dragon of District Seven. I don't think you're lying. You shouldn't be from Region B, right?"
"That's right. I'm from Region A."
Ethan stared coldly at Harriet.
"This underground palace is clearly within my territory. How did you get in here?"