Martial Online.

159 The Monster

Inside Amaterasu's Silver Heart Dojo.

"Hmm?" A slick-haired young man with a gardening hoe in hand saw a flash of light in his vision.

He had received a message.

He pulled up the message and saw that it came from his classmate.

They had promised to play together when the opportunity arose, but they were unfortunately sent to different cities.

"Huh, he had found the entrance to Warhaven?" The slick-haired man scoffed and thought his friend was taking a piss.

"Yo, Bormund." A young man with ashen-grey hair walked over from the dojo. "Have you seen Leprechaun anywhere?"

"No, I haven't." Bormund said and sent a reply back to his friend with a simple, "Yeah, right."

It was a message written in a very sarcastic tone.

"What's up?" The young man asked after seeing Bormund fiddle with empty air in front of him.

It either meant he was assigning his stats, changing music on the Music Interface, starting a stream, or sending a message.

"My friend said he had found the entrance to Warhaven." Bormund chuckled. "Him finding the entrance has the same chance of success as finding that thief, Ambrose."

"Come on, man, we will find him. He can't hide forever." The young man said with confidence. "Zahhak is also after him, so... Maybe your friend is speaking the truth?"

"Hmm..." Bormund pondered before shrugging his shoulders. "I'll send a message to him and tell him to stream it. If it's real, I will tell Serenity."

"Sounds good."

At the upstairs of Silver Heart Dojo.

"So, will you accept it?" Leprechaun asked while looking at the side of the beautiful silver-haired girl.

"..." Serenity stood quiet while looking out of the window at the flourishing orchard.

"It's Cerberus." Leprechaun approached her. "We should help them. Maybe we will get our deserved rewards back!"

"We will never get them back." Serenity said. "The treasure chests work differently."

"The treasure chests have a mind of their own. Since the moment Jes... Ambrose opened it, he has received rewards for only one person.

"However, he got the best ones that were available.

"If we had opened it as a group, there would have been more silver, experience points, and some extra rewards to be shared among everyone.

"Now that the treasure chest is most likely gone, so are the group rewards.

"Only the rewards Ambrose got are left, which aren't nearly enough to share with everyone."

"Still, we can't let him go away with this!" Leprechaun shouted. "If you don't plan on helping them, I will.

"I also live in Nocklund, and I am definitely capable of finding his location by myself!"

"Enough!" Serenity snapped her head in his direction. "I will do it, alright?"

"Are you sure?" Leprechaun narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, I will go tomorrow." Serenity then looked away and silently looked towards the dark sky.

"Very good." Leprechaun nodded in approval. "Silver Heart has lost its position as the strongest in Amaterasu because of him.

"It's our right to have our revenge."

...

Ambrose walked down a long, dimly lit corridor.

The air was rather moist and heavy with the scent of mildew.

After a while, he saw a tall, ceiling-high man standing in front of a door.

'That must be the door to the waiting room.' Ambrose quickly rummaged through his pockets and pulled out the golden token.

After arriving at the door, he had to look high up to see the tall man's eyes and then offered the golden token.

Without taking the golden token, the tall man opened the door and let him enter.

Ambrose nodded and entered the room.

The room was like a dungeon with pillars supporting the ceiling, and people gathered there, sitting on top of barrels and crates.

Everything seemed to be made of rock, giving the room a rather cold and eerie atmosphere.

'These must be the contestants. With quick calculation, at least twenty.' Ambrose then found a seat for himself near the back of the room.

It was a small crate, barely providing any comfort. The crate had seen better days with its worn-out edges and splintered wood.

It also had a musty smell, likely from years of storage in a damp basement.

Including all that, there were pictures on the side. They looked like pitched buildings from Yatagarasu's downtown.

Creak—all heads turned to the door as a mustache-wearing man with a fancy red suit entered the room.

His thinning gray hair was slickly combed backwards, and his golden-rimmed glasses in his chest pocket looked expensive.

"Welcome everyone to the Death Race." The man spread his arms wide, like he was taking a hug. "I am the race director, Marwin."

As the damp, dungeon-like room stayed eerily quiet, Marvin cleared his throat and started talking.

"Today is a rather exotic Death Race with the looming threat of the Crescent Moon.

"That's why the prize pool has also doubled, now standing at a whopping 100,000 silvers."

Several eyes shone with excitement, but there were also a number of participants who kept a calm and composed posture. They had already seen a lot of money in their lives.

A mere 100,000 silvers didn't faze them much.

'That is 10,000 crowns...' Ambrose gulped.

"The race begins with horse choice." Marwin said. "Once chosen, the competitors will start the race through the narrow and deadly alleyways that have threats behind every corner.

"It's not only the zombies that one has to worry about. Warhaven citizens are fond of hunting the racers, as each competitor has a target on their heads.

"With each competitor killed, they would earn 1,000 silvers for themselves!"

'Damn, what the hell?' Ambrose scratched his neck. 'This is far more dangerous than I initially thought.'

The rest of the participants looked calm, as they had seen Death Races before.

That's why the Death Race was such a popular sport in Warhaven—everyone could participate in other ways than by joining the race.

They could go for the 1,000 silver rewards!

"After leaving the death alleyways, the race continues on the outskirts of Warhaven. We've set up some traps there, so be careful.

"The race then ends with a final straight going through the Street of Sex and Alcohol, and finally ending at the House of Gambling in the Street of Gambling!"

Marwin looked around the quiet dungeon and smiled. "If there ain't any questions..."

At that moment, Ambrose raised his arm and asked. "What are the rules for the race?"

Marwin looked at the red-cloaked young man and smiled. "There are no rules. Just follow the path, avoid any traps or obstacles, and be the first one to reach the finish line."

Ambrose rubbed his chin. 'Weapons are available then.'

"If that's all, it's time for horse choosing." Marwin clapped his hands, and the door behind him swung open.

The room was a stable with over thirty horses.

"Your golden tokens should have a number in them.

"That is your ranking based on bounties.

"The person with the highest bounty can choose first, then second, then third, etc."

Ambrose looked at his golden token, which had the number six.

"You may begin!" Marwin clapped his hands.

At that moment, one figure stood up, and all eyes landed on him.

He instantly became everyone's target, as he was the favorite to win the whole thing.

"Hmm..." The person scratched his cheek as he entered the stables. "Who should I choose..."

Marwin smiled mysteriously and looked at the bounty poster in hand. 'With him in the race, the number of viewers doubled.