CHAPTER 425: A COWARD?

It was almost noon, the scorching sun blazing above the sky. In the center of the city stood an ancient battle arena, built by the lord of the city himself.

Normally, the place was quiet, serving more as a historical attraction than anything else. But Bloodmere was not a city known for tourism.

Today, however, things were different. A huge crowd had gathered around the arena, loud voices filling the air. It was obvious something was about to happen.

"Hey, what’s going on? Why is it so crowded today?" one of the shopkeepers nearby asked.

"You haven’t heard? After such a long time, we’re finally going to have a life-and-death duel today!"

"Really? Between who? Why haven’t I heard anything?"

"I don’t know them either. They’re not famous, but one of them is a friend of young lord Mornak."

The commotion grew stronger by the minute. More and more people gathered until it was nearly impossible to breathe in the packed space.

Everyone was waiting for the fight to begin—and fortunately, they didn’t have to wait long. Suddenly, several figures flew above the arena and landed on the reserved stands for the wealthy.

The moment people saw the one leading them, they grew silent and respectful. The noise died down instantly, and no one dared to whisper anymore.

"That bastard still isn’t here?" Aden grunted when he noticed his opponent hadn’t shown up yet. He concluded the man was probably too scared.

"What happens if he doesn’t come?" a woman’s voice suddenly asked from behind him. But before Aden could reply, another voice spoke.

"Lady Marianne, if that man runs away, it counts as his defeat, and anyone who sees him anywhere will be allowed to kill him. In other words, he becomes killable—even in this city." Mornak answered with a smile, turning to glance at the beautiful woman standing behind them.

To their surprise, she had chosen to accompany them to the duel. Though both men were astonished, Mornak didn’t want to miss the chance to be closer to Marianne.

From the very first moment he had seen her, he had fallen in love. He had even begged his father to negotiate with her faction for a marriage arrangement.

But Marianne had refused, saying the only condition for marriage was that she had to genuinely like her partner. Since then, Mornak had done everything he could to impress her.

It had all been useless. Last night, when he saw her willingly approach that bastard, he almost went mad with rage.

But today, seeing her willingly come to him, even making a request of him, filled him with relief and even happiness.

Marianne herself didn’t say anything else. Her eyes stayed fixed on the arena. She was sure that man would show up. Curiosity had taken hold of her.

It was the first time she had failed to read someone’s thoughts—especially a man who looked younger than her.

No matter what, she would find out the truth about his identity and his real purpose.

Minutes passed slowly. The faces of the crowd, and even Aden and Mornak, began to darken. According to the duel contract, the fight should have started by now, but there was still no sign of the man.

Aden became convinced his opponent had run away in fear, too cowardly to face him.

As for Mornak, he was frowning inwardly, he had felt uneasy about this duel from the very beginning, and that feeling still lingered.

He didn’t even know why he felt that way, but his intuition usually proved correct.

That was exactly why he had arranged some security measures for today’s duel in advance.

No matter what happened, he couldn’t allow Aden to die.

Just as Mornak was about to send people to look for the man, a striking figure descended gracefully onto the arena floor.

"Sorry I’m a little late. My wife wasn’t feeling well." A voice echoed across the entire space, instantly drawing everyone’s attention.

"That’s him? I didn’t expect him to be so young!"

"Hmph, obviously he came late on purpose. He wanted to humiliate young lord and his friend."

"With the pathetic power I feel from him, he’s definitely going to die!" The crowd didn’t have a favorable impression of Daniel.

Naturally, the reason was simple—they had been forced to wait a long time because of him. Most of those gathered here were criminals and lowlifes. They were used to disrespecting others, and making them wait was an insult they wouldn’t forgive.

The same applied to Aden and Mornak. They were furious. Aden was the first to lose patience. With explosive speed, he leapt into the arena.

"Were you saying your final goodbyes to your wife?" he sneered with mockery.

"Goodbyes? No. We were just deciding which restaurant to go to after this. That’s why it took a bit longer." Daniel replied calmly, a provoking smile on his face.

"Hmph, enough with the lies! I know you’re terrified! I’d love to torture you slowly, but you know what? I’d rather taste your wife as soon as possible." Aden’s eyes gleamed with lust as he spoke.

This time, Daniel didn’t respond. To him, there was no reason to talk to the dead. His silence only enraged Aden further, who believed he was being ignored.

"Well, now that both sides are here, I’ll explain the rules one more time. To put it simply—there are none. The fight only ends with the death of one side, unless the victor spares his opponent’s life. In that case, the loser must pay gold equal to his own weight." Mornak’s voice rang out.

"The use of any items or treasures is permitted. If you have no questions, the duel can begin." His gaze moved between Aden and Daniel, but neither said anything.

"Good. Then begin."

With those words leaving his mouth, the life-and-death duel between the two was officially declared.

But what happened next went far beyond anyone’s expectations, shocking them all to the point of death.