Sherly accepted Ethan's orders and returned to her desk. The two of them worked through the piled-up documents that needed to be completed as soon as possible.

The meeting between the five permanent guilds of the Eastern Alliance would be held two days later. Ethan planned to gather them in the guild hall, not the city hall.

Once an agreement was reached among the permanent alliance members, Ethan could announce the Eastern Alliance's plan regarding the guild war event.

Quite a few of them wanted to cooperate with LionArk. That was only natural, considering they knew exactly how capable LionArk was.

By working together with LionArk, an S-rank guild, their chances of making a strong impact in the upcoming event would increase significantly.

Even so, Ethan remained cautious when making decisions. There had to be balance in this cooperation. Otherwise, LionArk would end up bearing too much of the burden.

These matters would be discussed during the upcoming meeting. Ethan only hoped that each guild leader would bring their own ideas so a decision could be reached through mutual agreement.

Afternoon turned into night. Sherly finished her work, and so did Ethan. He left his office and headed to Ashley's room.

When the door opened, he saw Ashley still immersed in her work.

"You're not done yet?" Ethan asked.

Ashley lifted her face, looked forward, and smiled faintly. "Not yet. There's still a lot I need to do."

"Hmm."

"All right," Ethan said.

"I'm going to the city center to check the situation there," Ethan added.

"You should prepare yourself too, Ethan," Ashley said.

"I'm more than ready, but I do need a few things."

Ashley nodded. Ethan closed the door and left Ashley's office. He walked out of LionArk headquarters alone, changing his appearance from his LionArk uniform into a black shirt.

Unlike the previous night, the city was far more crowded, much busier than before.

Restaurants were almost full of customers, and shops selling equipment were packed with players preparing themselves.

Their sales revenue had increased drastically due to the event announcement from the previous night.

Ethan stopped walking and glanced to the side, seeing a shop clerk overwhelmed while serving many customers.

"I saw it first. That's mine!" one man snapped, forcing himself toward a female player.

"I already bought it. I'm not giving it to you," the woman said firmly. She was wearing a yellow and black uniform.

In crowded shops like this, disputes were bound to happen. The sales concept was simple, first come, first served.

Ethan noticed two men intimidating the woman, ordering her to sell the item to them.

However, the woman clearly refused. She said she needed the item to prepare for the event.

The conflict grew more intense. Ethan narrowed his eyes as he saw the two men in red and black uniforms drag the woman out of the shop and into a narrow alley at the boundary between Ring 1's city center and Ring 2.

Ethan decided to follow them. He suspected the two men were about to do something cruel to her.

He leaped onto the rooftops and moved swiftly, following the two men dragging the woman in the yellow and black uniform.

In the dark and deserted alley, the two men continued to intimidate her. One of them even threatened to rape and kill her if he did not get what he wanted.

"P-Please don't kill me."

"I-I'll do anything," the woman said in panic.

The two men grinned viciously. After forcing the woman into submission, it was clear they had the power to demand more than just the item she bought.

"Turn off your appearance feature. I want to see you naked," one of the men said.

"No!"

"I'll give you the item!" the woman shouted.

She summoned the Epic-rank spirit crystal she had purchased and held it out. However, one of the men slapped it aside, choosing something else instead.

"We'll take it after we're done enjoying your body," one of them said.

"NO!"

"Someone please help me!" the woman screamed.

"It's useless. No one will hear you!" one of the men sneered.

In the middle of it all, Ethan stood on top of a building, his eyes focused downward.

"I hear you," Ethan said, his voice firm and clearly audible to them.

The two men froze and looked up, seeing a man standing on the rooftop, his presence mysterious.

"Who are you?!" one of them shouted.

Ethan jumped down and landed heavily beside them. The two men were shocked when they realized the man who appeared in the alley was Ethan, the Vice Guild Master of LionArk.

"E Ethan?!" one of them said, his face turning pale.

"You are guilty of theft and attempted rape. Your punishment is prison," Ethan said coldly.

"We-We didn't do anything. We were just talking to her," one of the men argued.

Ethan turned his gaze to the woman. Her face was tear-streaked, and she was clutching her clothes tightly. This was clearly not just a conversation.

One of the men tried to run away. However, Ethan moved swiftly and blocked their escape.

That only made the two men panic even more. They stood no chance against Ethan.

"You will come with me to prison," Ethan said.

"To hell with you!" they shouted.

The two men recklessly attacked Ethan using their abilities. Ethan extended his hand, summoning Bloodblade Ashura and activating Ashura Mode.

A surge of power erupted from Ethan's body, shocking the two men. The woman stopped crying, wiped her tears, and looked at Ethan with admiration.

[Mode Ashura Activated]

In a flash, Ethan appeared in front of one of the men and punched him bare-handed.

The man's body was sent flying backward, his HP dropping drastically due to the massive level gap between him and Ethan.

"I can leave you on the brink of death with a single punch."

"So what will it be? Surrender or die?" Ethan asked.

One of the men took a deep breath. He did not attack. Instead, he knelt down in surrender, lowering his head and putting away his weapon.

"I'll take that as your surrender," Ethan said.

The woman thanked Ethan, a deep blush spreading across her cheeks.

"Help me find the LionArk security authority team. Bring them here."

"I'll wait here," Ethan ordered.

The woman smiled obediently and nodded. "I'll find them as quickly as I can."

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