In the vibrant streets of Solara Kingdom, a youthful figure wandered with wide-eyed wonder and boundless curiosity. He frequently glanced upward, where graceful cars glided through the heavens, and colossal skyscrapers loomed, their tips appearing to touch the sky.
Zephyrion had venture out of his house half an hour ago, now treading the bustling pathways of Solara Kingdom after the ruffle with the system earlier.
Although he was indeed angry, he held no grudge against the system. In fact, he couldn't be mad at it. It had spoken the truth— Zephyrion Venomblade had long faded into memory, and now, he bore the name Amon Yashin.
In this world, he would forever be known as Amon Yashin, not Zephyrion.
Zephyrion didn't care anyway, though his body and face had changed, his soul was still that one assassin know as - Zephyrion.
As he walked through the streets, occasionally, curious glances from passersby were directed his way, but they soon shifted their attention elsewhere, minding their own business.
You asking me why? That was because Zephyrion attire was strange.
Earlier, while choosing his attire for the day, Zephyrion found a hooded cloak in the wardrobe, which look exactly like the reminiscent of his past as an assassin.
The hooded cloak was midnight black and it covered him entirely in a mysterious way, concealing his face as he walked the streets.
Now that he was ranked in both martial and magic art, Zephyrion decided to stroll out and see more about the kingdom he was living in.
He believed his luck shouldn't be that bad to encounter any danger he wouldn't handle, but, he couldn't shake the feeling of vulnerability as he walked without a weapon in hand.
The war hammer was too large that he wouldn't bring it along with him, and besides, even after adding the reward for becoming ranked to his strength stats, Zephyrion still found it difficult to lift the hammer, as he could only drag it along the ground for just a few fleeting minutes before exhaustion set in."
But Zephyrion was quite calm inside, from the information on the computer, he understand that as long ashe didn't provoke someone powerful or cross certain boundary, no one would target him for no reason and he could move freely without drawing undue attention.
Zephyrion leisurely wandered through the city for another ten minutes until something captured his attention. Just in front of him, two boys were having conversation.
"Hey, Gavric, let's go to that fighting arena. I think I'm ready now. With what I learned today, we could make some money," one boy with a minotaur-braided hairstyle suggested to his companion.
"Not again, Rylan. Remember you said the exact same thing last time, and you ended up losing miserably. I lost a lot of 'shams' betting on you," Gavric replied
A/N: "Right! In this world, the currency is called 'shams.'"
Rylan waved his hand in haste, a displeased expression crossing his face. "Let's not talk about it. I don't want to be reminded of that incident. But trust me, I'm confident I'll win this time. You saw my last three matches in that VR just now, right? I won two of them easily, and I even held my own against someone a hundred levels above me."
Gavric contemplated for a moment. "Hmm, what you said did make sense. To hold your own against someone a fifty levels higher for two minutes without dying is impressive."
"Exactly! You'll see, you'll thank me later for betting on me," Rylan said confidently as the two changed their path and headed toward a spot where a street portal would be seen.
Zephyrion was taken aback by their conversation. "A fighting club in this city? Is it illlegal?" He pondered, interested as he considered asking the the two boys about this place.
Although Zephyrion didn't want to attract any attention or interact with any strange person this early, this fighting arena pique his interest.
Besides, Zephyrion wasn't afraid of the two boys turning hostile and attacking, from their realm, he would sense they are in the same early outer stage as him.
He felt confident that he would at least escape if things go the wrong way.
"Hey, you two... boys, hold on for a moment."
Huh," the two boys were engrossed in their conversation when a distant shout pierced the air behind them.
Startled, they turned their attention to the source, where a mysterious figure in a billowing hooded cloak was rapidly approaching from just a stone's throw away.
Their guards were instantly raised, hands instinctively clutching their respective weapons. They closely monitored the hooded figure's advance.
Yet, within mere moments, they found themselves easing up as they recognized that the stranger was in the same early outer stage as themselves.
No malevolent intentions radiated from the approaching figure, and considering they shared the same realm, there was no doubt in their minds about who would emerge victorious if a conflict were to arise.
"Who are you? Are you an assassin?" One of the boys inquired as Zephyrion halted before them.
Indeed! From Zephyrion attire, he sure resemble an assassin.
Zephyrion rolled his eyes when he saw their reaction, "it seems I'm not the only one vigilant for any sudden attack huh." He thought.
"Well, I heard you talking about some fighting arena, mind following you there? Zephyrion replied, studying the faces of the two boys.
"Hmm, why not make your own way there instead of relying on us?"
Zephyrion's brow furrowed with confusion. "Isn't it the case that these fighting arenas are typically illegal and not approved by the SBP(SpellBlade Protectors)?"
The two boys were puzzle, their silence hung in the air. Yet, as seconds ticked by and Zephyrion's expression remained unchanged, they came to realize he was genuinely curious and didn't know anything.
"Could he have spent thousands cultivating in a hidden cave? Emerging only after achieving the early outer stage?" This thoughts swirled in their minds of the two but they realise it was highly impossible for an ordinary person to even live past a century.
Finally, one of them sighed and clarified, "These fighting arenas are perfectly legal. The SBP supports them and didn't interfere as long as there's no loss of life.
"You can certainly break your opponent's bones, sever limbs, and make them useless—just avoid taking their life, and you'll face no repercussions. Moreover, healing pills are available and sold everywhere, if your opponent can't afford them, that's their own misfortune, not our concern."
"Of course, accidental deaths occasionally happen in the midst of battle, but who cares and truly pays it much heed? The SBP's rules are just merely words on paper, hardly anyone follows them. As long as they gets its share of the arena's profits, they will turn a blind eye to such situations."
"What the hell!" Zephyrion was surprised, in most novels he had read, all those fighting arenas were always portrayed as illegal and associated with the underworld, where killing and brutality always took place.
Killing opponents in battle was nothing out of the ordinary. But now, it was very rare for a fighting arena to be legal, as they were always run by dangerous criminal bosses.
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{A/N}:
Someone once told me on the reviews that I should stop over descriptive in my writing, and I knew he was right. So, I'm trying to learn how to do just that by starting with this chapter.
Can you spot any changes guys or I'm still too far off?