Hearing the woman ask Ethan to show the Bloodblade Ashura made him fall silent. He turned his gaze around the area, especially watching the men from the tribe.

With one long breath, Ethan summoned the sword from his inventory.

Before everyone's eyes, the legendary Bloodblade Ashura floated in front of him. The girl with serpent-like pupils looked shocked.

There was no mistaking it—the markings on Lord Gor's sword were the same as those on the Bloodblade Ashura. That meant Ethan was the rightful owner of the blade.

"How did you get that sword?" the girl asked, curious.

"I got it from the World of a Thousand Stars. Is there something wrong?"

The World of a Thousand Stars—that name sounded strange to them, since no world by that name existed here.

The girl with the serpent pupils kept staring at Ethan, and he, in turn, didn't look away from her face, locking eyes with her the whole time.

A simple sign that Ethan wasn't lying.

After he revealed the sword, the atmosphere turned completely silent. No one dared to speak until their tribe leader did, not even Ethan or Vio.

"Take that woman to the prison. As for him, he comes with me to the main house," ordered the girl, pointing at Ethan.

"What? Prison?! Ethan! You said everything would be fine!" Vio shouted.

"I'm working on it. Stay there and don't do anything stupid," Ethan replied.

Vio still resisted, refusing to be dragged into the tribe's prison, which she found filthy, smelly, and run-down.

But with one sharp strike to the back of her neck, Vio collapsed, unconscious.

Elsewhere, Ethan arrived at a stilted wooden house where the tribe leader lived. Not many people occupied the place, and most of the furniture was made of wood.

Ethan knelt on the wooden floor. The girl had ordered all servants and guards to leave the house, leaving only the two of them inside, separated by a thin, transparent curtain.

"We call it Lord Gor's Sword. Gor was the savior of our tribe from the forest monster invasion hundreds of years ago," said the girl, sitting on the edge of her bed while watching Ethan with sharp eyes.

"What do you call it?"

"Bloodblade Ashura," Ethan replied.

"Bloodblade Ashura? Sounds powerful... and terrifying," the girl said.

"Enough with the small talk. Tell me, what are you planning to do with us?" Ethan asked.

The girl stayed silent. Her piercing eyes never left him. Then she began to introduce herself—her name was Risa.

Risa, the girl with serpent pupils, was said to be the descendant of the Daughter of the Nature Goddess.

She had been chosen as the tribe leader when she was only twelve years old. It had been five years since then, and she had managed to keep the Blood-Cursed Tribe stable.

"Bloodblade Ashura... should belong to us," Risa said.

"I already know that. They mentioned it when we first met," Ethan replied.

"But they said it out of ignorance."

"Ignorance?"

"There's a legend Lord Gor told us. I never shared it with the villagers because I didn't want them to let their guard down."

Ethan narrowed his eyes, watching Risa closely. "I'm listening."

Risa nodded and began telling her story—from how Lord Gor saved the Blood-Cursed Tribe, to how he was honored as their hero, a man respected and admired by all.

But the bitter truth was that Gor wasn't part of the tribe. He was one of the White Humans, the name they used for outsiders like Ethan.

Because of his deeds, the tribe accepted Gor as one of their own, though not without opposition. In the end, they agreed to welcome him as a member.

Then, one night after peace had finally come to the village, Gor disappeared without a trace.

He left with his sword and belongings, without warning. Only a single piece of paper remained—a note filled with meaning.

Risa stood, walked to a drawer, and took out a small box. When she opened it, she pulled out a white sheet of paper covered in black writing.

With quiet courage, she stepped past the curtain and handed the paper to Ethan. He looked confused, unsure of what she was giving him.

He took the paper and read it silently. The words were written in English—it was clear that the Gor she spoke of had been a player, or perhaps a game administrator.

The message said that the next wielder of the sword would come and take responsibility for protecting the village.

The words stunned Ethan, who now realized the sword called Gor's Blade might indeed be the Bloodblade Ashura.

"Me? Protect the village?" Ethan asked, shocked.

"Yes, but only if you're willing to do it," Risa replied.

Just as she said that, a system panel suddenly appeared before Ethan—a private side quest, just like the ones from Luna and Seraphelis.

[Limited Side-Quest]

[Requirement: Bloodblade Ashura] [✓]

[Main Objective:]

[1. Relocate all village residents to Floor 50]

[2. The Blood-Cursed Tribe Leader must not die]

[3. The Host cannot reject the mission. Refusal = Death]

[Reward: Ashura Set Equipment (Legendary)]

[Duration: -]

Ethan froze. The panel clearly demanded two things—relocate all the villagers to Floor 50 and ensure Risa stayed alive.

He was baffled. How was he supposed to move hundreds of people from one floor to another?

"I don't understand," Ethan said.

"In that message, Lord Gor asked the sword bearer to lead us all to Floor 50. There's a kingdom there that will protect us—a kingdom founded by Lord Gor himself."

"You mean I have to bring all of you? A whole group, like a caravan?" Ethan asked, confused.

Risa smiled and shook her head slowly. The Blood-Cursed village on Floor One was only the first of many. Each floor had another Blood-Cursed settlement.

Ethan's mission was to relocate every villager from each floor up to Floor 50. Hearing that made him even more shocked.

Risa pulled out a red token. When broken, it would open a teleportation portal that only true members of the tribe could pass through. Each tribe leader possessed one.

"With this teleportation token, your journey will be much easier," Risa said.

She handed the token to Ethan. The red token had the words "Blood-Cursed Tribe" engraved along its edge. Ethan stayed quiet, then nodded in understanding.

Even so, he wasn't familiar with how the token worked. He suspected it required the Blood Curse power to activate it.

"I hope your journey goes smoothly unti—"

"No."

"No?" Risa asked, confused.

Ethan held the token and pointed it forward—toward Risa. She froze, unsure what he meant.

"You're coming with me to Floor 50," Ethan said.

"Me?"

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