Returning to the Blood Church, Baron quickly said his goodbyes to the others and headed back to his bedroom.

He took the twenty Gold Coins out of his Holding Ring and inspected them one by one.

His expression was grave, his eyes scrutinizing every detail.

After a good while, Baron set the Gold Coins down and exhaled—he couldn’t find a thing.

Because they hadn’t been tainted by the [Mysterious] to become Taboo Items, even the Glimpse of the Mysterious Crystal had no effect.

After staring at them a while longer, Baron decided to give up.

He opened his Secret Notes. No new messages.

After a brief rest, he closed his eyes and entered the dreamscape.

In the dreamscape, the Shepherdess was waiting for him, dressed in her usual Hunting Outfit.

Without a word, Baron formed his Blood Saber and attacked.

The two of them finished their battle—or rather, Baron died and was resurrected.

Dodging a straight thrust from the Shepherdess, Baron said, "I need you to do me a favor."

"Your commands will be obeyed as I see fit."

The Shepherdess sheathed her sword. The instant the blade was home, her Hunting Outfit blossomed into a Western-style dress, like a closed flower bud opening.

Baron was briefly stunned by the sight. He then took the twenty-odd Gold Coins from his Holding Ring and said:

"I need you to see if there’s anything different about these Gold Coins."

’Before Tate died, he said only High Tier experts at the Silver Tier or above could notice anything. The Shepherdess can communicate with the Dream Master, one of the legendary Seven Gods. Surely she can’t be weaker than a Silver Tier... right?’

The Shepherdess glanced at the Gold Coins and casually picked one out. "This one is tainted with the aura of the Time Law."

’So fast!’

Overjoyed, Baron took the Gold Coin and examined it from every angle, but he truly couldn’t see how it was different from the others. Then, remembering something, he asked:

"How do I use this Gold Coin?"

The Shepherdess said, "You only have one chance. Just drip a drop of heart’s blood onto it."

’Heart’s blood?’

The Shepherdess explained, "The blood from the center of your heart."

’Blood from my heart? Wouldn’t I just explode?’ 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Baron silently put the Gold Coin away. ’The price is a bit too high. I’d better save it for when I try to break through to a higher Tier.’

He once again sliced open his palms, forming a Blood Sword. "Let’s fight again!"

"Alright." The Shepherdess nodded slightly, also slicing open her palms to form a blue Blood Sword, just like the blue Dragon Flame from before.

As their blades crossed, Baron grinned. "Actually, when I said ’let’s fight again,’ the correct response was to pat my head!"

...

The final day of the Hunting Competition arrived as scheduled. Not much was different from the day before; Baron was still defending his title as the final champion.

Again, seven Knights from the Glorious Knight Order challenged the ring, and the seven Demon Hunters before Baron defended it.

The only differences were that the Black Moon above had vanished, the crowd was even larger than before, and the betting odds were smaller and more stable.

The Knights and Demon Hunters who took the stage fought an even match. The fighting was conventional, completely lacking the intense gunpowder-thick tension of the previous days.

But the crowd’s enthusiasm for betting hadn’t diminished in the slightest. The host energetically shouted from the stage, "3-to-1 odds! 3-to-1! A winning bet is a sure profit!"

The audience members stuffed bundles of banknotes and coins into every available betting slot held by the Attendants.

As the battle on the stage grew more intense, the spectators cheered and reveled, hugging and kissing one another. The festive atmosphere was so heated that not even the cold air blown from blocks of ice could dispel it.

"The Iron Thorn Gang seems quite busy."

Below the stage, Yalilan glanced at the empty seat beside her—the one that had belonged to Tate, the Vice Gang Leader of the Iron Thorn Gang.

"I imagine yesterday’s victory by L made him lose face," Victor analyzed, as straightforward and honest as ever, and said it out loud.

Lewis said irritably, "So, have you figured out an answer to L’s question from yesterday?"

Victor faltered, then shook his head. "I can’t think of an answer that aligns with a Knight’s justice."

"Then just follow your heart," Stephen said from the other side.

Victor said, "My heart tells me to sacrifice the few to save the many."

"Then isn’t that enough?" Stephen chuckled. "Fundamentally, this is just a question that challenges one’s personal morality. But as long as your conscience is clear, isn’t that a form of justice too?"

Victor shook his head. "But that isn’t justice. That’s weighing pros and cons."

Stephen was momentarily stunned, but he saw Victor turn his gaze back to the stage. "For me, this question isn’t about right or wrong. It’s only about whether to save them or not."

’No wonder Lewis privately said that even among a group of Faith Knights, Victor is one of the purer ones. Absolute justice... interesting.’

Yalilan also turned her gaze back to the ring. According to the registration order, it seemed the Glorious Knight Order was even sending out their vice-captain today. If she remembered correctly, his name was Jangalel Tristan.

He was said to be childhood sweethearts with Remedios, the daughter of City Lord Lewis and the number one beauty in Fude City.

’If my impression is correct, Miss Remedios is also here to watch the competition today. Is she in the stands?’

On the other side of the stands, a disguised Miss Remedios and her good friend, Miss Triss, had secretly taken seats in the east stands, which were mainly occupied by the common citizenry.

There were too many annoying acquaintances in the VIP area. Besides, to curry favor with her father, Lewis, those nobles and wealthy merchants were always sending their sons to approach her on some pretext or another.

On top of that, some sons of rich families were always harassing her, hoping to get a glimpse of Fude City’s number one beauty.

Remedios had grown tired of it, so, wanting to be left alone, she had sat with Miss Triss in the east stands.

"I really don’t know how the legendary Lady Rose manages to go out in public. I suppose she probably just stays home most of the time... I heard the Knight King of the Amel Duchy has already proposed to her, offering her the position of Queen..."