NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 334: Orange Tavern
Ethan checked the time. It was nearly six in the morning. Ethereal would shut down in two hours.
He opened his private chat, clicked on Skyblade's avatar, and sent a message:
"Leo, you seemed like you were holding something back earlier. What really happened?"
Far away in the Survivor Faction's Harmony City, inside Renegade Alliance stronghold, Leo froze when he saw the message. He hesitated for a long moment before replying.
"That rogue... is he really your avatar? And someone else can control him?"
Ethan responded instantly.
"Yes. Any problems?"
Skyblade took a while before replying.
"A few days ago, we even went out for drinks…"
Ethan nodded at the message. That sounded like Morzan—a true drunkard if there ever was one. But just drinking? That shouldn't have rattled Leo this much, especially if he knew that was Ethan's avatar.
He typed back quickly:
"Spill it. What happened?"
Minutes passed. There was no response. Ethan assumed Leo wasn't going to reply and turned to head upstairs to the second floor.
Then, Skyblade's avatar blinked back to life.
"He took me to the Orange Tavern."
Ethan's eyes widened. He stared at the message for a long time, fixated on those two words: Orange Tavern.
He immediately replied:
"Say that again. He took you? Or you took him?"
He couldn't believe it. The Orange Tavern wasn't just any bar. It was a highly restricted area—minors were forbidden, and the game synced with real-world civil records. Anyone married was automatically barred. It was a place for singles only.
Even more bizarre, the staff there were all real players... working in a very particular profession. From unofficial data, the male-to-female client ratio was about 3:7. Only thirty percent were men.
Skyblade responded quickly this time.
"He took me! And he's a VIP!"
Ethan stared at the message, stunned. His mind went completely blank.
Morzan… a VIP? At that place?
That old man actually had that kind of taste? And how old was he again? To face women young enough to be his great-great-great-granddaughters... did he have no shame?
Ethan couldn't help it.
"What did you two even do there?"
"We didn't do anything! Just sat with a few pretty girls and had some drinks! That's it, I swear!"
Ethan chuckled at the reply.
NotADruid: "Didn't do anything?"
Skyblade: "Really…"
NotADruid: "Oh…"
Skyblade: "Ethan, I only held the girl's hand, I swear!"
NotADruid: "Oh, oh! Got it, got it."
Skyblade: "You—! Never mind! Just don't spread it around. I promised that mysterious person I wouldn't tell anyone!"
Ethan read that last part and smirked without replying. In his mind, he called out:
'Old man… old man…'
No response.
Still, he felt like he'd uncovered something monumental—ammo he could use to mess with Morzan for a long, long time. Honestly, this was the happiest discovery he'd had lately... apart from reuniting with Lyla.
He climbed up to the second floor. The layout was nearly identical to the first, just slightly smaller—typical of castle-style structures that shrank in size the higher they went.
But the moment he stepped onto the floor—Clang!—an iron gate slammed shut behind him.
Instantly, Ethan dropped into combat mode. He was still in Stealth, yet some mechanism had detected him and sealed the exit. He prepared for battle—but the entire floor was empty.
Only one creature stood in front of the main door.
Remembering the system prompt earlier—"elite subordinates will intercept you"—Ethan figured this hulking half-bear, half-human monstrosity must be one of them. It was even larger than Ralph from downstairs.
Suddenly, Ethan had a realization.
The fight with Ralph had felt... too easy. He was still under the Blood Curse, his stats down by 20%, yet the battle hadn't been a struggle. Then, it hit him.
He remembered his title:
[Title: Dreamwalker]
Attributes:
All Druid NPCs' Favorability: +300.
Dark creatures targeted by your attacks: -8% attributes.
Panther Form: Energy consumption reduced by 10%.
Bear Form: Healing received increased by 10%.
Owl Form: Attack range increased by 10%.
Tree Form: Mana consumption reduced by 10%.
Description:
As the chosen envoy of the Druids, their loyalty to you is unwavering!
That 8% attribute debuff against dark creatures had done more work than he'd realized. Every enemy he attacked in this castle would be weakened. No wonder Ralph had felt oddly soft.
The creature ahead suddenly roared and entered combat mode. But it still hadn't detected Ethan. It raised its thick arms and marched toward the door.
ROAR…!
Blood-red shockwaves pulsed out from its body, spreading nearly seven yards in all directions.
Ethan dodged quickly. Getting hit by one of those would mean trouble. The ripple must be an area-of-effect skill.
From a corner of the wall, Ethan cast Advanced Analysis:
[Grizzly Grunt]
Tier: Commander
Level: 55
HP: 1,072,500
Attack: 4,200
Defense: 11,250
Skills: Bloodlust, Enrage, Life Steal, Cleave, Heavy Strike, Lacerate, Charge
Special Skill: Grizzly Roar
Grizzly Roar: Emits a powerful roar, dealing light damage. Reduces enemy movement and attack speed by 50% for 8 seconds. Increases caster's max HP by 30% for 1 minute.
If no enemy is hit, can be used again immediately. If an enemy is hit, cooldown is 1 minute.
Description: Grizzly Grunt is the guardian of Blood Castle's second floor. As long as the Blood King lives, he can be revived after death.
No wonder its health was through the roof. The Grizzly Roar increased its max HP. But its defense—over 11,000—was insane. A pure tank.
Ethan snorted to himself. Grizzly Grunt? What was next—Mama Bear? Papa Bear?
The Grizzly Grunt continued to patrol the hall, roaring and releasing those bloody shockwaves, trying to force Ethan out. It was persistent. Too persistent.
Ethan circled the edge of its range, always moving. But after a while, he gave up on finding an opening. This thing wasn't going to tire.
'Fine. It's a tank? Let's see who can last longer.:
He transformed into Bear Form, breaking out of Stealth.
Immediately, the Grizzly Grunt locked onto him with bloodshot eyes.
Charge!
Both bears lunged at each other, claws out.
Thud!
Their collision sent the Grunt stumbling back, while Ethan held his ground. But Ethan wasn't planning to stay in bear form. Druids were versatile.
He shifted into OwlForm, casting Moonfire and Sunburn in rapid succession—blinding flashes that struck the beast before it could react.
While the Grunt reeled from the flash, Ethan transformed into Panther Form and dashed behind it. He was too small in this form to strike anywhere else, so he aimed low—straight for the beast's rear.
Rake!
Followed by four quick Shreds, all critical strikes.
-4852!
-3654!
-9865!
-7512!
Ethan grimaced. Still not enough.