Kapitel 181: Departure

"Devil king… how long have you been hiding over there? I had a feeling you were watching the match, trying to gauge my strength, are we?" Rugard uttered, his former frustration dissipating as a slow smile graced his weathered features.

Ethan's chains, their dark links glinting faintly in the dim light, remained coiled around Rugard's calloused hand. The air crackled with an unexpected tension as Rugard's voice carried on, each word laced with curiosity, "You're strange if anything, you were watching all this time and I couldn't even sense you…"

Rugard's gaze was fixed on Ethan, his eyes searching for something in the depths of the enigmatic stranger's gaze. A breeze swept through the glade, ruffling the edges of their garments and carrying with it the faintest echo of a far-off melody.

Not far away, one of Rugard's wives, her raven hair cascading like a waterfall down her back, regarded Ethan with a mixture of intrigue and suspicion.