Swords, magic, and martial arts

After several boring days, Rhodes and his crew finally arrived at Gulfstream City.

Rhodes has been diligently studying martial arts manuals every day for the past few days and has gained a lot, but there are still some things that need to be verified through actual combat.

Messiah approached Rhodes several times, asking if he could bake cakes on the ship.

Originally rejected by Rhodes, she couldn't bear it any longer and tried using the ship's ingredients. Although the taste wasn't as good as before, Messiah could still accept it, since it was much better than the bread and fish soup on the ship.

After a brief farewell to Quentin and his crew, Rhodes and his group left the "Flyer".

"Should we register for the tournament first? But we're one person short," Rhodes asked after disembarking.

"Let's go check out the tavern first; maybe I know someone there," Baron said.

"Who do you think would travel all this way just to participate in a competition?" Hammer said from the side, having finally overcome his seasickness during the last few days on the ship.

"Maybe," Baron said casually.

"I heard from people on the ship that this tournament doesn't allow the use of magic or divine arts; you can only win by relying on your own martial arts skills. If that's the case, then we're actually two people short," Rhodes added.

"Don't worry about me holding you back. My Lord not only gave me the ability to cast spells, but also strength and agility," Messiah said.

"Alright then." Rhodes couldn't tell how much power her small frame could unleash.

Quentin had previously told Rhodes about the Fish Kingdom while on the ship.

The Kingdom of Fish is the wealthiest country on the entire continent, and its people enjoy far superior material conditions and cultural and spiritual life compared to other countries on the continent.

This country has completely abolished slavery, and even serfs no longer exist. Although nobles still enjoy privileges, the rights and status of the people are much higher than in the other three countries.

The citizens of the Kingdom of Fish are far more educated than the commoners of other countries on the continent. Every adult citizen of the Kingdom of Fish is eligible to become an official in a town, and they also have the right to vote for some important positions, choosing the one they trust most from among several competing nobles to fill that position.

In the towns of the Kingdom of Fish, apart from soldiers like the city guards, no one else is allowed to bring weapons into the city or onto the streets. If caught, they will be imprisoned for several days. Unlike in Nord, where all sorts of weapons can be seen on the streets, and no one cares when Baron and Hammer carry such terrifying weapons, this has improved the security of the Kingdom of Fish.

The docks in Gulfstream City are not built inside the city walls, but not far outside the city. Foreign adventurers like Rhodes have to be searched by the city guards after disembarking before they can enter the city.

However, they can stay temporarily in inns outside the city. Long ago, Duke Orn of Gulfstream built many inns outside the city for participants who did not want to leave their weapons behind, in order to preserve the tradition of the tournament.

Bayview City usually has a population of over 100,000, but during the tournament, the number of people in the city usually increases to around 200,000, in addition to those who want to participate in the competition, many more people come to watch the competition.

After all, such grand events are rare in a world with limited entertainment options, even in the world's richest country.

"Why are you trying to run away without paying?" A voice attracted the attention of the crowd who had not yet left the dock.

Rod turned his head and saw several shirtless, gruff sailors grabbing a handsome young man and shouting at him.

It's clear that the young man hadn't paid his fare after disembarking and tried to sneak away during the chaos, but was caught.

"Doesn't this person look familiar?" Baron asked Hammer beside him.

"A little," Hammer nodded.

"Is it that sailor or that young man?" Rhodes asked from the side.

"I remember now." Baron patted his bald head.

He stepped forward and pulled the sailor's hand away from the young man's collar.

"How much money did he owe you? I paid it for him," Baron said magnanimously.

"Do you know him?" the sailor asked.

"Why are you asking so many questions? Just tell me the price," Baron said.

"We have plenty of entertainment on board, and this kid owes quite a bit. I'm afraid you're just a kind-hearted person trying to help, and you might not want to pay him after hearing the price, so as not to embarrass you," the sailor explained.

"Why are you being so long-winded? Just tell me the price directly," Baron said again.

"That's a total of one hundred and twenty-one gold coins and seventy-eight silver coins. We've erased the copper coins for you," the sailor read from a wooden board. In this world, there was no suitable paper for writing, and animal hides were quite expensive, so they simply used wooden boards to record the bills.

"How come there are so many? What did you do up there?" Baron was surprised. The four of them plus a horse only cost one gold coin for the boat fare.

"I don't know either, I only played a few rounds with them," the young man said from the side.

"You call that just playing a few rounds? You stayed there for three days and three nights without coming down?" a sailor said.

"What are you playing?" Baron asked curiously.

"Playing with dice," the young man replied.

"Alright, considering our past relationship, I'll pay for this one for you." Baron took out a hundred gold coins from his wallet. "And just forget about the extra few."

"That won't do, that's over twenty gold coins!" the sailor said nervously.

"This is gambling! What's the difference between you and running a casino? If the lord here finds out, you won't get a single penny, and you might even be locked up," Rod said righteously. He had made all of this up himself.

He put the gold coins back in Baron's hand, then pulled Baron and the young man away quickly.

The sailors were fooled by Rhodes' words. They had just returned from Nord and were unsure whether the Kingdom of Fish had added such a law, nor whether such a law existed before.

"It wouldn't be right for us to leave without paying," the young man said.

Rhodes was speechless. Wasn't he just trying to run away and getting caught?

"You shouldn't have owed them money in the first place. You must have fallen into their trap while you were on the ship, otherwise you wouldn't have lost so much. Do you think those sailors would bet such big on their own? They were obviously ripping you off. We're being lenient by not beating them up for you," Rod said.

The young man recalled for a moment and nodded. "It seems so. I really didn't play many rounds. They dragged me into playing, and they didn't mention any betting. I was bored, so I played with them for a bit. I didn't expect it to turn out like this."

"But why would they choose you as their target? You don't look like you have any money," Rod said, puzzled. This was the first time he had ever heard of such a thing.

The young man, of course, would not admit that he had boasted to the heavens on the ship and everywhere he went about telling others how rich he was, and that he was going home to inherit a title and estate.

"By the way, Baron, why do you know him?" Rod asked curiously.

The young man turned around and stood face-to-face with Rhodes, saying, "Let me introduce myself, my name is Miles..."

……