Harmony Pact

A blood contract was not something widely known in this world— at least not for NPCs. However, it was common between the players and… their pets. Yes. This man should be someone from the dungeons. In this world, the humans simply called them monsters, but the game referred to them by various names, races, and kinds. Ethan was familiar with a few of them.

"How did you know how to perform a blood contract?" the assassin was still glaring at Ethan as if he had just said something that could kill him at any given time. "This practice was not available in your world."

"I read…" Ethan uttered. Reading the game tutorials still counted as reading, no?

"Your earth does not have anything about blood contracts," the man answered. Seeing his resolute expression, Ethan let out a sigh.

"Is that still important?" Ethan asked.

This time, the man did not answer.

"If you know what I am, then you know that my presence in this world is—temporary."

"I know…." Ethan smiled. There was a reason why pets could only be summoned inside the dungeons. According to the games, they could not live outside of their natural habitat. However, there was a way for them to stay outside for a limited amount of time.

"Why are you here gathering magic stones?" Ethan could not help but ask. The magic stones were abundant in the dungeons. There should not be any reason for this man to come here!

This man's records were exemplary. However, it was also included in the records that he loved to steal magic stones from his victims.

Naturally, everyone assumed that he was selling them to the underground market. This alone was the reason why Ethan started suspecting the man. After all, magic stones were essentially useless to assassins who had already earned a huge amount of money from their clients.

The fact that this man dared to come in here just because of the magic stones that the Kai Family owned was enough to convince Ethan the man's desperation for magic stones.

"You would not understand. Humans would never understand…" the man sneered. He was somehow looking at Ethan with disgust.

"It was no secret that the Kai Family owned more than seventy percent of the mine in Hanmiryeong. I believe this was the primary reason why you decided to come here. Since you liked to have those magic stones, then you may have them. Again, I am going to offer you an unlimited supply of magic stones as long as you work for me."

"A blood contract is something that I cannot do…." The assassin said.

"Blood contracts are not as harsh as slavery contracts. I do not see any reason for you not to do it."

A flicker of surprise could be seen in the man's eyes when he heard Ethan talk about slavery contracts.

"I would never serve a human."

"Are you not serving humans now? Your clients are humans too, no?" Ethan argued.

"This is different."

A blood contract was different from a slave contract because a blood contract allowed for a more collaborative and symbiotic relationship. While the player had a level of control over their companion creature, it was often balanced with respect to the creature's autonomy and abilities.

Moreover, Blood contracts were typically designed with clauses for mutual benefit and specified durations. They could be renewed, renegotiated, or terminated by either party if agreed-upon conditions were met. On the contrary, Slavery contracts were often indefinite and rarely provided a pathway to freedom or termination for the enslaved party.

Naturally, a slave contract is far more popular in games.

Still, Ethan could not say that he was surprised to hear the man decline his offer. Monsters with this type of ability should be considered an elite. If he was right, then this creature already had his human form.

A sigh escaped his lips. He already expected the man to decline, but he still felt it was such a waste.

"Then shall we have a harmony pact?" Ethan asked.

Again, there was a flicker of surprise in the man's eyes when he heard Ethan's words. He stared at Ethan as if he was trying to open him up and see the secrets he was hiding.

Ethan gave him a wry smile.

"I did not expect a human to even possess the knowledge of a harmony pact…" the man muttered.

In response, Ethan smiled. Harmony pacts were more popular between the leaders of two races or tribes. It was a simple pact that they would never betray or do something that could harm each other. Aside from this, they had no other responsibility to the other. Both could do what they wanted, and move where they wanted, and even if one of them was in danger, the other party had no responsibility to help out.

As long as they did no harm, both directly or indirectly, to the other party, the pact would stay.

Moreover, the duration of the Harmony Pact was flexible and set by mutual agreement. Both parties had the option to renew the contract based on their evolving needs, or they could part ways amicably if their paths diverged.

Again, this pact was more common between tribe leaders and not humans and monsters.

"As long as you will not do anything to harm me, both directly and indirectly, then the pact will stay. As for the magic stones, we can use them to pay you while you act as my bodyguard." Ethan said. "What do you say?"

"A harmony pact can only be done inside a dungeon…"

"That… I know." Ethan said.

"Do you trust me to take you inside a dungeon?" the assassin asked.

"You need my magic stones… I need your services. I do not see any reason why I should not take this step."

"Smart human."

"I am going to take that as a compliment," Ethan beamed. In fact, a blood contract and any other contract with the monsters could only be done inside the dungeon. The game system said that this was because the atmosphere inside the dungeon was needed for such contracts.

When Ethan was still playing this game, he wondered if the punishment for breaking the contract would only happen when you were inside the dungeon. Soon enough, he witnessed a player who did not honor his blood contract with a powerful pet and was punished even if he was no longer inside the dungeon.

"Shall we go ahead and find the nearest dungeon now?" Ethan asked.

**MAIN QUEST**

Mission Name: Survival Mission Part 1

Objective: Safeguard your life during the meeting with the Li Family member, identify and neutralize the assassin without resorting to violence if possible, and capture the assassin for further investigation.

Description: Your primary objective is to protect yourself. Violence must be avoided at all costs, with a secondary goal of capturing the assassin for interrogation.

**Rewards for Successful Completion:**

Experience Points (EXP): Earn 3 Experience Points (EXP) for adeptly safeguarding yourself and demonstrating exceptional crisis management.

Reputation: Gain 2 Reputation points for ensuring your safety and preserving the reputation of the Kai Consortium in the face of a dangerous enemy.

Status: COMPLETED

**BONUS REWARD FOR SUCCESSFUL CAPTURE OF ASSASSIN:**

Unlock Skill Level Progression

Skill Unlocked: Persuasion

Key Information: NONE

Status: COMPLETED

[Rewards Credited]

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