----> New experiences

Alex put on a large hoodie and told Adam to also wear something baggy and cover his face. Adam was confused about what was happening, but he followed anyway.

It was hard for Adam to put on clothes with just one hand, as he had recently lost his arm. Alex helped him with that, and both of them got ready.

"You are awfully quiet today. This is making me scared," Adam said, laughing nervously.

"Well, you'll understand when we get there," Alex said, exiting the house and getting on the bike they had stolen from Victor.

Adam quickly sat behind him, and Alex began to drive. Even on the road, Alex wasn't speaking much. Adam just looked around nervously, waiting for what was about to come.

After driving for 2 hours, Alex stopped near an empty plot of land. No cars were passing by, and there were no buildings nearby except for a red-roofed building that almost looked like a barn.

"Follow me, and when we get there, don't use my real name or yours," Alex said, walking toward the building.

Adam nodded and quietly followed him without saying anything.

When they finally entered, it was a large dome from the inside, with a ring in the middle. People shouted with excitement as the next contenders got ready for battle.

This place would have looked like a normal battle arena, but blood was splattered everywhere on the ring. The ceiling and walls were covered in shit, and human remains some bones were lying below the seats. Everything about this place was unsettling.

Seeing this, Adam almost puked, but Alex quickly rubbed his back and helped him calm down.

Finally, a short, bald guy with a few broken teeth approached them. "Uh, you sir, look new here. Would you like me to guide you around?" he said, rubbing his hands together.

"No thanks for the offer, but we are regulars here. We're just heading for the counter," Alex said, quickly ignoring him. Seeing this, the bald guy wasn't happy and attacked them with a knife.

Without wasting a moment, Alex quickly pulled out a gun and shot him straight in the head. Adam was shocked not by how quickly Alex killed him, but by how no one paid attention to it.

"Keep your eyes open. This place has no laws. It's a place for criminals to come together, making it a hotspot for players like us looking for targets," Alex said, gesturing for Adam to stay right behind him.

*This place looks like something out of a video game. I never knew places like this existed,* Adam thought, his eyes scanning every nook and cranny of the place.

Finally, they reached the counter. An old man was collecting papers right behind it, paying no attention to what was going on. His eyes were red, so it was obvious that he was a player.

When he saw Alex and Adam approaching, he pulled out a form and put it on the desk. "Fill this quietly. I'm doing something important," he said before going back to counting papers.

"Listen, Adam, fill this form, and you'll be able to battle in the arena," Alex said, handing Adam the form.

"Huh? WTF? You didn't tell me I was going to fight in an illegal battle arena. Nah, I don't think I can pull this off," Adam said, handing the form back to Alex.

"Stop acting like a bitch. How else do you think you're going to kill a player? Don't worry, I'll help you out. I have had... some experience in this place," Alex said, forcefully handing the form back to Adam.

Adam, though still against it, decided to fill out the form. The form was rather short, only having three questions.

*Hmm, question 1: Are you a player or not? That's pretty easy—yes, I am a player,* Adam thought, ticking yes.

*Okay, let's move on to question 2. Hmmm, can your skill cause physical damage? If yes, please explain your skill. Nah, mine can definitely not cause physical damage,* Adam thought, ticking no.

"Why are you taking so much time? Those questions shouldn't take more than 20 seconds," Alex said, slapping him in the head.

"Well, wait a little. I don't want to fill anything out wrong. Just wait a few more seconds. I'm almost done," Adam said, focusing on the last question.

*Seriously, this guy needs to have some patience. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, the last question: Are you going to be using any weapons? If yes, please specify. I'll definitely be using a gun, but other than that, I don't think so,* Adam thought, ticking yes and writing gun in the blank space given below.

As Adam finished, Alex quickly snatched the form from him. "Finally, you're done," Alex said, taking a quick look and handing it back to the counter.

The old man quickly took the form and placed a seal on it. He then took out his pen and looked at them before asking, "What name are you going to use in the ring?"

"Ohh, Ad—" Adam was quickly cut off by Alex. "He'll be using Adrenaline as his ring name."

The old man smiled and wrote it down on the form. "Hey, kid," he said, pointing at Adam. "You're lucky you have a smart friend with you," he said, pulling out a register.

Alex chuckled proudly at the compliment, while Adam gave him an unimpressed look.

"Your match is against Liltaser. The only slot that is empty is between 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. Well, you can look around until then," the old man said, putting the register back and returning to counting papers.

*WTF is in those papers? He keeps counting them again and again. Well, that doesn't matter,* Adam thought, starting to walk away.

"Where are you going?" Alex asked confused.

"Ohh, didn't he say we're free now and should look around?" Adam said, laughing nervously.

"You'll die in like two minutes here if I'm not with you. Also, we need to find out info about the guy you're fighting," Alex said, grabbing him and taking him to a group of bandits who were smoking.

"Hey, my name is Alardo, and this is my friend Adrenaline. It would mean a lot if you told us something about Liltaser," Alex said, introducing himself and Adam to the group of bandits.

"Go away, dickface, unless you want me to blow your face off," the guy in the front said, shrugging them off and continuing to smoke.

Alex adjusted his hood so they could see his face properly. "You Probably know me, I'm kind of a known legend around here," Alex said, smirking.

Seeing his face, all the bandits got really scared. Adam was shocked to see how much they feared Alex.

*I guess he has some interesting past. Maybe he'll tell me after all this is over, and even if he doesn't, one thing is for sure Alex really downplays his strength around me,* Adam thought, glancing at Alex as he ordered the bandits around with a smile on his face.