Elena pressed her back to the bedframe, breath shallow. Above her, Ethan and Yitong sat thigh-to-thigh, murmuring. She didn't care about their chatter—her finger hovered over [Take One], ready to strike again.
Fourth steal. Her HP dropped to 27%.
Fifth steal. Vision blurred, she fumbled for a Minor Healing Potion, sipping slowly to avoid noise. HP crawled back to 57%.
She'd lost count of attempts. All she knew was the rush—each failed try sharpened her focus, each success fueled her. Then it happened:
Steal Successful!
Loot: [Soroya Set · Mask (1/3)](High-Rank)
Effect: Conceals your player status screen. Activates when stored in inventory; deactivates if mask is dropped. (Undetectable by High-Rank or lower items. Note: Full set increases stealth by 2.)
Elena's hands shook. Not just Luck—gear. The Soroya Set. She'd never heard of it in her past life, but the description sent a jolt through her: a stealth set that hid her status? It was better than any Luck boost. She tucked the mask (thin, cool, etched with tiny runes) into her pocket, mind racing. If there was a mask, there must be more pieces—gauntlets? A cloak? Tools to counter detection?
She forced herself to calm down. The potion's cooldown hit 90 seconds. She chewed jerky, watching Ethan and Yitong through the bed slats. They were still talking, no suspicion. Good.
Two more steals. She grabbed 2 Charisma Points—another unresettable stat—before her HP plummeted to 31%. She drank a second potion, waiting for the cooldown to end. When Ethan stood to leave (Yitong laughing at his side), Elena was already mentally tallying her gains: 6 Luck, 2 Charisma, 1 High-Rank gear.
She crawled out from under the bed at 2 PM, pale and disheveled. Her phone was gone—left in her room, "forgotten" to avoid questions. She stumbled to her door, pausing to listen: Olivia and Qinghuan were arguing about "hiding the gold." Perfect—they hadn't noticed the vault was empty.
Back in her room, she locked the door and pulled out the Soroya Mask. She activated it, then checked her status screen. A new overlay appeared:[Disguised Status]Player: Elena (Level 0, 0.002%)Talent: [Broker](High-Rank)Race: HumanRacial Abilities: [Undead Resolve], [Cannibalize](Hidden)Stats: Strength 5, Vitality 5, Intelligence 5, Agility 5, Luck 5, Charisma 1Extra Stats: 0
Mediocrity, by design. She'd kept Charisma low—too much would draw attention—but left [Undead Resolve]and [Cannibalize]hidden (the mask's fine print: it could cloak racial abilities too). [Broker]was a safe decoy: a High-Rank talent that let users earn commissions on trades—unthreatening, easy to explain.
She smiled. [Thief God]was a target. [Broker]was a ghost.
She changed into a burly man's clothes ([Shadow Veil]active), drank a Minor Invisibility Potion, and slipped out. The mask's runes glowed faintly—no one would see her status if she was stopped. She walked through the lobby, past a security camera, and into the street.
Once clear of the neighborhood, she deactivated [Shadow Veil]and leaned against a wall. The mask felt like a secret against her chest. She thought about Ethan—how he'd used her, how he'd steal her talent, how he'd leave her to die. Killing him would be easy. Too easy.
Elena wanted more.
She thought of her past life: Ethan dragging her into "safe" dungeons, only to let her take the brunt of attacks. Him "sharing" loot that was rightfully hers. Him watching as the Su family hunted her, doing nothing.
"Death is a mercy," she muttered. She wanted him to see—to watch his power fade, his allies turn, his "harem" abandon him. She wanted him to beg for the death she'd once craved.
And the Soroya Mask was her first step. With it, she could sneak into the Su family's meetings. She could pose as a [Broker]to trade with Ethan's allies, sowing doubt. She could even let Ethan "trust" her again—feed him lies about the game, guide him into traps, all while hiding her true strength.
She pulled out a crumpled note—stolen from the vault's floorboards. It listed Ethan's beta contacts: five men, all future members of his "crew." She'd find them. She'd steal from them. She'd turn them against each other.
The sun dipped below the buildings. Elena tucked the note into her pocket, gripping the Soroya Mask. The next beta test was in three days. She had time—time to find the rest of the set, time to weaken Ethan, time to build a plan that would break him.
She thought of Yitong, still unaware her Luck was gone. Of Olivia and Qinghuan, panicking over empty crates. Of Ethan, confident he was the "hero."
Elena laughed, low and cold. They had no idea. Luck wasn't just a stat—it was a weapon. And she was holding it.
She started walking, toward the black market (to sell the last of the gold) and toward revenge. The game was no longer about survival. It was about making Ethan pay—slowly, painfully, with every stolen stat, every hidden lie, every piece of the Soroya Set.
And when he finally realized what was happening? It would be too late.
Luck favored the thief. And Elena was the best thief alive.