In the quiet corners of Shell Town, Rhea and her five teammates were still scouring alleyways for clues, terrified of missing a single advantage. But the search came to a grinding halt when the global system thundered with Silas's achievement.
"What... what just happened?" one of her men stammered. "Rhea, that name, 'Shadow.' Isn't that the guy who just walked out alone?"
"It has to be," Rhea whispered, her bow trembling in her hand. "He hit Level 2 already?"
"Forget the level! He killed a Bronze mini-boss!"
"We couldn't even scratch a Common mob with five of us, and he soloed a Bronze? Is the system glitched?"
"Look at the leaderboard," Rhea pointed a shaking finger at the holographic projection. "There's only one name on it. Just him."
Indeed, the Shell Town rankings featured a single entry: Shadow. It was a lonely, intimidating sight. Rhea, who had prided herself on her Hidden Class, felt a sudden, cold realization. She had been worried about his survival; now she had to worry about his shadow.
Back at the Resurrection Point, Grant and Maya stood in a daze. The system had just confirmed their nightmare: their lifespans had been cut in half. They had gone from decades of life to a mere twenty-some years in the blink of an eye.
"Grant..." Maya's face was ashen. "Do you think the lifespan thing is real?"
Grant shook his head violently, though his hands were shaking. "No way. It's a trick. Some kind of deep-dive VR tech we don't understand yet."
"But we weren't even wearing headsets," Maya countered, her voice trembling. "We were sleeping. And this place... it's too real."
Their existential dread was interrupted by the same notification.
[Player 'Shadow' has slain 'The Breeder (Bronze-tier)'...]
"The spider?" Grant gasped. "That two-meter monster that ate us? Someone killed it?"
"It says it was a 'Shadow,'" Maya whispered. "And there's no one else in his party. He did it alone."
They looked at each other, feeling as if they had just seen a ghost. They had been helpless prey, yet this "Shadow" had walked into the same woods and slaughtered the predator.
As the population of Shell Town swelled toward five hundred, the central plaza became a sea of black-robed survivors from the Aurelian Republic.
A blonde young man named Leo climbed onto a crumbling stone fountain and shouted for attention.
"Listen up! We're all in the same boat. We can't log out, and according to the system, death is permanent after our lifespan hits zero. Whether you believe it or not, don't go out alone! People are already dying out there!"
He began organizing "Safety Groups," calling for people to declare their classes. Some listened, desperate for a leader. Others, mostly veteran gamers, looked on with a mix of arrogance and excitement.
At a different exit, a massive, imposing man named Titan stood with a hand-picked team of three men and three women.
"Treat it like a hardcore server," Titan rumbled to his group. "I'm a Holy Shield Warrior. I have a 'Divine Protection' skill that makes me invulnerable for short bursts. I'll hold the line; you all just dump damage. As long as we don't die, we win."
Titan's team was elite, every member possessed a Hidden Class he had personally vetted in the plaza. They weren't looking for safety; they were looking for dominance.
Silas, meanwhile, stood over the dissolving remains of the Breeder. He didn't care about the fame or the prestige points, though he knew "Prestige" would eventually unlock high-tier Isu gear from NPC traders.
He reached out, absorbing the grey mist of the boss's life force.
[Gained 46 Days of Tradeable Lifespan.]
A massive haul. Soloing a boss meant he didn't have to split the pot with a party. Then, he looked at the three items the Breeder had dropped. One in particular made his eyes widen.
"I just hit the jackpot," Silas muttered.
[Skill Book: Hand of Greed (Bronze)]
Class: Assassin.
Effect: When used on a monster's corpse, grants a 20% chance to obtain additional loot.
Requirement: Level 1.
A 20% chance was mediocre to most. But to Silas, it was a foundation.
"Evolve this," he whispered, a predatory glint in his eyes, "and I won't just be the strongest player in the Federation. I'll be the richest."