Shocked!
Somewhere ahead, inside the murmuring crowd, a middle-aged man suddenly lit up, eyes wide with excitement.
"Great! Boss Alaric levelled up! That means it'll be easier now... we can finally avenge Blaise!"
"Bodhi, what happened to Blaise?" someone nearby asked.
"Ah... here's what happened," Bodhi began, his voice rough around the edges, like he was forcing it to stay steady. "Blaise and I were scouting the road. As soon as we reached the grove, we ran into two Ninefold Vipers. Big ones. Poisonous as hell. The moment we saw 'em, we turned to run—knew we were fucked."
He paused. Swallowed.
"But... Blaise wasn't fast enough. One of the snakes caught him. Swallowed him whole. I only made it out 'cause my awakened talent gives me a speed boost. I pulled the second snake with me and barely made it back."
Bodhi exhaled shakily, voice dipping into a whisper. "If you all hadn't shown up when you did, that snake never would've gone down… fuck. That thing was a nightmare."
As he spoke, his hands trembled a little. He tried to hide it, but the terror hadn't left his face.
Alaric stood off to the side, listening in silence, his expression carved in stone.
In just a few hours, he'd built something close to dominance over this group of newcomers. People trusted him. Called him "Boss Alaric" without question. Even Bodhi, ten years older, bowed his head when he spoke.
"Let's go," Alaric said calmly. "We'll avenge Blaise. Bodhi—lead the way."
"Right away, Boss Alaric!" Bodhi responded, straightening up and quickly stepping ahead.
The group followed, weapons gripped tight, heading straight toward the grove—toward where Black was hiding.
Hidden in the thick brush, Black had been eavesdropping the entire time. And just like that, the final piece clicked into place.
So that snake he killed earlier—the one with the bloated gut and thick blood—it must've been the one that devoured Blaise.
Now Alaric and his people were heading right for him.
Black dropped low into the undergrowth and stilled his breath. He didn't want trouble. He was planning to wait them out, let them pass, and double back to extract what was left from the snake corpse.
But just as the group passed by his hiding spot, something shifted.
A girl in tight blue jeans stopped suddenly. Her head turned sharply. Her eyes locked onto the dense foliage.
"Who's there?!"
Her voice cut through the tension like a wire pulled taut.
Her name was Liana, and she wasn't guessing.
Her gift? Supernatural hearing. She'd caught the rhythm of his heartbeat through the still air.
Everyone around her froze.
"What?"
"Who's hiding?! Come out!"
Weapons lifted. Eyes scanned the trees. In this world, hesitation could mean death. Nobody dared let their guard down.
In the brush, Black let out a quiet, resigned sigh.
No point pretending now.
He rose slowly, brushing leaves from his jacket.
Still crouched, still watching.
But he wasn't afraid.
Even if Alaric and his six followers attacked him together, they wouldn't stand a chance.
"Wait—it's you!" Liana stepped forward, eyebrows furrowed, like she recognized him.
Black blinked, confused. He didn't know this girl.
"Liana, you know him?" asked an older man from the group—one they called Old King.
Liana hesitated, caught off guard. Then, as realization dawned, her face flushed pink.
Of course. She didn't actually know Black.
But like everyone here, she'd seen the Public Chat Group. With a thousand players in this Starter Village, most of them were average-looking or downright ugly. Only a handful stood out.
Black was one of them.
Liana had noticed—how could she not? He was the type the Appearance Association girls quietly whispered about.
She hadn't expected to run into him here.
But she couldn't just say, Oh, he's hot, so I remembered his face.
"That... I saw his profile picture in the Chat Group," she said, trying to sound casual. "So I remembered him. His name's Black."
She turned toward him. "Black, why are you here?"
"Just passing through," he said, voice calm.
Liana frowned. "This area's dangerous. Way too dangerous to wander alone. One of our teammates just died out here."
She paused, then looked back at Alaric.
"Boss Alaric, maybe Black should come with us. It's too risky for anyone to be out here solo."
Bodhi chimed in quickly. "Yeah, with Blaise gone, we're one short. Why not let Black join us? We could use the extra muscle."
Alaric stayed quiet for a beat. Then he nodded.
Everyone knew—when beasts and humans were on the same level, the beasts usually won.
If humanity wanted to survive, cooperation was the only way forward.
Eventually, factions would rise. Small teams. Whole clans.
And if Alaric wanted influence, he'd need to start forming a power base now.
He looked at Black, weighing him.
"Show me your attributes and talents," Alaric said flatly. "As long as you're not too weak, I'll take you in."
Liana lit up. "Black, come on! Just show your info. Boss Alaric's letting you in!"
Bodhi added, "You don't know how lucky you are. Our boss is already level 2. He even awakened a strong D-rank talent. This is your shot, man."
The others nodded, grinning.
In their minds, the decision was already made. Who wouldn't want to join a rising powerhouse like Alaric?
But Black just glanced at them and said quietly, "No thanks. I prefer being on my own."
Then he turned and walked away.
The forest went silent.
What the fuck?
Did he really just turn down Boss Alaric?
They stood there, stunned.
Didn't he get it? Alaric wasn't just anyone—he was level 2. A leader. A force. And this guy just brushed him off like it meant nothing?
Even Alaric was frozen, lips parting slightly as he watched Black disappear into the trees.
A few seconds passed before he turned away.
"Let's go. Don't force it."
He walked ahead without looking back.
The others followed, still murmuring in disbelief.
"Who does he think he is...?"
Liana lingered for a second, biting her lip, before stomping her foot and hurrying after the group.
It wasn't long before they were gone.
Black waited in silence.
When he was sure the last footsteps had faded, he stepped out again.
There was no way he'd join a team like that—not when he was hiding too many cards up his sleeve. They'd just slow him down.
He moved through the grass toward the massive snake's corpse and knelt beside it.
[Soul Leech Success! Gained +2 Energy Attributes!]
His body tingled as energy surged through him. Another boost.
Perfect.
He'd already cleared the beginner zone of level 1 beasts. No point sticking around now.
With a final glance at the snake, he turned toward the edge of the plains.
Time to find something stronger.
Far behind him, voices rose again—shouts, gasps, disbelief.
Back in the grove, Alaric's team had arrived.
The moment they saw it, they froze.
A second Ninefold Viper lay sprawled across the ground. Its stomach had been slit open clean. Blood painted the dirt. Intestines coiled out like thick ropes. And beside the steaming mess—was Blaise's lifeless body.
No one spoke for a long time.
Finally, someone broke the silence.
"Judging by the dried blood... this snake died before the one we killed."
It was Jay who spoke—tall, slim, wearing glasses that were perpetually slipping down his nose.
Back on Earth, he'd been a student at a top university. A logic nerd. Obsessed with detective novels.
"Jay... you mean someone killed this thing before we even showed up?" one of the others asked.
Jay nodded and stepped closer to examine the scene.
He knelt near the corpse, studying the gash, the blood spatter, the footprints.
After a long moment, his eyes went wide.
"Boss Alaric," he said slowly. "This was done by one person."
Alaric stepped forward. "You sure?"
Jay pointed. "Only one set of footprints here. No signs of a struggle. And the way the snake was cut—straight through the seventh inch. Instant kill."
The group exploded.
"No way!"
"One-shot kill?! What kind of monster can do that?!"
"I slashed one of these fuckers twenty times and barely cracked its scales—someone sliced clean through?!"
"He's a master," someone whispered.
Alaric took a long breath. "Killed it in one blow... Even at level 2, I wouldn't try to solo something like this head-on. And he... he just—" He cut himself off. "Is he level 3 already?"
Jay's face was pale. "I don't know what level he is... but I'm certain—this was the work of a level 3 powerhouse. And he's working alone."
The word hung in the air like smoke.
"Alone…?" Liana's voice came quietly. "Jay... you think that person is Black?"
Jay blinked.
Then his eyes lit up.
"Oh shit... now that you say it…"
The entire group went silent.
And then, almost in unison, they turned to look at each other—faces tightening, breath catching—
Every single one of them realizing exactly what they might've just let walk away.