Han Jue pressed his back against the cold obsidian, his breathing shallow and synchronized with the rhythmic dripping of water. He had coated his skin in the cooling, pungent gall of the Basilisk to mask his scent.
In the dim glow of magical flares, four figures emerged into the cavern.
At the front was Kael, his crimson cape pristine despite the dungeon's filth. Behind him were a tank in heavy plate armor, a female priest glowing with a soft golden aura, and an archer whose eyes scanned the room with predatory precision.
"Wait," Kael commanded, raising a hand.
The group stopped dead. Their eyes fell upon the carcass of the Obsidian-Scaled Basilisk. Even Kael's arrogant expression flickered for a moment.
"A Tier-D Elite? Dead?" the archer whispered, notched an arrow. "The scales are shredded... and the soul-core area is empty. Did another guild beat us to the lower levels?"
Kael stepped forward, poking the carcass with his staff. The charred, brittle scales crumbled under the touch. "Impossible. We're the only ones with a permit for this sector today. And look at these wounds. This wasn't done by high-tier magic or specialized gear. It looks like... it was chewed out from the inside."
He looked around the dark cavern, his eyes narrowing. "There's no mana residue. Just a lingering scent of... decay."
Ten meters away, hidden in a cleft in the ceiling ribs, Han Jue watched them. His heart hammered against his ribs—not with fear, but with a cold, vibrating hunger. Through the System, he could see their levels floating above their heads like neon death sentences.
[Kael - Level 42 (A-Rank Mage)] [Current Soul Value: 85,000 Points]
[Target 'Kael' is a High-Value Debtor. Kill him to settle 8% of your total debt.]
Eighty-five thousand points, Han Jue thought. A single kill would do more than a hundred Basilisks. But he wasn't a fool. Between him and Kael was a Tier-B Tank and a Tier-B Archer. If he moved now, he'd be turned into ash before he could blink.
[Mission Progress: 50% Stalking Complete.] [Bonus Condition: Sabotage the Creditors without revealing your identity.]
"Captain," the Priest spoke up, her voice trembling slightly. "The mana in this room... it feels wrong. It's like the life is being sucked out of the air itself. We should move to the boss chamber and finish the raid."
"Fine," Kael spat, kicking the Basilisk's head in frustration. "Leave the scrap. If it's another guild, we'll find them at the Rift Heart. No one steals a kill from the Golden Dawn."
As they moved toward the tunnel leading to the deeper levels, Han Jue saw his opening.
The Tank was dragging his heavy shield, leaving a deep groove in the soft, loamy floor of the tunnel. Above them hung a cluster of Vampiric Glow-Worms—passive monsters that only attacked when agitated by sudden mana spikes.
Han Jue reached into his pouch and pulled out a jagged shard of the Basilisk's scale. He focused his mind, activating his newest skill.
[Skill: Executioner's Mark—Activated.] [Target: Support Pillar (Structural Weak Point).]
A faint red 'X' appeared on a cracked stone pillar directly above the party's path. Han Jue didn't aim for the people; he aimed for the environment.
With the Strength of 15 men, he hurled the scale shard. It whistled through the air, silent and deadly, striking the 'X' with the force of a bullet.
CRACK.
The pillar didn't just break; it shattered.
"Ambush!" the Archer screamed, but it was too late.
The ceiling groaned and collapsed. Tons of rock and obsidian rained down. Kael reacted instantly, casting a Flame Nova to blast the falling debris away, but the explosion of mana did exactly what Han Jue wanted.
It woke up the Glow-Worms.
Thousands of glowing, needle-toothed insects descended like a living neon cloud, attracted by Kael's massive mana flare.
"Get back! Protect the Priest!" Kael yelled, his hands erupting in pillars of fire.
In the chaos of dust, falling stone, and swarming monsters, a shadow flickered.
Han Jue dropped from the ceiling, landing silently behind the Archer, who was busy firing arrows into the swarm. He didn't go for the kill—not yet. He reached out, his hand glowing with a dark, hungry light.
"Partial Extraction."
He touched the Archer's quiver, specifically the high-grade Mana-Infused Arrows.
[Extraction Successful!] [Stolen: 12x Grade-C Mana Arrows.] [Converted to: 1,200 Soul Points.] [Current Balance: -1,001,750 Soul Points.]
The Archer felt a sudden weightlessness but didn't have time to look back as a swarm of worms latched onto his leather armor. Han Jue disappeared back into the darkness before the Archer could even turn his head.
[Mission Complete: The Ghost in the Dark.] [Reward: Hidden Shop Unlocked.] [New Item Available: 'The Scavenger's Cloak' (Rank D - Stealth).]
Han Jue retreated into a side-passage, his chest heaving with adrenaline. He had just robbed a B-Rank Archer under the nose of an A-Rank Mage.
He opened the Hidden Shop interface.
[Hidden Shop (Debt-Based)]
Scavenger's Cloak (Rank D): 2,000 Soul Points. (Hides presence from those up to 10 levels higher).
Heart-Seeker Dagger (Rank D): 5,000 Soul Points. (Deals True Damage to 'Debtors').
Skill: Shadow Step (Rank E): 3,500 Soul Points.
"The Cloak," Han Jue whispered. "Buy the cloak."
[Purchase Confirmed. New Balance: -1,003,750 Soul Points.] (Note: Purchasing from the shop increases your debt, but provides the tools to pay it off faster. Welcome to the cycle.)
A tattered, pitch-black cloth materialized in his hands. It felt like it was woven from shadows and regret. As he threw it over his shoulders, his silhouette seemed to blur, merging perfectly with the gloom of the dungeon.
He looked toward the direction of the screaming and the smell of burning ozone.
"Keep fighting, Kael," Han Jue said, his voice cold and devoid of the fear he'd felt only hours ago. "Tire yourselves out. I'll be waiting at the bottom."
The janitor was no longer cleaning up the mess. He was the one making it.