SCREECH!!!!
The Level 10 Black Venom Spider Boss shrieked, a sound of lethal frustration. It smashed its two front legs into the ground.
BOOOOM!!
Poisonous spikes erupted from the earth. The three remaining survivors—the leader, the knight, and the archer and mage—didn’t stand a chance. Their bodies were instantly impaled, and they died before their screams finished.
"Oh... That’s bad," Mirabella muttered, watching from the hill as the spider began to feed on the fresh corpses. Her tone was clinical, devoid of shock. She felt a profound, distant pity for their inexperience, but no guilt for her inaction.
’A whole team wiped out by such a weak Boss. Compared to the Bosses ahead, these guys are just kids.’
She stood up, the last of her Skittle dissolving on her tongue, and stretched. Her focus narrowed from observation to execution.
"Come on, Cupcake. Let’s kill this Boss and see what we get."
She climbed onto Cupcake’s vast, soft back. The huge, white cat spread her wings and shot into the air, flying straight toward the spider.
The spider, alerted by the sudden movement, raised its segmented head, watching the impossibly large cat descend.
Cupcake landed silently a few meters from the carcass-strewn battlefield, and Mirabella jumped down, staff materializing in her hand.
"One attack is all I need," she declared, the confidence in her voice absolute. She concentrated her energy, forming a single, brilliant magic arrow.
"Kill."
WHOOSH!!
The arrow shot forward. The spider rushed to meet the perceived threat, its high agility useless against the speed of a maxed-level projectile.
BAM!!
The arrow struck the spider’s head. The Boss dropped instantly, dead before its body hit the ground.
Mirabella raised her bracelet and tapped it. A light shone over the massive spider, and a moment later, a glowing purple soul fragment appeared before her.
’Purple!’ The rarity made her breath hitch.
"It’s a purple!! A mid-grade Boss fragment! This can give me enough EXP!" Her composure momentarily broke; a flash of raw, greedy joy shone in her eyes.
She quickly absorbed the fragment.
{+35 EXP.}
{Total: 85 EXP.}
"You’ve got to be kidding me?!!" Her joy shattered into instant, furious frustration.
"Only 35!!?" She yelled, not caring if the sound echoed. "I went through that brain work, and planning, for just a 35 EXP?!!"
"Master only used one skill, and you didn’t exhaust yourself," Cupcake observed calmly, lying down again.
"Still... I should gain more," Mirabella grumbled, kicking the dirt. She looked up at the rapidly darkening sky.
’It’s getting dark. I need to hit Level 5 before tomorrow.’
She spun to face Cupcake, her mind already shifting from farming to raiding. "Cupcake! Get ready! We are going to clear a dungeon." She paused, calculating distances based on her past life knowledge.
"If my guess is correct, it’s the Temple of the Armor God—it’s closest. We can rob and clear it before anyone else gets there."
"Does Master know how to get there?" Cupcake asked, her head tilted.
"Get there? I discovered it in my previous life, thanks to the leader’s directions."
"Then you aren’t the one who discovered it, but your leader," Cupcake stated calmly, licking her paw.
"Hey, can’t you support your master?" Mirabella frowned, then instinctively patted her pockets for comfort.
"Forget it, Master, you already finished the sweet."
"AHH! Why! I need it." She exhaled dramatically, forcing herself back to sobriety.
"Okay... I think I can do seven days without sweet or candy. I must survive this." Her expression hardened into a serious, resolute mask.
".....?!"
Cupcake was uncharacteristically speechless.
"Show me my profile."
{Name: Mirabella Sunny.}
{Game Nickname: Spectral.}
{Level: Lv1. (85/300 Exp).}
{Age: 22.}
{Physical Attack: 100.}
{Agility: 14.}
{Defense: 30.}
{Health: 1,600.}
{Magic Attack: 100.}
{Kills: 10.}
{Boss killed: 1.}
"Okay... It seems I gained 500 more Health—that is good. The high health makes up for the low defense, but I still desperately need something to boost my agility and defense." She blinked:
’The Armor God Temple holds a legendary defensive armor. That will solve the Defense problem. Agility? That can’t be found in the beginner zone. I will either have to finish the beginner round or level up significantly.’
She let out a deep breath, walked towards Cupcake, and mounted her.
"Head east, Cupcake. Just keep on moving until you see a black tree." she instructed. "There is nothing to loot from the dead bodies below; they’re newbies with only low-class gear, completely useless, and that stupid Boss didn’t even give me any gears, utterly useless."
Cupcake nodded, spread her wings, and shot into the dark sky, an apex predator moving toward its hidden bounty.
____
[At the opposite side of the Zone.]
"Phew! We made it!!" Alice gasped, holding her chest as they emerged from the blinding portal.
"Where are we?" Miranda looked around the wilderness, confusion and residual fear clouding her face. They had followed Angela’s sudden disappearance on Earth and found themselves here.
"Haven’t you played RPG games before?" Ethan picked up a thick, sturdy stick.
[Obtain weapon: Physical Attack: +2.]
"The system said we have three days to spend here, and we need to get to our destination." He spoke with forced confidence, taking on the role of leader.
"What destination?!" Miranda snapped. "We are in the middle of nowhere! No phone, no internet... Nothing, except your big stick."
"This big stick, as you called it, can save your lives," Ethan smirked, tapping the stick lightly against his palm, a survivalist’s bravado masking his fear.
Growl!
The three women and three men instantly jumped to attention. They stared at the weirdly shaped cave on a distant hill as Stone Wolves, creatures with fur that resembled solid rock, emerged from the shadows, their eyes locked on the group.
"Two of you, go deal with them!!" Ethan gestured to his two friends, who instead of attacking, instinctively took steps backward.
"Cowards." Ethan scoffed, tightening his grip on the stick.
GROWL!!!
The wolves lunged forward, claws digging deep marks into the soil.
"Here they come!!"
WHOOSH!!!!
A black shadow streaked past, moving too fast to track. One of the wolves vanished in a puff of smoke.
".....?!?"
The remaining wolves halted their charge, moving backward, their bodies trembling.
"What was that?" Miranda asked in horror, spinning around, her face pale.
The remaining Stone Wolves let out low, terrified growls, then turned tail and ran.
WHOOSH!!!
"Over there!!" Alice screamed, pointing a shaky finger at the sky.
Everyone looked up, seeing a massive, ten-meter-long bird of prey, shrouded in a crackling aura of pure darkness, swooping down toward the running wolves.
[Information.]
[Name: Demon Hunter - Boss.]
[Level: Unknown.]
[Traits: Immune to Elemental and magic attacks.]
[Attack: 1,000.]
[Health: 5,000.]
[Defense: 2,000.]
[Agility: 1,000.]
The moment Ethan saw the impossible stats of the creature—a monster whose attack power alone was one thousand—only one thought appeared in his head:
"RUN!"