The white light faded, and Xavier found himself back at the familiar floating plaza outside the Hall of Heroes. The marble tiles shimmered under his boots. Sky above looked clearer than before. The entire place buzzed with faint hums of digital energy, like the world itself remembered what had just happened.
Oliver was already there, waiting at the base of the statue podium like a loyal NPC who never left his spawn point.
The moment he saw Xavier, he ran up, arms flailing. "Brooo!! Holy shit, you—you were born for this! What the fuck even was that?! That wasn’t just MVP-level, that was—god tier."
Xavier smirked as he walked past him, arms crossed behind his head. "Relax. I just did what anyone would do."
Oliver grabbed his shoulders and shook him like he was trying to restart a broken server. "ANYONE?! Dude, you made half the top guilds cry! You made Lucas choke. Ethan looked like he saw his dad abandon him twice."
Xavier let out a low chuckle. "I just watched how the others fought. Saw what worked, saw what didn’t. It’s easy to learn anything after watching it once, no?"
Oliver blinked. "Easy for you, maybe. Not everyone’s a goddamn genius who casually wipes a world boss solo on their first try."
He threw his arms up again. "I still can’t believe it. You’re perfect at studying, hacking, fighting, gaming... bro what can’t you do?!"
Xavier shrugged. "I can’t cook."
Oliver rolled his eyes. "Of course. Only flaw—burning toast."
Then he paused. "Wait... were you watching your stats? Did you see how much XP you got?"
Xavier glanced up. "Nah. Got the level-up notification mid-fight. Didn’t bother checking."
"WHAT?! Bro, open your goddamn menu!"
Xavier did.
[Level: 65]
[Available Stat Points: 75]
[Unlocked: Tier 2 Passive Fusion Perk]
[Unlocked: Rift Surge – Class Fusion Skill]
Saving 25 points, he casually distributed the 50 stat points evenly again—10 each into Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Endurance, Dexterity, and Luck. The moment he did, a faint blue glow pulsed across his body. His gear responded too—sharpening, syncing tighter with his build. His sword even let out a small hum, like it had sensed his growth.
Oliver peeked over his shoulder. "Ten more levels in one go. That’s broken. You know people would sell their soul for that, right?"
"Let them," Xavier said. "I’ll sell it back to them at double."
Oliver wheezed. "Okay, villain arc."
Then he leaned on the railing. "You know I watched the entire raid stream, right? It was being broadcasted in-game, but also streamed to every server on Earth... and other planets too. The galactic servers went nuts. You’re literally trending right now."
Xavier snorted. "That explains why my inbox had a seizure."
Oliver nodded. "They’re calling you the ’One-Man Raid Squad.’ Some think you’re a dev’s secret smurf. Others are offering real money to join their guilds."
"Let them wait."
"Yeah, they will." Then Oliver raised an eyebrow. "So... what reward did you get from the raid?"
Xavier pulled up his inventory and showed the glowing relic.
[World Shard – Core Fragment (Mythic)]
Passive: Grants immunity to one fatal attack per day. Automatically revives with full HP.
Bonus: +100 to all base stats when HP drops below 30%.
Oliver whistled. "That’s beyond busted. That’s like... cheat engine level busted. You’re not killable now."
Xavier didn’t reply. He didn’t need to.
He was already untouchable.
Then Xavier turned to him. "Why didn’t you join the raid today? Could’ve helped me out."
Oliver rubbed the back of his head. "Oh. Uh... I did the raid already."
"When?"
"First week. The event’s been running for two weeks now, today is the final day."
"Huh. So you only get to join once?"
"Nope," Oliver said. "You can join as many times as you want. But—each time, the reward gets cut in half. Second try gives you only 50% of what you’d earn normally. Third try gives just 25%. Anything beyond that? Not worth the pixels. Fourth run gives like 13%."
Xavier let out a low whistle. "So that’s why most people were giving it their all."
"Yup. Last day, last chance. Everyone wants to grab the best rewards today. That’s why all the top players showed up."
As the energy of the raid plaza faded, Xavier leaned against the railing and stretched his arms.
He turned to Oliver. "You know how many times those two asshats—Lucas and Ethan—participated in the event?"
Oliver looked at him... and just went dead-eyed.
Xavier sighed. "Sorry."
He pulled open the event archive and tapped through the clunky menus. Fortunately, there was a search bar. He typed in Lucas and Ethan. Took a couple minutes, but eventually, he got what he wanted.
"Forty times. They did the raid like three or four times every damn day."
Oliver nodded. "Sounds about right. They’re in guilds. Guilds get shared progress in raids. And guild leaders or vice leaders can vote on how the rewards are split."
Xavier tilted his head. "You’re saying they split it?"
Oliver scoffed. "Hell no. Knowing them? They probably bribed or pressured everyone to vote them max contribution every time."
Xavier clicked his tongue. "So that’s why they were trying so hard to drag me into their stupid guild. All about milking my performance."
"Pretty much," Oliver muttered. "They saw your gear and lost their minds."
Xavier leaned back, watching the plaza’s screen flicker with raid highlights. "Why would the game allow shit like that? Anyone with half a brain can tell it’s abusable."
Oliver shrugged. "Because money, duh. More raids = more consumables used = more cash spent. You think devs care?"
Xavier sighed, scrolling again through the leaderboard out of habit. His eyes stopped at a name that stood out.
"Crimson Vow... Requiem," he read aloud. "This guy’s been number one every day of the raid... except today."
Oliver glanced over. "Requiem? Sounds familiar. Probably one of their friends."
Xavier tapped on the guild info. "Nah. He joined their guild the day the event started."
Oliver scratched his head. "Then they probably hired him. Guilds sometimes pull in top-tier mercs just to boost event rankings."
Xavier narrowed his eyes. "Smart bastards. Throwing money to get ahead. Well, I did the same thing too."
"Yeah, but they still got smoked today," Oliver grinned.