Julius wiped the sweat from his brow, his chest rising and falling in heavy breaths. The rush of battle still pounded in his ears, but they had done it. They had survived the second wave and with relative ease too.
His fingers traced the fabric of the Shadow Veil Cloth, the thin, dark material cool against his skin. It shimmered faintly, reacting to his touch. With this, his Stealth skill would be even stronger. He had tested it briefly, vanishing into the shadows for a few seconds, and when he reappeared, his heart had raced with excitement.
It was hope. This item's description was appetising enough. He read it once more.
[Shadow Veil Cloth – When worn, grants (Terror State).]
[Terror State: Grants bonus speed, resistance to physical damage and reduces visibility.]
Instead of loot as a reward from the wave, they had also received ten Medallions each. Kiera had been the first to check what they could buy, and as Julius scrolled through the glowing system menu, he felt something stir in his chest.
"Look, theirs a new shop in the system. It's called the medallion shop." She spoke softly, in slight dissapointment as she viewed the prices.
[Instant Level Up – 50 Medallions] Price doubles per purchase
Price doubles per purchase [Skill Upgrade – 750 Medallions]
[Tier 1 Healing Potion – 25 Medallions] +25 Medallions per Tier
[You may upgrade equipment with medallions, price varies for equipment type and grade.]
"Fifty Medallions for a level-up? That's daylight robbery," Garrick muttered. He flexed his fingers, rolling his shoulder with a grimace. "Not that it matters. We should be able to beat the next wave. We'll be stronger after this all ends, and honestly that last wave was a breeze."
"Stronger…" Yara repeated, turning the Emberstone Ring over in her palm. She slid it onto her finger, testing its weight. "Yeah. We can do this."
Fraero tightened his grip on his sword, nodding. "We've beaten two waves. Just one more, and we're done. We get out of this trial alive. Honestly, I think the sword suits me. Seeing these monsters fall right before me is quite satisfying. We can beat the next trial with no problems whatsoever, now that we've adjusted to this place."
Julius almost believed him.
Then the system spoke.
{Final Wave Incoming…}
He felt his stomach tighten.
{Identifying Enemies…}
The cavern fell silent.
[Ironblood Soldiers – Level 7] (Elite system NPCs. Skilled warriors with tactics and counterattacks.)[The Leader – Level 8] (A force of absolute command.)
Julius' throat went dry as did all the others.
"Level... 7? And not just the boss, all of them are level 7. The boss is level 8 to top it all off!" Garrick raged, stomping the ground in frustration. "Damn, they really are trying to make it impossible for us."
The ground trembled.
Then, from the tunnels, they arrived.
At first, Julius thought they were more monsters. But when they stepped into the light, he saw them clearly.
People, they were dressed like mercenaries.
Five figures strode forward with practiced confidence, their weapons gleaming, their armor battle-worn but polished. These weren't mindless creatures, nor were they inexperienced recruits like them. They were soldiers. Fighters who had already seen countless battles, they were all aged between 30-40 and had numerous battle scars. They only had one mage, who hid at the back, his head hidden under a large hood.
One of them, a brutish man with a massive axe slung over his shoulder, cracked his neck and grinned. "Fresh ones?" His voice was thick with amusement. "Haven't had a good batch in a while."
Garrick exhaled sharply. "They're only five. We can take them."
"No," Julius whispered. "There's no way. Those guys... These guys won't be so easy to plan around. They're humans..."
The system didn't care.
{Begin.}
Garrick roared, charging forward with everything he had. His body shimmered as [Unyielding Wall] activated, turning him into an iron fortress. He slammed into the axe-wielder with full force—
But the man didn't move.
Instead, he caught Garrick's wrist and squeezed hard.
A sickening crack echoed through the cavern.
Garrick screamed. Before he could recover, the mercenary lifted him and slammed him into the ground like a ragdoll. Dust and blood sprayed into the air.
"Who invited the caveman?" The mercaneries began to laugh as Garrick's slumped body trembled on the ground.
Julius barely had time to react before the rest of the mercenaries closed in.
Fraero struck first, his sword a blur as he activated [Undying Bastion], the skill did as it should, increasing his defense and producing a wild counter attack, but his opponent had seen this trick before. He waited out the Undying Bastion, leaving Fraero shocked.
Then came the counterattack. The enemy's sword flicked forward the moment the skill ended. A single, precise thrust.
Fraero barely dodged in time, the blade slicing a thin line across his ribs. His breath hitched, eyes wide.
Kiera nocked an arrow and fired at the mage of the group, aiming for the head. It would have been a perfect shot.
But the mage raised a hand.
A barrier flickered into existence.
The arrow shattered. Before Kiera could react, the mage snapped his fingers.
A fireball erupted from thin air. Far larger than any fireball that Yara had produced.
It struck Kiera square in the chest. She was flung into the cavern wall and left screaming in pain as her clothes caught on fire. She wasn't dead, but she was being burned alive by the second.
Julius tried to move, tried to help— But then he saw him.
The Leader.
The man moved forward, his presence crushing. He wasn't just strong. He was sly, calculative. Every step was measured, as if he already knew the outcome of this battle.
Julius was in stealth, he tried to assasinate him, if he took down the leader perhaps there was a slim chance of victory.
Julius barely lifted his dagger before the leader's blade sank into his side.
"Huh? This brat activated my counter-attack passive."
Pain exploded through Julius' body. His vision blurred. He staggered back, gasping, clutching at the wound. Blood dripped down his fingers, warm and wet.
The Commander's gaze locked onto him. Cold. Amused.
Julius' breath shuddered before he leapt back, regaining his footing. Then he vanished.
Stealth.
The world darkened. The Shadow Veil Cloth wrapped around him like mist, amplifying his stealthiness. He was nigh undetectable.
The Commander's eyes scanned the cavern.
Then—he looked away.
"It's fine, I'll just eliminate your friends."
Julius had disappeared from his world. But he couldn't move. He could barely breath and all he could do was watch, lest he wanted to break the stealth and die.
Garrick was still struggling, blood dripping from his mouth. His broken arm hung uselessly by his side, but his legs still worked. He forced himself up, staggering toward the axe-wielder.
The mercenary sighed.
Then he swung his axe.
It cleaved through flesh and bone.
Garrick crumpled, the Tank had met his match, he no longer felt invincible.
Fraero screamed in rage and lunged at the swordsman, his strikes desperate now, wild.
A trap. The swordsman stepped into his guard and drove his blade into Fraero's stomach.
Fraero choked, blood spilling from his lips. He fell to his knees.
"Curse you, you monsters." His last words were spoken with an icy tone.
Kiera was unconscious, her body slumped against the cavern wall. She never even had a chance, she slowly became a pile of ashes.
Yara was the last. She raised her hands, fire roaring to life around her. She pushed everything she had into it, flames swallowing the cavern in a desperate bid for survival.
The Commander moved once.
His sword flashed.
The fire was gone.
His blade struck her in the stomach. Not deep enough to kill, but enough to send her crashing to the floor. She didn't move again.
"Hah? I barely even pushed my blade, this one fell fast."
Julius' breathing was ragged. His side throbbed. He was the only one left.
No.
Yara.
She was still alive.
She lay limp among the bodies, her breathing shallow. Blood coated her face, her hands, her clothes. He could see her body trembling just slightly, she was still somehow alive.
The commander looked at her once more.
Then, she stopped moving.
Julius' eyes widened.
No—
Then he saw it.
The slight rise and fall of her chest.
She was pretending to be dead.
Julius' hands clenched. His own blood pooled beneath him, his wound burning.
He had survived. But he hadn't won. Almost everyone had died, they had been slaughtered.
The system spoke.
{Trial Failed.}
{Participants Eliminated.}
Julius' breath shuddered.
He didn't know what was worse.
That everyone else had died, or that it was partly his fault. If he just played the last fight more calculative, perhaps there was a small chance of victory. What if he had tried to assasinate the mage instead of the leader?
These thoughts ran through his mind as the system began releasing their rewards. The mercenaries left through a strange tunnel. "Well, it looks like two survived. Congrats on surviving the trial, I guess this world isn't so fun now?" The leader scoffed and left with his men. They couldn't finish Julius and Yara off even if they wanted to, they were blocked off by bright blue barriers.
{Impossible Trial is over.}
{Rewards: 5000 EXP per participant.}
{Remaining rewards split up between last two participants}
{Minus some rewards for party deaths.}
{Your rewards are ready}
Julius watched his system go from blue to gold. He recieved several notificatiosn in that moment.
{You have levelled up to level 2}
{You have levelled up to level 3}
{You have levelled up to level 4}
{You have levelled up to level 5}
{You have been given the following loot:
{Shadow Veil Cloth (Upgraded) – Enhances Physical damage resistance. Now grants temporary full-invisibility when standing still. However this effect only can be used once per day, moving or even speaking will break the full-invisibility.}
{Bloodstained Dagger [Level 5] – A dagger tainted with the despair of its wielder. Increased damage against unaware enemies.}
{Phantom's Step [ Level 5] – Boots that silence footsteps completely. Grants a small agility boost.}
{Medallions x50 – System currency. Use to purchase skills, upgrades, or attributes.}
{Would you like to sell and replaced worse gear?}
"Yes." The words came out lifeless, Julius felt horrible. He knew the trial was meant to be impossible but... Now it felt like he was gaining success over the corpses of his allies.
{Gear Updated... You have gained 1 Medallion after selling a Level [1] Dagger and Level [1] Armor.}
{Equipped Phantom's Step, Bloodstained Dagger, You have 61 Medallions in your inventory.}
{Since you reached level 5, you may increase on attribute. Simply say it out loud, and the system will enhance your body for you.}
{Options: Strength, Speed, Sanity, Stamina, Durability, Perception, Dexterity}
"Increase my speed."
{So you can run away faster? Request accepted. You have gained a new attribute.}
{Attributes: Speed+}
"Now what?"
{You will be transported back to the main camp. Where many other groups have already settled.}
Julius looked to his side, Yara was standing, she was using healing magic to cure her wound.
"I hate this. Why am I covered in monster flesh. This is so gross." Her anger was only beaten by her sadness. "But why did they all have to die?"
She looked toward Julius.
"Julius, did we do something wrong? Did they have to die?" She stared at her new staff and robes in agony, they felt dirty. It reminded her of the disaster.
Julius could only stare back in silence.
"Who knows, the fact we're still alive probably means something though."
Julius took one more look at everything he currently had.
"System show me what I have going for me right now."
{Sure, here is your current profile.}
[Julius: Level 5 Rogue]
[Skills: (Unlock Skill Shop at level 7) ]
[Stealth]
[Pickpocket]
[Attributes: Speed+] Gain an attribute every 5 levels.
[Loot: Shadow Veil, Phantom Step, Bloodstained Dagger, 61 Medallions]
[You will be transported to the main camp in 30 seconds, congratulations on completing the trial.]