The young girl stared at the charging figure of the black panther, Her hands trembled with fear, and the beginner healing potion she'd been clutching fell to the ground. Hugging her knees, she crouched down and began sobbing uncontrollably.
Ethan, seeing this scene, couldn't believe his eyes.
She'd actually been scared into tears just from seeing his panther form. She obviously knew that this was just a virtual reality game, if she was this scared then why venture into the games in the first place?
His panther form leapt gracefully over her, landing squarely between her and the hulking Corrupted Rat Commander.
For a second, the onlookers froze in stunned silence. Then, a wave of murmurs broke out as they noticed the name tag hovering above the panther. They instantly realised he was no ordinary beast but a druid.
"Why is there a druid here? Did someone cross over from another zone?"
"No clue. Didn't think druids were even a
thing in the Starter Zone!"
"Wait, I've seen guy before. Isn't he the person who made it to Evercrest Town
first?"
"Pfft, what's he trying to do? Play the hero?"
Dozens of players turned their attention to Ethan, fully expecting him to be obliterated in a matter of seconds.
But when they looked back, the black panther was gone.
"Wait… where'd he go?" someone muttered.
Their question was answered a heartbeat later.
A massive red critical damage number floated above the Corrupted Rat Commander's head.
-234
Over a fifth of its health bar vanished in an instant.
"Holy crap! Did anyone else see that?!"
"That wasn't a bug, was it? His normal damage has to be over 150 for that crit to hit so hard!"
"Are we seriously watching this?"
Amid their shock, Ethan reappeared behind the rat commander, his claws flashing. He stayed glued to its blind spot, moving effortlessly in response to its attempts to turn.
The rat was massive, about the size of a bison, while Ethan's sleek panther form was much smaller in comparison, as he darted around like a shadow. To the onlookers, it was a bizarre, almost comical scene. It reminded them of a certain cat and mouse cartoon they had all watched while growing up.
With precise timing, Ethan unleashed a flurry of attacks: Shred, Swipe, Shred.
-164, -43, -159, -47, -46
The damage piled up, chipping away at the boss's 2,000 HP pool. Thankfully, the rat's defenses were low, typical for monsters in the Starter Zone. But Ethan knew better than to test its offensive power. One wrong move could end the fight instantly.
Instead, he relied on his superior speed, weaving through the chaos like a predator toying with its prey.
The crowd's initial shock turned to awe. They couldn't take their eyes off the spectacle.
Finally, with one last lunge, Ethan's claws raked across the rat's chest. The giant beast let out a deafening screech before collapsing to the ground.
Ding…
[Congratulations! You have achieved the world's first kill of a Level 5 Boss: Corrupted Rat Commander.]
[System Announcement: Your achievement will be broadcast globally. Do you wish to hide your character name?]
"Hide it," Ethan muttered, barely pausing to catch his breath.
The next second, he snatched up the glowing treasure chest the boss had dropped. Activating Stealth, he melted into the shadows and disappeared without a trace.
Moments later, the announcement rang out across the entire server:
[Global Announcement: Anonymous Player from Zone 1314 has achieved the first kill of a Commander-tier Boss: Corrupted Rat Commander. Rewards will be sent via in-game mail.]
As the players in the area stared at the boss's lifeless body, more notifications rolled in for regional and Zone-first achievements.
Each announcement came with a corresponding in-game mail, now neatly stacked in Ethan's inbox.
Ethan could hardly contain his excitement. First-kill rewards were known to be quite generous, typically including skill books and coins.
He quickly opened his mailbox and started with the Starter Zone First Kill reward: 10 silver coins.
In Ethereal, gold was a scarce and valuable commodity. Most monsters dropped a single copper coin only occasionally, and everything in the game from gear to repairs, crafting, upgrades, required gold.
Having 10 silver coins during the early game was a small fortune. Ethan had rarely seen more than a few silver coins drop even when fighting high-level monsters in his previous life at level 120.
But when he opened the next reward, the silver coins seemed like pocket change.
Regional First Kill Reward: 1 gold coin.
National First Kill Reward: 10 gold coins.
Global First Kill Reward: 100 gold coins and skill book Savage Bite.
Ethan stared at his inventory, his heart racing.
"I'm rich… fucking rich!" he exclaimed, nearly hopping in place with excitement. "Forget feeding, I can literally live like a King!"
Memories of the first days of Ethereal's launch flooded back. In the Eastern Frontier Region, Starter Zone 1 had become infamous when a wealthy player began buying up gold coins. At one point, the price of a single silver coin had skyrocketed to 1,000 credits.
Ethan glanced at the total in his inventory: 111 gold coins and 13 silver coins.
The urge to cross the border into the East Region's Starter Zone 1 burned in his chest. But reality quickly doused his ambition.
The borders between Starter Zones were guarded by Level 30 elite monsters. Not even his current panther form could help him overcome such a massive gap in strength. Stealth wouldn't help either; the level disparity was too great, and monsters of that level would spot him immediately if he got too close.
Earning real-world currency from the game was tempting, but it wasn't officially enabled until six months after launch. Until then, players had to trade through third-party brokers, rely on player-to-player trust, or meet in person to exchange money.
In his previous life, Ethan had worked with a reliable middleman in Starter Zone 1314. They'd done several transactions, and the guy's reputation was solid.
Opening his friends list, Ethan typed in a username: "Trusty007"
A while later, a system notification popped up:
[Friend Request Accepted. Communication now Available.]
Ethan immediately opened the chat and sent a message:
"Hey, you buying gold? Got some available. Name your price."
After a brief pause, the reply came back:
"Whoa, is that you, Anonymous?"
Ethan blinked, confused. "You know me?"
"Of course, I do! Even though you hid your name on the announcements, everyone in Starter Zone 1314 knows who you are. A solo kill on a Level 5 Boss? Unbelievable!"
Ethan frowned as he read the message. He hadn't considered the dozens of players who had witnessed his fight against the Corrupted Rat Commander. Even with the anonymity provided by the global announcement, his identity was obvious to anyone in the area.
Instead of feeling proud, a sense of unease crept over him. In his last life, his fame had been a double-edged sword, drawing the attention of Zachary and his schemes. This time, he would have to tread more carefully.
Before Ethan could respond, another message popped up:
"Current rate is 60 per copper coin. How much are you selling? If you've got a lot, I can bump up the price for you."
Ethan's eyes lit up. Day-one rates were always high. He knew that within two weeks, prices would stabilize to around 30 per copper coin, at least in most zones. East Region Starter Village 1 was an exception due to its wealthy buyers.
"100 gold coins. Can you handle it?" Ethan typed, debating whether to hold onto some of his earnings but ultimately deciding against it. The funds would be better spent on a VR pod, which he'd desperately need later in the game.
There was a long pause. Ethan shrugged, unconcerned. If this broker couldn't buy the full amount, he could always sell the gold directly to other players for an even better rate.
While waiting for a reply, he began making his way toward Evercrest Town, the first settlement outside the Starter Zone.
As he walked, a thought struck him.
He still hadn't checked the skill book from his Global First Kill Reward.
Opening his inventory, Ethan navigated to the rewards tab and selected the glowing icon of the skill book. A grin spread across his face as he inspected the details.
___
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