Elias Stone led his squad of devoted female followers, marching forward with an overwhelming presence.
Many players nearby took one look at the spectacle and quickly moved out of the way.
"Whoa, what's this little celebrity up to now?"
"Heh, you didn't hear? He just got slaughtered out there and sent back to town. Serves him right!"
"What? With so many girls guarding him, how did he even die?"
"The one who killed him was Shadow. What do you think?"
"Damn! Shadow is a beast! But that guy really has guts taking on this crew. I swear, those girls are all crazy…"
Many players who overheard the discussion were shocked.
Some observed Elias's party and shook their heads in pity.
"Shadow is done for. I see an archer in Elias's team with an anti-stealth ability."
"Yeah, I tried sneaking up on them before, but that girl spotted me with her Eagle Eye skill…"
"If Shadow's stealth is useless, he's just a fragile assassin."
"And their mages have a bunch of crowd-control spells. Shadow's as good as dead…"
Despite their words of sympathy, they still followed from a distance, eager to see how this drama would unfold.
Elias, meanwhile, was overflowing with confidence.
He didn't care that players were trailing behind—quite the opposite, he welcomed it.
"Perfect," he sneered to himself. "With so many witnesses, once I take down Shadow, everyone will understand that no matter how strong you are alone, you're nothing compared to a well-organized team."
"A fragile little assassin dares to compare himself to a noble mage like me?"
Elias was proud of his class.
Even though he was just a standard mage, he considered himself far superior to any hidden-class rogue like Shadow.
"Hidden class? So what?"
"You took down a Gold-tier boss? Well, I'll be the first to take you down. That's the law of the jungle, whoever has the bigger fist wins!"
At that moment, the hunter girl with the Eagle Eye skill came up to Elias, looking pleased with herself.
She glanced around with a proud expression, feeling honored to assist him.
Earlier, when Elias had died, her Eagle Eye had just worn off, and she had run out of mana.
This made her deeply regretful.
"My mana should have been used to keep Eagle Eye active at all times…"
"Elias died because of me… Waaaah!"
Although she was remorseful, she was also eager to redeem herself. Now she stuck close to him, practically pressing her body against his.
Unfortunately, she wasn't exactly easy on the eyes.
Elias had no real interest in her—he just saw her as a tool.
After all, she willingly handed over all the lifespan she earned from the game. What could be better than that?
Meanwhile…
Returning under the veil of stealth, Riven happened to spot Elias's group approaching the valley.
"Charging in so aggressively… are they looking for revenge?"
Riven chuckled.
Thanks to his Shadow class, his stealth level was naturally +1, making it impossible for anyone at this stage to detect him.
He quietly approached the high-and-mighty Elias.
Instead of attacking right away, he casually reached out and patted Elias's shoulder.
"Who?!"
Elias jumped in shock, whipping around—only to see nothing.
Since Riven hadn't launched an attack, his stealth hadn't been broken.
A ghostly whisper reached Elias's ear.
"I'm just letting you know… you're about to die."
The voice sent shivers down Elias's spine. He instantly realized—it was Shadow!
"Protect me! Protect me!"
Panic-stricken, he screamed for his teammates.
But before anyone could react, Riven's figure flickered through the air.
A single Shadow Slash slashed through Elias and the girls around him in an instant!
-2,218!
-2,275!
-2,197!
The damage numbers stacked up.
Elias had managed to throw up a magic barrier at the last second, but it barely absorbed 300 to 500 damage before shattering like glass.
And just like that—
Elias was dead again!
Before he even realized what happened, his vision faded to black.
When he opened his eyes, he was back at the town square.
He was dumbfounded.
His face turned pale as if he were suffering from constipation.
Two consecutive deaths had cost him nearly all his accumulated lifespan—his 2,000 days had been reduced to just 500!
And worst of all, all that lost lifespan had surely gone straight into Shadow's pockets!
"How the hell is this possible?!"
"You activated Eagle Eye! Didn't you see him coming?!"
Elias glared at the hunter girl, who had respawned beside him.
She looked just as stunned.
Flustered, she stammered, "I—I did! I kept Eagle Eye active the whole time! I was watching in every direction, but I didn't see anything!"
She was devastated.
Not only had she failed to spot Shadow again, but she had also been the indirect cause of Elias's second death.
And now she feared he might cast her aside.
Yet Elias didn't lash out at her.
He was smart enough to know better than to alienate his followers.
Instead, he tried to analyze the situation.
"Why didn't Eagle Eye detect Shadow?"
He asked in their party chat.
One of his rogue-class teammates hesitated before speaking up.
"Uhm… I noticed my character panel mentions 'Stealth Level'… Maybe Shadow has a higher stealth level than we can detect?"
The hunter girl quickly nodded.
"Yeah! My Eagle Eye only detects Stealth Level 1 enemies. If his stealth is Level 2 or higher, I wouldn't be able to see him at all!"
And just like that—the mystery was solved.
Elias realized…
He had messed with a monster.
A rogue with Stealth Level 2 at this stage of the game was practically untouchable!
Cold sweat dripped down his back.
"If this guy can appear and disappear at will… how the hell am I supposed to defend myself?"
Elias's confidence shattered.
Just moments ago, he had been eager to take Shadow down.
But now that he knew the truth, all he felt was terror.
He couldn't even see his enemy coming.
And worst of all…
Shadow had taken the time to pat him on the shoulder before killing him!
The psychological pressure was overwhelming.
Elias shuddered.
This wasn't a fair fight.
It was a goddamn nightmare.