Luis emerged from the glowing tent with renewed strength. The fatigue that once gripped his body had been washed away, and his limbs moved with clarity and purpose.
"I feel better now," he stretched. "Let's go."
Just as he stepped forward, a golden flash lit up his vision. A loud divine chime echoed through the sky. Text blazed across his tab like an ancient commandment:
[WORLD ANNOUNCEMENT]
CONGRATULATIONS JHIN WON OF KOREA FOR DEFEATING THE FIRST SILVER CLASS PILLAR OF CHALLENGE!
Luis blinked. "What the hell is this?"
Zyx appeared, sipping phantom tea. "Oh that? It happens every time someone completes a Pillar of Challenge first. Big divine PR moment. You get a badge. Sometimes a free keychain."
Luis frowned. "The Royale's only been going for a few days… and someone already took down a Silver Class pillar?"
Zyx shrugged. "Yeah, but don't stress. He's from Korea. Other side of the planet. Very far. Very chilly. Probably eats cold noodles while assassinating golems."
Luis exhaled. "Still… that means someone out there is treating Silver-class like it's an Iron-class sparring dummy. I need to step up."
He began trekking through the lush floating island. Iron-class beasts wandered the woods—snarling briarhounds and razorflocks—but Luis dispatched them easily with his new ability.
[Ability: Mind Construct – Rapid Deployment]
Luis summoned spectral turrets—rotating, machine-gun constructs—that rattled out rounds of force bullets for ten seconds. Iron-class threats were vaporized in seconds.
Zyx floated behind, unimpressed. "Nothing like good ol' construct violence. Makes the jungle feel like a shooting range."
As Luis moved deeper into the floating landmass, thunder rumbled.
Then he saw them.
Two Silver-class monsters locked in brutal combat. One was a massive, battle-scarred wolf cloaked in static and frost—Silver Wolf King, Lv. 12. The other, a grotesque serpent with two horned heads, flickering like shadow and fire.
[TWIN-HEADED SERPENT: VAH'KAL AND VEX'RA – SILVER CLASS – LEVEL 13]
Luis crouched low. "Look at those two going all out."
Zyx hovered. "Oooh. The classic double-boss scenario. You thinking what I'm thinking?"
Luis smirked. "Steal the kill."
Zyx snorted. "You really are learning. Makes me feel like a proud yet mildly criminal god-parent."
Below, the battle intensified. The Wolf King bit into one serpent neck, electricity coursing through the strike. But the second head wrapped around its hind leg, slamming the beast into a boulder. Bones cracked. The Wolf King howled in pain.
The serpent's advantage became clear.
Luis whispered, "Now."
[Skill Activated: Misfortune's Touch]
An aura of cosmic dread pulsed from Luis's body, blanketing both monsters.
Debuff Applied:
Defense -15%
Critical Vulnerability: +20%
Random missteps triggered every 30 seconds
Luis summoned his construct guns. Six of them flanked the battlefield like silent sentinels. In seconds, a rain of kinetic energy flooded the clearing. The monsters, already weak and confused by the debuff, staggered.
The serpent lashed upward—but Luis jumped, activating Guardian's Leap. He spun mid-air and crashed his Spiderfang Hammer down onto the Wolf King's skull.
[Spider Bite] Passive Applied – Poison Damage: 20/s – Stacks: 3x
The wolf dissolved into mist with a dying snarl.
The serpent twisted, both heads hissing.
Zyx shouted, "Careful! Double the eyes, double the bites!"
Luis dodged, barely avoiding a sweeping tail. He slid between coils, slammed the hammer into its underbelly, then teleported atop a construct with Mind Construct: Platform.
From the air, he leapt again—one final arc—his hammer glowing.
[Hammer Strike – Charged]
He slammed it down.
The serpent writhed and shrieked before bursting into vapor.
Silence.
A wind blew through the bloodied clearing.
+25,000 Soul Essence Gained
EXP GAINED: Level Progress – 60% to Level 6
Luis collapsed to one knee, panting. "That… was easier than I thought."
Zyx drifted in, unimpressed. "Because they were almost dead already. That's like bragging you beat a guy after someone else already ran over him with a bus."
Luis grinned. "Still counts."
Then—
ALERT: HOST DETECTED. DISTANCE – 300 METERS
Zyx tensed. "Someone's coming. And they're not hiding."
From the treeline emerged a woman in white leather, her long hair flowing behind her. Beside her stalked a silver-scaled dragon, eyes glowing with wisdom and rage.
The woman stopped, eyes fixed on Luis.
"You," she said. "Are you the hunter?"
Luis stood slowly, gripping his weapon. "Depends who's asking."
She smiled faintly. "Good. Then I've found the one I need."