A lone figure moved through the rain-soaked streets, his dark cloak heavy with moisture as he pressed forward. The city was silent at this hour, its usual life drowned beh the relentless downpour. Those who remained outside huddled beh shelters and makeshift covers, avoiding the storm. Dim nterns flickered along the streets, their light distorted by the casg sheets of rain.

  His hood hung low, cealing his face, but beh the shadows, the distinct tours of a mask could be glimpsed—one carved in the shape of a sorrowful visage, its hollow eyes and downturned mouth frozen in grief.

  He moved with purpose, his steps soundless save for the soft spsh of boots against shallow puddles. The narrow alleyways twisted and turned, but he never faltered, weaving through the byrinthihs like a shadow slipping through cracks in the world. The walls loomed close, damp with rain and the st of decay ging to the old stone.

  At st, he arrived at a worn wooden door, its surface cracked and swollen from years of exposure. He raised a gloved hand and knocked—four precise, deliberate taps.

  A brief pause. Then, the eye slot slid open, revealing a cautious gaze from within. The figure slowly lifted his head, allowing the dim light to catch upon his mask—the mask of Lu, sculpted iernal sorrow.

  The person behind the door hesitated, but only for a moment. The slot snapped shut, followed by the sound of locks clig open. With a low creak, the door swung inward, weling the masked man into the shadows beyond.

  Lu stepped ihe door creaking shut behind him, sealing away the sound of rain. The air was heavy with the st of damp wood and dle smoke, mingling with something faintly metallic. Without hesitation, he moved forward, desding the worn stoeps that led into darkness.

  The deeper he went, the quieter the world above became. The only sounds were his measured footsteps eg off the cold walls. Then, a faint gloeared ahead, flickering like distant embers. As he reached the bottom, the passage opened into a wide chamber alive with movement.

  The room was bustling with activity—figures in cloaks and armor sat at long tables, some deep in hushed versations, others exging goods or passing sealed envelopes. The dim, shifting light from deliers above cast elongated shadows, dist the revelry into something almost otherworldly. A stringed instrument pyed from the er, its melody drowned beh the murmur of voices and the occasional burst of ughter.

  Lu ig all, weaving through the crowd with silent purpose until he reached his destination—a loable, occupied by a single figure.

  A woman sat there, reed with an air of amusement, her face cealed beh a mask shaped like a ughing demon. Even with no visible expression, Lu could feel the mockery radiating from her.

  "You're te," she said, her voice smooth yet edged with something pyful.

  Lu pulled out a chair and sat across from her. "Had things to do."

  The woman tilted her head slightly, as if weighing his words. Then, though her mask did not move, Lu knew she was smirking. "You mean dueling your former teammate."

  He didn't react. His stare remaieady, unwavering.

  She sighed theatrically. "You're no fun."

  With a flick of her wrist, she tossed a dot onto the table betweehe part slid across the wood, stopping just before him.

  The music swelled—a lively tu for a celebratio felt strangely distant from the hushed, weighty versation at their table. Lu reached for the dot, fingers brushing against the rough surface.

  Before he could leave, the oke again. "Make sure you don't expose yourself."

  Lu simply ug the dot away as he rose. Without another word, he turned and stepped bato the sea of revelers, his thoughts fixed on the information he had just acquired.

  * * *

  Rael sat on a wooden bench, arms resting on his knees as he let out a slow breath. Across from him, Elias was standing, dramatically swinging an invisible on through the air.

  "Okay, okay, so let me get this straight—" Elias took an exaggerated step forward, miming a scythe ssh. "You were like whoosh!—bam! And then Anxas was all 'RAAAH'—" He threw his arms up, pretending to be the boss. "And you just dodged, spun around, and schiiing—final strike! DEATH STRIKEEEE!"

  Rael gave him a bnk look. "Ohat's not what my ability is called. Two, who yells out their abilities?"

  Elias poi him. "You should have. That's how you get style points."

  Rael scoffed, leaning back against the bench. "Right. Because shouting 'Death Strike' mid-fight would've totally made me stronger."

  Elias smirked. "Not stronger. Cooler." He swung his imaginary scythe again, stepping into an exaggerated stance. "Picture it—Noctus, the Shadow Executiohe Phantom Scythe! Every move a spectacle, every battle a legendary tale—"

  Rael rubbed his temple. "You sound like a bad novel."

  "Corre: I sound like a visionary." Elias gestured dramatically. "All you need is a killer catchphrase."

  Rael stared at him. "I'm not getting a catchphrase."

  Elias sighed, shaking his head in disappoi. "Tragic."

  Before Rael could shut him down further, his interface buzzed.

  [Ining Call: Leon.]

  He tapped the call and put it on speaker. "What's up?"

  Leon's voice came through, direct as always. "Check the pinned post."

  Rael frowned. "What, some new patotes?"

  "No," Leon said ftly. "Just check it."

  Rael pulled up the pinned post in the game's official system, and Elias leaned over to look. A bold annou stretched across the top of their interface:

  [: Double Rewards for the Adventure Guild! For the duration of the event, all Adventure Guild quests will grant 2x reputation and rewards!]

  Elias whistled. "Damn. That's actually solid."

  Rael, however, wasn't reag to the event itself. His expression turhoughtful. "…Leon, this isn't what you actually called about, is it?"

  Leon exhaled. "No. The event's just a ce. But it made me double-cheething Gale and you mentioned earlier."

  Elias blinked. "Wait, were you tw guild rep?"

  Rael nodded. "Yeah. We wao see how far we could push the gains."

  Leon's voice cut ba. "And that's when I noticed something weird."

  Rael's gaze sharpened. "What did you find?"

  Leoated for a sed before saying, "A guild that was Level 1 two weeks ago is now Level 3."

  Elias frowned. "Huh? How? Did they sacrifice a goat for EXP blessings?"

  Leon sighed. "If only. From what I dug up, this guild barely had fifteen members a while ago. Now, suddenly, it's packed with hardcrinders. Like, the kind of people who probably haven't seen sunlight sinch. Ah two eyes tell something's off."

  Rael nodded. "Guild leader probably hired a bunch of people to carry it."

  Leon exhaled. "Maybe, but that's a crazy leap for just two weeks. Even with boosting, the pace doesn't add up."

  Rael tapped his fingers against his knee. "Alright. Keep looking into it."

  Leon made a sound of aowledgment before logging off.

  Rael then turo Elias, his gaze expet.

  Elias raised an eyebrow. "What?"

  Rael leaned back slightly. "You're supposed to be running information and defense for Eclipse, right?"

  Elias narrowed his eyes. "Yeah…?"

  Rael gestured vaguely. "So why did Leon find this before you?"

  Elias scoffed. "Excuse me? I don't have my own intelligence agency yet, alright? This is a developiment!"

  Rael deadpanned. "Develop faster."

  Elias groaned, rubbing his face. "Unbelievable. Oime. Oime I'm not ahead of some sneaky guild drama, and suddenly, I'm sg?"

  Rael smirked. "I mean… kinda."

  Elias poi him. "Fine. I'll 'espionage' or whatever. But when I find something huge, I'm rubbing it in your face."

  Rael chuckled. "I'm heading out. Till then, you go be nosy."

  Elias grumbled about unrealistic workpce expectations while pulling up his menus. "Go farm more EXP, my lucky charm."

  Rael rolled his eyes but smirked before walking off. As he moved, he pulled up his panel, his thoughts drifting back to the moment Anxas had fallen.

  The battlefield had been eerily quiet after the boss's fall. Rael and Gale y sprawled on the cracked stone floor of the ruiemple, both breathing heavily. Their bodies felt like they had been put through a grinder—one foot ihe grave.

  her of them spoke for a while, just staring at the shattered remains of the summoning circle above them. Then, footsteps echoed from the entrance.

  Gale turned his head slightly, scoffing. "Tch. They got here quick."

  A group of Order knights strode in, their polished armlinting in the dim light. The leading knight—a man with short-cropped blond hair and a stern expression—stepped forward, surveying the destru.

  His gaze lingered on the broken altar before shifting to the two adventurers still lying on the ground. He cleared his throat. "ologize for the dey."

  Rael sat up with a tired sigh. "Little te for that."

  Gale zily gestured at the wreckage. "Yeah, we went ahead and hahings. Hope that's fine."

  The knight nodded. "reciate your efforts. What happened here?"

  Rael expined everything—the disappearahe vilgers' desperation after being abandoned by the Order, and their turn to an unknowy, likely a demoold them how the vilge elder had been taken and possessed by Anxas, how the ritual was nearly plete by the time they arrived, and how the battle had unfolded. Anxas had been overwhelmingly powerful, and they had barely ma it down.

  The knights listened in sileheir armored figures rigid and imposing. When Rael fihey exged brief gnces, as if silently assessing the weight of his words. Then, without hesitation, their leader gave a sharp nod.

  "Uood. You have done well in quelling this heresy."

  That was it. No further questions. No orders. Just those few words before they turned on their heels and began marg away.

  Rael frowned. "That's it?"

  Gale stood up, dusting off his armor. "What about the vilgers?"

  The knights halted. Their leader half-turned, his polished helm refleg the dim torchlight. "They have been tainted."

  Rael narrowed his eyes. "They were desperate. The Order abahem. That doesn't make them beyond saving."

  "They sought salvation in the embrace of the profahe knight replied, his voice resolute, almost rehearsed. "That is corruption of the soul. Their purity is for the Inquisition to judge."

  Gale ched his fists. "That's bullshit. They didn't have a choice."

  The knight remained unmoved. "Faith is a choice. And they have chosen wrong."

  Rael exhaled sharply. Pushing this further wouldn't get them anywhere. The knights had their orders, and the weight of doe would determine what happened .

  "…Fine," he muttered. "We've done our part."

  The knight ined his head slightly before turning away. The squad followed, their steel boots eg against the ground as they vanished into the night.

  Rael rolled his shoulders, f the tension out. "Nothing we do."

  Gale stayed quiet for a moment, his expression hard to read. Then he exhaled, running a hand through his hair. "Doesn't sit right with me."

  "Yeah." Rael g the spot where the knights had disappeared. "But it's not our call."

  Gale clicked his to didn't argue. The moment stretched, heavy with unspoken thoughts—until he suddenly let out a sharp breath and shook his head. "Whatever. Let's just move on." He pulled up his system panel. "That notification, though."

  Rael blinked. Right. After Anxas fell, aside from two rare crafting materials and a solid k of EXP, they had also received signifit reputation rewards.

  He pulled up his own system panel, sing the notifications.

  [A Great Feat Has Been Achieved!]

  Your as have prevented a catastrophe, earning you signifit reition. Your reputation with the Order has risen siderably, and the Adventure Guild has aowledged your deed.

  A faint chime echoed as another notification appeared.

  [Your Adventure Guild Rank has increased to D.]

  "Huh?"

  Rael g his updated rank. "D-rank."

  Gale let out a low whistle. "Not bad, sidering we weren't even grinding for it."

  Most pyers were still stuck at E-rank, forced to slog through tless quests to earn their promotions. Taking down a high-level boss had fast-tracked them past all that effort. Alongside the rank-up, they'd also gained a signifit boost in Order reputation—Eclipse's standing with the fa now sat betweeral and Friendly.

  Ba the present, Rael's mind drifted to the Golden Token and everything surrounding it. The more he thought about it, the more he realized how much of his time had bee os and searg for the Fragments of Zenith. His level had barely budged in parison to others.

  He was Level 41 after the Anxas fight. Still high, but not by a lot.

  For now, he had a stat advahanks to the World Ender seal passives, but that edge was starting to dull. More pyers were hitting Level 40, and with the st major pattrodug hybrid csses at that threshold, the pap was beginning to shrink. He'd already seen some of these hybrid csses in aost notably, Gale.

  His vice guild leader had fused his Fighter and Warrior csses into something new: Bdewarden.

  The bination of abilities was strong. Enhanced martial spells, reinforced strikes, and an adaptability that made his already aggressive fighting style even more relentless. Gale had always hit hard, but now his attacks ed together smoother, his sword swings carried more weight, and his battlefield presence had bee overwhelming.

  But Rael had no subcss. His World Ender css had locked him out of the system's standard progression, meaning no subcss, no fusion, no hybrid evolution at Level 40. All he got was a metaphorical pat on the bad a smiley face from the system like, You'll figure it out, champ.

  Rael sighed. He really o start leveling up and find fragments.

  For a brief moment, he sidered pulling a moreat—vanishing from the guild, disappearing into the wilderness, and ing baly after he'd grinded himself into a walking raid boss. Just peace out, farm levels in some remote dungeon, aurn when he could casually steamroll half the server.

  …Tempting.

  But impractical. Eclipse was in the middle of too much, and he didn't have the luxury of vanishing for weeks. If he wao stay ahead, he'd have to figure out a way to level effitly while handling everything else.