Noct limped out of the destroyed store, one hand clutching his side, the other holding the now-dulled Rustfang dagger. His HP was sitting at 19/50 after a run-in with a “surprise” trap chest that decided to explode instead of drop loot.
His luck? Nonexistent.
[System Alert: Minor Bleeding – Duration: 3 minutes]
[You are currently in a Low Threat Zone]
He leaned against a crumbled wall, vision hazy.
“Great… I survive a wave of glitchy bug-things just to bleed out like some tutorial mob.”
His hand hovered over the Basic Gear Chest in his inventory. He wanted to open it badly, but if it spawned more trouble, he was toast. And right now, toast sounded way too close to reality.
“Okay, maybe just... a quick break…”
He slid down the wall and let his head rest back, eyes shutting for just a moment.
That’s when he heard it.
A soft voice. Melodic, kinda warm.
“…Oh no, are you, seriously, you're dying right there?”
Noct’s eyes snapped open. A silhouette stood over him, framed by a weird glowing light. Long hair, silver-pink, braided in streaks. Cloaked in white with pale gold trim. Her hands were glowing faint blue, a digital halo hovering just above her palm.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
He blinked twice. "…You an NPC or some weird hallucination?"
She crouched, smirking. "Guess again, edgy boy."
[Player Detected: Seraphis | Lv. 14 | Class: Healer]
[Title: Saint of Forgotten Paths]
[Trait: Divine Restoration (Unique)]
[Skill: Full Bloom]
[Technique: Rewind Pulse – Rare]
“Name’s Seraphis. I was passing through when I saw your sorry body leaking pixels all over the pavement.”
Noct coughed. “You talk a lot for a healer…”
“And you talk too much for a guy at death’s door.”
With a wink, she placed her hand on his chest.
[Healing Skill Activated: Full Bloom]
[HP Restored: +42]
[Bleeding Cured]
A rush of warmth hit his system. Wounds closed. Vision cleared.
“Whoa…” he muttered. “That’s not your average medkit.”
“Unique Trait. You’re welcome,” she said, standing back up and dusting her gloves.
Noct slowly stood, rolling his shoulder. “Why’d you help me?”
She glanced at him, smile softening a bit. “Because when I looked at you, I saw something… weird.”
“Weird?”
“Yeah. No Trait. No Title. No allies. But you still cleared a Hollowspawn nest solo at Level 1.”
She stared straight into him like she was reading his system code.
“You don’t belong at the bottom.”
“…Neither do you,” he said back.
She smirked again. “Now you’re flirting. Don’t die on me next time, alright?”
[System Notification: Player ‘Seraphis’ has sent an Ally Request]
[Accept | Decline]
Noct hesitated for a split second.
Then clicked Accept.
[You are now allied with Player ‘Seraphis’. Allies can assist in combat, trade gear, and access private chat.]
“Welcome to the bottom tier,” Noct said with a lazy grin.
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Let’s get you to the top tier first, edgy boy.”
And just like that, the first connection was made.
Not a guild. Not a faction. Just two random players trying to survive in a system designed to crush them.
But in EXO?
That was more than enough to change everything.
End of Chapter 3...