Dante’s agonized scream echoed through the air as searing pain shot through his body. He clutched the stump where his right hand used to be, blood gushing from the severed limb. His friends, Jack, Ron, and Nir, were all caught in the horrifying surprise attack.

  Jack lay on the ground, his body battered and bruised. Dante's quick reflexes had saved him from a fatal blow, . Ron, on the other hand, had been less fortunate. He had taken the shadow blade head-on, his body split in two, while Nir, who had invested most of his stats in agility, had managed to survive with minor wounds, but the shock and horror of the situation were etched across his face.

  A person appeared from the shadow of the monster. Dante remembered him; he was the one who had been standing beside Butcher before.

  In a calm and collected voice, he introduced himself, "hello I didn't introduce myself before. My name is Joshua."

  Jack, with a sudden move, grabbed the orc club and swung it with all his power at Joshua.

  Joshua, with eerie calmness, raised his hand and blocked Jack's desperate swing with another shadow spike. Then, in one swift motion, he drew a metal gun from his jacket and fired a bullet that struck Jack in the chest. Jack gasped in pain, collapsing to the ground.

  Nir eyes wide with shock and anger, seized the opportunity to sneak up behind Joshua. His agility allowed him to move with incredible speed. With a shard of concrete in hand, Nir lunged at Joshua, aiming to strike at his exposed back.

  But Joshua, seemingly aware of every movement, swiftly turned and countered Nir's attack. He caught Nir's wrist in a vice-like grip, preventing the makeshift weapon from connecting.

  Nir gritted his teeth, struggling to break free from Joshua's grasp. The survivors who had witnessed the battle watched in horror, feeling powerless to intervene.

  Joshua's cold gaze locked onto Nir, and he spoke with chilling indifference. "You have spirit, I'll give you that. But you're outmatched."

  With a flick of his wrist, Joshua sent Nir tumbling to the ground. The young survivor landed with a thud, disarmed and wounded but miraculously alive.

  Meanwhile, Dante, clutching the stump of his severed hand, watched the unfolding nightmare with a mixture of fury and despair. His inability to protect his friends fueled a burning rage within him.

  Joshua turned his attention back to Dante, his shadowy weapon at the ready. "You," he said calmly, "have something I want."

  Dante's voice trembled with a combination of anguish and defiance. "What do you want?"

  Joshua walked slowly to Ron's body, then he raised the backpack.

  Dante thought, "There shouldn't be anything valuable in there," but then he remembered something he had left inside. "Unless..."

  Joshua's calm, collected voice cut through the tension as he continued, "The skill books you have, I got mine from a treasure chest before, and it helped me survive until now. With the two new skills, I will have more power."

  Dante's mind raced, and he couldn't deny the importance of the skill book they possessed. It held the potential to unlock new abilities and powers, but in his heart, he held onto a burning anger.

  "I won't let you get away with this!" Dante said while raising up. Dante invested his unused stat points, adding 3 to health and 3 to agility.

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  With his enhanced agility, Dante closed the distance between himself and Joshua in the blink of an eye. He lunged forward, his remaining hand transformed into a deadly bone claw.

  Joshua, caught off guard by Dante's sudden burst of speed and aggression, raised a shadow spike to defend himself. Joshua was about to fire his metal gun, but then the sounds of gunshots filled the air from Dante Direction. Five bullets from zero range shot from Dante hand directly at Joshua, breaking the shadow and hitting him.

  the bone bullets pierced through the shadows and struck Joshua's shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain. The shock of Dante 's attack loosened Joshua's grip on the backpack containing the skill books, but one skill book was still in his hand. Dante wasted no time and snatched the backpack away.

  However, in the chaos, Joshua managed to retain one of the skill books, slipping it into his jacket.

  Joshua was about to say something when a giant hand seized his left hand. Joshua turned his head and was surprised to see that it was the orc, who was heavily wounded from the previous fight. The orc in final act forcefully tore Joshua's hand away, and blood spurted everywhere.

  the orc who bleed a lot form the fight before collapse to the ground

  the trio who fought the orc level up, but Dante message was bit different

  The other survivors watched in awe and disbelief as Dante managed to turn the tide, if only for a moment. The world around them had become a battlefield, and their lives depended on every decision they made.

  Joshua, clutching his wounded hand, glared at Dante with a mixture of anger. "You'll regret this," he hissed. Dante aimed his hand and shot another bone bullet; the person faded back into the shadows from which he had emerged, and the bullet hit the wall behind him.

  Dante , his heart pounding and his hand still bleeding, knew that their encounter with Joshua was far from over.