Raine wasn’t in a hurry. With each passing second, more members of Righteous arrived, thickening the encirclement. Soon, enough would be in position for him to help them learn the meaning of regret. They wore excitement on their sleeves, eagerly anticipating killing the man who insulted their leader and slaughtered their comrades.

  Since these weaklings weren’t worth damaging some of his best equipment, Raine had already swapped out some of his level fifteen weapons for Common Grey variants. The sword whose tip was dragging a furrow through the dirt was one such weapon. Its common nature brought jeers from those who recognized it.

  The captain who called him out before wasn’t among them. Having seen the confidential VRVods of Raine one-shotting his guildies, he knew this wasn’t going to be an easy fight. His hand shimmered in the telltale indication of an item being pulled from his interface. The captain pitched his voice, smugness oozing from every word, “We know you're strong, so we prepared something special just for you!” The braindead man had the audacity to reveal the little round item, tauntingly waving it back and forth.

  The recipe to make those drops from raids and they can’t be bought until gaining access to the noble’s quarter in Silverlight. They must have found it in a chest. Lucky. Too bad they’re stupid enough to waste it here.

  Raine maintained a slow, steady pace, outwardly unresponsive to the cliche groan-worthy threat. If he didn’t know what the item was by sight, it could have been dangerous. Thankfully, low-level versions like the one being brandished in his direction had a fatal weakness.

  The captain laughed, bringing his other hand to the device and pulling its pin, “You’re cocky now, but we’ll see how long that lasts!” With a swift motion, he threw the Glacial Snap Grenade between himself and Raine.

  It was a good throw, far less incompetent than his threats might indicate. If Raine tried to rush in, he would be caught in its radius. Likewise, he was already too close to escape if he tried to jump back. Remaining completely calm, Raine channeled Discipline into his legs and waited until the grenade hit the ground. With timing perfected through countless repetitions, he Leaped right as a wave of frost and icy cold smoke swept outward.

  The wave remained close to the ground. Had he still been there, his feet and legs would have turned to solid ice for at least eight seconds, giving the amassed players ample time to unload several barrages of ranged fire on his head. Since this particular grenade released a flat AOE, and not a true sphere, a simple jump was all it took to avoid the effect.

  Only the players at the back of the crowd clearly saw him escape the top of the fog screen. They tried to shout a warning to the captain and those closest to him, but it was already too late. High in the air, Raine tilted forward. Concentration firmed the air enough for his boots to subtly press against it. That was all it took to trigger Lunge, sending him hurtling down in a blur.

  He completed a flip and landed on his feet just meters before the three captains. The tip of his sword slid through the dirt and one-third of Raine’s Discipline vanished. Great Divide gently guided his movements, directing the weapon in a forward slide through the soil. Right as its arc was about to meet the air in a vicious upper-cut, the weapon slammed into an invisible wall. Raine felt a massive weight blocking the path forward, as though the sword now extended two meters into the ground and its tip became a shovel.

  His muscles strained, veins bulging across his arms and neck. Every remaining ounce of his Potency was directed through his legs and torso, lifting him forward and up. The added strength was just enough to budge the blade the last millimeter through the dirt. When it reached open air, it whistled with a burst of speed, completing its powerful upper-cut.

  For ten meters in front of him, the ground shone with an inner light. The players in range only had a split second to respond before a wave of energy tore free from below, washing across their bodies. Due to the severe excess damage, well above their maximum health, they turned into clouds of sparkling dust instead of corpses. The clinks of falling gear filled the air. In their place, were dozens of floating numbers, each displaying a similarly-ridiculous quantity. [-5,960] [Critical hit! -11,820]

  [Iron 2-H Sword: Durability -2]

  [Great Divide: (Novice) With any melee slashing weapon, rend the ground in a 10 x 3 meter column AOE. Deals 2000% physical damage at the expense of 5% weapon durability (Cost: 30 Discipline) (Cooldown: 30 seconds)]

  Taking advantage of their stupefied states, Raine dove headlong into the surviving players. His sword reaped lives with slashes that came several times per second. Purposefully falling back on old habits, he combined his original martial style with what he’d copied from Froust. He made sure not to use any of his more complex movement techniques, as they would ruin his plan.

  All three captains died to Great Divide, and Raine quickly worked his way toward a fourth hiding in the back. Seeing him coming, the man regained enough composure for his cracking voice to shatter the terrified silence, “A-attack! What are you standing around for? Kill him before that cooldown ends! Use the debuffs, now!” The spell of fear was shattered and the knowledge he was only one man against hundreds boosted their courage.

  [Negative affliction received: Armor Down -7% (Duration 3.21 seconds)]

  [Negative affliction received: Resistance Down -7% (Duration 3.21 seconds)]

  The first two notifications were a prelude to multiple of the same undodgeable debuff skills hitting him in rapid succession. They rapidly stacked, reducing his total Armor and Resistance values by the maximum such low-tier skills could achieve: 50%.

  Luckily, skills that directly reduced attributes weren’t available until tier two classes. With his Movement Speed and Attack Power unaffected, Raine spun with a devastating cleave, killing the nearby players who jumped at him. As they died, a hail of arrows fired from multiple directions splattered across his weakened armor. There were way too many to dodge, and several pitiful damage indicators appeared above his head. [-13] [-18] [-9] [-12]

  One of the archers fell back a step, disbelief seizing his momentary bravery, “How is his Defense still so high?”

  As Raine continued to draw closer with every swing, the captain backpedaled, waving his arms frantically, “Casters, concentrate your fire!”

  Raine was in the thick of it, his longsword slicing through two women with a single swing. As they died, a storm of elemental Blasts descended. Most of them hit the Righteous members in the back, only two reaching through the throng to connect with Raine. [-8] [-9]

  “His Resistance is even higher?!”

  Raine kicked a man and he flew into three others, knocking them all down. Through the created gap, he saw tens of reinforcements rounding the town’s wall and a huge grin split his face. Shouted commands had the melee fighters organized. They pinned him in place behind two lines of shields. Long spears darted over shoulders, digging into him repeatedly. For every swing of his sword, Raine took three hits.

  Even without the full set bonus from his armor, his maximum health was close to eight hundred. With how many attacks he was taking, it took them less than a minute to bring him below a quarter health. With a surge of determination, the melee fighters stepped back, allowing a fresh bombardment of arrows and skills to cascade down on him.

  Eyes alight with malice, Raine dove toward the nearest player. The briefest surge of bloodlust caused the unfortunate man to flinch. In the short moment of hesitation, Raine reached over his shield, fingers tightening around his neck.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  A green wave shimmered across the man as Life Drain sucked the skin, muscle, and tissues off his bones. A dried-out skeleton fell to the ground and popped into sparkly mist. [-285] The same green wave reversed course and swept over Raine, restoring a large chunk of his health. [+285] In the next second, Werewolf’s Regeneration restored another ten percent. [+77] As he went from a sliver of life back to half, the rampant hope in his enemies' gazes turned sour.

  Raine spun on his heels and his sword dug through the dirt. Great Divide split the ground, easily reaping a hundred lives in a flash of beige light. Knowing what to expect, the last instant of the attack was met with his full Potency. He executed the skill smoothly, immediately transitioning into a sweeping cut that bisected three players who tried to jump on his back.

  [Iron 2-H Sword: Durability -2]

  Raine dodged a stream of ranged attacks by rolling into the area clear of enemies, yet full of loot. He came up sprinting through the gap, collecting drops before finally reaching the captain with the help of a regular lunge. A sweep of Raine’s sword cut aside the woman who leaped to defend him. Then, Raine’s hand clamped over the captain’s mouth, muffling the command that died along with him. Life Drain sucked away his essence, restoring enough health to crack their morale wide open.

  Before they could think to flee, a woman’s voice snapped with authority, “Regroup! Pin him! Refresh the debuffs! Rangers and casters, ignore friendly fire. Do not stop attacking or you will be fined!”

  Raine’s eyes darted to the side, finding Vaneese standing with a straight back, wielding her spear like a Valkyrie overseeing Ragnarok itself. Rushing around her to surround Raine were dozens of level eight and nine players, all elites from CronGate that he recognized from the past.

  She hid her best until I used my skill again. Exactly as expected.

  Raine charged, meeting the newcomers head-on. They tried to pile atop him to bodily restrict his movements. Two points of Discipline empowered a devastating three-sixty cleave. Twelve elites died in a blink and two pieces of shining blue gear dropped from their glowing ashes. Raine snatched them before they hit the ground.

  Vaneese’s thin lips pulled back in a snarl, “Limit his movements! Defend the casters and wear him down!”

  Raine was once more encircled by shields. Weapons were waved frantically in an attempt to keep him at bay but he was too fast, easily closing in and wiping out several per second with blindingly fast, and unerringly accurate swings. He took plenty of counterattacks for his efforts, but if he didn’t kill the elites quickly, they would eventually wear him down.

  Attacks came from all sides, many landing entirely due to his purposefully suboptimal movements. He stuck with the ruse, enjoying the intense consternation that pulled Vaneese’s brows down. She watched, confused as he utilized her master’s fighting methods against her people.

  Despite each of Raine’s swings hitting a vulnerable point (reducing the effectiveness of their armor) the higher-level elites took two hits to kill. A crit would also get the job done, but they were trained martials so landing such pinpoint strikes was a rarity. Raine was quickly bogged down in a slow grind as he worked his way through them. He used Life Drain each time its six-second cooldown ended. On several occasions, his aspect's regeneration was the only thing that kept him on his feet.

  As he crept closer to Vaneese, she steadily retreated, continuing to issue orders that should have seen him dead in seconds. The continual grin beneath his bandit face shroud crinkled the skin around his eyes, infuriating her to no end, “Damn you! Why won't you die?!”

  The shimmer of an item appeared in her hand and she wound her arm back, prepared to throw. Raine had less than half a second to realize he was in actual danger before the weapon reached him. Each Amazon’s Javelin was good for a single attack. With high base damage, armor piercing, blazing fast speed, and built-in accuracy, they were an excellent tool for sniping commanders on any battlefield.

  Raine’s sword vanished and appeared in the javeline’s path. Parry completely negated the damage and sent the weapon careening to the side where it speared through five players before digging deep into the ground. When Raine locked gazes with her again, Vaneese was grinding her teeth, growling in outright fury.

  The slaughter continued. Taking stock of the remaining hundred enemies and his dwindling Celestial Power, Raine used a Minor Celestial Recovery Potion. After its twenty percent regeneration, he would have enough for seven more uses of Life Drain. It would be close; unless he could kill Vaneese, which would definitely shatter the last of their morale.

  His sights were set on his target. With the same lunge Froust used in an attempt to backstab him, Raine closed the distance. A sword-wielder took his weapon to the gut, dying with a mouthful of blood. Raine took two spears and an arrow in the back, but was now only a meter away from her.

  In a rare moment of idiocy, she roared, brandishing her spear over the shield of the two men in front of her. Raine tilted his head, the sharp blade missing him by a hair. Continuing the movement, he kicked the leftmost shield. As their barrier flew wide, Raine recognized the boy as one of Vaneese’s personal fuck-toys. Old fury shone in his eyes as his greatsword whistled through the air. Neck exposed, Raine was all too vindicated when his blade took the bastard’s head, killing him instantly.

  Spittle flew from her lips as she stabbed twice in rapid succession, “Who the fuck are you? Why did you betray us? You know you won’t survive his wrath!” Raine weaved between both thrusts. A third followed a microsecond later, cleverly timed and placed to take advantage of the flaws his old master trained into him: but Raine no longer had such a weakness to exploit. Vaneese’s eyes flew wide when Raine slightly adjusted his footwork to the more advanced version he’d created, allowing him to easily evade again. At the same time, his backswing cut down three more players crowding in behind him, instead of Vaneese.

  Realizing she should already be dead, Vaneese frowned and shook her head, “How did you… It can’t be.”

  Finally hearing the confusion he’d been waiting for, Raine responded in a sinister voice, “If Master Torune hasn't told you, then you aren't qualified to know!” With a shuffle-step, Raine appeared behind her. The last thing she saw was her vision spinning chaotically as her severed head fell to the ground.

  Good luck figuring out who I am now.

  Raine only managed to kill ten more before the remaining members of Righteous scattered, fleeing for their lives. Disappointed, he greedily dipped into the last of his Discipline to chase down the three he observed stealthily picking up the dropped equipment during the battle. They exploded like pinatas, dropping dozens of pieces each. The last one he killed was less than a meter away from the safety of the gate when a Lunge caused a two-handed sword to sprout from the center of his chest.

  Looking up, Raine winked at the gaping Mel and Celeste, “It's time to go.”

  Celeste raised a hand toward him, “H-hold on! You just got all this stuff, and after what you did earlier, don't you think you owe us some compensation?”

  Raine twisted his lips, brow furrowed, “What I did? What the hell are you talking about?”

  Instead of answering, she sent him a link to a forum post. While kicking loot into his inventory, Raine pulled up the post: Mysterious man wields beauties to defeat the oppressive forces of evil!

  Clicking on the attached VRVod, Raine released a bark of laughter as his avatar charged through the streets of Dry Canyon Town with a girl in each hand, batting away anyone too slow to scramble from his path. Already, live vodcasts of his current battle were being linked into the same thread and the responses were going nuts.

  Celeste was not amused by his laughter, “My reputation is already in the mud thanks to my uncle. If this gets out, I'll be ruined!”

  “You want compensation? Sure. Go ahead and take all the loot I just got.”

  “W-what?! Really?” She squeaked. Seeing the amusement in his eyes, she quickly grew suspicious.

  Raine’s next words were exactly as expected, “All you have to do is kill me in the next two hours and you can take everything I earned. Good luck.”

  MeanyMouse AKA Vaneese

  “God damn it!” Vaneese tore off her headset and smashed her fists into the wide table that dominated her office. The released internal force caused the wall to crack and the floor to shake. She stood, kicking her chair across the room, “I spent two hundred gold on that javelin! Fuck, I am so screwed!”

  What was that last move? What could master be thinking? Was this all just another test? No… don’t tell me. He wouldn’t, would he?

  With trembling fingers, Vaneese mentally accessed her LinQ, opening a call. An AR image of an older, graying man in flowing robes appeared hovering in the center of the room. She was already kneeling, her head lowered, “Master. I have failed.”

  His voice was smooth, not at all consistent with his advanced age, “How rare. Do you remember what I told you would happen if you failed me again?”

  He didn't ask how? That confirms it.

  Gritting her teeth Vaneese answered without a trace of the hatred she felt, “Yes, Master.”

  Bastard! He sent that man just to ensure I failed. I never thought he would stoop so low.

  Master Torune smiled, though she couldn’t see it, “Good. I'm glad you understand. My godson will be arriving tonight. I expect you to be on your best behavior when you present yourself to him.” He chuckled darkly, “Or should we call him your fiancé now?”

  Vaneese needed three seconds to collect herself, amazed her voice didn't crack, “As you wish, Master.”

  Curse you and your disgusting godson to oblivion, you old bastard! Can't forget your mysterious disciple, either. I swear, if it's the last thing I do in this life, I'll kill all three of you.