The grind session shattered when Wei’s panicked voice crackled through comms: “Boss! You there?”


    I let Phantom assume combat control - our new mind-link letting me multitask. “Situation?”


    “Got PK’d by Goreblade’s crew! They took the Robe of Arcane Supremacy!”


    My grip tightened on the hilt. “The #1 ranked? What’d you do?”


    “His sugar baby wanted it for her twink brother!” Wei’s avatar shimmered faintly in ghostcam mode. “They’re spawn-camping me outside Aqua Springs!”


    Ambush at Moonwell


    The teleport vortex deposited me at Wei’s coordinates. My lieutenant looked like a gutter rat who’d lost a fight with a trash compactor.


    “Three deaths,” he rasped. “Those soulbinder pricks keep resurrecting me for executions!”


    I tossed him a Soulbound Satchel bulging with necro-potions. “Show me.”


    The grove reeked of cheap ambrosia and cheaper intentions. Goreblade’s party circled their latest kill - a dire bear carcass. His elven concubine noticed us first.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    “Lookee here! The loser brought a -” Her sneer died as my Shroud’s hood shadowed my face.


    I activated voice modulation. “You’ve had your fun. Return what’s ours.”


    “Or what, edgelord?” A seraphim warrior named HolyButtface spat. “Gank us and -”


    Combat Log


    [00:00] Phantom Sync: 100%


    [00:01] Shadowstep: Activated


    [00:02] Critical Strike: Goreblade’s Concubine → Headshot (Mortal Wound)


    [00:03] Bounty Gained: Wanted Lv1


    The elven mage’s skull exploded in polygons. HolyButtface lunged, blade screeching against my Vortex Breastplate.


    “Physical damage works!” he crowed. “Whittle him do-”


    My backhand swing triggered Tempest Retaliation. Lightning arced through his seraphic armor. “5% proc chance,” I mused as his charred corpse collapsed. “Unlucky.”


    Goreblade’s war cry echoed as I phased behind him. Zephyr Gauntlets met spine. His health bar imploded.


    [00:07] Player Kill: #1 Ranked Goreblade


    [00:08] Bounty Escalation: Wanted Lv3


    Aftermath


    Two survivors triggered recall scrolls. My last soulpiercer bolt embedded in an oak as HolyButtface vanished.


    Wei’s ghostcam flickered. “Forget the robe, let’s -”


    “Negative.” I incinerated the black mage’s dropped staff. “They respawn at Aqua Springs. I’ll farm them till -”


    An armor-piercing round shredded my thigh. System sigils flared crimson:


    [WARNING: BOUNTY HUNTERS ENGAGING]


    [City Guards Hostile - 5% HP Remaining]


    Necro-potions healed the wound as archer guards nocked fresh arrows. Nearby players materialized like vultures scenting loot.


    “Even odds,” I grinned, activating Shroud of the Betrayer. Let them come.