Noir had left Seldom behind.
Before stepping into the wild, he allocated all five of his stat points into Agility. His body responded instantly—his stride lightened, his reflexes sharpened, and the forest air seemed slower around him.
Golden sunlight filtered through the canopy, casting fractured beams across the mossy floor. The woods were alive with tension. Players clustered in groups, grinding mobs with desperate energy. Goblins shrieked. Wolves lunged. Blades clashed. Potions spilled.
Noir passed through it all like a shadow.
His hood was drawn low, twin daggers sheathed in poison from earlier kills. He didn't glance at the parties. He didn't offer help. He didn't need backup.
This mission was his.
Then—he saw them.
Cursed Humans. Blue nameplates flickering like dying stars.
Noir crouched low, eyes narrowing. He moved like mist—silent, swift, lethal.
He baited ten into a clearing, their groans echoing off the stone wall behind him. No escape. No mercy.
He turned.
"Let's dance."
They rushed him.
Noir activated his sequence. Swift Step blurred him forward, past the first two. He pivoted mid-motion, daggers slicing through corrupted flesh. Blood misted into the air.
Then—Critical Dash Slash.
He vanished.
Reappeared mid-air.
Six slashes in a heartbeat.
[CRITICAL HIT – 152]
[CRITICAL HIT – 178]
[CRITICAL HIT – 201]
Seven seconds later, ten cursed humans lay twitching in the dirt, dissolving into particles.
Noir didn't smile. He just kept going.
For thirty minutes, he became a rhythm—lure, burst, vanish. The cursed humans felt less like monsters and more like training dummies. But they fought back. Some cornered him. Some tore his cloak. He drank potions mid-combo, bleeding from shallow cuts, scraping cooldowns with perfect timing.
Then—something dropped.
A faint blue shimmer beneath the last corpse.
It pulsed like glass.
[RARE SKILL DROP: BACKSTAB]
[DROP RATE: 0.01%]
Noir froze.
"…No way."
He stepped forward. The orb hovered, glowing softly. The system window opened.
[Skill: Backstab]
Type: Assassin-exclusive Active Skill
Description: Instantly blink behind a nearby enemy within 5 meters. Guarantees 100% critical hit with +250% weapon damage.
Cooldown: 12 seconds
"This shouldn't even be dropping yet," he whispered.
He didn't hesitate.
[Skill Learned: Backstab]
Just as the window closed, another cursed human stumbled from the trees—alone.
Noir let it see him.
Then activated Backstab.
His body flickered violet.
He reappeared behind the zombie, dagger already buried in its spine.
[BACKSTAB – 100% CRIT – 421 Damage]
No scream. Just silence.
Noir stood over the body, breathing steady.
"This is it," he murmured. "This is what an Assassin is meant to feel like."
He fought for another thirty minutes. The forest became his stage. His Shadow Cloak muffled every step. Swift Step halved his movement time. He was a blur of steel and blood.
Any party passing by would've mistaken him for a high-level solo player.
But this was just the beginning.
And the forest had started whispering his name.
After clearing the area, Noir wiped his blades and scanned the horizon. He was done warming up.
He ventured deeper.
The trees thickened. Fog clung to the ground like breath. Then—he heard it.
Screams.
Steel clashing. Magic flaring.
He turned.
Ahead, a party of five was locked in battle with a Mini Boss—a pink-tagged Homo Goblin, Level 2. Twice the size of a normal goblin. Skin raw pink. Eyes white and wild.
Noir crouched behind a bush, watching.
The party was falling apart. Their tank, a Bagi, charged in recklessly—and paid the price. The Homo Goblin leapt from a tree and crushed his skull with a jagged club.
[Bagi – DEAD]
Noir narrowed his eyes. In Upraised, if one party member lived, the dead couldn't respawn. They were trapped.
The Mage fired bolts. The Arbalest tried to hold range. The Assassin blinked in—only to be caught mid-motion and hurled into a tree.
[Assassin – DEAD]
One by one, they fell.
Only the Priest remained, dodging desperately, casting Heal under pressure. The Homo Goblin still had 50% HP—and it was enraged.
Noir exhaled.
Then opened his settings.
[HIDE NAMEPLATE FROM ALL PLAYERS – ON]
His IGN—Noir—faded from view.
Silent. Unannounced.
He moved.
And in the fog-covered forest, death followed behind him.
The Homo Goblin roared.
A pink-tagged mini boss—twice the size of a standard goblin—its grotesque arms dragged through the dirt, bloated and twitching with pulsing veins. Blood dripped from its claws. Its HP bar hovered at half, but the party before it was already broken.
Swift Step. A pulse of shadow streaked beneath his feet. In a blink, he was there—daggers flashing upward in a six-hit combo: Critical Dash Slash. Steel carved through flesh in rapid arcs, each strike bursting with light. The goblin reeled, stunned by the sudden assault.
The Priest gasped. "W-Who—?"
"Get cover," Noir said, voice low and firm, never looking back.
The goblin roared, aggro locked. It slammed both fists into the ground, sending a shockwave of dirt skyward. Noir was already airborne, flipping over its shoulders. Twin daggers slashed downward mid-air. He landed behind it, retreating with another Swift Step.
Crack.
A meaty fist caught him in the ribs, launching him into a tree.
"Ugh—" Noir hit the ground hard, blood trailing from his lips. He wiped it away, eyes sharp. One tap to his belt—HP Potion. Gone in seconds.
The goblin charged again, wild and erratic. Noir dodged left, then right. Shadow Cloak activated—his footsteps vanished. Soundless. Invisible.
He reappeared behind the monster.
Backstab.
[Critical Hit! – 742 Damage]
The goblin shrieked, dropping to one knee. Noir didn't hesitate. Critical Dash Slash was off cooldown.
He leapt—spinning mid-air—and drove all six dagger strikes into the Homo Goblin's skull.
It let out one final, gurgling roar before shattering into pixelated fragments.
[Mini Boss Defeated – Homo Goblin Lv2]
[EXP Gained +2.5%]
[Loot Acquired: Homo Goblin Hide x1, Goblin Totem x1, Rusted Iron Core x2, Silver x47]
Silence returned to the forest.
Noir stood over the remains, chest heaving. The Priest stared, wide-eyed and trembling.
"T-Thank you… Who are you?" he asked, voice barely steady.
Noir paused, then exhaled softly. "Just someone passing through."
"You saved my ass," the Priest laughed nervously. "That thing wiped our whole party. I thought I was done."
Noir nodded, opened his system menu, and tapped the loot window. He hovered for a moment, then selected:
[Transfer Loot to Nearby Party]
[Confirm?]
[Yes]
The items vanished from his inventory.
"You're giving it all back?" the Priest blinked. "You don't have to. That was your kill."
"I just finished it. Wasn't mine to begin with," Noir said. A faint smirk tugged at his lips. "Besides, I've had enough loot for one day."
The Priest chuckled, more at ease. "Whoever you are—you're cracked. Seriously. Thanks."
Noir turned, popped a stamina potion, and waved over his shoulder. "Stick with your party next time. And don't let your tank die first."
Then he vanished into the trees—silent as a shadow.
Later…
The Forest of Seldom thickened around him. Noir followed the faded marks Ray had shown him on the worn-out map. Fog curled low. Every few minutes, he paused, scanning the underbrush. The wind whispered through the canopy. Only his footsteps remained.
The hidden village had to be close. He could feel it.
He adjusted his cloak and pressed on.
Back in the Town of Seldom…
The party respawned in the plaza, avatars flickering into place with a soft blue glow. They stood in stunned silence.
"Bro… what the hell just happened," said Klint, their Level 1 Arbalest, still clutching a potion.
"No, we got saved," said Marco, the Level 2 Bagi. "That assassin came outta nowhere."
"That guy was nuts," Nina, the Level 1 Mage, said. "He moved like a ghost. Did you see that Backstab? I didn't even know that skill was in the game yet!"
"Who was he?" asked the Priest—Axl – Lv3—arms folded, deep in thought. "His name didn't show. I tried inspecting him. Nothing."
Klint raised a brow. "So he's hiding his IGN?"
"Has to be. Or he's like… a dev," Marco added.
"He gave us the loot. All of it," Axl said. "Didn't even flex."
They fell silent.
After a moment, Klint muttered, "Who the hell was that guy…"
Axl stared toward the forest. A flicker of realization crossed his face—but he said nothing.