Luna quickly takes action. She puts the crystals away and arms herself with her bow. She waits patiently inside the cave, but no monsters show up.

  Suddenly, she hears a clash coming from outside.

  Luna runs toward the cave’s entrance in a hurry, only to find Daniel having a hard time fighting a single Level 1 Goblin.

  She stands there completely baffled at the sight.

  Daniel continues to swing his sword like it’s a bat, with no control or rhythm. The sight reminds Luna how grateful she is for having an active father in her life who taught her how to use a bow.

  The System doesn’t teach Players how to fight. It only gives them the instruments to fight.

  Through hardship and trials is the best way to obtain experience.

  That is what it means to be a Player.

  Daniel takes a step forward and swings his sword aggressively. The goblin easily dodges the attack and quickly goes for the counter. Daniel is left wide open for an easy stab to the stomach.

  Luna instantly recognizes the goblin’s intention.

  In a single motion, she draws an Eclipse Arrow and shoots the goblin in the head, instantly killing it.

  The goblin’s body collapses.

  Daniel turns in shock as he notices Luna.

  Ding!

  “-40 HP on Goblin Lv.1”

  “Goblin Lv.1 Defeated”

  “+35 XP Gained”

  Daniel bends over, catching his breath.

  “Oh my God… thank you… thank you so much. I honestly thought I was about to get stabbed in the stomach just now… damn, that was a good shot.”

  Luna stares at him with a serious expression.

  “I’m pretty sure I made it clear that I don’t want any of you near me.”

  Daniel looks surprised.

  “Oh! Yeah… I remember that. I’m sorry. I kinda got lost in the woods, so I decided to walk by the mountain area.”

  Luna begins looking around for Zack and Nicole, but they’re nowhere in sight.

  “Why are you out here all by yourself? Where’s the Knight and the Assassin?”

  Daniel sighs.

  “Oh, come on… you know their names. At least use them.”

  Luna stares at him with a “Are you serious?” expression.

  “You know what? You’re right. I apologize. I should address them correctly.”

  “So where’s Stupid 1 and Stupid 3?”

  Daniel stares at her, annoyed.

  “You serious?”

  “…Wait. Does that make me Stupid 2?”

  Luna smirks and chuckles.

  “Careful. It’s learning.”

  Daniel gives her the same ‘Are you serious?’ look.

  “Yeah, yeah… I guess I walked right into that one.”

  “Anyway, Zack and I got separated at the camp.”

  “A group of those green monsters showed up and attacked us.”

  “Zack and I ran in separate directions into the woods.”

  Luna’s expression grows serious.

  “What about the Assassin?”

  Daniel hesitates.

  “Oh… um… Nicole actually left right after you did.”

  “Yeah… she just vanished.”

  The word vanished immediately worries Luna.

  That was the last thing she wanted to hear.

  The thought of a crazy, murderous Assassin roaming around freely and completely unsupervised makes Luna uneasy.

  Daniel, however, looks relieved to have found her.

  “But don’t worry! I’m sure Nicole will be fine.”

  Luna stares at him.

  “What?”

  “The hell are you talking about? Finding her dead somewhere would be the best-case scenario, honestly.”

  Daniel’s face changes completely.

  “Huh?”

  A hint of fear creeps into his voice.

  “Um… I’m sorry… I can’t tell if you’re joking.”

  Luna sighs, slightly annoyed at how clueless he is.

  But then again… Daniel didn’t see everything.

  So she stays calm.

  “No. I’m not joking. The bitch could’ve stabbed me.”

  Daniel frowns.

  “But Nicole wasn’t in stabbing distance.”

  “There was like three feet between you two. Even if she rushed you, all you had to do was release the arrow.”

  Before Luna can respond, the bushes nearby rustle.

  Both of them freeze.

  Luna immediately draws her bow and takes aim.

  Daniel tries to take a stance but gets startled and drops his sword.

  “You can’t be serious…” Luna mutters under her breath.

  She ignores him and focuses on the bushes.

  Her eyes sharpen.

  Her mind prepares for a fight.

  Part of her hopes it’s Nicole so she can finish this problem now.

  But instead, a tired, out-of-breath Zack stumbles out of the bushes.

  “Whoa! Don’t shoot!” Zack yells with both hands up.

  Daniel sighs in relief.

  But Luna immediately questions him.

  “Were you followed?”

  Zack blinks.

  “What?”

  “Were you followed?”

  The tension in Luna’s voice is unmistakable.

  “N-No…”

  Luna slowly lowers her bow.

  Zack lets out a shaky breath.

  Luna slowly lowers her bow and looks at Daniel.

  Great. Now what?

  She has zero intention of hanging around these guys. That’s why she left in the first place. But now they’ve found her.

  Deep down, Luna doesn’t want the responsibility of looking after them. She wants to level up alone until the time runs out.

  Her thoughts drift to Damian — to the countless hours they spent gaming together, leveling side by side. They worked perfectly as a duo because they understood each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

  This?

  This was different.

  She’s stuck with two beginners who barely understand the basics.

  Part of her wishes one of them would just say they want to go solo.

  Wouldn’t that be nice?

  Luna snaps back to reality and begins questioning Daniel and Zack — rapid-fire.

  Zack admits he mostly spent his time partying with friends and hanging out with family. Video games were never really his thing.

  Daniel focused on academics and professional golf. No room for gaming in his life either.

  Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

  Luna, on the other hand, was introduced to video games at a very young age by her father. She grew up raiding bosses, grinding levels, and clearing dungeons.

  That’s why understanding the System feels natural to her.

  As for her physique? Growing up surrounded by nothing but boy cousins forced her to stay sharp. If they ran, she ran. If they climbed, she climbed. If they wrestled, she wrestled.

  Sports. Fighting. Roughhousing.

  It all became second nature.

  What better preparation for a survival game?

  After the brief but revealing conversation, Zack suddenly snaps his fingers.

  “Oh! I almost forgot. Daniel, you dropped this.”

  He opens his inventory and pulls out a wooden Level 1 shield — the same one Daniel lost while running from the goblins.

  “Holy smokes! Thanks! I thought I lost it!”

  Daniel quickly equips it to his secondary slot.

  From Luna’s perspective, it looks like Zack stuck his arm into thin air. A faint blue ripple opens like an invisible pocket, then closes once he pulls his arm back.

  But she notices something else.

  A small spark.

  Subtle. Almost unnoticeable.

  Like a transaction being completed.

  “Ah! I got all my numbers back!” Daniel exclaims.

  Zack frowns. “What do you mean?”

  “My stats. They’re back to normal.”

  “All you did was grab a shield.”

  Luna blinks.

  They don’t understand equipment stats.

  Or passive bonuses.

  They continue going back and forth about “numbers,” completely missing the obvious.

  Luna exhales sharply and starts walking.

  Any direction is better than standing there listening to this.

  A moment later, she hears footsteps behind her.

  They’re following her.

  Of course they are.

  As Luna moves through the woods, she feels it again.

  That presence.

  That sensation of being watched.

  But she doesn’t show it.

  Daniel, however, suddenly speaks up.

  “Hey… I don’t want to make a scene or anything, but I feel like someone’s watching us. From those bushes over there.”

  Luna slowly turns around.

  Her expression clearly says: Are you kidding me?

  Daniel looks completely unaware of what he just did.

  Suddenly—

  The bushes explode outward.

  Four goblins leap out and charge.

  Ding!

  “You are being ambushed!”

  “Thanks for the heads-up,” Luna mutters sarcastically.

  The goblins rush forward at alarming speed.

  “They’re fast,” Luna whispers as she steps back, aiming.

  She shoots one in the knee.

  The goblin collapses, rolling to her feet.

  She stomps its chest and fires another arrow straight into its face.

  Ding!

  “Goblin Defeated.”

  “There goes one,” she mutters.

  She turns.

  Daniel is hiding behind a tree while a goblin repeatedly tries to stab around the trunk.

  Zack is fumbling with his inventory.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Luna’s eye twitches.

  “Noobs…”

  “Use your damn shield to block!” she yells at Daniel. “Then swing!”

  “And keep your weapon equipped!” she shouts at Zack. “Opening your inventory mid-fight takes too long!”

  “I’m trying!” Daniel yells back.

  He raises his shield properly this time.

  The goblin lunges.

  Impact.

  Daniel shoves forward, pushing it off balance.

  The goblin falls.

  “Now end it!” Luna commands.

  Daniel steps forward and drives his sword into the goblin’s chest.

  Blood spills across the ground.

  The goblin dies.

  Daniel stands there, breathing heavily, adrenaline surging.

  Meanwhile, Zack finally pulls out his spear — just as a goblin charges him.

  Luna fires an arrow, shattering the goblin’s thigh.

  It slows just enough.

  Zack thrusts the spear forward.

  Impaled.

  Dead.

  “Thanks…” Zack mutters.

  “Don’t thank me yet,” Luna says, turning. “There’s one more.”

  The final goblin runs.

  She shoots — hits its arm.

  It stumbles but keeps running.

  Too far.

  “Damn it.”

  “Probably heading back to its camp,” Daniel says.

  “We follow the blood trail,” Luna replies immediately.

  Zack nods eagerly. “A camp full of goblins means XP and loot.”

  “Fine,” Luna says. “But if a high-level monster shows up, we leave immediately.”

  They agree.

  As they prepare to move, Zack says casually, “We should be okay… at least with the time we have left.”

  Luna freezes.

  Time.

  She calls up the System.

  Ding!

  “Time Remaining: 00:13:46”

  Her stomach drops.

  She completely lost track.

  “Then we make one last push,” she says. “Then we go home.”

  Luna and the others began following the blood trail left behind by the goblin.

  It couldn’t have gotten far.

  After several minutes of running, a sharp metallic scent filled the air.

  Iron.

  Blood.

  Death.

  Luna instinctively checked for a System alert.

  Nothing.

  The blood trail ended at a thick patch of bushes. Beyond them, she could make out the faint outline of a camp.

  A cold certainty settled in her chest.

  Something horrible was on the other side.

  She pushed through anyway.

  Branches clawed at her arms as she forced her way through. Daniel and Zack followed close behind.

  The moment they stepped into the clearing—

  Cold.

  A suffocating, unnatural cold wrapped around them.

  A pile of headless goblins lay stacked in the center of the camp. Beneath them, a massive pool of blood spread slowly across the dirt, seeping into the earth.

  The metallic stench was overwhelming.

  Bodies were scattered everywhere.

  Clean cuts.

  Precise.

  Efficient.

  Luna didn’t move her body — only her eyes, scanning.

  Daniel swallowed.

  Zack went pale.

  “What the hell could kill this many goblins?” Luna muttered, her voice low as she searched for movement.

  Something was here.

  She could feel it.

  “Everyone on guard… whatever did this might still be here,” she whispered.

  Daniel and Zack immediately took defensive stances.

  Luna raised her bow and stepped toward the center of the camp.

  Six minutes left in the event.

  They weren’t expecting this.

  Then—

  It hit her.

  A crushing, predatory presence slammed into her instincts.

  Turn around.

  Now.

  Luna spun and leapt back—

  A blur exploded toward her.

  Before her feet even touched the ground, the figure crashed into her guard.

  BAM!

  The impact detonated the air. Daniel and Zack were thrown back several feet.

  Luna was blasted backward, boots carving into the dirt as she slid.

  She barely stabilized—

  “Well hello there,” a familiar voice purred. “What a pleasure to see you again.”

  Nicole stepped forward, smiling like a predator who finally cornered her prey.

  Ding!

  “A Player has expressed animosity towards you.”

  Luna’s lips curled.

  She slowly raised her bow again.

  She’d been waiting for this too.

  Nicole smirked—

  Then her expression shattered.

  Her body jolted.

  She tried to step forward—

  Couldn’t.

  Her eyes dropped.

  A green Mystic Arrow had pierced straight through her thigh.

  Dust still hung in the air from the initial collision. In that split second of impact, Luna had drawn and fired blindly into the blur.

  Luck?

  Maybe.

  Skill?

  Definitely.

  “When did you—?” Nicole whispered.

  Ding!

  “WARNING! A PLAYER HAS EXPRESSED MURDEROUS INTENT!”

  “Pleasure’s all mine,” Luna said coldly. “Bitch.”

  Nicole’s grin slowly returned.

  She pulled out a second rusty dagger — identical to the goblins’.

  Luna’s eyes flicked to Nicole’s armor.

  Rusty. Crude. Goblin-grade.

  “She’s been busy…” Luna muttered.

  Daniel and Zack stood frozen behind Nicole. They could feel it.

  The level gap.

  If they interfered, they’d die.

  Blood dripped steadily from Nicole’s thigh.

  She bent her knees—

  And vanished.

  Ding!

  “Ability: Quick Dash Lv.1”

  Nicole burst forward like a missile.

  Luna’s eyes sharpened.

  Ding!

  “Skill: Eclipse Arrow”

  Instead of aiming at Nicole—

  Luna fired at the ground.

  The arrow struck—

  BOOM.

  The earth erupted. A shockwave blasted outward, tearing up dirt and stone.

  The explosion slammed into Nicole mid-dash. Dust engulfed the battlefield.

  Nicole stumbled.

  Luna moved first.

  An arrow ripped through the dust and pierced Nicole’s arm.

  Nicole didn’t stop.

  She pushed through the chaos and slashed—

  The dagger cut across Luna’s arm.

  Luna jumped back, blood spilling down to her fingers.

  Ding!

  “Status Effect Detected: Bleeding.”

  “HP will decrease over time.”

  “Damn it,” Luna hissed.

  Nicole dashed again, expecting Luna to retreat.

  But Luna dashed forward.

  Nicole’s eyes widened.

  Their distance collapsed instantly.

  Nicole slashed.

  Luna dropped low, the blade slicing air above her.

  Without hesitation—

  She fired directly at the ground beneath them.

  Another blast.

  Nicole was thrown off balance.

  Dust swallowed the area again.

  From inside the cloud—

  An arrow struck near Nicole’s feet.

  Another exploded to her left.

  Then another to her right.

  Dust clouds multiplied, overlapping, blinding, disorienting.

  Luna moved between them like a phantom.

  Arrows flew from shifting angles.

  One pierced Nicole’s shoulder.

  Another struck her calf.

  Nicole growled, frustration breaking through her grin.

  She rushed blindly with raw aggression.

  Exactly what Luna wanted.

  Luna might have learned the bow from her father—

  But she’d spent years wrestling with her cousins.

  Close combat wasn’t foreign.

  It was instinct.

  Nicole closed in and swung with everything she had.

  Luna let her bow fall.

  Nicole didn’t notice.

  The dagger came down—

  Luna ducked.

  Then surged forward.

  She wrapped her arms around Nicole’s waist from behind.

  Lifted.

  With brutal strength, Luna hoisted Nicole over her head.

  For a split second Nicole was weightless—

  Then Luna twisted, grabbed her by the chest—

  And drove her into the ground.

  BOOM.

  The impact cracked the earth.

  A visible shockwave burst outward, kicking up rocks and dust.

  Blood exploded from Nicole’s mouth.

  Daniel and Zack stood frozen, jaws slack.

  The recoil traveled through Luna’s arms and spine.

  She staggered—

  By the time she refocused—

  Nicole was already rising.

  Blood poured down her chin.

  The smile was gone.

  “Man,” Luna smirked, breathing hard, “I sure slammed that smile off your face.”

  Nicole wiped the blood away slowly.

  Then—

  She started laughing.

  Low.

  Unstable.

  “Hehehe… You have no idea what you’ve done…”

  Ding!

  “Event ending in 10 seconds!”

  Nicole’s eyes gleamed.

  “I don’t know your name. I don’t know where you’re from. I only know your face.”

  Her grin returned — darker now.

  “This is the best game of cat and mouse I could ever ask for. I’ll be seeing you soon, Archer.”

  Her voice dropped to a whisper.

  “Until then… don’t die.”

  Ding!

  “Event ending in 5 seconds!”

  Luna glared at her with murderous intent—

  Then remembered Daniel and Zack.

  She turned.

  Blue energy began forming around all of them, spiraling from their feet upward.

  “Stay alive, guys,” Luna said quietly.

  “Thank you for keeping us safe,” Zack replied.

  Daniel just smiled and nodded.

  Ding!

  “Event Ended.”

  “You are being transported.”

  Energy erupted violently.

  The dimension fractured like shattered glass.

  Ding!

  “Last Location Reached.”

  Luna was Back at the Mall.