Chương 48: The Monsters of Necroton

Ch 48 - The Monsters of Necroton

"Hold the line! There's only one enemy! Tighten the formation and keep your eyes on every direction!"

"She's beside you! No, behind you!"

"Watch out! She's gone again! Don't let your guard down!" The ten players immediately moved into a defensive formation, standing back-to-back as they desperately scanned every direction. Panic spread through the group as they struggled to keep track of their surroundings. Something was clearly attacking from another angle, yet none of them could even see where the attack was coming from. As they desperately searched for their hidden opponent, something suddenly shot out from the side.

Its figure was impossible to make out clearly. It looked like a little girl with a pair of long ears, while her bright crimson eyes glowed unnaturally in the darkness.

"I really like those eyes. Can I take them home and play with them?" A violent blur followed. The figure suddenly leaped straight at her from the front, landing lightly on her shoulders as if she weighed nothing. Both of her hands clamped over the female player's face, gripping it tightly. The player instantly panicked, stumbling around and spinning wildly as she desperately tried to shake the small figure off.

"Help me! Get her off! I can't see anything!"

"Stop moving! I can't get a clear shot!"

"Just attack her! She looks weak!" The next moment, the small figure skipped backward with a cheerful smile. In her tiny hands were two freshly removed eyeballs.

"Yay! Pretty marbles! They'll look so cute in my collection!" Blood streamed from the screaming player's empty eye sockets as she collapsed onto her knees, clutching her ruined face while the little girl hugged the eyeballs against her chest like treasured toys. Then the small figure disappeared once again. An instant later, she emerged from another blind spot and drove both daggers deep into the back of one of the players.

Before anyone could react, she twisted both blades, ripped them free, and vanished once more, leaving the player collapsing in a spray of blood. A heartbeat later, she appeared behind another victim and happily climbed onto his back as though asking for a piggyback ride.

"Hehe... got you." Wrapping one arm around his shoulders, she casually slid one dagger across his throat. A crimson line opened across his neck. Blood poured out in an instant as the player desperately clawed at the wound before collapsing lifelessly onto the ground. Meanwhile, the little girl lightly hopped away, humming to herself as if she had merely finished another innocent game. The entire battle was being broadcast through the live stream, watched by countless viewers.

However, because everything happened so quickly and the players were moving around in complete panic, the mysterious attacker never appeared clearly on screen.

"Seriously? They haven't even reached the city yet, and they're already getting ambushed?"

"What level are these idiots? Is fighting just one person really that difficult?"

"They're supposed to be around Level 120. That should still be much higher than the levels of Caelan's knights."

"Is it really going to end this fast? This is boring. Let's switch to another stream. There's a much more organized guild on the next channel." More screams echoed through the battlefield. Not long after, the live stream suddenly went black. The broadcast had ended, leaving only one conclusion. Every single player on that side had been completely wiped out. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. On another part of the battlefield, the situation looked no better.

There were far more players, around a dozen of them, desperately swarming a single creature standing before them. No one knew what it was. The monster possessed two heads, four muscular arms, and a long reptilian tail covered in dark scales. Thick black flesh wrapped around its body in uneven layers, as though several different creatures had been stitched together into one. At first glance, one of its heads resembled that of a beautiful young woman, but the resemblance ended there.

The others were far more monstrous, with reptilian faces covered in scales and mouths filled with rows of jagged fangs. Every movement was violent yet strangely graceful, making the creature seem even more unnatural.

"Cut off its heads! Don't let it get close!" The monstrous figure burst forward with incredible speed, effortlessly weaving past several incoming spells. Its movements were unnaturally agile, almost impossible to follow. It suddenly appeared beside one of the players. Both right arms shot forward at the same time. One hand crushed the player's face while the other seized his throat. With a terrifying swing, the creature hurled him through the air, sending him crashing into the players behind him.

Its reptilian tail slammed against the ground and whipped through the air, instantly changing its direction in the middle of its charge. The impossible maneuver left the surrounding players completely unable to keep up.

"Box it in! Don't let it keep moving!"

"Left side! Left side! No, it's already behind us!"

"Tank, hold it still! Someone stop that tail!" Without warning, something suddenly shot out from one of the monster's open mouths. A long, fleshy tongue lashed through the air and wrapped tightly around a player's neck.

"It's got me! Cut it off! Cut it off!" The player was violently dragged across the ground before being pulled directly into the monster's reach. All four arms struck at once. Its claws pierced straight through his chest and abdomen, tearing through armor and flesh alike before lifting him into the air.

"No! Pull him back!"

"He's already dead! Fall back!"

"Spread out! Don't stay together!"

"It's reading every move we make!" The monster let out a shrill, manic laugh.

"Ahahaha! This is fun! You're all so weak! Look at you! Such fragile little bodies! I can crush your bones with one hand, tear you apart with the other, and those tiny heads... you only get one! They're so easy to smash!" Everyone watching through the live stream could only stare in stunned silence. The creature only appeared in brief, blurry flashes on the screen, yet that was enough to send chills through the audience.

"What the hell is that? No way... Is that some kind of high-level monster?"

"No... that's not a normal monster. It's something above that. It has to be a Named NPC. That's why they can't even see its level."

"Did anyone manage to identify its name?"

"No. It looks like it has some way of hiding its identity. It's the same as that other live stream. The attacker only showed up as a blurry figure there too."

"This is insane... What kind of creature has two heads, four arms, and a reptile's tail? I've never seen anything like that."

"Is it some kind of chimera? I heard there were experiments combining the strongest monsters into a single body, but I also heard every attempt ended in failure."

"No way... There's no way Necroton should have something like this. Someone else has to be involved. There's definitely more going on here than we know." On another part of the battlefield, far beyond the area anyone else could see, a figure quietly sat atop a massive wolf whose fur was as dark as living shadows. Behind him, another person sat silently, her arms resting lightly around his waist.

"Your Highness, should I help finish off those players as well?" The gentle voice came from the girl sitting behind him.

"No, Lucia. This is enough. The ones who came are still low-level players." Jester calmly watched the distant battlefield.

"I don't think the high-level players have decided to move yet. More likely, they're waiting to see how things develop before committing themselves." A faint smile appeared on his face.

"So that's how high-level players are. It's surprisingly hard to tell the difference between being cautious and being cowardly. Even when it's only a dead city they're attacking, they still hesitate this much." A few moments later, a figure wrapped entirely in darkness emerged from the shadows before Jester, who was still wearing Caelan's appearance. The darkness surrounding the figure gradually melted away. Standing there was a petite maid dressed in a short black skirt and white apron.

Her silky white hair framed an adorable face, while a pair of fluffy bunny ears stood proudly atop her head. A cheerful smile stretched across her lips as she bounced forward with obvious excitement.

"Your Highness!" she said happily.

"Mira finished her mission! I had so much fun playing with them! I made sure every single naughty player got the punishment they deserved!"

"Good work, Mira." Jester nodded.

"Did you collect the loot from the players?"

"Yes!" Mira said as she proudly puffed out her chest.

"Weapons, armor, monster cores, accessories, potions, and even some shiny little trinkets! I picked up everything!"

"That's fine." Jester nodded.

"It seems we'll have to wait for bigger prey if we want something truly worthwhile." Another figure then emerged from the darkness. Unlike Mira, the shadows never left its body. It remained nothing more than a humanoid silhouette made entirely of darkness, standing motionless before Jester.

"Shade," Jester called.

"Did you find anything?" The shadow bowed respectfully before answering in a cold, emotionless voice.

"Your Highness, I have located a group of players with considerably higher levels." Shade slowly raised one arm and pointed toward the distant.

"They are the same group that attempted to attack our convoy during our journey here."

"Silverwings..." Jester smiled faintly.

"Their average level is fairly high." He turned toward the direction Shade had indicated, his smile growing just a little wider.

"I suppose we could deal with them now... but I have something far more interesting in mind. Bring the others here."