Chapter 149 Frostshadow Essence
"I'm not stupid," CelestialParagon snapped, his voice tight with suppressed fury. "Why would I provoke Isabella? That woman is bad news."
"Then who managed to kill you?" Sutharos pressed, his curiosity piqued. "I didn't think there was anyone in Willowbrook Town capable of such a feat."
He took great pride in his understanding of the local power structures. In Willowbrook Town, only a select few could be considered truly outstanding individuals, and he was acquainted with the majority of them either on a personal level or through their reputations. If it wasn't someone like Isabella, then who could it be? Could there be another top-tier player hiding in the shadows, someone he hadn't accounted for?
CelestialParagon's silence spoke volumes. Sutharos's probing questions were like salt in a wound, a constant reminder of his humiliating defeat.
He had planned everything so carefully, ensuring that he had every advantage. He should have been able to crush Eric without breaking a sweat. And yet, somehow, he had lost.
Perceiving CelestialParagon's hesitation, Sutharos reclined in his seat, a discernible smile crinkling the corners of his mouth. The greater the reticence demonstrated by CelestialParagon, the more deeply Sutharos's interest was piqued.
"CelestialParagon, you know what I do," Sutharos said, his tone turning serious. "A player capable of killing you is a valuable asset, one that I need to identify. Tell me who it was."
CelestialParagon glared at him, his jaw clenched tight. He hated this, hated revealing his weakness, especially to someone like Sutharos.
For three years, he had maintained a perfect record, his reputation as an elite Assassin unblemished. And now, it was tarnished, shattered by an unknown Swordsman named Eric. To make matters worse, this incident would undoubtedly affect his standing within The Stygian Alliance. He had finally earned his place among them, and now this...
"I understand your reluctance," Sutharos said, his voice softening slightly. "You've worked hard to get where you are. This must feel like a major setback. But this is bigger than you or me. If you don't cooperate, it could jeopardize your position within The Stygian Alliance. Think carefully."
"You..." CelestialParagon spat, his anger flaring. But he knew Sutharos was right. Defiance would only make things worse. He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. "His name is Kai Blackthorn. A Swordsman."
"Kai Blackthorn? The Swordsman who cleared the Infernal-level Shadowmoon Graveyard with Isabella?" Sutharos mused, tapping a finger against his chin. "I've seen the battle recordings. He's skilled, I'll grant you that, but nothing special. Certainly not Stygian Alliance material. And yet, he managed to kill you? It seems he was hiding his true strength."
"Hiding his strength?" CelestialParagon scoffed. "He got lucky, that's all. He had some kind of flame, something I've never seen before. It was tearing through my equipment, even damaged my Mithril daggers. Without that flame, he wouldn't have stood a chance."
"A flame? You said it was damaging your equipment? Even your Mithril weapons?" Sutharos's eyebrows shot up, his interest piqued. "Swordsmen don't have any skills like that. It must be a special equipment skill. But to damage Mithril... That's high-level stuff. Obsidian-level at least, maybe even..."
"Epic-level?" CelestialParagon breathed, his eyes widening in disbelief. "That's impossible! No one has found anything above Obsidian-level yet! How could a free player like him get his hands on something like that?"
"Impossible is a strong word," Sutharos countered, a hint of excitement creeping into his voice. "Divine Realms: Legends is a vast and unpredictable world. Even at this early stage, there are bound to be hidden treasures, lost artifacts waiting to be discovered. We've had reports of several Obsidian-level items appearing within The Stygian Alliance. But Epic-level... That would be unprecedented."
"I've told you what you wanted to know," CelestialParagon growled, his patience wearing thin. "Now, if you'll excuse me..."
"One more thing," Sutharos interrupted, holding up a hand. "I'll need to look into this flame of yours. If it truly is Epic-level... Well, that changes things. If this Kai Blackthorn is willing to pledge his loyalty, and his unique item, to The Stygian Alliance, he might just be worthy of consideration. Don't do anything rash for now. You might be allies soon enough."
With that, Sutharos rose to his feet and strode out of the bar, leaving CelestialParagon fuming in his wake.
"Damn it!" CelestialParagon slammed his fist against the table, rattling the bottles and glasses.
Meanwhile, deep within the Cascade Brooklands of the Silent Marshlands, Eric, Tonny, and Ezio were engaged in a fierce battle against a creature unlike any they had faced before.
It was a serpent, but with three distinct heads, each one emerald green and filled with venomous fangs.
Triheaded Serpent Witch: Rare Elite, Level 16, HP: 15,000
Rare Elites were not necessarily stronger than their regular counterparts, but they were far less common, their spawn points scattered and unpredictable.
The loot they dropped, however, was significantly better, making them highly sought after by players in the know.
The Silent Marshlands were home to only five known Rare Elites, and the Triheaded Serpent Witch was the weakest among them. Once killed, it would take two full days for it to respawn.
After guiding Tonny and Ezio to level 10, Eric had decided it was time to test their mettle against a more challenging foe. He himself had reached level 11, and he was confident that, with the right strategy, they could take down the Serpent Witch. It had taken them several hours of searching, but they had finally found their quarry.
"Eric, this thing is too fast! I can't land a hit!" Tonny complained, his Shadow Bolts whizzing past the Serpent Witch as it weaved and bobbed, its movements deceptively swift.
"Don't worry about damage, just focus on slowing it down," Eric said through the party chat. "Use Curse of Debilitation."
During their time farming Marshland Riverbeasts, they had acquired several valuable items, including a Sorcerer skill book for Curse of Debilitation. It was a powerful debuff, reducing the target's attributes by 15%, decreasing their damage output by 15%, and increasing their vulnerability to shadow damage by 10%. It was an essential tool for any aspiring Sorcerer.
With Tonny's debuffs and Ezio's crowd control skills, keeping the Serpent Witch occupied was a simple matter.
The creature's primary mode of attack was its venomous exhalation, a ranged assault capable of rapidly depleting the health bar of even a level 15 Knight. Conventional antidotes were ineffective against it. However, its melee attacks were surprisingly weak.
Moreover, its defenses were nowhere near as formidable as the Steelhide Riverbeast's. Eric's Cleaving Strike was hitting for over 150 damage per hit, boosted to nearly 200 with Thunderbolt's damage amplification. His skills were even more devastating, each one chipping away at the Serpent Witch's 15,000 HP.
After a grueling ten-minute battle, the Triheaded Serpent Witch let out a final, earsplitting hiss and collapsed into the stream, its body dissolving into motes of light. Five items shimmered on the ground where it had fallen.
"Man, your luck is insane! Even I'm jealous!" Tonny exclaimed, watching as Eric collected the loot.
He remembered a time when Eric's luck had been abysmal. Even when they killed elite monsters, he would be lucky to get a single piece of Bronze equipment. Now, he was practically swimming in loot, each kill yielding at least three pieces of Bronze equipment, along with rare materials and skill books. It was almost unfair.
"It's a secret," Eric said with a wink, refusing to divulge the true source of his good fortune. He wasn't about to tell them about the Blessing of Shadows. The effects of 3 points of Luck were not to be underestimated.
He sifted through the loot, a small smile spreading across his face as he recognized one of the items. "Well, well, well. If it isn't Frostshadow Essence. This brings back memories."
"What is it, Eric?" Tonny asked, his curiosity piqued.
Ezio also leaned in proximity, keen to discern the treasures that the Serpent Witch had bestowed.
"Two pieces of level 15 Bronze equipment, one level 15 Dark Iron, a rare dungeon teleport scroll, and...this," Eric said, holding up a vial filled with swirling blue liquid. "Frostshadow Essence. Not a bad haul, if I do say so myself."
"Alright, that's one Rare Elite down. Let's head back and find ourselves some more Riverbeasts," Eric said, turning to leave.
As they made their way back towards the Riverbeast hunting grounds, Eric received a communication request.
"Sutharos?" he muttered, frowning at the unfamiliar name. He racked his brain, but he couldn't recall ever encountering anyone by that name. "Must be a wrong number."
Without a second thought, he declined the call.
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