Fallen Realm Online: Rise of The Fallen Monarch

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"How… how did you do that, my Lord?"

Lilith's voice trembled with shock, her wide eyes locked onto Xylen as though thinking he had been possessed.

Xylen blinked, momentarily confused by her reaction.

But then it hit him. Lilith wasn't expecting him to fight the way he had done at all

'She's just an NPC and according to my backstory, I shouldn't have any combat ability talk more of having any skills. I should have been weak and helpless.'

A wry smile tugged at Xylen's lips at this thought and he scratched the back of his head, wondering how best to explain.

But before he could say a word, however…

"I get it now!"

Lilith suddenly exclaimed, her face lighting up in sudden realization, her eyes shining with excitement, completely taking Xylen aback.

"This was your secret all along, right, my Lord? This was where you got your courage to fight your uncle from, wasn't it?"

'…Huh?" Xylen stared at her in a stupor. 'Secret?'

But before he could think of responding, Lilith rushed toward him, nearly bouncing with enthusiasm.

"I knew it! You must have been the favored son of the Demon God, right?! He must have been secretly training you all these years in your unconscious state! That skill you just used… it must have been a divine gift!"

"…This…"

Xylen's lips parted, but no words came out. He stared at Lilith's jubilant expression, utterly speechless.

'Where in the world did she pull that logic from?' He thought speechlessly, having no idea whether to laugh or cry.

Yet before he could refute her, Lilith was already clasping her hands together, whispering praises to the Demon God for not abandoning her Lord and their village, for giving them hope just when it all seemed to be lost.

Seeing her like this and hearing her, Xylen could only roll his eyes and sigh. 'I suppose this explanation works in my favor…'

Letting her have her moment, he turned his attention back to the loot from the Brambit he had just slain.

In the following second, a sharp glint of metal caught his eye as he bent down and picked up the weapon drop.

As soon as the weapon touched his hand;

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|| W E A P O N – S T A T S ||

Weapon Name: Rusthorn Blade

Required Stats: STR-10

Weapon Type: Short Blade

Weapon Grade: Common

Attack Power: 10 - 15

Skill: Rusthorn Spikes: [ 0.1% chance of releasing poisoned metal-like thorns when in use. ]

|| E N D ||

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"Not too bad for a first kill," Xylen, done checking the above information muttered to himself, a satisfied expression crossing his face.

With this, he instinctively tried to stow the blade away into his inventory, only to remember he didn't have one yet.

Immediately, Xylen ruffled his hair, sighing internally with regret. "This is where reincarnating in a beginner's village would have been incredibly useful…"

According to his knowledge from his past life, players would have received a starter bag for storage in normal MMORPGs. But here, nothing.

But then again, even if he had spawned in a beginner's village, he wouldn't have been able to afford one.

A storage bag was an expensive luxury at the start of the game, something only the extremely rich and powerful ones could acquire early on.

Thinking this, Xylen's eyes darkened with determination.

'No time to complain. I need to grind harder, get more loot, and turn everything into money. This new opportunity given to me by heaven must be perfectly utilized!'

With this thought in mind, Xylen, whose blood had turned hot from anticipation turned his gaze to Lilith and handed her the short blade.

"Keep it for me."

"Yes, my Lord,"

The still-excited Lilith responded without question, took the weapon, and then stored it in the black bag slung against her shoulder.

"Let's go."

Xylen uttered, his voice brimming with urgency, and turned around, wanting to continue forward.

He had barely taken a step, however, when Lilith stopped him.

Before he could ask why, she pulled out a bandage and a vial of healing liquid from the black bag.

"My Lord, let me treat your injuries."

"This…"

Xylen blinked, confused for a moment before a look of understanding appeared on his face.

Glancing at where he had been injured, he muttered; Oh right… I did indeed get hurt.'

Before he could refuse, Lilith had already closed in, carefully dressing his wounds.

"…Are you done now?" Xylen asked for what felt like the tenth time since Lilith began, a helpless expression already covering his face.

"Just a bit more, my lord," Lilith responded, but before Xylen could complain;

 "I'm done now, my Lord," Lilith finally nodded her head, appreciating her work.

Hearing this, Xylen became relieved.

Not wanting to waste more time, adjusted his grip on his sword and stepped deeper into the forest.

Lilith hesitated for a second and then quickly followed him.

…..

—Deeper into the forest, after another one hour or so had passed—

"My Lord, we are already venturing too deep. Please, let's return to the outskirts now."

Quietly tiptoeing behind Xylen and looking around anxiously as though expecting a terrifying creature to suddenly lounge at them, Lilith muttered quietly, her voice edged with genuine fear.

The forest had become even darker, the thick canopy blocking out the last remnants of light. The sinister silence was suffocating.

Xylen did not respond.

Why would he even want to turn back now?

He was still Level 0 and he had only just earned 10 Experience Points out of the required 100 points needed to level 1.

At this rate, he wouldn't even reach Level 2 before his time limit was up because right now, he only has less than 20 hours left.

That was unacceptable!

On the other hand, Lilith, having no idea about Xylen's concern tried again.

"Please, my Lord. The chances of encountering high-level monsters that we wouldn't be able to handle are increasing now. If we run into something above Level 3, we won't stand a chance."

'This…'

Xylen's heart skipped a beat and clenched his fists, perfectly understanding Lilith's fear.

But could he listen? No, because he also understood that failure is not an option.

If this was just about losing the village, he wouldn't have cared. Even if everyone inside died? How does that have anything to do with him?

They were merely NPCs without live and he would risk his chance of leveling up for them, but…

What Xylen truly feared was nothing but the punishment for failing his mission.

He couldn't afford it.

Recalling this punishment and glancing at the countdown at the corner of his eyes, Xylen took a deep breath.

"No can do," he responded calmly.

Then he picked up his pace.

He still needed nine or so more level-one monsters to reach level 2.

On the other hand, Lilith's eyes widened, seeing what Xylen was doing.

"My… My Lord, please wait—!"

But just then…

"ROOOAAARRR!!!"

A powerful, monstrous bellow tore through the silence, making Xylen's and Lilith's bodies instantly tense, hearing the roar that shook the entire forest.

Even the very ground beneath them trembled at this roar.

"That…"

The two stopped in their tracks and turned sharply in the direction of the roar.

Xylen's grip tightened on his sword while Lilith's bow raised in high alert and fear, ready to alert.

"That was definitely a boss monster," Xylen muttered, scanning the surroundings.

Hearing him, Lilith gasped. "My Lord! We need to run now!"

Panic surged in her voice. "That… that monster must have been between Level 5 to Level 10! If it senses us, we are doomed and we'll be dead even before we draw our weapons!"

She turned white with terror.

Hearing her, Xylen hesitated.

To be honest, this was exactly the kind of opportunity he needed, considering the scarcity of the lower-ranked monsters and his limited time.

Killing it would definitely shoot his rank up, but… could he handle it?

The answer is obvious, no.

Not with his present strength.

Realizing this, Xylen gritted his teeth with great unwillingness and prepared to turn around when suddenly;

"RAAHH!!"

A second roar erupted—from the same direction, but this time, instantly followed by a deafening crash.

BOOM!

The impact shook the forest again, making leaves fall from the canopy.

Lilith's face turned deathly pale. "We… we are doomed. My Lord, let's run…"

But Xylen's eyes gleamed.

"Did you hear that?" he asked quietly, but Lilith refused to listen.

"I… I don't want to hear anything, my Lord! We have to leave now before it becomes too late!"

She pulled Xylen's arms, wanting to drag him away. She couldn't afford any harm coming across her master.

Seeing this, Xylen finally frowned.

"And who do you think you are to order me?" He demanded.

"I…"

Lilith flinched, startled by the sudden sharpness in Xylen's tone.

But before she could react, Xylen continued, his voice calmer this time.

"Those two roars we just heard… there are definitely two monsters there. And from the impact, they're most likely fighting each other."

"Huh?" Lilith gasped.

But before she could respond, Xylen continued.

"If they fight long enough and injure each other…" his smirk grew. "We could deliver the final blow and steal the kill."

Lilith's heart pounded in her chest.

"This… this is too risky, my Lord," she stammered, wondering if Xavier was crazy.

But Xylen didn't listen.

He glanced toward the darkness where the two monsters were clashing, the sound of their battle echoing through the trees.

This was his best shot right now.

He turned back to Lilith, pure determination flashing in his eyes.

"I have made up my mind."

Then… without hesitation and another word, he dashed forward.

"My Lord!" Lilith shouted in concern.

For a second, she stood frozen, watching his disappearing silhouette.

Then she gritted her teeth.

"Whatever."

Cursing under her breath, she ran after him, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

Because she knew… this is nothing more than a death sentence… a self-served death sentence.