Invisible Assassin

The members of the Domination Guild and Green Mountains continued their heated argument, but Zane quickly lost interest and refocused on his current task.

"Almost there… time to strike!"

He noticed the elite monster's health was critically low and sprang into action.

Stealth!

His figure vanished as he silently closed in on the elite monster.

"Miss Sword Dance, the monster is nearly dead!"

"Good, everyone fall back!"

Fireworks·Sword Dance was completely unaware of the approaching threat.

Excitement filled her face as she stepped forward, gripping her rusted iron sword, ready to deliver the final blow.

Slash!

A streak of black light suddenly appeared!

Zane's Shadow Blade pierced the monster's body a split second earlier!

-243

The elite monster let out a final wail before collapsing lifelessly.

[You have participated in the kill of Maplewood Dryad LV5 (Elite Monster). EXP +400, Reputation +20!]

Zane executed a clean kill, triggering his Shadow Blade ability once again. He vanished into stealth as he swiftly scooped up the loot—flawless execution!

"What just happened?!"

Sword Dance's attack never connected, yet the monster had already fallen.

For a brief moment, a ridiculous thought crossed her mind—did she possess some sort of hidden talent, like unleashing sword energy before her blade even struck?

But she quickly realized the truth. "Someone stole the kill!"

"What?!"

"There's no one here?!"

"No, I saw a flash of black light just now—someone definitely stole the kill!"

The surrounding members were both shocked and furious.

"Doesn't attacking reveal stealth? Why can't we see the one who did it?"

"Is this game hacked? Someone's cheating, report them!"

"Report who? We don't even know who it is!"

In a panic, they flailed around with their attacks, desperately trying to reveal the thief, but to no avail.

Seeing their incompetence, Sword Dance flew into a rage and slapped one of her guild members across the face.

"Useless fools! There's no hacking in this game—the bastard must have used some special method!"

These players were employees of her family's company, making them the perfect outlet for her frustration.

"Tsk, what a spoiled brat. She needs to be taught a lesson."

Initially, Zane had planned to leave immediately, but after witnessing her arrogance, he changed his mind.

He silently maneuvered behind her.

As a swordsman, Sword Dance had sustained injuries during the battle, leaving her health at less than half.

Zane didn't hesitate. He plunged his dagger into her back!

"Right in the heart, little girl!"

"Aghhh!"

Sword Dance screamed in agony as she burst into white light—dead.

"Damn it! He's still here! He just killed Miss Sword Dance!"

"Attack! Don't let him get away!"

"You idiot, why are you attacking me?!"

Chaos erupted.

Having achieved his goal, Zane vanished into the shadows and quickly fled the scene.

Once he confirmed he was safe, he opened his inventory to check his spoils.

This small elite monster's drops paled in comparison to a boss, but it still gave him 15 silver coins, a belt, and three basic mana potions.

The belt required LV5, so it was useless to him for now.

"Stealing kills like this… is actually kinda fun."

After two consecutive successful heists, Zane was getting addicted.

Just then, a semi-transparent region-wide announcement appeared:

[Fireworks·Sword Dance: Who ambushed me?! Show yourself if you have the guts, coward!]

This message immediately caught the attention of many players.

"What's going on? Another ambush?"

"Fireworks Guild? That's a major guild! Who the hell has the balls to provoke them?"

Even Domination·Silver Spear, who had been arguing with Green Mountains, noticed the announcement.

For some reason, he suddenly felt an odd sense of camaraderie with Sword Dance. He quickly posted his own announcement:

[Domination·Silver Spear: See?! I told you something's wrong with this game! And you all didn't believe me!]

"Wait… does this mean Silver Spear wasn't lying after all?"

"Holy crap, someone really can kill without being seen? That's terrifying!"

"Damn, that mystery expert must be a legend! Domination Guild totally deserved it, though. This is karma!"

"Whoever this is, please reveal yourself! I wanna bow down and worship you!"

A new rumor quickly spread throughout Maple Leaf Town—the "Invisible Assassin."

Of course, no matter how much they speculated, Zane had no intention of stepping forward. Let them keep guessing!

But after this incident, he came up with a bold idea.

He began wandering the area, searching for more "opportunities."

The outer region of Maplewood Forest contained Level 3–4 monsters. Most Level 2+ players could handle them in teams.

If an elite monster appeared, a larger group could take it down.

However, for a boss, only guild teams had the firepower to kill it.

As a result, there were plenty of players grinding levels in the area.

Zane carefully scouted around. Whenever he came across a party, he would glance at them before casually walking away.

After some time—combined with his 'stealthy eavesdropping' on the town's chat—Zane pieced together a clear picture of Maple Leaf Town's power dynamics.

Currently, there were three major guilds in town:

Skyfall

Fireworks

Domination

All three were well-known names in the online gaming world.

Beyond them, there were scattered independent players, including groups led by Green Mountains.

From the tone of the town's chat, none of these big guilds were particularly liked.

Large guilds often bullied solo players and monopolized leveling zones—Zane had encountered this kind of behavior in many games before.

He had no sympathy for them.

Since they were the dominant force in the area, they would be his primary targets.

Fifteen minutes later, Zane found his next prey.

A group of players with the "Skyfall" guild tag was engaged in battle with a massive serpent-like elite monster.

"Jackpot."

Zane smirked and activated Stealth, swaggering toward them unseen.

And then…

"What the hell? Where did my monster go?!"

"SOMEONE STOLE THE KILL!"

"No doubt about it—it's that invisible bastard! Damn it, find him!"

A familiar scene played out once again.

Zane executed his move flawlessly, disappearing into the shadows as he looted the spoils and made a clean getaway.

Soon after, the chat exploded once again:

"Guys, it happened again! The mystery expert just struck Skyfall Guild!"

"You insane bastard, why are you targeting us?! We didn't even do anything to you! I f*cking swear—!"

Zane's reign of terror continued.

"BREAKING: Fireworks Guild's elite team just lost a Level 5 mini-boss in Wild Boar Woods!"

"Domination Guild got robbed of a Mutant Bamboo Viper elite in Snake Bamboo Grove!"

"Mysterious Assassin, you are courting death!"

"Warning: The Wildlands are haunted! Everyone, stay alert when venturing out!"

As Zane's spree escalated, the leaders of the major guilds were furious, flooding the chat with threats and warnings.