The town lights ofBeginners' Rest shimmered in the distance as Akhil limped back through the west gate.
He was tired.His body ached.But inside, he felt stronger than ever.
He had survived Rustfang Forest.Completed a hidden quest.Gained new powers.
Step by step, without anyone's help.
Inside the town, the usual noise filled the air.Players bragging about new gear.
Recruiters shouting for dungeon parties.Sellers advertising flashy potions and weapons.
No one noticed Akhil.Just another nobody walking through the crowd and that was fine with him.
For now.
He headed toward the same second-hand merchant NPC.The old man was still there, leaning against his wooden counter.
[Sell Item?]
Akhil opened his small inventory.
Rustfang Claw (Low Quality) — 10 Credits
Boar Tusk (Extra drop) — 5 Credits
He sold them both.
[Credits: +15][Total Credits: 35]
It wasn't much.But it was a start.
He checked the shop's poor collection again.There are:
Rusty swords.Cracked shields.Torn leather armor.
No famous brands.No epic gear.
Only survival tools and that's all he needed.
He spent 20 Credits to buy a basic Traveler's Vest.
[Traveler's Vest: +10 Health, +5 Defense]
It was ugly brown, stitched roughly together.But it was better than the torn cloth shirt he wore now.
He equipped it immediately.His defense bar ticked slightly upward.
Small.But real.
He smiled faintly.
Small wins built legends.
He still had 15 Credits left.
Not enough for a good potion.But he decided to save it.
One day, he would have hundreds.Thousands.Maybe even more.But for now...
Every Credit mattered.
He left the shop quietly, blending into the crowd again.Other players shouted about their new kills.
A group from Crimson Vultures Guild showed off a rare silver wolf pelt.
Rich players.Famous players.
They laughed loudly, throwing Credits like candy.But Akhil didn't look at them.He had his own path and he was already walking it.
He opened his Quest Log.
The hidden quest was gone ,it's completed.
No new quests.No guides.No flashy achievements.
Only a silent notice in his history:
[Hidden Quest Completed: Whispers of the Forgotten.]
No rewards others could see.No cheers.No respect.
And that was perfect.
The quieter he grew, the more deadly he would become.
Akhil moved toward the town gates again.It was time for his next step.
This time, deeper.Harder.Riskier.
But first, he needed to find a safer way to travel.Rustfang Forest was just the beginning.He heard rumors at the marketplace earlier, about an abandoned mine nearby.
Howling Mines.
Full of dangers, yes.
But also full of hidden treasures...if you survived.
Akhil grinned.
Perfect.
He checked his inventory again.
Weapon: Rusty Iron Dagger
Armor: Traveler's Vest
Boots: Worn-out Sandals
Credits: 15
Still poor.Still weak.
But moving forward.
Always moving forward.
He headed to the west gate again.The next adventure was waiting.
The next battle.The next survival test.
Akhil clenched his fists.His journey was still invisible to the world.
But not for long.
Akhil crossed the west gate without looking back.
The world outside was quiet.The sky inside Luminaria Online was slowly darkening.It would be night soon.
Perfect for him.
His Night Predator skill worked best in the dark.He walked carefully along the dirt road leading toward the Howling Mines.
No crowds here,no guilds showing off.Only scattered players hunting low-level monsters for easy Credits.
Akhil ignored them.He had no time for small distractions.He had a goal and he wasn't going to stop.
After walking for a while, he left the main road.The path to Howling Mines wasn't marked clearly.It was hidden inside a broken forest area called Fang Hollow.
Most players avoided it.Strange monsters roamed there.Unstable ground.Lots of deaths.
But Akhil wasn't most players.He pushed forward, rusty dagger in hand.
The trees here were dead.No leaves.No birds.
Just broken branches and mist swirling low.
Akhil moved carefully, scanning the area.He had learned one thing early:
Surviving meant staying alert. Always.
Suddenly, he heard it.A low growl behind a fallen log.He turned just in time to see two glowing eyes rushing at him.
A Fang Hollow Beast — Level 4.Bigger and faster than the Rustfang Wolves.
Akhil gritted his teeth.He dodged to the left.
The beast's claws scraped the ground where he had stood.
Fast.Much faster than the wolves.
Akhil slashed with his dagger.Missed.The beast twisted its body and lunged again.He barely rolled away.
One mistake and he was dead.He couldn't match its speed.
But maybe... he didn't have to.
He ducked low, pretending to stumble.The beast saw weakness and charged.
Akhil waited.Just one second longer.Then he pivoted, using all his strength, and stabbed upward.The dagger dug deep under the beast's chin.
It howled.
Twitched.
Collapsed.
[Level Up! Level 4 Reached!][Item Drop: Beast Fang (Low Quality)]
Akhil gasped for breath.His hands shook slightly from the fight.But he smiled.
Another win.Another small climb upward.
He quickly collected the loot and checked his Credits.
[Total Credits: 25]
Still poor.Still struggling.But he was climbing.
Slowly.Surely.
As he wiped the blood from his blade,a notification popped up silently.
[Hidden Observation Detected.]
[Someone is watching you.]
Akhil froze.He scanned the misty woods.
Nothing found.
No footsteps.No breathing sounds.
But someone… or something… was watching him.
He tightened his grip on the dagger.
Ready for anything.Unknown to him, far above in the dead trees,a hidden figure watched silently.
A player wearing dark green armor and a hood.Their name tag invisible.
But if Akhil could see it, it would say:
[WhisperToma]
Toma smiled slightly.
"This kid..." he whispered."He's not normal."
Then the figure faded into the mist,leaving Akhil alone.
Unaware.But not unnoticed.
Akhil stood there for a few minutes, alert.When nothing attacked,he moved forward carefully again.
Toward the Howling Mines.Toward his next step.
The path was dangerous.The night darker.
But Akhil's heart burned brighter.He would survive.He would rise.No matter how many beasts or enemies stood in his way.
The entrance to the Howling Mines looked like a giant open mouth in the side of a hill.Old wooden beams held up the tunnel.Rotting ropes and broken mine carts lay scattered around.Cold air rushed out from the darkness inside.
Akhil stood there for a moment, staring.He knew the risks.
He was only Level 4.His gear was trash compared to others.Most players didn't enter the Howling Mines until they were Level 10 or more.
But Akhil had no choice.
If he wanted real growth...If he wanted real rewards...
He had to step where others feared.He gripped his rusty dagger tightly.
One step forward.Then another.
Soon, the light from the outside world faded behind him.Only darkness ahead now.
The inside of the mine was silent.Too silent.
Akhil moved slowly, staying close to the walls.His Whisper Sense skill tingled slightly.There were hidden dangers here.
Traps.Ambushes.Monsters that didn't make noise until they attacked.
This wasn't a safe hunting ground.
It was survival territory.Exactly what he needed.
He found a small broken cart and hid behind it.He opened his inventory and checked his status.
Health: 180/180
Mana: 80/80
Stamina: 110/110
Credits: 25
Still healthy.Still ready.
He checked his skills.
Night Predator
Whisper Sense
Minor Poison Resistance
No active attack skills yet.
Only survival skills.
He needed to use his brain.Use the environment.Use the darkness.He moved deeper inside.Ahead, faint sounds echoed — the clink of rocks, the rustle of movement.He spotted a group of monsters.
Ghost Miners.
Level 5 undead workers.Their bodies were twisted, half bones, half rotting flesh.They carried broken pickaxes and axes.Slow-moving.But deadly if they caught you.One hit could break half your health bar.
Akhil crouched low, thinking.He couldn't take them head-on.Not in groups.He needed to pull them one by one.
Isolate. Fight smart. Survive.
He picked up a small rock and threw it down the tunnel.The sound echoed loudly.The nearest Ghost Miner turned its hollow head toward the noise and shuffled away from the group.
Perfect.
Akhil waited until it was alone.Then he moved.Silent steps.Careful breath.He closed the distance fast.
The Ghost Miner raised its pickaxe slowly.Too slow.
Akhil dodged left and stabbed the dagger into its side.A small damage number popped up:
[15]
Good.
He stabbed again.And again.
The Ghost Miner swung back clumsily.He ducked, rolled behind it, and stabbed its back.After a few strikes, the creature collapsed into dust.
[Level Up! Level 5 Reached!][Item Drop: Ghost Ore Fragment (Common)]
Akhil stood there, panting slightly.
Victory.Another step forward.He quickly collected the loot.The Ghost Ore Fragment wasn't valuable on its own.But it could be combined later for better items.
He checked his Credits.
[Total Credits: 40]
Better.
Still small.Still weak.
But growing.
Always growing.
He hid behind the cart again, waiting.Watching.Planning.
He wasn't here to rush and die.He was here to survive.
To learn.To conquer.One careful move at a time.
Far above, in the cracks of the mine ceiling,another hidden figure watched silently.
The same one as before.
[WhisperToma — Observer Mode Activated.]
Toma whispered to himself:"First Rustfang Forest... now Howling Mines...What kind of beginner fights like this?"
He smiled slightly.
"This kid... is going to change everything."
Akhil moved deeper into the mine tunnels.Toward harder fights.Toward better rewards.
The darkness swallowed him completely.But this time, he wasn't afraid.The darkness was his ally now.The deeper Akhil went into the Howling Mines,the colder it became.The walls dripped water.The ground cracked under his feet.
Somewhere deeper inside,he could hear faint growls and strange screeches.The air itself felt heavier.He moved carefully between broken mine carts and fallen beams.
Suddenly, his Whisper Sense skill tingled again.A trap.
He crouched low and spotted it:A nearly invisible tripwire stretched across the tunnel.
If he had walked straight,he would have triggered a rockfall.Crushing damage.Instant death.
He smiled grimly.
Without Whisper Sense, he would've died right here.
He picked up a loose stone and tossed it onto the wire.The wire snapped.Heavy rocks fell where he would have walked.The sound echoed loudly through the tunnels.
Akhil froze.
He wasn't alone anymore.From deeper inside,he heard heavy footsteps.
Multiple.
The ground trembled slightly.A system warning popped up.
[Mini-Boss Detected: Ghost Foreman — Level 8]
Akhil's heart raced.
Level 8.
He was Level 5.Still too weak to fight directly.
But maybe...maybe he didn't have to fight fairly.
The Ghost Foreman appeared from the misty tunnel ahead.It was huge.A monstrous undead worker carrying a giant spiked hammer.Its body was stitched together from other dead miners.
Glowing red eyes locked onto Akhil.It roared and charged.
Akhil ran.He darted between broken carts and old mining equipment.
The Foreman swung its hammer, smashing everything in its path.He couldn't outrun it forever.He needed a plan.
Fast.His eyes darted around.
Up ahead is another weak ceiling beam.
Already cracked.Already shaking.
If he could lure the Foreman under it...
He sprinted toward the weak beam.Pretending to stumble.Pretending to panic.
The Foreman chased without hesitation.Right under the cracked beam.
Akhil grabbed a broken pickaxe from the ground and threw it upward.The beam snapped.Tons of rock and wood came crashing down.
The Ghost Foreman roared once.Then silence.Dust filled the tunnel.
Akhil coughed, waving his hand to clear the air.
The system chimed.
[Mini-Boss Defeated!][Massive Experience Gained!][Level Up! Level 6 Reached!][Rare Item Drop: Broken Miner's Amulet]
He stared at the loot notification.
Rare Item.
His first real rare item.He picked it up carefully.
[Broken Miner's Amulet: +5 Strength, +10 Health, Minor Defense Boost.]
It wasn't flashy.It wasn't god-tier.
But for him...it was gold.
He equipped the amulet immediately.His health bar ticked upward slightly.He felt a small surge of power in his muscles.
Stronger.Faster and Better.
He checked the rest of the loot.A few more Ghost Ore Fragments.And another 50 Credits.
[Total Credits: 90]
He smiled.
He was climbing.
Not fast.Not flashy.But real.
He sat down behind a fallen cart,breathing heavily.He checked his Status Window.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Akhil's Status Window]
[Player Status: Akhil]
Class: Glitchborn (Hidden Class)
Level: 6 Health (HP): 260/260
Mana (MP): 90/90
Stamina (SP): 140/140
Strength (STR): 9
Agility (AGI): 7
Intelligence (INT): 3
Vitality (VIT): 6
Dexterity (DEX): 6
Luck (LUK): ??? (Hidden)
Title: None
Skills: - [Night Predator] (Passive
- [Whisper Sense] (Passive)
-[Minor Poison Resistance] (Passive)
Equipment:
- Weapon: Rusty Iron Dagger
- Armor: Traveler's Vest
- Boots: Worn-out Sandals
- Accessory: Broken Miner's Amulet
Credits: 90
Quest Active: - None
------------------------------------------------------
Akhil closed the window.
He leaned back against the broken cart.The mine was still dark.Still full of dangers.But he had survived.Again.Step by step.
Fight by fight.He was becoming someone new.
Someone the world wouldn't ignore forever.Somewhere outside,the rich players and big guilds still laughed and celebrated.
They didn't know yet.Didn't see yet.
But soon...
A shadow was rising.
And his name was Akhil.
TO BE CONINUED...