Ethan Quinn looked at Iris Snow, who was staring at him with wide, saucer-like eyes. "You saw it yourself, Iris. I pulled an Emerald-tier skill book out of thin air."
Iris nodded frantically. "I saw the Jade chest with my own eyes, but this... four Platinum-grade items? You call that 'decent' luck?" The girl looked like she was about to cry from pure envy.
Nearby, Finn—a Seer clad in elegant black robes—was leaning against a crumbling stone pillar. Her long legs were crossed, highlighting a silhouette that could distract a saint. She let out a soft, mocking laugh. "It’s 'Iris Snow' for her, but just 'Finn' for me? How cold, Ethan."
Ethan didn't miss a beat. "If you don't like Finn, I can call you Black Plum. Take your pick."
Finn’s smirk twitched into a confused frown.
Victor’s squad was essentially a harem of elite talent, and all three women seemed to have a history with Ethan. Iris had practically joined the team just to be in his orbit. Beside them stood a young Sharpshot Ranger and a middle-aged Cardmancer, both of whom were staring at the Gold and Platinum loot Ethan had sprawled out as if they were looking at religious relics.
"Comparison really is the thief of joy," the Cardmancer muttered.
"No kidding," the Ranger added. "We nearly wiped just to take down one Silver Boss. This guy is casually unboxing Platinum gear like it's common trash."
The mood shifted as they got down to business. While Victor was the tactical heart of the unit, Vera was the official Captain. She was a bit of a wildcard—straightforward to a fault and a total berserker in combat—but she handled the logistics.
Ethan, having spent nine years clawing through the dirt of this world in his past life, knew the market better than anyone. He began rattling off prices.
"The Platinum Ranger skill book: 2,500 days. Non-negotiable."
"The Platinum Warrior blade: 1,500 days."
"This one..."
As the numbers added up, the air in the room grew heavy. At the current exchange rate, two thousand days of Lifespan was worth nearly thirty million in hard cash. Ethan’s prices were astronomical, but he wasn't bluffing. Platinum items were unique on a global scale. Even if a lucky soul stumbled upon an Ancient Blessing, the odds of crafting a Platinum or Emerald chest were infinitesimal.
Corporations and governments were already liquidated their assets to hoard Lifespan. They knew what was coming. In Ethan’s previous life, fiat currency hadn't just inflated; it had vanished. Central banks had collapsed because they spent every cent buying up years to secure their place in the new world order.
"Twenty-five items in total," Ethan calculated. "The total comes to 16,500 days. I’ll give you the 'friends and family' discount. Call it sixteen thousand even."
"Done," Vera said instantly.
Victor nearly choked. "Captain Vera! You can't just say 'done'! You’re supposed to haggle! He just threw a number out and you're handing over the treasury!"
Vera blinked, looking genuinely confused. "Haggle? Why? The price seems fair for what we’re getting."
She initiated the trade immediately, tossing in the extra Lifespan Victor and Iris owed Ethan from earlier. Her generosity was so blunt it left the rest of her team speechless.
Ethan hadn't expected her to be such a straight shooter. He’d actually padded the prices by ten percent, expecting a fight. Well, she won't regret it, he thought. Gear could be resold, but the lead these skill books would give them in the leveling race was priceless. In Godsfall, power was the only currency that didn't depreciate.
The transaction finished. Iris clutched two new Gold-tier Cleric pieces, grinning like she’d won the lottery. She had planned to be a solo player, but being funded by the government had its perks—even if she only had "usage rights" to the gear.
For Ethan, the haul was massive. As his tradeable Lifespan crossed the ten-thousand-day mark, the system display automatically converted the units.
[Tradeable Lifespan: 64 Years]
Totaling his personal reserves, he was sitting on over 22,000 days. In the real world, he was effectively a billionaire. Even for the Rivenhaven City officials, this was a staggering expense, but the jumpstart it gave their elite squads was worth ten times the investment.
"I'm out," Ethan said, turning to leave.
Vera reached out, catching his sleeve. "Wait... Ethan. Riverspan Industries is holding several players captive in the city. We’re launching a rescue mission. We could use a heavy hitter like you. It’s a chance to... clear the air regarding what happened to Fynn Solo."
Ethan pulled his arm away. They wanted to "sanitize" his reputation? He didn't have time for heroics, and he certainly wasn't going to expose his real-world identity to the authorities yet.
"You want an Assassin to play bodyguard on a rescue op?" Ethan shook his head. "Pass. But I’ll give you some free advice: move fast. Once players hit Level 10, they can manifest their abilities in the real world. You understand what that means for your 'rescue'?"
Vera’s face went pale. The implications hit her like a physical blow. "I understand. Riverspan is buying Lifespan as fast as we are. If their enforcers hit Level 10 first, our tactical advantage disappears."
"Glad you're following. Goodbye, Vera."
Ethan vanished into the shadows of the corridor. He didn't care about the secret; in two hours, the whole world would realize they could bring magic into reality. Telling the feds now just bought him a little goodwill.
Back in the basement, Vera looked at her team, her expression hardening. "Victor, we’re splitting up. Our levels are high enough that we're wasting XP by grouping together. Each of us takes a squad of trainees. We grind until we hit Level 10. No exceptions."
Ethan emerged into the sunlight of Ember Hollow’s central plaza. He found a spot near the fountain and opened a stall, setting a simple title: [BUYING BOSS COORDINATES: 31 DAYS FOR SILVER, 96 DAYS FOR GOLD]
He had barely sat down when a familiar face approached. It was Old Leo, the Ranger who had been sucking up to Lily Jiang back in Shellcroft.
Last Ethan had heard, Leo had taken the millions Ethan rejected to boost Lily’s level. But things hadn't gone as planned. Riverspan Industries hadn't paid him; they had kidnapped him, locked him in a basement, and forced him to farm Lifespan under threat of starvation.
Leo looked ragged. He was currently acting as Lily’s mouthpiece, desperately trying to fulfill a quota so he wouldn't get beaten again.
"Shade," Leo said, forced cheerfulness dripping from his voice. "Our lady, Pear Drop, has a proposal. She’ll give you three hundred million and a stake in Riverspan Industries if you power-level her. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Don't be stupid."
Ethan looked at him with genuine pity. The man clearly didn't know Lily Jiang was already a corpse.
"Fck off," Ethan said.
Leo froze. "What? Three hundred million and corporate shares... you're just saying no?"
He wanted to argue, but the coldness in Ethan’s eyes stopped his heart. He’d heard the rumors—that Shade had murdered Fynn Solo in his sleep without leaving a trace. Leo scrambled away, terrified.
As Leo retreated, he caught snippets of conversation from a nearby group of players.
"Did you see Shade? He’s right there. The guy who gutted Fynn Solo."
"Not just Fynn. Word is he took out that Riverspan heiress too—Lily Jiang. She tried to set a trap for him in the real world and he turned her into a ghost."
"Jesus... how did he even find her?"
Leo felt like he’d been struck by lightning. Lily was dead? The woman who had been holding his life in her hands was gone? He looked back at Ethan’s sitting figure one last time, a cold shiver racing down his spine, before disappearing into the crowd.
Ethan ignored the stares. He knew people were afraid. Let them be.
The first wave of veterans should be entering the game soon, he mused. They’ll be in the later starting zones, but in two hours, the first batch of Level 10s will emerge. I need to be ready for the Godforsaken Reaches.
He intended to be fully decked out in Platinum gear before he left the starter zone.
While Ethan planned his hunt, a different kind of storm was brewing in Phantomhaven City.
With a population of thirty-five million, Phantomhaven was a monster compared to Rivenhaven. Its starting zones were overflowing. In one of these zones, a woman in provocative leather armor walked with five foreign men—three white, two black—laughing and clinging to them with practiced intimacy.
This was Stella Mercer, the heiress to the Sovereign Group.
"Look at these local men," Stella sneered, glancing at the players who scrambled to get out of her way. "Weak. Pathetic. Like insects. Tony, you Americans are the only ones with any real fire."
A man with a bleached pompadour grinned. "You have excellent taste, Stella. We’re 'high performance' in every category. We can show you just how much once we're back in the real world."
Stella giggled, then her eyes sharpened. "I heard Fynn Solo got himself killed. Typical. I played with him once—he didn't even last a minute. A total waste of space."
She paused, pulling up a menu. "If this 'Shade' in Rivenhaven could kill Fynn, he can certainly kill a nobody for me. I’m going to log out and make a call. I want Shade hired to assassinate a brat who’s been getting on my nerves."
She was talking about Ethan Quinn. Ethan had rejected her "invitations" to be her plaything one too many times, and Stella Mercer didn't handle rejection well.
"Since he won't show me any respect, he can give me his life," she murmured. "And hiring the world’s top player will be a great way to introduce myself to Shade. I might even let him replace Fynn if he’s man enough."
She smiled, completely unaware that the man she wanted to hire and the man she wanted dead were the same person.
Meanwhile, in another corner of the world, Evie Quinn sat in a daze. Her plan to cut ties with Ethan and latch onto the legendary Shade had backfired in the most humiliating way possible. She was alone, underleveled, and the bridge she had burned was the only one that could have saved her.