Crimsonleaf Village's Shadow Market
Jason's next objective required a specific, powerful skill, one that couldn't be learned from any trainer in town.
His knowledge from a decade in the future led him to a place most new players wouldn't discover for weeks: the Shadow Market.
Tucked away in a grimy, forgotten district of Crimsonleaf, the Shadow Market wasn't an official establishment. It was a player-run free-for-all, a haven for smugglers, information brokers, and those seeking items and opportunities that couldn't be found in the light. The entrance was a narrow alley guarded by two surly-looking Gnome Bouncers armed with oversized blunderbusses. They didn't stop anyone, but their glares promised a swift end to anyone who caused trouble.
The market itself was a chaotic hub of activity. Players hawked rare materials and whispered deals in shadowy corners. In the center was a fighting pit for wagers and a large, fenced-off field for the market's main attraction: the Gnome Challenge Race.
The premise was simple: for a fee, a player would run across a 100-yard field while a platoon of Gnomes took potshots at them with muskets. To make it a pure test of skill, all player attributes were fixed to a baseline of 10, and all equipment skills were disabled. The first player to clear each difficulty level—Copper, Silver, and Gold—would receive a special, one-time reward.
Jason watched as a wiry Assassin, clad in dark leather, made a desperate dash across the field. He was fast, weaving and tumbling with impressive skill, but at the 75-yard mark, a volley of bullets overwhelmed him, and he was sent back to the start. The Assassin cursed, punching the dirt in frustration.
Jason recognized him instantly. His player name was 'Viper,' a man who, in the previous timeline, became one of the top ten Assassins in the entire kingdom, famous for his deadly precision. Right now, though, he was just another broke and frustrated player.
Viper stalked out of the enclosure, checking his empty coin pouch. His eyes landed on Jason. "Hey, you. Spare 5 Coppers? I'm one try away from beating it, I swear. I'll pay you back 20 tomorrow."
Jason grinned. This was too perfect. "Tomorrow is a long time away. Tell you what. I'll lend you the 5 Coppers. You pay me back 50 tomorrow. That's my friends-and-family rate."
Viper's eye twitched. The interest rate was criminal. But he was desperate. "Fine," he spat, accepting the trade. "Fifty it is."
He went for another try and failed again. Dejected, he sat down to sulk with his party's Cleric. Jason, meanwhile, stepped up to the Gnome administrator. "One ticket for the Copper Challenge, please."
The small Gnome took his 5 Coppers and announced in a squeaky voice, "A new challenger has entered the fray! Place your bets, you degenerates, place your bets!"
Viper looked over and scoffed. "Look at this rookie. Thinks he can just waltz in and clear it. He won't even make it past the 50-yard mark."
The race began. The first few musket shots were slow, fired from a long distance. Jason didn't sprint. He moved with an effortless, fluid grace, like a dancer. He swayed left, ducked right, each movement minimal and perfectly timed, letting the lead balls whistle past him. The wind from their passage shrieked in his ears, but he remained calm, his expression unreadable.
He crossed the 50-yard mark in half the time it took Viper. The spectators started to murmur.
Past 50 yards, the difficulty spiked. The Gnomes began firing faster, their shots aimed not just at him, but at where he was going to be. This is where most players failed. Jason, however, drew his novice sword.
A bullet zipped towards his chest. Instead of dodging, he twisted his body, his sword flashing out in a precise arc.
CLANG!
A shower of sparks erupted as the sword connected with the lead ball, deflecting it harmlessly into the wooden fence. The sound, crisp and clear, echoed across the silent market.
Viper shot to his feet, his jaw hanging open. "No way… He parried a bullet? With a novice sword?"
It was considered an impossible feat, a technique only top-tier players could even dream of. But Jason did it again. And again. He became a whirlwind of motion, his sword a blur, deflecting and parrying the incoming fire with an inhuman rhythm. The constant CLANG of metal on lead was like a drumbeat of his dominance.
He passed the 75-yard mark, the point where Viper had failed. Now, the real test began. The final 25 yards.
The entire platoon of twenty-four Gnomes at the end of the field raised their muskets in unison. The ground itself seemed to tremble in anticipation. With a deafening roar, they all fired at once.
BOOOOM!
A wall of lead and smoke erupted, a hailstorm of death flying straight at Jason. To anyone else, it was an inescapable barrage. But for Jason, whose mind operated on a level far beyond theirs, time seemed to slow to a crawl. He saw the individual trajectories of all twenty-four bullets.
He didn't just react; he flowed. He activated his [Ring of Gravity]'s skill.
[Gravity Liberation!]
A faint shimmer enveloped him. His body felt impossibly light. He pushed off the ground, not jumping, but launching himself into a spinning, gravity-defying leap. He twisted in mid-air, his sword a silver fan, deflecting three bullets in a single, fluid motion. He landed, the ground barely crunching under his feet, and used the momentum to slide under another volley. He pushed off a fence post, flipping backward over another spray of shots, his sword lashing out to parry a stray bullet aimed at his head. Each movement was a perfect fusion of grace and lethality. He wasn't just dodging bullets; he was dancing with them, conducting a symphony of chaos.
He covered the final 25 yards in a breathtaking display of skill that lasted less than three seconds. He burst through the smoke and crossed the finish line without a single scratch.
The timer flashed: 14 seconds. A new record.
The crowd was stunned into silence. Viper looked like he'd seen a ghost.
Jason calmly walked over to his reward chest. He pocketed the Silver Coin—a hundred times what he'd started with—and learned the skill book immediately.
[Thundering Flash] (Active Skill)
Requirement: Sword
Effect: Instantly unleashes three sword lights in a 10-yard cone, dealing 130% of base damage with each strike. Targets hit are debuffed, taking 20% increased damage for 15 seconds.
Cooldown: 30 seconds.
This was the tool he needed. A powerful Area-of-Effect skill that would allow him to grind multiple monsters at once, skyrocketing his leveling speed.
He turned to leave, walking past the still-frozen Viper. He paused and gave him a cheerful wink. "Don't forget. Fifty coppers tomorrow. I'll be collecting."
Viper could only nod numbly, his mind still trying to process the "bullet dance" he had just witnessed. He knew, with absolute certainty, that he had just messed with a monster in human clothing.
With his newfound wealth and power, Jason headed to the shadiest corner of the market, where a goblin with a greasy smile was selling miscellaneous items. He spent 120 Coppers—more money than most players would see in a week—on twenty [Exploding Berries]. They were volatile, single-use items that could stun and slow enemies.
Clutching his new assets, Jason left the cheering and chaos of the Shadow Market behind. He was now Level 2, armed with an unparalleled movement skill, a powerful AoE attack, and a pocket full of explosives. He strode towards the edge of town, his eyes fixed on the dark, menacing silhouette of the Level 5 Red Leaf Forest on the horizon.
The real game was just beginning.