"Ding! Congratulations, Player Stonehaven! You have assembled the complete Skeleton Set. Full Set Bonus activated: Attack Speed +1, Movement Speed +1, Damage to Death-type monsters increased by 30%, Damage received from Death-type monsters reduced by 10%, Health Recovery Speed +1, Magic Recovery Speed +1, All Resistances +10 (Poison, Fire, Frost, Lightning, Earth, Wind, Light, and Dark). Additional Skill: Bloodlust (Restores 5 Health for every monster killed)."
Marcus stared at the message, stunned. 'This is insane.'
Though the Skeleton Set's defense was slightly lower than the War Bear Armor's, the sheer number of bonuses made up for it several times over. And as soon as he equipped the full set, his entire body was enveloped in a dark, misty aura that coiled around him like living smoke. When the haze cleared, his reflection had changed, he now looked like a fully armored Skeleton Fighter.
Gasps erupted around him.
"Whoa, dude! What set is that?"
"Is that a hidden class? 'Skeleton Knight' or something?"
"Holy crap, a skeleton's in town! Get it!"
"Okay, that is seriously cool. Hey, skeleton guy!"
"Ugh, show-off. Let's gank him and take his stuff!"
Marcus blinked as the crowd's excitement built. What is even happening right now? He quickly opened the settings and disabled the visual effect, the skeletal armor fading back into its regular form. Blending into the bustling crowd, he slipped away before anyone could chase him down. Good thing player-killing was disabled inside city limits, or he might've learned the hard way.
Once he found a quiet spot, he exhaled and opened his status window. Time to see what all these bonuses really amounted to.
Character Stats: Stonehaven
Class: Fighter, Knight
Secondary Class: Blacksmith, Herbalist
Level: 20
Equipment:
Skeleton Helm: Golden Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 60. Additional: HP +50, MP +50, Poison Resistance +10.
Skeleton Tunic: Blue Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 80. Additional: HP +50, MP +50.
Skeleton Greaves: Golden Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 80. Additional: Constitution +10, Focus +10, Frost Resistance +10.
Skeleton Gloves: Golden Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 40. Additional: Attack Speed +1, Agility +10, Fire Resistance +10.
Skeleton Boots: Blue Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 50. Additional: Movement Speed +1, Agility +10.
Skeleton Shield: White Equipment. Requirement: Level 20, All Classes. Low-level gear once used by Necromancers and Deathmages. Defense: 60. Block Success Rate: 35%.
Skeleton Blade: Golden Equipment. Requirement: Level 20 Fighter-class. One-handed weapon. Forged from the rib of a fallen Black Panther and infused with battlefield energy. Attack: 120. Attack Success Rate +20. Additional: Attack Speed +1, Health Recovery Speed +1, Magic Recovery Speed +1. Attack includes 10 Fire Damage and 20 Poison Damage.
Skeleton Set Bonus: Attack Speed +1, Movement Speed +1, Damage to Death-type monsters +30%, Damage received from Death-type monsters -10%, Health Recovery Speed +1, Magic Recovery Speed +1, All Resistances +10.
Set Skill: Bloodlust — restores 5 Health for every monster killed.
Fluffy Rabbit's Mask: Artifact, Level 4.
A precious gift from the Golden Rabbit King to the Fluffy Rabbit.
Requirement: None.
Agility +50, Movement Speed +3, Attack Speed +2.
Skill: Run for Your Life : allows use of a Town Portal Scroll during combat, Agility +40.
Ring of Greed: Artifact. Originally a simple platinum band, it was transformed into the Ring of Greed after spending years buried among dark creatures consumed by avarice. No requirements to equip. Increases inventory capacity by 5×. Health regeneration +1 (recovers 1 Health per second). Mana regeneration +1. Gold drop rate ×2.
Black Crystal Rings (x3): Blue Equipment.
Requirement: Level 15.
Attack +10, Defense +10, Damage from Death-type monsters reduced by 5.
(Dropped from Skeleton Captains in Black Rock Spire.)
Explorer's Medallion : Unique Item.
Requirement: None.
Luck +2, Basic Attributes +5, Movement Speed +2, Attack Speed +1.
Untradeable, Undroppable.
Silas the Wanderer once carried this medallion during his search for the four legendary locations; Cloudfall Cascades, Phantom King's Temple, Phoenix Canyon, and the Elemental Nexus. Failing to find them, his obsession drove him mad. His lingering resentment sealed most of the medallion's power.
---
Skills:
Slash (Lv. 3 / 562/5000): Active. Costs 20 MP. Adds 30 Attack Damage.
Insight (Lv. 1 / 525/5000): Active. Costs 30 MP. Detects information, traps, stealth, and can observe monsters up to 10 levels higher or view player attributes below user level.
Swift Blade (Lv. 1 / 325/5000): Passive. Attack Speed +1, Movement Speed +1.
Wanderlust (Max): Active. Costs 100 MP. Teleports randomly when not in combat. Sets up to 10 teleportation points per level, freely changeable.
One-Handed Mastery (Lv. 1 / 236/5000): Passive. Attack +20.
Shield Mastery (Lv. 1 / 236/5000): Passive. Defense +20.
Taunt (Lv. 1 / 561/5000): Active. Costs 30 MP. Draws monsters within 5 meters to attack.
Heavy Strike (Lv. 1 / 587/5000): Active. Costs 10 MP. Attack +30.
Run for Your Life: Skill from Fluffy Rabbit's Mask. Allows Town Portal Scroll during combat.
Soul of Attack, Boiling Blood, Heart of Agility: Not yet activated. Effects unknown.
---
Secondary Skills:
Mining: Intermediate (203/5000)
Herb Gathering: Intermediate (203/5000)
Forging: Intermediate (230/5000)
Potion Making: Intermediate (0/5000)
Gathering: Advanced (202/5000)
Taming: Basic (0/5000)
---
Attributes:
Strength: 95
Constitution: 85
Agility: 145
Focus: 40
Luck: 26 (Fixed)
Reputation: 1700
Pet: None
Guild: None
HP: 1250
MP: 700
Attack: 390
Defense: 590
Accuracy: 145
Dodge: 145
Attack Speed: 8
Movement Speed: 10
Gold: 576
---
'Insane. This is completely insane.'
Marcus couldn't stop grinning. His eyes gleamed with excitement as he scrolled through his stats again, letting the numbers sink in. The full Skeleton set was complete, his attributes had skyrocketed, and for the first time since entering the Black Rock Spire, he felt untouchable.
He was dying to test his new strength on the second floor.
Still, there were things to handle first.
He exited the dungeon and returned to Dragon's Peak Citadel, heading straight for the Auction House. His inventory was cluttered with spare gear, and selling them to a vendor would be a total waste. Listing them through the system's auction board meant the game would handle everything automatically. Easy money.
Once that was done, Marcus made his way to the Horse Market. The smell of hay and the chatter of players filled the air. Vendors shouted out deals for mounts of all kinds, from plain brown nags to armored warhorses.
Spotting the stable master, Marcus waved him down with a grin. "Hey, over here! I need a horse."
Players at Level 20 could finally ride mounts, either by purchasing one or capturing a wild one. Mounts not only looked impressive, they also boosted Movement Speed significantly, something Marcus could use to travel faster between cities and hunting zones.
"Right this way, sir! What kind of mount are you in the market for?" the vendor asked brightly, rubbing his hands together.
"What're my options?" Marcus replied.
"We've got four tiers available, each in your choice of black, white, brown, or red," the vendor said, his tone slipping into a practiced sales pitch. "The starter model is the Common Steed, gives you a +3 Movement Speed boost for 100 gold. Next up is the Swift Runner, +5 Speed, that'll run you fifty thousand gold. Then there's the Lion Colt, +7 Speed, for a cool million. And our premium model, the Flame Charger, +8 Speed, is eight million gold flat." He gave a cheerful grin. "So, what'll it be, sir?"
Marcus stared at him in disbelief. 'Are you kidding me? That's insane.' They were just ripping players off. He rubbed his temples, muttering under his breath. 'So this is how they separate the whales from the guppies. Guess you can't be a top-tier player without being filthy rich.'
"Just the Common Steed," he said at last. He didn't really have a choice. The rest were a complete rip-off, and catching a wild one without the proper skills or luck could take days, maybe weeks.
He selected a black horse. A familiar chime rang in his ears.
Ding! Congratulations, Player Stonehaven. You now own a Black Common Steed.
Would you like to place it in your Pet Space or ride it now?
"Place it in Pet Space," Marcus said immediately.
Riding it here would be like waving a giant flag. If anyone in Dragon's Peak Citadel saw him on a mount at Level 20, they'd instantly peg him as the guy topping the Experts Leaderboard, the mystery Knight who had quietly hit the new level cap.
That thought reminded him. It had been a while since he'd checked the leaderboards.
---
Top Ten Experts Leaderboard (higher experience at the same level ranks first):
1. Level 20, Male, Name Hidden, Knight
2. Level 19, Male, RogueTheory, Warrior
3. Level 18, Male, SoulSync, Sorcerer
4. Level 18, Male, InfernoRider001, Warrior
5. Level 18, Male, Hexium, Sorcerer
6. Level 17, Male, ThreeleafAxe69, Knight
7. Level 17, Male, SunShot, Archer
8. Level 17, Male, HeavenBreaker, Assassin
9. Level 17, Male, SoulfireBlade, Knight
10. Level 17, Female, VioletNova, Archer
---
The rankings hadn't shifted much since yesterday, though one name caught his eye. An Archer called SunShot had appeared out of nowhere, leaping straight to seventh place. That was impressive progress for a newcomer.
More concerning, though, was RogueTheory. The Fighter had almost caught up. Marcus had reached Level 20 when RogueTheory was still 18, but now the gap had nearly vanished.
'That guy's a monster,' Marcus thought with a grudging smile. Definitely one to watch.
---
Reputation Leaderboard:
1. 1700, Name Hidden, Knight
2. 1020, Name Hidden, Archer
3. 600, Hexium, Sorcerer
4. 580, InfernoRider001, Fighter
5. 550, ThreeleafAxe69, Knight
6. 430, RogueTheory, Fighter
7. 430, SixWingedBoss, Fighter
8. 400, SoulfireBlade, Knight
9. 380, VioletNova, Archer
10. 320, SunShot, Archer
---
Marcus grinned. 'Ha! My Reputation's crushing it. Let's see anyone catch up to that.'
Still, the second-ranked Archer had an unusually high Reputation, far ahead of the rest. Probably an old veteran or a returning player who knew exactly how to grind reputation points efficiently.
Reputation was more than just bragging rights, it unlocked advanced quests, access to rare vendors, and, most importantly, the ability to form a Guild.