The city streets were eerily quiet.
Behind them, the University campus was a chaotic light show of helicopter searchlights and gunfire. Ahead, the downtown district was a dark canyon of glass and steel, illuminated only by the burning wrecks of cars.
Kael moved down the center of the road, stepping over shattered glass. Elara walked two paces behind him, her massive tower shield held low but ready.
"You're not talkative," Elara noted, her eyes scanning the dark alleyways.
"Talking attracts monsters," Kael replied without looking back. "And we are walking into a high-density zone."
"Where are we going? The evacuation center is the other way."
"To the bank," Kael said.
Elara frowned. "To loot money? Paper cash is useless now. The System has its own currency."
"We aren't going for the cash," Kael said, stopping in front of a ruined intersection. "We're going for the vault. People hide more than just money in safety deposit boxes. Ancient grimoires, heirlooms... things that the System recognizes as 'Artifacts'."
He didn't tell her the whole truth. He knew specifically that the First National Bank held a skill book for [Lesser Mana Manipulation] in box #404. It was the foundation he needed to spam his [Shadow Step].
Skitter. Skitter.
A sound echoed from the walls of the buildings flanking them. Like nails scratching on concrete.
Kael stopped. He held up a fist.
Elara instantly dropped into a defensive stance, slamming the base of her heavy shield onto the asphalt.
"Above us," Kael whispered.
On the vertical walls of the office buildings, six shapes were descending rapidly. They weren't goblins. They were Arachne Scouts—half-spider, half-human monstrosities. Their lower bodies were bulbous spiders, while their upper torsos were twisted, pale human forms with too many eyes.
[Monster: Arachne Scout][Level: 6][Type: Ambush Predator]
"Spiders," Elara muttered, her face grim. "I hate spiders."
"Hold the front," Kael ordered. "Don't let them flank."
"HISS!"
Three Arachne leaped from the second-story windows simultaneously, aiming directly for Kael. They sensed he was the threat; Elara looked like a metal wall.
Kael didn't move.
Just as the lead spider was about to land on him, Elara stepped forward. She didn't just block; she charged.
[Skill: Shield Bash (Rank F)]
CLANG!
The massive shield collided with the spider in mid-air. The impact sounded like a car crash. The monster was swatted out of the air, crashing into a parked taxi.
The other two spiders recoiled, hissing at the sudden obstruction.
"Now!" Elara shouted.
Kael was already moving.
[Shadow Step]
He vanished into the shadow cast by Elara's shield.
He reappeared instantly behind the spider that Elara had just stunned against the taxi.
"Good block," Kael whispered.
CRACK.
His pipe wrench, glowing with the blue aura of [Heavy Strike], smashed into the spider's human spine. The creature convulsed and died instantly.
[Agility +0.3]
The other two spiders realized their mistake. The "wall" was dangerous, but the "shadow" was lethal. They turned to run up the wall.
"Oh no, you don't," Kael snarled.
He threw the Goblin Dagger. It wasn't a killing blow, but it struck one spider in the leg, severing its grip on the wall. It fell to the pavement with a wet thud.
Kael closed the distance. The spider tried to spray acid, but Kael sidestepped with unnatural speed (Agility 14.0).
Splat.
Another kill.
[Strength +0.2]
The remaining spiders on the walls hesitated. They were predators, but they weren't suicidal. Seeing two of their kin butchered in seconds made them rethink their dinner plans. They scurried back up to the rooftops, vanishing into the night.
Kael retrieved his dagger and wiped it on the spider's corpse.
"They're retreating," Elara said, lowering her shield. She was panting slightly. That [Shield Bash] had cost her stamina. "You move fast. Faster than a rogue should at Level 1."
"I'm not a rogue," Kael said, absorbing the dark mist from the spider. "And you're decent. You didn't flinch."
Elara looked at the black smoke disappearing into Kael's chest. Her eyes narrowed.
"That... thing you do. Absorbing the black mist. Is that a skill?"
"It's my class," Kael said vaguely. He turned to her. "You took the aggro perfectly. Keep doing that, and you might survive the night."
Elara didn't press him. In this new world, asking about someone's hidden skills was a good way to get killed.
"Let's move," Kael said. "The bank is two blocks away. And if there are spiders here, it means the 'Web Mistress' is nearby. We don't want to meet her yet."
They continued down the street. The synergy was undeniable. Elara provided the one thing Kael lacked: crowd control. With her creating openings, Kael could focus purely on DPS (Damage Per Second) without wasting time dodging.
Ten minutes later, they stood before the First National Bank.
The heavy revolving doors were smashed. But that wasn't the problem.
Blocking the entrance was a massive, pulsating cocoon of white silk. It was vibrating.
And standing guard in front of it were not monsters, but humans.
Five men. They wore matching leather jackets with a crude symbol spray-painted on the back: a red skull. They held fire axes and makeshift spears.
"Halt!" the leader, a scarred man with a shaved head, shouted. He pointed a shotgun at them. "This is 'Red Skull' territory. The Bank is closed."
Kael sighed. "Gangs already? It's been three hours."
"Human nature," Elara replied, raising her shield.
Kael stepped forward, his eyes glowing faintly violet.
"I need to make a withdrawal," Kael said, his voice cold. "Box 404. You can either step aside, or I can deposit your corpses in the lobby."
The leader laughed. "Get 'em, boys! Fresh meat!"
Kael smirked.
[System Alert: Hostile Players Detected.][Predation is applicable to Human targets.]
"Elara," Kael said softly. "Don't kill them. Just break their legs."
"Why?"
"Because," Kael gripped his wrench, "I want the last hit."