On the same day he received his first earnings from playing RAIDS ONLINE, Luel spent the rest of the morning thinking about all the things he wanted—or at least needed—to buy.
That thought lingered in Luel's mind while he prepared and cooked his lunch, while he ate the Fried Mapo Tofu Rice Bowl he'd made, and even as he lay on the couch, relaxing—until reason and common sense finally returned to him. For a while, he had lost them to the excitement of suddenly having disposable income.
"Huh? …What the heck was I just doing?"
It was already 3 in the afternoon by the time Luel snapped back to reality. He had spent the last three hours mindlessly browsing ShopXonline on his phone, checking out everything he wanted to buy.
From the latest smartphone and a compact tablet pad, to cheap clothes and slippers, branded jackets, and all sorts of home and cooking appliances—Luel had added them all to his cart.
Oddly enough, Luel wasn't even a spendthrift. In fact, during the two years he spent undergoing medical treatment, he hadn't bought anything for himself. All of his savings had gone toward medical bills.
It wasn't that his parents or brothers couldn't afford to help him. It was Luel's pride that kept him from relying on them. More than anything, he didn't want to use the money his parents had saved for retirement or the earnings his brothers worked hard for.
It's fine even if I have nothing. What I have left is enough for me.
That was what Luel told himself while lying in a hospital bed.
But now, after two years of buying nothing for himself, the side effects were catching up—manifesting as impulsive online shopping. Without even realizing it, Luel had started placing orders for everything in his ShopXonline cart.
"Huh? …Wait, it's already dark outside?!"
By the end of the day, while rushing to prepare dinner, Luel had forgotten that he'd just spent 5,000 USD—on himself—without even remembering what he ordered.
---
Fueled by a sense of accomplishment from earning such a large sum, Luel decided to log in to RAIDS ONLINE that night.
His plan was to recover his Link Force to a respectable level so that once his RAIDS ONLINE Channel was approved and monetized, he could live-stream more videos of his raids against high-ranking Ragnarok Beasts—and earn even more income.
However, his plan to secretly defeat and devour a low-ranking Ragnarok Beast without streaming it turned out to be… foolish.
[RAIDS ONLINE @ Location – Area CC+63, Sunset City]
[Rank E Ragnarok Beast – Bloodsucker]
'Charge'
'Orion Claws'
—SCREECHHHH!—
At a barren meadow surrounded by ruined residential buildings now turned into a ghost town, Luel was fighting a Rank E Ragnarok Beast codenamed Bloodsucker.
The Bloodsucker was a bat-like creature, about one meter in size, with two pairs of wings. It was one of the weakest Ragnarok Beasts—something Luel could defeat in a single strike if he still had a strong Link Force… or at least wasn't such a noob anymore.
—SCREECHHHH!—
The creature let out a piercing screech that could slow players if heard, or stun them if taken head-on.
Luel should have been able to dodge it—but with only 3% Link Force, his sluggish movement left him exposed.
"Damnit… Get down here and fight me like a real man!"
Frustrated by his weakened state, Luel yelled up at the Bloodsucker as it continued circling in the air.
This kind of situation was exactly why players with land-based avatars like the Devour Moonlight Beast: Orion Class or White Beast: Alpha Class envied the Devour Vermilion Beast: Aurora Class, who had wings to soar the skies—or the Devour Nine-tailed Beast: Fiamma Class and Lightning Beast: Saber Class, who could at least glide mid-air.
—SCREECHHHH!—
'Charge'
'Orion Claws'
As the Bloodsucker dived from the night sky, it let out another screech. Luel activated his Charge Skill, empowering his legs, and timed his jump to intercept the beast mid-air. He intended to tear it apart with Orion Claws once it was in range.
But the Bloodsucker did something Luel wasn't expecting—or didn't even know was possible. It spread its four wings and twisted its body, spinning mid-air like a drill. The spinning increased its diving speed, and it collided with Luel much faster than he anticipated.
Luel slammed into the ground.
The Bloodsucker pinned him down and bit into his left shoulder, draining his blood and what little Link Force he had left.
"Arghhh… Hahaha… You flew straight into my trap, bastard!"
Whether he actually planned it or was just being stubborn, Luel endured the pain and grabbed two of the Bloodsucker's wings with his hands, trying to rip them off.
The beast shrieked in pain and released his shoulder, preparing to unleash another sonic wave.
At point-blank range, the scream would surely stun Luel—if he didn't have a way to counter it.
—SCREECHHHH!—
'Howl'
Luel's Howl Skill canceled out the Bloodsucker's screech. The moonlight shining down on him empowered his strength, allowing him to tear off the beast's wings completely. The same light healed his wounds with its vitality boost.
The Bloodsucker scrambled away from him, trying to take flight—but with its front wings gone, it couldn't even lift off the ground.
—SCREECHHHH!—
Cornered and grounded, the Bloodsucker let out one final scream—or so Luel thought.
'Orion Fangs'
Responding to the cry, Luel activated Orion Fangs. As he dashed forward, the silver aura engulfing his body took the shape of a wolf's head.
It lunged forward with him and devoured the Ragnarok Beast in a single finishing blow.
Panting, Luel stood over the lifeless body, watching the dark aura that once surrounded the beast dissolve.
[Link Force – 4%]
It had taken everything Luel had just to defeat a single Rank E Ragnarok Beast.
Worse yet, he'd only regained 1% of his Link Force. And to make matters even worse, defeating another 96 of them might still not be enough to reach 100%.
If it were that easy, RAIDS ONLINE would have been completed years ago.
As those thoughts ran through his mind—
—SCREECHHHH!!!—
Screeches echoed from the ruined buildings surrounding the meadow.
A moment later, a colony of Rank E Bloodsuckers flew out from the forest, rising into the night sky—so many of them that they blotted out the moonlight above.
And just like that, Luel realized what that final scream from the Bloodsucker had been.
"A faqing distress signal?! …You damn bat…"
He turned and ran for his life.
But before he could escape, the swarm of Bloodsuckers dove from the sky and swallowed him whole.
[Player Lucent has Died.]