******
It wasn’t just Xylen who felt his very soul on the verge of shattering under the weight of what he had just realized—Lilith, her entire organization, Azrakar, the villagers, and even the guards stood frozen like statues, unable to react.
They all stared in utter disbelief, their minds struggling to comprehend the reality before them.
Kaelrik? Level 10?
Everyone had always known him to be a Level 6 Demon—the strongest in the village since the most formidable ones perished about eighteen years ago. But now...
His aura blazed with unmistakable power, the crushing presence of a Level 10 Demon.
’How was this even possible?’
The question continued ricocheting through every mind, leaving no room for logic.
For this reason, the Village Square descended into a heavy, suffocating silence, every gaze locked onto the Demon Lord before them.
The sheer force radiating from Kaelrik was simply too paralyzing, so oppressive that every demon forgot how to breathe.
This was especially true for Xylen, who was at the epicenter of this monstrous aura— the feeling was worse than death itself for him.
At this moment, he felt as though he were sinking into the ground with each passing second. It wasn’t just from the weight — it was as if reality itself was grinding him down, ready to tear him apart on a molecular level.
The pressure was horrific beyond words, and his body threatened to collapse under it, but still, Xylen gritted his teeth, doing everything he could to endure the suffocating force.
’How bad could this really be?’ he thought, clinging to a shred of hope. And without a moment’s hesitation—
’Royal Scan!’
He roared the command in his mind, and immediately, his eyes flashed briefly.
***************************
[ R O Y A L – S C A N – R E S U L T ]
Name: Kaelrik
Race: Demon
Class: Hellblade Fighter
Role: Brute Fighter and Executioner
Level: 10
Loyalty Scale: 0 [ He despises you beyond reason and will do whatever it takes to bring you down—even if it means destroying the world in the process. ]
HP: 270
STAM: 240
STR: 220
DEX: 80
INT: 55
WIS: 40
SKILLS: [
– Hellblade Cleave – 200% damage to all enemies in front of him when he swings his colossal blade in a wide arc, causing the enemies to bleed for 20% damage over 5 seconds.
– Executioner Descent – Allows the user to leap high into the air and crash down, creating a shockwave that knocks enemies to prone. The landing strikes could deal up to 250% damage and applies crippling fear in the enemies around him.
– Blade of Annihilation – The user temporarily infuses his weapon with hellfire, making his attack ignore 40% of armor and dealing burning damage equal to 50% strength for 10 seconds.
– Infernal Grasp – The user extends a burning, spectral hand to grab a distant enemy, dragging them toward himself. Deals up to 100% damage and stuns for 2 seconds
]
Present condition: Optimal State
|| E N D ||
***************************
’Oh... my...’
Xylen’s blood turned to ice, and his pulse slowed down. For a terrifying moment, he felt as though his heart had completely stopped beating.
His legs buckled, the crushing dread seeping into his very bones like venom.
’How... how do I even stand a chance against this monster?’ He suddenly felt weak, both mentally and physically.
This was not weakness, and neither was it cowardice.
This, it was... despair.
The stats he had just witnessed were beyond comprehension, so calling Kaelrik "undefeatable" didn’t even begin to capture the hopelessness of the situation.
Was it the absurdly high HP or the devastating skills, any of which could obliterate his life from a single hit?
If this had been a normal quest, Xylen wouldn’t have cared much. Death wasn’t permanent in the game after all, and no matter how many things he lost in the process, he could’ve respawned, trained, and come back stronger. But this...
This wasn’t that kind of quest.
He had only one shot at defeating Kaelric, and failure was not an option, not even a bit.
If he failed...
If he died here...
The thought terrified Xylen so much that his throat tightened, his mouth going bone-dry.
’Is... is this quest still fair?’ he shivered, sweat pooling down his face like a waterfall.
’Maybe it was a mistake... maybe Royal Scan glitched...’ He pondered, unwilling to believe that the game developers would be cruel enough to give him an unbeatable enemy like Kaelrik despite the penalty of failing the quest.
Without hesitation, he reactivated Royal Scan with a bit of hope, not minding the wasted MP.
But...
The stats remained exactly the same.
’This... this is a joke, right?’
His chest rose and fell in shallow, his breaths turning laborious until finally...
’Argh! I hate you so much, Rex Corp! You guys are a bunch of bullies’
He clenched his fists so tightly that his nails pierced his skin, blood trickling down his palms.
’First, you ruined my class and race assignment. Now, you gave me an impossible quest? Is this how you blacklist me? Of cutting me off from the game entirely so I won’t have any proof even if I want to expose your system error to the other players?’ The rage burned inside him like wildfire, consuming the fear.
"This must be it," he muttered to himself, his voice barely audible even to his own ears.
His mind froze, time stretching out until—
"I see that you have given up already."
A voice as sharp as broken glass echoed through the square, snapping everyone back to reality.
Although the voice wasn’t loud, the venom dripping from it instantly sliced deeper than any blade.
Xylen’s chest seized, and he slowly turned to face the speaker.
Kaelrik.
The Demon Lord’s mouth was currently curled into a sinister grin, his eyes gleaming with cruelty.
’This... expressions...’ he suddenly froze. ’Why did it look familiar?’ he wondered, and just at that moment...
Kaelrik’s face warped and twisted, morphing into the sneering visages of his half-siblings.
The same smug and cruel expressions they wore on their faces when they chased him out of the mansion... when they stole his hard-earned rewards... when they killed his avatar... when they forcefully logged him out and forced him to commit suicide.
Mockery.
Hatred.
Contempt.
Hatred.
Failure.
’No!’
This word thundered through Xylen’s mind, and with this, his teeth clenched harder, his fists tightening even more with unwillingness.
Just at that moment, however...
"Hahaha! Look at this pathetic insect!" Kaelrik cackled, stepping closer.
He raised his colossal blade, his eyes gleaming with pure malice.
"Just let this nice uncle do you a favor. I will send you down to your parents piece by piece!" he jeered, his eyes suddenly burning with an icy, killing intent, causing time itself to come to a halt.
In the following second, a razor-sharp, overwhelming force erupted from the colossal blade, its sheer presence alone rending the air and tearing into weaker demons, making their flesh slightly split open as blood slowly spilled from their bodies.
"Arhhh!!!!!"
They screamed in pain, all of them scrambling to the back with a horrified expression.
As for Xylen... it was as if he were staring directly into the eyes of the Grim Reaper about to reap his life. re
’Am I... failing again barely just after I regained my morale?’
The question echoed through his mind, and in the following second, an image flashed in his head—Aurelia.
Her hopeful smile.
"Don’t worry, brother. I will work hard to earn a degree, and once I do, I’ll secure a high-paying job so we can afford your treatment."
This was the promise she made to him after he promised her she could return to school, and in return, Xylen had silently vowed not only to care for her but also to give her a life beyond her greatest hopes.
But what if he fails this mission and can no longer play Fallen Realm?
He would have no choice but to break all his promises because, at that time, their only means of survival would be relying on the remaining money from purchasing the gaming pod and renting an apartment.
But for how long?
Soon enough, they would be evicted from the apartment after they exhausted the remaining money and failed to keep up with the rent.
They would become homeless, and their situation would be even worse than the previous life since, at the very least, they previously had shelter and food.
’No!’
Xylen’s chest heaved, his eyes slowly blazing with defiance.
’I can’t give up!’
His heart thundered, pumping rage through every vein.
’I can’t die!’
His chest heaved, and his eyes suddenly burned with a glimmer of defiance and refusal.
With this, Xylen forced a long, steadying breath.
01:35:48:001 Left
The countdown flashed before his eyes, and at that moment, the seed of unwillingness within him erupted.
His eyes snapped up to Kaelrik, the towering demon who slowly and unhurriedly closed in on him.
’There is no space for failure!’
He roared in his mind, every trace of fear in him disappearing.