Eternal Art Online

A flash of light engulfed their vision—the team had stepped onto the fourth floor of the dungeon.

A faint violet mist curled through the air, thick and ominous. Within it, shadowy figures began to emerge, one after another—undead, all of them.

[Necro Priest] (Elite Monster) — Stats: ???

[Necro Mage] (Elite Monster) — Stats: ???

[Necro Knight] (Elite Monster) — Stats: ???

The Necro Priest gripped a bone staff, emitting a guttural hiss that seemed to crawl up from the depths of a grave.

The Necro Mage, cloaked in black robes, extended a pale skeletal arm, the ghostly fire in its eye sockets flickering faintly.

And the Necro Knight—silent and imposing—stood in full, battle-worn armor, clutching a massive great sword.

It rode no steed, yet its presence loomed with oppressive weight, scanning the intruders with hollow eyes.

Clang! Clang!

Battle broke out in an instant.

Lusk engaged one of the Necro Knights head-on, his great sword colliding with the undead's blade in a shower of sparks.

Ragnar charged from the flank, swinging his battle axe into the knight's back. The blow landed solidly, but the knight only staggered slightly. A damage number floated above it: 35.

"No way… I can't even break through its defense?" Ragnar laughed bitterly.

Lusk was struck by the knight's heavy sword and knocked back several steps, his health dropping by nearly a third.

Gritting his teeth, he growled, "This won't work. The level gap is too great—our stats are getting crushed."

Without hesitation, Kiriya stepped forward.

With one fluid motion, he unleashed Armor Breaker, his blade glowing white as it cleaved through the air and pierced straight into the knight's chestplate.

CLANG!

The sound of metal tearing rang out. A damage number lit up above the knight's head: 549.

"At least I can still break its armor," Kiriya muttered, relieved.

Behind him, Yuna softly chanted a spell. A fireball surged forward and struck the undead knight with a burst of flame, dealing 347 damage.

Not overwhelming, but enough. Together, their combined assault managed to chip away nearly one-third of the knight's health bar.

"These things are tough," Kiriya said, narrowing his eyes at the shapes still lurking in the mist. He knew: if two or three more charged at once, it would be a disaster.

"No more True-fire Tide," he decided aloud. The AoE strategy wouldn't work here, not when a single knight already had Lusk and Ragnar on the brink. Bringing more in at once would be suicidal.

"Pull them one at a time. We'll deal with them slowly," he ordered.

Ziven nodded, supporting from a distance with crowd control and finishing strikes.

The Necro Knights, though durable, were slow and couldn't reach ranged targets, which gave Yuna and Ziven some breathing room. But the real threat—the ones truly troublesome—were the Necro Priest and Mage hiding in the back.

Suddenly, a harsh, grating chant rang out.

The Necro Priest raised its staff high an, d shrieked, a sound like rusted nails across a slate. Yuna winced and covered her ears, visibly pained. She turned to Kiriya, her eyes seeking reassurance, and he offered a small, steady smile in return.

A moment later, a dark violet aura burst from the priest's staff, spreading outward and descending over their party like a curse.

Ding—!

Combat Notification: You are affected by [Necro Aura]. Attack Power reduced by 10%!

Kiriya's heart sank. "Damn… a debuff aura."

Their damage output was already under strain, and now it was worse. While he and Yuna took the brunt of the curse, Lusk and Ragnar remained outside the aura's range. Ironically, the frontline now had to carry the fight.

The two warriors didn't disappoint. With coordinated strikes—Lusk from the front and Ragnar from the side—they overwhelmed the priest in a brutal flurry of steel and crushed bone.

Thud.

A dark piece of armor clattered to the floor.

Kiriya stepped forward and picked it up, inspecting the stats:

[Leggings of Oblivion] (Bronze — Cloth Armor)

Defense: 28

Intelligence: +10

Bonus: Increases Dark Magic damage by 3%

Required Level: 30

Set Bonus: ???

(Unidentified)

...

Kiriya paused for a moment, surprised that a Bronze-tier set item had dropped here.

Yuna leaned slightly toward him, glanced at the item's stats, and was just as surprised. Then she chuckled, "Level 30 set gear~"

Kiriya asked in a low voice, "What do you think, Yuna?"

Yuna gave him a sideways glance, amusement in her eyes. "Up to you. I can't use this anyway."

Smiling faintly, Kiriya shared the [Leggings of Oblivion] stats with the rest of the party.

Instantly, Lusk and Ragnar were practically drooling, while Ziven's eyes were filled with obvious longing.

Among them, only Ziven was a dark-element spellcaster—this piece was practically tailor-made for him.

Giving it to Violet might slightly boost her mana, but it would be a waste. The Decay set would only show its true power in Ziven's hands.

While Ziven was still dazed, Kiriya had already sent the leggings to the trade window and smiled. "Ziven, go ahead—looks like today's your lucky day."

Ziven blinked, then suddenly withdrew the trade. He hesitated. "Actually… Rose Yuna could wear this too. I can't take it all for myself…"

Kiriya raised an eyebrow, his tone turning slightly firm. "It's meant for your class. Who else should get it if not you? But if it makes you feel better, how about tossing me and Yuna ten gold coins each—call it a bonus cut for us?"

Still uncertain, Ziven opened his mouth—but before he could speak, Lusk clapped him on the shoulder with a hearty laugh. "Ziven, just take it. Kiriya's giving it to you from the heart. What, are you still treating him like an outsider? As far as I'm concerned, he's already part of Crimson Lotus—our brother through and through!"

Kiriya couldn't help but smile. Lusk's words, though slightly exaggerated, were sincere.

And for some reason, they warmed something in Kiriya's chest.

In this virtual world, that sense of camaraderie felt real—today, he'd gained not just gear, but three friends who had his back.

Ragnar grinned broadly. "Come on, Ziven. Just accept it already. Aren't you paying ten gold anyway?"

Ziven gave a bitter laugh. "What do you guys know… This thing's worth at least two hundred gold on the market. Ten gold barely scratches the surface…"

Crude as it sounded, it was dead on.

Kiriya laughed as well. "Alright, enough talk. There's still a chance for more Oblivion set pieces to drop on this floor. Let's focus on farming rather than flapping our lips."

At last, Ziven gave in. He sent 80 gold over in the trade window and accepted the leggings.

Lusk, watching the exchange, turned solemn and said, "Kiriya, Miss Yuna… your generosity today won't be forgotten. If ever you need me, I'll walk through fire without hesitation."

Yuna giggled, "Oh come on, don't get all dramatic. You're making it weird! Kiriya, let's go kill some more monsters already!"

Everyone shared a smile. Kiriya quietly transferred the gold to Yuna. With that, he'd earned Yuna a solid 155 gold today—enough to cover her potion expenses for the next few days.

The team resumed the grind. The fourth floor was packed with undead mobs, and it took them nearly five full hours to clear it all out. Fortunately, three more Oblivion set pieces dropped.

Now, Ziven was only missing the helmet to complete the full set. His eyes glinted with urgency as he pinned his hopes on the last few monsters.

Outside the game, real-world time had already passed 9 PM. No one had eaten dinner yet.

Yuna leaned lightly against Kiriya, her lips forming a slight pout. She spoke in a soft, teasing tone, "Kiriya, I'm starving…"

Kiriya froze. In that instant, her expression overlapped perfectly with Lina's.

Especially when she said she was hungry—there was something about that delicate whine, that gentle tilt of her head—it was so familiar, so heartbreakingly similar. For a brief second, he lost himself in the moment.

Noticing him staring, Yuna smiled softly. "Come on, let's finish this floor. Lina and I are heading out for dinner. Want to come along, Kiriya?"

Kiriya shook off the daze. "Where to?"

Yuna's eyes curved into a grin. "Cloud Tasting Pavilion."

Kiriya took a deep breath. A five-star hotel? There was no way he could afford that. He'd rather head down to the street corner and get a cheap bowl of offal noodles.

As for something like the "Cloud Tasting Pavilion"? No thanks—he'd pass.

He shook his head. "You guys go ahead. I'll sit this one out."

Yuna smirked, her eyes gleaming with mischief. "Don't tell me you're avoiding Lina? She's been bringing you up a lot lately. My dad's even starting to wonder if she's got a boyfriend outside."

Kiriya froze for a second. Instantly, the image of that night came flooding back—the snow-haired, crimson-eyed girl crying softly in his arms.

Her vulnerability, her stubbornness, the longing she tried so hard to hide… That Lina, from that moment, was still etched vividly in his heart.

Had she been thinking about him?

Yuna chuckled as she saw him zoning out. "Kiriya? Earth to Kiriya. Focus up! Let's finish this wave first—I'm logging off for dinner after this. And you better not skip your meals either."

Kiriya gave a quiet nod and said nothing more. His sword flashed out with practiced ease, slicing through the air—a clean arc of silver light—and instantly struck down a Death Priest.

Clink!

A crisp sound echoed across the battlefield as a black helmet rolled onto the ground.

Ziven's eyes lit up. He rushed forward, scooping it up with trembling hands. "Yes! The Oblivion Set—we finally completed it!"

He laid each piece out on the ground for everyone to see. Though the gear hadn't been identified yet and couldn't be equipped, the strange, sinister aura it gave off had already drawn everyone's attention.

They had been grinding for five full hours—enough to show how relentless the monsters on the fourth floor were.

Yuna had reached level 34, and Kiriya had climbed to level 32, now ranked second on the Twilight District's player leaderboard.

Most of the other Crimson Lotus members had broken level 30, with Ziven hitting 30 exactly.

Even Violet, who'd been playing support the entire time, reached level 29 and currently sat at eleventh place on the leaderboard.

Ziven looked at the completed Oblivion Set in his hands, his expression one of pure satisfaction and relief.

Meanwhile, Lusk had handed over nearly all his gold coins to Yuna, who accepted them without hesitation and said with a cheeky smile, "The more gold we have, the better potions we can buy. And better potions mean faster leveling~"

After clearing out the last wave of monsters on the fourth floor, the team finally regrouped and began pushing toward the fifth.

Ragnar was the first to step through the entrance to Floor 5. But barely two seconds later, he came running back in a panic, pale-faced and gasping for breath. His voice trembled as he pointed at the passage ahead.

"There's a… a… a super—super SUPER BOSS in there!"

Watching Ragnar nearly break down in terror, Yuna couldn't help exchanging a knowing smile with Kiriya.

It was time—

Tonight's real battle was finally about to begin.