Game's Extra: Starting With SSS-Ranked 1000-Death Talent-Chapter 33: The Stroke Game

As the light left his vision, Noa touched his mask.

'Who could have guessed I would get to use this one day?' he pondered cheerfully, embracing the floating mana particles.

Then he opened his eyes and saw the familiar dusty walls.

It was the same labyrinth the Arcane Academy used for their students, as only low-level monsters flooded the place.

Yet Noa knew Arthur would be around here.

He lucked out that the Order had the same passage, and after checking the mask, he dashed.

[ Red Mask ]

[ Grade: Arised Overlord ]

— Perfectly conceals and modifies one's identity.

The Abysses never allowed higher-grade weapons or gear, ensuring fairness between the Embers.

Not that they could actually wield them, as the system was even harsher.

But something like artifacts or items with a unique effect that didn't directly disturb the fighting powers was allowed.

He altered his face and height.

Noa Osborn was dead to the world, and it had to stay that way.

Changing his face from sharp, mean-looking features, his transformed appearance seemed nothing like his old face.

Funnily enough, Noa controlled the mask and selected his face from Earth—but at the ripe age of 18.

'I think I look good,' he thought.

After ensuring that he was ready to oppose the world, Noa searched for Arthur.

'Academy starts in two days. He should be around here, and I need to find him before he leaves.'

According to his memories, the gameplay made Arthur pursue some shiny little monster that would drop some kind of rare orb.

Increasing the protagonist's elemental aptitude, it had rich magical energy.

Meanwhile, it always gave a random affinity to Arthur, but none of that would matter if Noa snatched it first.

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Even thinking about it put a grin on his face.

Now all he had to do was be quick and beat Arthur in this hunting mini-game.

In the dim light of the burning torches, his senses were on high alert.

Getting lost in this vast labyrinth was an everyday occurrence among the students or any other Ember.

Even Arthur couldn't escape this fate.

But not Noa.

The first Abyss played a huge role in his progress, so he dedicated countless hours to discovering and remembering almost every little detail in every location.

As a result, he found his way through the towering walls.

Not even traps or Frail monsters saw his trail.

Finally, Noa almost reached the destination where Arthur would catch the beast, but to his surprise, he saw young students fighting groups of goblins.

Just as he was about to leave, he heard their talk and halted his steps.

"Have you guys heard about Noa Osborn? He studied at our academy," said the skinny girl.

"All I know is that he was a silent type," said another.

The conversation went on, touching on various topics about his life, his demise, and the system announcement.

Noa slipped himself into the dark, listening.

Then it deviated to how he had been bullied or how weak he had been and mentioned Klaus.

"My friend told me that Klaus Stark disappeared. No one knows about his condition or location after the awakening ceremony, and according to the rumors, he was with Noa when the Scar incident happened."

"Did Noa kill him because of the grudge?"

"It's possible," answered the blonde boy as he looted the goblin's corpse.

Taking notice of their talks, Noa understood what kind of game the government was playing.

They ruined his already non-existent reputation.

"It's a grudge I will pay tenfold," he promised, waiting for the students to leave.

However, he also heard something new and unexpected.

"What do you guys think about this emerging Red Order?" one of the curious teenagers asked her friends.

"I don't know. They seem suspicious to me. I don't know what their agenda is, and thinking about it, they look like bad guys," answered the healer of the group.

The team continued their looting process, eagerly counting the small amount of orbs they had collected.

"But they just announced full protection to Noa's family. They make it sound like something might have happened to them," said the archer, not releasing her bow from her grip.

"Who knows," said the confident leader. "The government might have actually done something to them."

As other members silenced him in fear of some outsider hearing his daring words, they left the scene.

But these young students had a transporter carriage with them, allowing them to carry the corpses and sell them for a good price.

'I should get one as well,' Noa thought.

Then he walked around for a while.

Just waiting for Arthur to show up bored him, and he wanted to fight for a while.

Eventually, he stumbled upon a huge party of goblins.

The total surpassed one hundred, proving that he was destined to encounter a hundred goblins at a time.

But the same thing was repeated as the last time.

Instead of mindlessly charging at him, the goblins ran away from him in fear.

No other monster had acted this way before, stunning Noa, as not even the game had shown something remotely similar.

Yet, rather than giving up, he was the one to strike.

This time, he wasn't afraid of roaming too deep inside the labyrinth.

Not even a week had passed since he arrived at Velrox, but he had already changed this much.

It was a refreshing, much-needed transformation.

Just then, he moved swiftly, and using the Frail dagger he took from the scene the students left behind, Noa butchered the goblins.

Each strike brought a kill to his name.

[ You killed a Primitive Green Goblin Lv. 1 ]

[ You've gained 20 Experience Points ]

The familiar messages popped into view, but he ignored them—his focus persisted with the rampage.

Gaining levels because of the measly goblins was out of his expectations.

However, here he was, seeing the leveling notification.

Just as he was about to finish his little fun time, Noa noticed two interesting silhouettes moving in his direction.

One was the glowing yellow rat.

Following the beast was Arthur Ashe—the unrivaled protagonist of this world.

[ Arthur Ashe Lv ??? ]

[ Grade: Evolved ]

"Caught you!" Noa muttered, chuckling with joy.