Fallen Realm Online: Rise of The Fallen Monarch

******

At this moment, the forest trembled, the relentless stomping of countless legs echoing like a war drum.

Trees were uprooted, and the earth was trampled into a chaotic mess of shattered branches and crushed grass.

Monsters surged through the forest like a living flood, their numbers stretching into the hundreds... maybe thousands. They varied in size and type, with levels ranging from one to ten and above.

The lower-level monsters led the charge, and right now, their eyes were glowing an unnatural red, their auras brimming with aggression and madness.

They moved as if possessed, their instincts overridden by something far more sinister, charging forward without reason or restraint.

No one knew where they were headed nor their reason for heading there, but their destination was already painfully clear from merely looking in the direction they were running— the forest’s outskirts.

These monsters spared nothing in their path. Not the insects skittering across the forest floor, not the level 0 creatures cowering in fear.

Everything was crushed beneath their feet.

They didn’t slow down. They didn’t stop.

It was pure, unrelenting destruction and madness.

Thankfully for Xylen, he hadn’t tested his luck, because even with his newfound strength and Lilith’s long-ranged skill, they would not have lasted a minute against this tide of death.

And speaking of Xylen—

.....

"That... that..." Xylen who was currently doubled over, gasped, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.

He had just burst out of the forest, Lilith trailing behind him, equally exhausted and trembling.

"That was terrifying!" he finally blurted out, his face pale, recalling the vibration that had just shaken the forest and the suffocating auras that had enveloped it.

Behind him, Lilith collapsed onto her knees, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she struggled to breathe.

"Thankfully... we ran fast enough," she panted, still appearing bloodless pale. "Only the Demon God knows what would have happened if we’d been caught."

Eventually, the two caught their breath, their wide, fearful eyes meeting in a shared look of horror.

"Has anything like this ever happened before?" Xylen asked, wiping the beads of sweat that had already filled his brow.

Hearing him, Lilith’s expression turned serious as she fell into deep thought, and after a long moment, she slowly nodded her head.

"According to the village’s history, monster tides had plagued us centuries ago," she began, her voice low and solemn.

Xylen’s brows shot up at this. "Monster tides?"

Lilith nodded again.

"That’s right my lord. They used to happen so frequently during those days to the extent that sometimes, they’d strike more than once a day, bringing endless destruction to the village."

Xylen’s stomach twisted.

’I’m not going to like where this story is headed,’ he thought grimly to himself, but he forced himself to listen.

Meanwhile, Lilith, having no idea what Xylen was thinking furrowed her brows, struggling to recall the rest of the history.

"It was said that when the beast tides became unbearable, your great-grandfather paid a fortune to the Church of the Demon God, after which the head priests came and performed some unknown ritual... and only from that day did the tides stop."

Xylen, "..."

He couldn’t help but stare blankly for a second, then narrowed his eyes, his mind racing.

’This seems to feel a bit too... convenient,’ he thought.

Then suddenly, a chilling realization dawned on him.

"I’ve probably triggered a hidden quest that will be activated very soon," he muttered under his breath.

In all games, whether single-player, MMORPGs, or VRMORPGs, players lived for moments like this— for blood-pumping challenges and intense missions where they wouldn’t care how many times they lost their lives, as long as the rewards were worth it.

But for Xylen?

He did not want another quest. Who cares if it was exhilarating?

Who gives a damn about the thrill?

Even if it was the kind of mission that would broadcast his achievement across all servers?

He simply did not care.

He already knew which missions to trigger and how to clear them quickly, all based on memories from his past life. His goal had always been simple from the start: complete missions as quickly as possible, level up faster, amass as many coins as he could, and convert them into real-world money.

So, the last thing he needed right now was another unpredictable, forced mission.

Brooding over this, Xylen couldn’t help but glance at Lilith, who still appeared deeply troubled, her usually sharp features now twisted with worry.

"Let’s return to the mansion," he finally said, breaking the silence.

Lilith blinked, snapping out of her thoughts.

"My lord, my intuition tells me the beast tide is heading for our village," she whispered, her voice laced with fear.

Xylen’s brows rose, resisting the urge to roll his eyes.

’Of course, I already know that,’ he thought, but did not say it.

Instead, he tilted his head, feigning ignorance. "Is that so?"

Lilith hurriedly nodded her head, her expression grim.

"Yes, my lord, and given the situation now, we have two options," she said, forcing her voice to become steady. "One: report to the village immediately so they can prepare. Or two..."

Her voice wavered, and pain flickered across her face.

"We evacuate the village before we’re caught in the storm."

Finished speaking, she stared at Xylen, waiting anxiously for his decision.

Xylen met her gaze, his face unreadable. Then, after a long beat, he spoke:

"I think..." he drawled, "...we should go back to the mansion and plan how to take my uncle down."

"Huh?"

Lilith froze, her lips parting in shock, unable to respond for a moment before finally...

"My lord, this isn’t the time to worry about your uncle!" she cried, her voice rising in panic. "The beast tide could destroy everything — even he might not survive!"

Xylen exhaled sharply, rubbing his temples.

"The tide won’t even hit the village until tomorrow evening," he muttered with exasperation.

But the moment the words left his mouth, he cursed internally.

Sure enough, Lilith stiffened.

Then her eyes widened, turning her gaze back to Xylen, appearing utterly baffled and bewildered.

"My lord... how could you possibly know that?" she finally inquired, her voice a mix of curiosity and suspicion.

Xylen sighed internally.

’Because based on how this game works, an ongoing quest must end first before another mission starts,’ he thought.

Of course, he couldn’t say that.

For some reasons untold, Players never explained their "game knowledge" to NPCs. It was an unspoken rule, something he instinctively understood even in this life.

Thinking fast, Xylen cleared his throat.

"Just a guess," he said, feigning nonchalance.

"This..."

Lilith stared at him, speechless.

"A guess?" she echoed, her tone incredulous.

For a moment, she looked like she wanted to argue, but eventually, she sighed and let it go.

Without another word, she pulled out the black cloak from her bag and draped it over Xylen’s shoulders, once again concealing his appearance.

The two of them then started the long walk back to the estate, the sky slowly darkening.

From the corner of his eye, Xylen checked his countdown timer.

Less than fifteen hours remained!

In the next instant, his heart pounded, because he understood one this. If he wanted to avoid triggering the beast tide mission, he needed to finish his current quest fast... way before the stipulated time.

Thinking this, Xylen swallowed hard and without hesitation:

"Lilith," he called out quietly.

"Yes, my lord?" she responded, glancing back at him.

"Besides you... is there anyone else I can trust to help in taking my uncle down?"