Re: Evolution Online Chapter 317: Dead?

Chapter 317: Dead?

SLASH
THUD
Before anyone could realize what happened, a black figure suddenly appeared and then disappeared right in front of everyone's eyes.
And the next instant, the person whom Alex was just now talking to, suddenly fell down to the ground, limp and still.
"Hey! Hey!" Alex stared at the person incredulously, her eyes widened like a deer in the headlights.
"What happened? Are you okay?"
Other people in the group as well looked confused, but they were all utterly exhausted so they did not act in a hurry to see what happened.
They themselves were only barely holding on so they tiredly moved and did not seem to be in any sort of panic.
"Hmmm?" Observing all this from the distance, Liam stopped moving and also did not cancel his stealth.
The others including Alex had clearly not realized what just happened. Perhaps they were too tired. Perhaps they thought that the person had only fainted.
But Liam knew that was not the case. He had seen the whole thing go down. He knew that the person on the ground was in fact dead.
And also…
He knew that the dark elf was here!
His actions were so fast and agile but they were not enough to escape Liam's gaze.
But the thing Liam was confused about was… just what the hell was he doing? Was he purposefully toying with them?
This was a strong enemy and perhaps even stronger than the other dark elf generals, so Liam did not act hastily.
He could see that the elf was enjoying, giving himself pleasure by toying with these people.
If that was the case… then perhaps he would target someone like Alex at the end.
Well even if not, this was a chance he was willing to take. He did not plan to risk his life just because hers was in danger.
Liam silently watched as the group fumbled and groaned and finally realized that something was wrong with the person who had fallen down.
It was Alex in fact who noticed it first when she repeatedly tried talking to the person and there was no response.
"Hey…" She bent down and then suddenly shrieked, falling back on her ass. "Blood. Blood. He is dead."
"What? How could that be possible?"
"No way…"
Everyone else looked equally shocked. One person stepped forward and hesitantly pushed aside the corpse.
That too they did not move the body but kicked the body unceremoniously.
This particular behavior was completely different from the rest of their reactions.
It was almost as if they were avoiding touching the person or his blood maybe.
"Hmmm…" Liam shook his head. He had a feeling that he was missing something obvious. It took him a second, but he finally saw it.
"He is just dead, right? Why are they all acting like this?" Instantly, his face darkened as he realized something else too.
The person on the ground who had fallen down dead was still not disappearing! That means he had also not resurrected!
"What the hell? Wait, perhaps he is an NPC?" Liam pondered.
That seemed to be the most logical explanation but he had a nagging feeling at the back of his head that things were not so simple.
It was because of the reactions of the people in front of him, including Alex.
They all looked as if they were currently being hunted down by a serial killer, which was actually not that far from the truth.
Liam steadied his posture making sure to not give away his presence and continued observing.
However, there was no more appearance of the dark elf and only the remaining members of the group were discussing amongst themselves.
"How did this happen?"
"How did he die suddenly?"
"We were right here weren't we? How the hell did he die?"
"He must have been too exhausted." Someone suggested and everyone seemed to agree, at least until Alex pointed out the obvious.
After remaining silent for all this time, she opened her mouth and said. "No, he did not die from exhaustion. See, his throat is slit open."
Hearing her words, the others looked dumbfounded. The full reality dawned on them and the entire group looked crestfallen.
"That means… that means…"
"Yes, he is still here," Alex confirmed the group's worst nightmare.
They had struggled and come all this way, but the cruel reality was that… they were still within the grasp of that person!
"Why? Why are you torturing us like this? Why don't you just kill me and get over with it!" Someone shouted in agony.
"No, Laila. No!" Alex hurriedly tried to stop her from saying anything but it was too late.
The black figure appeared once again and also disappeared just like before.
And the next instant, the girl whom Alex had called out… fell down limp and lifeless.
1 second passed. 2 seconds passed.
But everyone stood absolutely still and frozen. They were afraid to even take another reath.
Another person had died just like that!
And no one was able to do anything. They could all only stand by and watch like goats who were next in line to be slaughtered.
Why? How? Were they all just going to die? Just like this?
This was the question in everyone's mind and every single person who was still alive was afraid to know the answer.
Liam as well had an equally shocked reaction. Something was definitely wrong here. He could feel it.
Why would everyone react in this manner? Why did Alex look so miserable? What if the two who had died were actually not NPCs?
What if they were players? They had died but their bodies had still not disappeared or resurrected. What did that mean?
And why was everyone so tense and scared?
They were all acting as if their very lives depended on the next few seconds.
Taking all of this into account, there was one and only one possibility that Liam could think of.
This obvious possibility was glaring at his face but it was too frightening to think about.
The dark elf… could somehow… permanently kill his target?