Thanks to one of her special abilities, Eileen had actually watched Cheng Tian's battles in the bar and his confrontation with Batman from start to finish.
For a complete newcomer who had just passed the Novice Trial to almost emerge unscathed while fighting more than a dozen opponents alone in an E+-difficulty mission, and even nearly escape intact from a confrontation with the absolute protagonist of the current instance, "Batman," was practically impossible under normal circumstances.
But if he really was someone who could climb out of that newbie Shit Pit known as Demon World Village with just a Starter Account, then it did make sense.
This kid definitely had an extremely powerful initial talent, exceptionally strong mental fortitude, at least passable physical ability, and a considerable amount of luck. Not one of those could be missing.
How should she put it? Cheng Tian's performance so far had given Eileen the crushing feeling that she had wasted her whole life, but her vacant eyes quickly filled with light.
He was already this impressive just after clearing the Novice Trial. "Promising future" was nowhere near enough to describe him. The completion rate of her goal would probably rise dramatically!
For a moment, Cheng Tian even felt a little creeped out by her stare.
"Let's team up! I'll pay! If tank gear drops, you get first pick!"
The exceedingly enthusiastic Female Archer sent the Scallop Warrior a party invitation.
In Chosen Space, players naturally tended toward different roles depending on their talents, chosen skills, and equipment.
And as instance difficulty increased and situations within instances grew more complicated, those role tendencies became increasingly apparent.
Some exceptionally gifted people could still solo low-difficulty instances early on, but the further they went, the more obvious the importance of a team became.
Some players could rely on teammates holding the line and drawing aggro up front, then unleash devastating damage after charging up over time, but their own HP was usually pitifully low.
Likewise, players with powerful durability usually weren't good at ranged attacks either. If someone sniped them from afar and kited them, they had almost no effective means of retaliation.
Eileen was a typical ranged shooter who prioritized ranged combat heavily over close combat.
As mentioned before, players themselves were the greatest variable in any instance. So even in the same Bounty Mission, don't expect everyone to focus solely on the mission. Everyone had different thoughts and goals.
Eileen was the one who had entered the instance before Cheng Tian. She had long since shed her newbie status and was an experienced player whose equipment and skills matched her talent quite well.
Bounty Missions restricted weak players whose strength didn't meet the requirements through power and condition thresholds, but they never restricted powerful players from entering.
Even if you brought a level-100 max-level account into a level-1 Novice Instance, no one would stop you. However, every player had a fixed amount of time they could remain in Chosen Space during each month's scheduled trial period. Thus, powerful players rarely went back to low-level instances to Smurf, whether against NPCs or other players.
Some players could clear four or five low-level instances in a row and still earn less than they would from a single instance suited to their abilities, where risks and rewards coexisted. Considering time costs and energy expenditure, the better choice was obvious.
That said, these Bounty Mission entry rules would inevitably lead to veterans carrying newcomers or veterans hunting newcomers. But Chosen Space had separate rules governing that sort of thing, which would be discussed later.
Eileen showing up in Batman's E+-difficulty instance already made her strongly suspect of Smurfing. The Bounty Mission itself was merely her excuse for entering; her real goal was to use the opportunity to strike at the main quest boss here.
Just yesterday, she had obtained the coordinates of Moth Cave through a rival gang. She had then waited nearby alone and ambushed Assassin Moth as he was returning to his lair.
Naturally, she had failed, but she had scared Assassin Moth into a cold sweat. He might not even have recovered yet.
Eileen's arrow had actually pierced Assassin Moth's Moth Car head-on, nearly pinning him to the driver's seat!
At the time, that emerald-green magic arrow had passed only a finger's breadth from Assassin Moth's ear. One could easily imagine just how furious and terrified the leader of the Moth Gang had been after coming back to his senses.
After all, as a twisted Batman fan, Assassin Moth had built his vehicle entirely according to Batmobile standards. Its bulletproof capability was maxed out, and it even had externally mounted armor that could be deployed in an emergency. Other than high-yield bombs and Joker's specially made long-barreled revolver, almost nothing could harm Assassin Moth inside that car.
Yet Assassin Moth had crashed and burned in the very thing he was proudest of, and had nearly gotten his brains blown out.
This wasn't just a matter of becoming One-Ear. It was a matter of becoming Ken X. D.
From that perspective, it was perfectly reasonable for a rule-abiding, paying customer like Cheng Tian to still be targeted. Assassin Moth was in a rage; he was at the point where he would kick even a passing dog. Besides, Cheng Tian really was part of an enemy faction.
Having failed in her rare chance at a long-range assassination, Eileen immediately chose to flee.
As an archer focused heavily on agility and spirit, Eileen possessed high attack power, high evasion, and high perception, but her strength and HP were inevitably weak.
Calling her a glass cannon might have been a little exaggerated. After all, Chosen Space wasn't one of those trashy isekai anime worlds. A real archer needed no less muscle and strength to draw a bow than an ordinary warrior class. If Eileen took off her clothes, one could see that she had a body full of toned muscles.
But at least at this stage, she wasn't as tough as Cheng Tian, who had only just started out and was extremely lopsided in his development... Naturally, that was also the main reason she felt as though she had wasted her life.
The instant the assassination failed, Moth Cave lit up brightly. The Moth Gang's elite combat unit, the Mobile Moths, deployed in batches and began a carpet search.
Knowing her HP was weak, Eileen had naturally fled long ago. She had no desire to face the Moth Gang with its firepower turned all the way up.
Eileen had actually completed her Bounty Mission while she was at it beforehand. Additional files would only increase a portion of the mission rewards. Assassin Moth was merely one of her targets, and if the opponent was truly too difficult to handle, she would give up decisively.
But afterward, she used her ability to observe the reaction on the other side.
From the assassination yesterday until now, Assassin Moth had not taken off his Moth Battle Suit. At the same time, he had openly mobilized his gang members for a large-scale search, even deliberately picking fights with other gangs in the city.
Who knew whether that counted as bristling up or intimidation.
Yet in the face of Assassin Moth, who was filled with extreme rage and a fierce urge to resist, a powerful desire surged beneath Eileen's seemingly calm face—
The urge to drag the lofty Assassin Moth down from the sky and stomp him beneath her feet!
Just as the title said, an extra chapter by way of apology. (I'm surprised I even had chapters saved up...)
Before you continue