He didn't even sense its approach.

The sound of clapping echoed through the silence, jarring Kaiser from his frozen state. It wasn’t the crisp applause of palms meeting but the wet, grating slap of bone and flesh colliding, producing a grotesque noise that seemed to mock rather than commending.

Perched above him at the cliff’s edge, silhouetted against the moon’s pallid glow, was a nightmarish figure. The creature seemed born of a creator's madness, a horrifying amalgamation of man and beast. Its form was a grotesque patchwork, as though human corpses had been forcibly melded with one of the lesser horse-like invaders. White fur and blackened skin stretched unevenly across a frame of exposed muscle and bone. Atop its shoulders, the opened maw of a jackal’s skull served as its head, its flat top lending it an eerie asymmetry. Within the beast’s jaws lay the face of a man—lifeless eyes staring from a grotesque prison of teeth, as though the human skull was merely a grotesque mask.

Kaiser’s chest tightened. He knew this abomination, there's no way he'll forget what creature could mend flesh together in such a repulsive manner yet live.

"So... you're still alive," he muttered, his voice dripping with bitter recognition.

His not happy to see this damned thing again, especially in this position.

The creature leaned forward, its exposed sinews creaking like old leather. It was the Shifter—the deceitful monster that had once terrorized the village in the guise of a horned hound. Somehow, despite its apparent defeat, it had survived, its form now more monstrous and powerful, likely from feasting on the corpses scattered across the battlefield.

The Shifter tilted its grotesque head, pausing for a moment before surprisingly speaking. Its voice was a discordant blend of grating screeches and fragmented human tones, each word unpleasant to hear but understandable.

"Don’t get cocky, brat. A band of puny humans could never hope to kill me, even at my lowest."

Kaiser frowned. "You... talk?"

"Of course, I talk!" the Shifter barked with a grotesque laugh. "What? You thought I was some mindless beast? I’m nothing like those dumb creatures or you, humans. I am my own kind—a superior kind!"

Kaiser remained silent, his mind racing. His situation was precarious—dangling off a cliff with this abomination towering over him. Buying time will delay his impending doom, but it won't save him, and won't last long.

However, making risky moves in the face of this creature makes him reluctant despite his capabilities.

Sighing, Kaiser forced a disarming smile. "Uh, sure, dude. Mind if I pull myself up first? Hanging here is kinda tiring."

The Shifter’s grotesque maw stretched in what could only be described as a twisted grin, its corpse-like eyes glinting with amusement.

"Oh, sure, sure. Let me lend you a hand," it sneered. "Do you think I’m stupid? Do you think I’ve forgotten what you did, pisky brat? If it weren’t for you, I would’ve devoured that village days ago instead of clawing my way back in the wilderness, like a worm! I could have gotten myself a better shell, instead of this ugly suit. You ruined everything!"

The Shifter snarled, then leaned closer, it's smelly body pestering his nostrils . "So, kid, give me a reason why I shouldn’t drop you right here and now."

Kaiser shrugged, feigning nonchalance. "I’ll give you gold?"

The Shifter barked a laugh, a chilling sound that echoed across the cliff. "Gold? That’s a good one. How about your fancy little sword instead?" It jabbed a clawed finger toward Windslayer.

Kaiser’s lips curled into a defiant smirk. "Do you think I’m stupid?"

His not so foolish to take this humanoid monster's word. If anything, the Shifter would probably drop him the moment it got his Relic.

The Shifter snorted, retracting its claw. "Fair enough. That sword isn’t worth much, anyway. So what else, kid? The clock’s ticking, and my patience is wearing thin. Give me something, or I’ll make this quick."

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Kaiser sighed inwardly. He knew this game. In all honesty, no matter what he offered, the Shifter had no intention of letting him go from the start. It was simply savoring his desperation, feeding on his fear, instead of giving mercy. Still, Kaiser had no intention of giving it the satisfaction. He needs to remain calm and think fast, if not...

'Damn it.' He secretly gritted his teeth, barely keeping a composed facade.

Time is running out, while his still conflicted on thinking of a solution. Nothing will save him from this predicament, his best shot is giving it a reason not to do bad against him. That said, what is his best bet? Something he possesses that will make this horrid patchwork fear him?

Eventually, he said, his voice cold and unyielding, with eyes filled with confidence on his words.

"Let me go, and you won’t make an enemy of me."

The Shifter froze for a moment before bursting into a creepy laughter, its body convulsing with amusement. "The new generation really is hilarious! You remind me of the good old days!"

As the laughter subsided, the creature leaned down until its grotesque visage filled Kaiser’s view, its tone chillingly low. "You have no idea who you’re talking to, do you? ...I am *Bakar, the Undying.* Feared and loathed across the Shattered Realms by Players and descendants alike!"

Kaiser's eyes widened in disbelief.

'... No way.'

Bakar—the very ancestor of the bandits heinous Boss, and one of the *Three Ancient Players* of Greenland. His name alone was steeped in horror, a legend passed down in grim tales that spoke of his cursed ability to defy death itself. A figure from hundreds of years ago, long before Kaiser’s generation arrived.

He didn’t want to believe it. The idea that the monster perched above him was one of those legendary Players seemed impossible. Surely no human could live for centuries, let alone thrive in the chaos of the Shattered Realms for so long.

And yet… hadn’t the village chief and Garba themselves survived well beyond a hundred years? Despite their advanced age, they remained formidable, able to fend off invaders with precision and power. What, then, of a Player like Bakar? One who had potentially leveled up relentlessly for hundreds of years, growing stronger with every battle, every kill? The mere thought justified Kaiser’s hesitation on pulling a defiant move on the monster above him. It also explained why this Shifter had grown so overwhelmingly powerful in just a matter of days.

Bakar’s abilities must be tied to the flesh of others—using the bodies of his victims as both sustenance and armor. Each corpse became a piece of his grotesque shell, a living monument to his undying nature. It made sense now why the tales called him the Undying. Bakar was a survivor in the truest, most horrifying sense.

Kaiser’s chest tightened as the realization hit him with full force: there was no denying it. The monster before him was indeed Bakar, the Undying.

A swirl of emotions churned within him—aggrieved and disappointed. Disappointed because this meeting shattered the image he had of the older Players. He had envisioned them as legendary figures: draped in enchanted armor, wielding strange weapons that defied comprehension, their very presence commanding awe like epic heroes from a bygone era, untouched by time. But the reality was far different. For what met above him was a twisted abomination, grotesque and barely human.

Is this what happens to Players who live too long? Kaiser wondered bitterly. Do they become so powerful they shed their humanity? Or is Bakar a unique monstrosity—a rare nightmare among legends?

And unfortunately, they met as enemies due to unforeseen circumstances. However, their immortal and undying traits were quite similar. The thought, as absurd as it was, lingered for a moment: could they be allies? Two immortals navigating the chaos of the Shattered Realms, their shared inability to die forming an unlikely bond. However, he knew revealing his immortality won't save him. If anything, it would hasten his doom because

Bakar isn't foolish enough to spare threats he could dispose, and Kaiser, with his immortality, was the greatest risk of all. The Undying would see him as a loose end to tie off, nothing more.

Bakar's voice grew sharper, more venomous. "Don't tell me you think you’re special because you killed a few invaders and blinded that massive creature? You think that makes you strong? Let me tell you something, brat. I’ve seen real power—Players with abilities that defy logic and talents that reshape reality. And you? You’re just another mediocre talent with a fancy sword and a self-healing trick. Players like you are useful at first, but in the grand scheme of it all, it takes a genius and inexplicable power to rule, while your kinds are nothing but pawns waiting for a leash. So tell me, boy—why should I ever fear you?"

The question hung in the air like a noose.

Heavy silence followed, pressing down on Kaiser like the weight of the very cliff he clung to. His mind churned, desperately clawing for a way out, but no matter how he strained, no answer came. Every avenue, every possibility, led to the same bleak conclusion. Perhaps the sheer accumulation of mental fatigue was taking its toll, rendering him incapable of coherent thought.

Fighting Bakar head-on? Impossible. The towering Player could swat him into the Southern Boundary with a single motion. More so in this position, where his in the edge of defeat. Pleading for mercy will only be a waste of time; the Shifter’s mockery already made it clear that he had no intention of letting Kaiser go.

It’s a dead end and all he could do was delay it.

The realization coiled around his heart, squeezing tighter with every passing second. His grip on the cliff's edge faltered slightly as fear and helplessness surged like a tidal wave, threatening to drag him under. His teeth clenched so hard he tasted blood, his composure cracking under the pressure.

‘F*ck!’

The word screamed in his mind, a raw and bitter acknowledgment of his predicament.

Bakar observed him closely, relishing the cracks forming in Kaiser’s defiance. Seeing that Kai won't beg for his life, the Shifter sighed, a sound of exaggerated disappointment. Slowly, he rose to his full, grotesque height, his twisted body towering ominously over the precipice.

“Well then…” Bakar’s grating voice scratched his ear as he lifted one foot high above the crumbling edge, “…let’s end this, shall we?”

Kaiser’s heart thundered in his chest as the shadow of Bakar’s beastial foot loomed over him. His thoughts raced, frantic and desperate, but no solution came. His immortality wouldn’t save him here; falling into the abyss below meant entering the Southern Boundary, to the unknown.

Yet even as terror gnawed at the edges of his resolve, a spark of defiance flared within him. Drawing a deep, shuddering breath, he glared up at Bakar, his voice steady despite the storm raging inside him.

"...I may not be the brightest, but I promise you this—I burn the longest. You’ll regret this. I’ll make sure of it, Bakar!"

For a moment, silence reigned. Then, Bakar tilted his head, his corpse-like eyes narrowing with cruel amusement. A slow, mocking smile stretched across his maw, revealing jagged rows of mismatched teeth.

“Make me, kid.”

With those final words, Bakar’s massive foot came crashing down.

The stony ground that withstood years of wind and rain, finally gave way under the force of his monstrous strike. Cracks spider-webbed outward, deep and jagged, until the entire section of the cliff collapsed in a deafening roar.

The last thing Kaiser saw was the sky spinning above him before he plunged into the churning chaos below, swallowed by the falling debris.

'I guess I won't be going home... I'm sorry.'

He shut his eyes tightly.