The hidden boss makes its entrance

The Player Zeus could be seen standing amidst the corpses of the enemies he had felled, his breath steady, his sword dripping with blood.

He glanced around and caught a glimpse of a massive shadow rapidly approaching him from afar, its body shrouded in the darkness of the forest.

He rushed forward to retrieve his other sword from the corpse before the battle could begin. 

When the shadow appeared on screen, the viewers collectively sucked in a cold breath. 

"What the hell is that thing?"

"The shadow resembles a dragon and it's huge! Could it really be a dragon?" 

"I've never seen anything like it in anyone's stream before. Having such a monster go after a player in the tutorial... this is insane!"

"What's more insane is God King Zeus's courage. Look, he stands ready to face that behemoth of a monster!" 

While the viewers were feeling excited, Leon looked ahead after retrieving his other sword.

The giant shadow was no longer in the forest.

Where did it go?

Leon felt tense.

'Where is it going to come from? I must survive the initial part of this confrontation myself or I will meet my end before the hidden quest is triggered, wasting my efforts.'

He quickly scanned his surroundings, searching for any sign of the creature.

"Gwarghhh!"

Suddenly, a bone-chilling roar echoed through the air. It came from above.

Leon looked up just in time to see a colossal figure with a wingspan stretching over fifty feet descending from the sky.

Its skin was covered in icy blue scales that shimmered ominously in the dark. Its claws were like sharpened knives, gleaming menacingly, and its teeth, jagged and vicious, were no less deadly.

Adorning its massive frame were several enchanted items: a ruby amulet that pulsed with a sinister glow, a pair of silver bracers etched with ancient runes, and a blackened iron crown that seemed to radiate malevolent energy.

Each of these items gave off powerful magical fluctuations, marking them as runic items—artifacts imbued with great magic.

"It's a Frost Wyvern!" someone shouted in the chat.

"What's a Frost Wyvern?" another asked, clearly unfamiliar with the creature.

"It's a monster that Titan's Wrath—a guild made up of the world's best PvE players—started farming after just six hours of gameplay. It's a Level 9 monster, and even a full party of five players has a hard time dealing with it! A Level 2 Sword Dancer can't even stand against it for more than a second!" XtremeGamer explained in the chat.

"Zeus is cooked. Hurray!" another viewer commented, happy because he was going to win a bet.

"Everyone who bet on Zeus failing the tutorial is going to make some money!"

[CyberBlade]: "Looks like I've won the bet. YourNemesis, get ready to face the embarrassment of losing a bet because you let your gut feelings override common sense."

[YourNemesis]: "Counting your chickens before they hatch, huh? You still haven't let go of your bad habit, I see. You really don't change. It's still not decided who will win the bet. Zeus is yet to die."

Some in the chat thought YourNemesis was delusional, while CyberBlade's eyes widened in shock and recognition.

[CyberBlade]: "Wait... You're... TheReaper?"

[YourNemesis]: "Finally, you guessed it."

YourNemesis was none other than CyberBlade's biggest rival, The Reaper.

He was a legendary player in the esports scene, particularly in Digital Gladiators.

The Reaper had always been a thorn in CyberBlade's side. Over the years, CyberBlade had lost two world championships to him, but there was a reason TheReaper was considered second to him. He had lost three world championships to CyberBlade, making their rivalry the most intense and storied in the history of gaming. 

The viewers quickly realized that two of the top gamers in Digital Gladiators—who had established the biggest rivalry in the history of gaming—had been watching Leon's livestream from the very start, though one of them hadn't revealed who he truly was until now, so it didn't seem as exciting.

The chat began to buzz with excitement.

"Holy crap, it's him! The guy who almost dethroned CyberBlade last year!"

"The rivals of the century are right here in Zeus's stream! This is insane."

"I can't believe these two are watching Zeus's stream! This shit just got even more epic!"

The realization that two of the greatest players in esports were watching and betting on Leon's survival only added to the already intense atmosphere, as everyone waited to see how the battle would unfold.

Meanwhile, in the game, the Frost Wyvern stared down at Leon. Its oppressive gaze was like an undeniable weight that could crush a person's spirit.

However, it failed to strike fear in Leon's heart.

He kept calm as the creature swooped down towards him.

"Human, how dare you ignore my warning and kill my minions? I will rip you to shreds!" the Frost Wyvern roared, suddenly doubling its speed by flapping its massive wings, reaching a moment away from crashing straight into Leon and crushing him into a bloody paste.

But that moment was more than enough for Leon to react. Using [Quickstep (Lv: 2)], he dashed ten feet to the side, narrowly avoiding getting crushed to death.

Bam!

The creature landed on the spot Leon had stood a moment ago with a thunderous crash, raising a massive cloud of dust that shot up thirty feet into the air. The Frost Wyvern exhaled a breath, and the cloud dispersed, revealing an intense icy aura that surrounded it. The aura emanating from it was so cold that the very ground around it began to freeze, cracking as ice spread across it.

"Oh. You survived that?" It looked at the little human standing defensively several feet away with a hint of suprise. "You are surprisingly fast, but it doesn't change anything. You won't be able to dodge what's to come."

Immediately after saying these words, it lunged forward and swung its claw. Its claws were sharp enough to rip cliffs to shreds.

Leon surviving such a devastating force seemed like a pipe dream. But he didn't give up, defending his life with all he had.

He used [Guard (Lv: 2)]. His swords moved to intercept the incoming claw, forming an X-shaped defense before his chest.

Clang!

The swords met the claw, surprisingly blocking it from ripping Leon to pieces, but the sheer force of the attack blew him away, sending him flying twenty feet through the air.

Thud!

He smashed into a tree, the impact shaking it violently. Leaves cascaded down, covering his head and body as he collapsed to the ground.

To the viewers, it looked like the tree was attempting to bury him alive.

[CyberBlade]: "Even the tree doesn't believe he can win this fight, hahaha! YourNemesis, you're going to lose to me for the third time this year."

[YourNemesis]: "Has anyone ever told you your laugh is annoying?"

But even YourNemesis knew that Jason was likely right. Zeus stood no chance against the giant winged monster.

The person in question was being bombarded with notifications.

[System Notification: You have lost 80 HP. Remaining HP: 30.]

[System Notification: Status Effect: Severe Bone Fractures. Both arms are broken, rendering them unusable.]

[System Notification: Status Effect: Internal Bleeding. Multiple ribs are fractured. You will lose 6 HP every 10 seconds.]

Leon's pain settings were turned off, so he couldn't feel the excruciating agony his body was in. But the notifications he read through were enough for him to understand that he had taken serious damage and would die in under a minute unless he met the last requirement to activate the hidden quest.

Despite being unable to feel much of his body, Leon mustered up a great deal of willpower and stood up shakily. As he stood up, the leaves that had fallen on him slid off his shoulders, tumbling to the ground.

The Frost Wyvern's eyes glinted with admiration. "For a mere human, you are quite tenacious."

Leon smirked as if he wasn't the one less than a minute away from passing away, "I am more than just tenacious. You will find that out real soon."