Boom! Kaboom!
“Two elite soldiers came out from this side!”
“Death! Go take care of them right away! Bae Merong, support him! Cherni and I will handle the rear demonic beasts!”
“Uoooh!”
Deathly Death charged out with a battle cry. He approached the elite soldiers while deflecting demonic energy bullets with counterattacks.
Boom! Boom!
Behind Deathly Death, who was easily handling and responding to the attacks of two elite soldiers, Mage Bae Merong fired ice arrows and fireballs to chip away at their HP.
“The elite soldiers’ HP is too high!”
“Is this supposed to be the trash mob section?”
Chris and Cherni, who were handling the dog-shaped chimera demonic beasts and regular demon soldiers, weren’t having an easy time either.
Each one wasn’t threatening individually, but there were too many of them.
The number of demonic beasts constantly coming out from around the tents seemed endless no matter how many they took down.
But there was no way advance party users who had worked together until now would fall at just the regular monster section.
Boom boom boom!
“Kaaah!”
As the last demonic beast fell to Chris’s Demon Sealing Technique, the elite soldiers that Bae Merong and Deathly Death were facing also exhausted their HP and lay on the ground.
“Is it over?”
“Probably, for this area.”
‘Chris’s Raid Party’, having blocked off the monster wave that lasted quite a long time, could take a moment to catch their breath.
“I wonder if we should call this a level 30 elite dungeon, the difficulty is on a different level from the elite dungeons we’ve been through so far.”
“Actually, the level 15 and 25 elite dungeons felt like tutorials.”
“Hmm. Certainly, it feels like this is where the main story begins.”
Unlike the friendly dungeons up until now that taught the concepts of virtual reality game dungeon play one by one, this was different.
The instance dungeon named ‘Demon King’s Army Outpost’.
Grandiose monster waves that seemed to welcome idiots who boldly charged straight into a demon encampment.
The HP figures of demon elite soldiers are reminiscent of named monsters from previous dungeons.
It was truly a structure made to kill users.
Chris grumbled while looking around the tents.
“The tent layout is malicious from the start. That large tent over there looks like the 1st named battle area, but it’s made to go round and round.”
“Hmm….”
Cherni, who was listening intently to Chris’s words, fell into deep thought.
“Hey, I was wondering, could this game have something like a ‘shortcut’?”
“Huh? A shortcut?”
“You know, in classic games like the Souls series, besides the maze-like front route, there are shortcuts that let you skip sections using things like holes or ropes?”
“Ooh.”
Death nodded.
“Souls series games, it’s been a while since I heard that. I wonder if any advance party users have tried it?”
“Probably not? There’s hardly anyone playing Souls series games now. There were some about 20-30 years ago. But the gamers who played those then are almost grandfathers now?”
“I heard it was difficult to commercialize Souls series games even after virtual reality systems were established. Because it’s a game that requires precise movements, as you can be fatally wounded by just one brush with an attack, the synchronization rate would be the biggest problem.”
“In that sense, ‘Astria Online,’ which assists users’ movements through coordinate movement skills and protection skills, was innovative.”
Bae Merong, who was listening to Deathly Death and Cherni’s conversation, also added a word.
“As soon as we enter the instance dungeon, the castle gate is right in front. How many people wouldn’t enter it directly? The advance parties would be in a hurry too.”
“Or, if it’s a hero from a novel who moved like a special assassination unit against the Demon King’s Army, they might have looked for another route from the start.”
Chris, who had briefly made a frivolous remark, clapped her hands and encouraged her party members.
“Anyway, since we’ve come in deep through the front, we have no choice but to move forward. The 1st named area is just a little further. Let’s not worry about other parties’ progress and go at our own pace.”
* * *
Clang clang clang!
I block the demonic energy bullets and Kraxas’s fists that keep flying in.
Even with blocking using skills, the subtle direction of the sword is essential. You shouldn’t just block attacks coming in succession head-on.
Accurately, grasp the direction the attack is coming from and adjust the force accordingly.
Clang!
The sword slightly turned to the side from the impact of the demonic energy bullet, naturally turned toward the path of Kraxas’s roundhouse kick.
Clang!
A strong impact came in, and my body was pushed back a little. Using that rebound, I activated Moonlight Slash while turning my sword.
Slash!
“Kaah!”
Thud.
With this, the third elite soldier fell.
One elite soldier left.
Glance.
The last elite soldier, receiving my gaze, fired demonic energy bullets again as if possessed.
Clang!
But I didn’t go there. I just kept a close eye on the demonic energy bullets while focusing on countering Kraxas’s attacks.
I felt a strange sense of inner closeness.
The last elite soldier, that guy’s life is my life now.
I smiled brightly while sending a gaze towards him.
I need you. You can’t die yet.
I can handle one elite soldier simultaneously with Kraxas.
Slash slash slash slash!
While easily avoiding attacks, I inserted Starlight Slash using Sword Drawing Stance between large attack delays.
[1st Named]
[Level 33 Outpost Deputy Commander Kraxas]
[HP 2,001,070/3,000,000]
One more hit until entering the special phase.
Slash!
The special phase began as the last Starlight Slash brought Kraxas’s HP below 2/3.
Woong.
“Kekekekek!”
Kraxas, laughing madly, started floating his body into the air.
Clang!
Even amidst that, my beloved elite soldier showed his affection towards me.
Rumble rumble rumble.
Powerful demonic energy concentrated above Kraxas’s hand, and soon it formed a purple sphere.
Boom!
And soon, it shot towards me at high speed.
Thud.
As I activated backward evasion, I felt my body being separated from the world for a moment.
Boom boom boom boom!
Soon after, a massive explosion that erupted from where I had been left scars on the earth.
My body, having used backward evasion, took no damage.
And then the follow-up attack.
Rumble rumble rumble.
Demonic energy started concentrating above Kraxas’s hand again.
As expected, the problem is the second attack.
I have to avoid this.
There are still 6 seconds left on backward evasion’s cooldown.
The place my body reached after the first backward evasion was near my beloved elite soldier.
The elite soldier quickly swung his spear at me, but I easily blocked it and transitioned to Sword Drawing Stance through Moonlight Slash.
And then I shifted my gaze toward the sky.
A confident smile appeared on my lips.
All preliminary preparations were complete.
The second area of effect is demonic energy attack.
I can avoid it this time.
Eventually, Kraxas’s hand pointed toward me and.
Boom!
The massive purple demonic energy sphere that fell from his hand instantly filled my field of vision.
I took my eyes off it and looked at my beloved elite soldier.
You’re the ‘opponent’ I need.
Facing his panicked gaze head-on, I activated the prepared skill.
[Counterattack (D)]
[Usable in ‘Sword Drawing Stance’]
[Take the opponent’s rear (Cooldown 8 seconds)]
[(D rank) Invincible during casting]
Swish.
Boom boom boom boom!
“Kaaaah-!”
The elite soldier, directly engulfed by the storm of demonic energy, let out a miserable scream and lay his body, torn to shreds, on the ground.
My body, with the ‘Invincible during casting’ judgment of Counterattack activated, had no wounds at all.
“Ah, elite soldier!”
I looked at the fallen, beloved elite soldier with a tearful expression.
Wow, if I had taken that head-on earlier, it would have been really dangerous.
I couldn’t use backward evasion, but it’s fortunate I gritted my teeth and threw my body even a little.
So it turns out adds can be hit by named monster attacks too.
I thought he would survive systemically, like how adds survive when the boss’s area-of-effect skill comes in.
Thud.
Kraxas, who had landed on the ground before I knew it, gritted his teeth while looking at me.
“You dare, to my subordinates!”
I wanted to say, ‘You killed one yourself, mister’, but he didn’t give me a chance to open my mouth and rushed toward me, emitting streams of purple light from his eyes.
Pitter-patter!
“Oh.”
As soon as the special pattern ended, four demon elite soldiers joined additionally like before.
It seems the adds are still being refilled.
I responded to Kraxas’s attacks while looking for my next beloved elite soldier.
Clang clang! Clang!
This time, I could smile while blocking Kraxas’s attacks.
Special pattern breakthrough complete!
[1st Named]
[Level 33 Outpost Deputy Commander Kraxas]
[HP 111,070/3,000,000]
“Th-this is impossible. For this body to be defeated by a mere human brat!”
With my Starlight Slashes pouring down continuously, sword wounds were engraved on Kraxas’s robust body.
Slash!
“Kaaak!!”
Kraxas screamed and turned his back. The power felt from him now was miserable.
I spoke while thrusting my sword into his back.
“Mister, you have to drop your items before you go.”
“Kuhehuk, wh-what did you say!?”
To think my first conversation with an interactive named boss would be like this.
Anyway, Kraxas could no longer speak to me.
Thud.
His body, having exhausted all HP, lost its life and collapsed on the ground.
“Phew, that was tough.”
I put my sword back in its sheath and wiped the sweat on my forehead.
And I made a V-sign towards the front.
1st named defeat complete!