by Rick Scar
“What did you do to him?” The witch was able to see perfectly in the dark, and she was clearly stunned by the dungeon boss’s transformation.
“Damn you, witch. Answer me!”
Will’s angry growl brought the witch out of her daze, making even her realize it was not the time to argue with him. She had to grab at this unfathomable, but oh-so-real opportunity to put an end to the Conclave’s big problem – and get promoted to a higher rank as her reward.
“As far as I know, he’s vulnerable to fire magic and…and some poisons.”
“What poisons?”
“Catch... Oops.”
It wasn’t until she had already tossed him a vial of poison that the witch realized he wouldn’t be able to see it. As the rogue heard the vial shatter on the rock next to him, the veins on his forehead bulged. “You crazy fool! You should’ve wrapped it in a black cloth.”
“Shut up, you brute, and don’t you dare insult me!”
No. She still isn’t getting what kind of mess we’re in.
“Give me a night vision potion and that damn poison. And don’t throw them,” the rogue hissed. He had to hurry as time was slipping through his fingers like sand in an hourglass.
Rako’s face showed a storm of emotions. Barely suppressing her rage, she ran up to hand him the vials. “You’ll owe me for that.”
“I’ll tell you who owes who what after the battle. Now, keep your eye on the vampire.”
After drinking a stronger night vision potion, which greatly improved his sight, and once again applying Identification to the monster, Will gave a whistle.
Black Yorgihor
Rank: Count
Level: 51
Health: 46,395/46,500
Salvation effect: Temporarily human
The monster’s health had been reduced by half. But even compared to this number, Will’s recent blow of -105 seemed like a mosquito bite. Is it possible to negotiate with him? Or will I have to kill him while he’s weakened? I’ve got to at least try to negotiate. He’s intelligent, after all, that means it’s worth a try. I just need to get the witch and the vampire out of here.
Rako made no objections; apparently, she was glad to leave the rogue to face the dungeon’s master alone.
“Don’t you dare harm Ulfmar while he’s paralyzed. Understand?”
“I hate your tone just as much as I hate your words, your face, and everything else about you, messenger. Lady Amatelia has agreed to have you by our side, for some obscure reason, but I will open her eyes to what you truly are. If you die here, you couldn’t possibly have been any help against the floor’s enemy, a mere talker, not a doer. Show us what you’ve got.” She wheeled around and headed for the exit, leaving Will with his twitching lip and an ominous glow in his beastly eyes.
He had to do something about this witch. Later.
“Yorgihor,” Will said. “I see why you want me dead, but you’ll gain nothing by killing me: I’ll just come here again. Maybe there’s a peaceful way to settle our dispute?”
“Peaceful? You talk about peace after you’ve transformed my beautiful body into gross human flesh? You must be delirious. No peace for the likes of you, messenger. I’ll rip your body to pieces and hang them over the cave entrance for everyone to see what I’ll do to every single one of your kind.”
“Um.” Raven knew he had nothing to offer this boss. He could not return his Tonic children, nor could he provide any consolation by sacrificing his life. He couldn’t even quench his thirst for vengeance.
Although… although there was actually one thing he could do.
Flashing a broad smile, Will tried again. “Yorgihor. What about a bet?”
“You stinky bastard. Are you mocking me? ARGH! Once your magic is gone, I will tear you apart!”
“Easy, easy, my…er…foe. I have a deal you’ll like. Let’s fight, but not to the death. If you win, I will bring you one messenger for each child they took away. I can bring them either one by one or all at once.”
“Do you think I can trust you after everything your kin did to my family? After everything they keep doing? Did you hit your head on the wall that badly?”
“Hey! I’m telling you again: I’ve never harmed any of your children. I haven’t been to this floor until recently.”
“You…Hey, wait. Are you from another floor? Has anyone opened a passage?”
“I see that has sparked your interest. To be precise, no passage has been opened yet. I’ve just created a space tunnel between this floor and my own one.”
“Such magic is only possessed by ancient races. None of you messengers can do that. You’re lying to me!”
“You’d better ask the right questions before throwing those kinds of accusations around. You’re an intelligent creature, but you behave like an animal.” After saying this, Raven withdrew the shroud-breaking claw and brought it to Yorgihor’s eyes. “See this?”
“Er… You really did it.” The voice of the Tonics’ father (or mother) changed. He was no longer calling Will names or threatening to kill him every minute. “Good. I see at least some of your words are true. So, what is the deal? What do you want if you win?”
“They say the Black Tonic lives here.”
“You!” The boss’s voice, which had been calm a moment ago, instantly turned back into a growl.
“I want it.”
“You want me as your slave?!”
“Not a slave. I need your power. You have something that can make me stronger, haven’t you? Or…” Shaking his head, Will said sarcastically, “are you going to lose to me, anyway?”
“Are you trying to play on my pride, little human?”
“So that’s what you call it. Pride. I’d call it cowardice.”
“GRRR. You’re on thin ice. I could kill you without accepting any deal.”
“I haven’t finished explaining the terms yet. We’ll fight until you’re back to your true appearance. It would be unfair otherwise.”
“Ha, ha! Are you using my strength as an excuse for your weakness? You’re pathetic, messenger. Is it the likes of you who are believed to take over this world? Those who will unite it? Ha, ha, ha! That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard.”
“Um, fine. No means no. I’ll leave then.”
“Not until I let you.” The monster’s growl made it pretty clear he had not yet finished with the rogue.
“Will you be able to defeat me?”
“Sure I will.” The face of the humanized monster that was about to attack suddenly froze, then cracked into a broad smile. “Oh…You’re truly something, human. Good. Very good. You took me at my word. I can’t refuse it.”
“Good thinking,” Will smiled. “A deal, then?”
“A deal. Think of which nineteen of your friends you will bring me, human.”
Attention! A hidden quest has been unlocked.
You have been offered a hidden quest: Who’s the Boss Here?
Black Yorgihor, a proud parent and secret lord of Damila’s Dungeon, accepted your offer. Reduce his health bar to 1,000 while Salvation is still active to win this duel.
Rewards:
+80,000 XP
+1 unknown Yorgihor power
If you fail, you will have to bring 19 players, whose sensitivity level is at least 80%, to Damila’s Dungeon so they can experience no less pain than a parent whose heart bled when his children were taken away from him.
If you fail to bring the messengers, you will lose 1 level for each messenger promised but not delivered.
“You will have to defeat me first. ARRGH.” Will’s body started to transform, filling with demonic power. His eyes glared with rage; his arms were covered with tattoos. Bending down, Raven dashed at the enemy and prepared for battle.
Chapter 200. Explosive Growth
W ill immediately took his strongest form: the demon of murder. Salvation only lasted ten minutes, and five had already passed. He was upset at having to spend all his hard-earned XP, but his enemy’s secret
power had to be something really special. Something he had to get at any cost. He would always be able to earn more XP and advance to new levels in this game, but it would probably be a long time until he came across an opportunity like this again.
Even though Yorgihor was now human and had lost most of his proper skills and abilities, he was still a count-rank boss, which meant that Will needed to put everything he had into this battle.
First, he used the skills that consumed the least amount of energy: Shock, Dirty Dodge, Poisoning, and so on. Poison did a lot of damage to the enemy, just as Rako had told him it would, and it even imposed a DoT on the opponent. The poison he had got from the witch was really powerful. Combined with the enemy’s natural vulnerability, it produced damage figures much higher than the 105 Raven had delivered.
“ARGH! That talkative scum!” Yorgihor howled at the poison spreading inside his body but kept moving around and targeting Raven. His counterattacks were slow at first, but were now becoming faster and faster.
Wow, he’s adapted to this new form really quickly. So, Farris will probably be just as agile in human form.
Time was slipping through Will’s fingers. He realized he would have to use his strongest powers to win this duel.
Seizing an opportunity, Will Leap-ed to behind the enemy’s back, and immediately applied Dissection. Targeting the right arm, he struck the same spot three times, splitting the back of the enemy’s shoulder. Will’s last strike triggered the 25% chance, ripping Yorgihor’s limb off.
That was the turning point.
Without stopping, the rogue grabbed the remaining left arm that was still attacking him and, locking his hands around it, pressed it to his chest, then activated Burial and soared into the air.
The enemy gave a roar, his muscle transforming to gain elasticity, but it was too late: he was already plummeting to the ground. The impact of the crash sent cracks right across the cave floor, ripping out large pieces of stone.
-2305 HP
While still in the air, Raven used Lightning Copy. His body shimmered for a moment before vanishing. Four daggers sank into the collapsing enemy’s eyes, each penetrating deeper and deeper into his elastic head.
The skill expired, but it was just the start of a big combo move. Double Jump created a footrest in the air. Pushing off, Raven accelerated, rushing down like a meteor, and applied Torture. As he was struggling to his feet, Yorgihor was hit by the dangerous skill that was aimed right at his throat.
Like a skilled seamstress, Raven pierced the dungeon master’s throat again and again, his hand never stopping. His Journeyman-level Torture was slowing time 1:3, delivering a full 12 seconds of excruciating pain to the target.
A combo of Salvation and Demon of Murder was making each of Will’s attacks stronger, eventually driving Yorgihor’s health into yellow.
Double Attack. A dodge. Touching the opponent’s unprotected back, Will activated Soul Seizer and froze the enemy’s body for three seconds. Yorgihor’s extracted soul, which had regained his true form, hung in the air next to the fighters, but it could do nothing about the rogue’s attacks.
Maximizing his use of time, Will made a hole in the opponent’s thigh, dodging a fist at the very last moment as Yorgihor’s soul returned to his body.
The enemy’s eyes filled with darkness; the air became misty. Combating this darkness, Raven ignited two sunbeams in his eyes, which mercilessly heated up his surroundings up: Desert’s Glare.
Attention! You have been affected by Damila’s Starry Mist!
All stats reduced by 10.
Duration: 1 min
And there was more to it than just the debuff. Some sparks flashed randomly in the surrounding mist. When the rogue touched one, he was thrown to the side.
-400 HP
“Tsk. Trying to put off the inevitable, great dungeon master?”
“Don’t flatter yourself, messenger.”
A large boulder crashed to the spot where Raven had just been and disintegrated into dust as it hit the wall. The strength of this count-rank boss was way beyond Will’s imagination.
Black Yorgihor
Rank: Count
Level: 51
Health: 10,015/46,500
Salvation effect: Temporarily human
Shit. I can’t get any closer because of this fucking mist and these sparks. But waiting around till it disappears isn’t an option. What should I do?
He still had one Demon of Murder skill: the most powerful attack, which could kill any enemy regardless of their health. Even if they had a million HP, as soon as their health hit 10% or less, they would be dead. The problem was Will had no idea how this skill would work on an enemy whose health was still above 10%.
Raven wished he had tested it beforehand and realized his only option was attacking Yorgihor despite the damage from the sparks. The Demon of Murder form had added 1,500 HP to his health, bringing it up to 3,722. Now he had just over 2,000 left.
Running up to the nearest wall, he activated Without Barriers to climb to the ceiling.
The witch’s night vision potion was way better than the one he had first drunk. He could see the enemy well from above. Moving across the ceiling, he used Double Jump again and plunged towards the middle of the misty ball where the bleeding Yorgihor stood. His ripped limb debuffed him with blood loss, weakness, and reduced attack. The figures flashing over his head showed that the damage was reducing his health with every passing second; apparently, the monster was unable to regenerate while in human form.
As he darted through the thick mist, the rogue was stopped by a sudden uppercut.
-540 HP
“How…You’re almost blind! What the hell?!” Will coughed heavily, choking on his own blood as his ribs cracked under the enemy’s powerful blow. Tossing Will up into the air, the monster’s arm hit his head with lightning speed, knocking him out and sending him flying into a spark.
-570 HP
-400 HP
Incredible speed.
Will cursed at seeing a message about his character being disoriented and his attack strength being temporarily reduced.
“Come on, you! Ahahaha. Did you think I’d be much weaker without an arm?”
Raven preferred not to hurry and waited for the mist to disperse and his Leap and Dissection to cool down.
Less than a minute remained.
Recharging his health and energy with potions, Will Leap-ed up to the enemy once his misty skill had expired and repeated his previous attack. In a couple of heartbeats, Yorgihor’s face was reduced to a bloody mess, his health hitting red. Leaping away, Will activated Rupture.
“Give in! Or I’ll split you in two.” Raven’s advanced arms bulged with tension as he dug his invisible claws into the dungeon master’s body, praying to all gods that the opponent would surrender. He would rather not kill Yorgihor or lose nineteen levels.
“RAGH! I…I give up, you bastard.”
Deactivating his Rupture and Demon of Murder, Will collapsed to the ground, drained of strength.
“Fucking back blow,” he moaned.
“That was not part of our deal, messenger,” the dungeon master, who had now regained his original form, grumbled by Will’s side. The rogue was too exhausted to even turn his head to look at Yorgihor. “Would you have killed me if I hadn’t surrendered?”
“I wasn’t planning on it.” The supine messenger’s firm voice made the boss pause and think it over; then he gave a snort.
He’d better not know what I was thinking.
Standing up a minute later, Will was confused at the fact that he hadn’t not seen a completion message yet. Do I have to get that power directly from Yorgihor?
“Great fun, wasn’t it?” Raven approached the nine-foot figure of his former opponent. “Now, what about my reward?”
“Sly human. Like hell I’ll ever play this game again with any of you. Better to kill you right away.”
“Do it, please. Or they will all profit from you.”
; “Shut up. The very thought of losing to you is driving me mad. You’ve humiliated me. Pray to your gods that we never meet again. Because next time…” The hidden boss’s mouth came up to Will. “Next time, I’ll eat you alive!”
As the monster’s black limb whipped the floor, Will felt a small earthquake shake the cave, along with the Tonic parent’s hot breath on his face. Huh. This asshole isn’t kidding.
“Whatever. I’m waiting for you to complete your promise.”
“GRRR.”
Congratulations! Hidden quest Who Is the Boss Here has been completed.
Rewards:
+80,000 XP
+1 unique skill
EXPLOSIVE GROWTH
Rank: Unique
Passive skill: Apprentice
All pet development thresholds, including the amount of XP required to reach the next level, reduced by 35%.
“Wow, that’s cool!” Raven struggled to believe what he was reading. Winning a jackpot like that was definitely worth spending all that XP. From now on, Hades would be leveling up much, much faster.
“Get out of my dungeon, messenger,” Yorgihor said, making it pretty clear Will was an unwanted guest in his realm.
Chapter 201. A Journey Rewarded
“D id you kill him?” Rako demanded once Will had left the cave.
“No. We worked out a different solution.”
“A different solution? What the hell?! You had a great opportunity to destroy our enemy, and you…”
“Your enemy. Don’t forget.” Raven glared coldly at his female companion, who was brazen and conceited beyond all measure. “I do not serve the Conclave. Your only task here is to make sure I keep my word. Not to mess with my affairs. And definitely not to demand anything of me. Remember this, or you’ll regret it.”
