New One's Scheme

The sound of advanced gunfire reverberated across the floating circular platform, flashes of light illuminating the eyes of the Primers.

And on the receiving end of this relentless onslaught was a towering ten-to-fifteen-meter Ground Fire Hog, a fire-attributed Behemech whose metallic parts were hidden beneath its fur-like flames.

It endured the barrage of bullets—normal pulse rounds, heavy micro-lattice bullets, high-piercing rounds—but the ones dealing the most damage were the ice bullets.

Different from one another, some used Cryo-Piercer Rounds, while others fired Frostbite Shards. However, since the Primers had no prior knowledge of what they would be facing, only a handful had come prepared with weapons capable of countering a fire-attributed Behemech.

Among those few were the New One's Company.

Fermin peered through the scope of her sniper rifle, her cold eyes locking onto the monster's face. A smirk curled on her lips as she pulled the trigger.

A Cryo-Piercer Round shot out, a mere blur due to its speed. Upon impact, the entire side of the Behemech's face erupted in ice, instantly freezing over.

The Ground Fire Hog roared into the sky, and the ice vanished in an instant, but for a brief moment, its massive body stiffened—just long enough for someone to strike.

"Now!" Fermin shouted.

The moment her words fell, their captain activated her Speed Module. In a blink, her figure appeared right in front of the Behemech.

Carina swung her glowing sword in a horizontal arc, aiming to take out one of the monster's eyes.

But the Ground Fire Hog was a Final Boss—it wasn't about to go down without a fight.

Its reflexes kicked in instantly. Its mouth snapped open, and a high-intensity fire beam burst forth.

Everything happened so fast, as if the Behemech had predicted Carina's move.

Annoying. Carina scowled behind her black helmet. She barely raised her sword in time to block the blast, but the sheer impact sent her flying toward the ground.

Her Half-Aegis' automatic functions kicked in, adjusting her trajectory mid-air. Without any effort on her part, her suit landed her squarely on the platform.

Carina immediately raised her sword again, preparing for another strike. But before she could move, the Ground Fire Hog fired another beam, forcing her to dodge instead.

She activated her Speed Module again, dashing back toward her teammates and narrowly avoiding the blast. However, the attack's trajectory meant some unfortunate Primers had to take it head-on.

"Shield!" the Primers in the fire beam's path shouted in unison, activating their Shield Tubes.

Translucent barriers materialized just in time, barely holding against the scorching blast.

"They're not going to like that," Herm chuckled as Carina landed beside them. "Especially with what's about to come next."

"So? What are they going to do about it?" Carina scoffed. "They're greedy anyway. Might as well beat them to it."

"Well, nothing," Herm shrugged.

Meanwhile, Dave and Lance continued firing their weapons, still competing to see who would be the first to take one of the Behemech's limbs.

"Fermin, again," Carina glanced at their sniper, who was already charging her weapon.

"Got it," Fermin replied.

...

"Why is the monster not actively attacking?" Bach Ponce shouted, his voice almost drowned out by the relentless gunfire. As a former soldier, he was used to the sound, but the situation still puzzled him.

"Final Bosses are smart! They know how to fight! They have strategies, and some are even cunning!" Trey answered, gripping the shield tubes tightly.

A translucent shield covered them, but stray bullets occasionally landed on it, making Trey uneasy. He worried it might collapse under sustained fire.

"Strategies? So they have habits!" Bach shouted back.

"Yes!" Trey glanced at the miner with slight surprise. "Final Bosses are strong, but they have weaknesses! They're wild, but the Second Grades that Kael killed were even wilder because they didn't have strategies! All they knew was to kill and kill, without caring about their own survival!"

"Oh, I get it!" Bach nodded in understanding.

Suddenly, a Fire Beam shot past overhead, making Trey jump.

The Primers continued firing their advanced guns without hesitation, seemingly unconcerned about running out of ammo. Bach noticed this and quickly understood why.

As they watched, the Ground Fire Hog's face was once again covered in ice. The next moment, a figure clad in black armor appeared right in front of it. She slashed with her glowing sword, but just like before, the monster opened its mouth to unleash another Fire Beam.

"Sh*t! They're purposely agitating it!" Trey cursed as he realized what the New One's group was doing.

"Is that bad?" Bach asked.

"Old man, do you know why the other Primers are using their guns without worrying about running out of bullets?" Trey asked.

"If they can kill it from a distance, then why not?" Bach said, as if stating the obvious.

"That's because if they kill it from long range—Wait, how did you know?" Trey was briefly shocked before shaking his head. "You're right, but the New One's group isn't following this strategy. They're trying to kill it immediately! A long-range kill means the loot gets evenly distributed, which is why the other Primers are focusing on their guns."

"They're using this as leverage," Bach muttered. "They're greedy, but that's expected. Every Primer here is greedy. Let them be. What does it have to do with us?"

"What does it have to do with us?! Old man! A lot! They're pissing off the f*cking Ground Fire Hog! If it loses its strategy and turns into a wild Behemech, we're all in danger!"

"You said this isn't your first time coming here, so why are you so afraid?" Bach gave Trey a doubtful glance.

"Because I've seen this play out before! And every damn time, I barely survived!" Trey shouted, his eyes trembling at the impending danger.

"Oh…" Bach trailed off, his gaze locking onto the monster. It was still firing beams, unmoving, as if waiting for something. Ice erupted on its body now and then, and each time its face was frozen, the New One's Captain appeared to try and strike—only to dodge the retaliatory Fire Beam. But with each exchange, the air around the Ground Fire Hog became increasingly distorted.

"So we're f*cked."

"Yes, we're f*cked," Trey said with a gulp.