Chapter 59 - Tricked

"An Adventurer in my lair. It's been a long time since I've come across one. You must be really brave to venture into this place. Where are your companions?"

Malik heard a voice behind him, but the earth had him locked in place. He couldn't even turn his neck. All he could do was grit his teeth as he opened his mouth to respond.

"I came alone."

"I see... You must really be brave then, Adventurer. But even you have fallen to greed."

The voice echoed again, and Malik couldn't help but sigh dejectedly. He immediately understood what the owner of the voice was implying. The treasure chest was a trap, and once someone got too close, the ground would imprison them. Then death would simply wait patiently for them to give in.

"It's truly shameful, Young Adventurer. Just when I thought I'd finally found someone I could play with after living here alone for decades… you all fall the same way—prey to your own greed, dying in my traps one by one."

"You mean all the Adventurers died after getting trapped by the ground? Why? Can't they just free themselves with their skills?"

"How can you use a skill without weapons? And how can you use weapons when you can't even move a finger? As for those magical Adventurers, they can't chant spells once they're bound by the earth. So, they all just lie there, waiting… until I smash them."

The giant silhouette raised his weapon—a large hammer nearly as tall as himself. He hoisted it high, and Malik instantly felt the looming threat of death breathing down on him.

"Enough talk, boy. It's time to die," the silhouette growled as he swung his arms, sending the hammer barreling toward Malik like a meteor of destruction.

IRON MOUNTAIN STANCE!

Malik roared in his mind as he quickly activated the new skill. His body sank into a deep, rooted stance.

Bang!

The hammer slammed into his body. His head flung backward from the impact as a crimson -12000 damage floated above him.

The attack had shaved off 20% of his HP, even after Iron Mountain Stance resisted 50% of the blow.

The giant monster raised his warhammer again, only to see Malik still standing—alive and still holding onto most of his health. A cruel smirk curled his lips as he readied another strike.

But Malik wasn't going to let that hammer fall on him again. The stance skill had a cooldown of one full minute, and if that hammer hit him again without defense... he was dead meat.

"Iron Fist!" Malik shouted, smashing his fists into the already cracked earth. The ground caved in beneath him, and with a burst of strength, he leapt out of the trap, landing safely on the other side.

"Interesting… To think your defense isn't just high, but your strength is also incredible for an Adventurer at your level," the voice complimented him.

Malik turned around to finally face his opponent—a monstrous being standing ten feet tall, with scaly, earth-toned skin and emerald green eyes that radiated the ancient will of the forest. He wore shimmering silver armor, and the warhammer in his hand pulsed with a profound, mysterious aura.

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[Truce Holder Kyrogh] [TIER 1 SILVER LEVEL BOSS]

LEVEL: ???

HP: 100,000

ATTACK: ???

DEFENSE: ???

SKILLS: ???

Introduction: Kyrogh, the Truce Holder, is a towering monster with humanoid features, standing at an imposing 9 feet tall. His body is a blend of human and beast, with scaly skin and sharp horns protruding from his forehead. Despite his fearsome appearance, Kyrogh is a neutral entity, sworn to maintain peace between the warring towns of Redstone and Green Leaf.

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Malik stood frozen, eyes locked onto the glowing information floating above the monster.

"A Tier 1 Boss..." his eyes widened as his mind spun in every direction. There was a clear, qualitative difference between a Tier 0 Boss and a Tier 1. The monsters he'd faced before—those were all still Tier 0.

He couldn't even see Kyrogh's level. The gap between them was just that wide.

Even the monster's HP was twice his own. Not to mention his attack power, defense, or skillset.

"The system has truly set me up..." Malik muttered under his breath, taking an instinctive step back. He didn't dare get too close.

A grin spread across Kyrogh's face as he watched the young Adventurer's reaction.

"Don't tell me you're scared, Young Adventurer. I'm not as strong as you think."

Malik didn't respond—just shook his head, steeling his nerves.

"Alright, alright... I'll drop my weapon. You don't have one anyway, so let's settle this with our fists." Kyrogh said, tossing his massive hammer aside with a heavy thud and clenching his fists.

"Without his weapon… I should stand a chance," Malik reassured himself. After all, Kyrogh was a monster he had to face—whether he liked it or not.

Malik folded his fists too, then exploded forward, dashing toward the monster. Kyrogh dashed toward him as well, both like two runaway trains on a collision course.

But just when they were about six meters apart, Malik felt something… off. A sudden chill ran up his spine. His instincts screamed at him.

He looked to the left—and just in time to see a hammer swinging straight at his head.

BOOM!

The strike landed squarely, sending him flying like a ragdoll. His body smashed into a tree, then crumpled face-first into the ground as -8000 damage floated above him.

"Hahaha! You fell for that too!" Kyrogh bellowed with laughter, his massive hand now gripping the hammer that had magically returned to him.

"You vile monster... you tricked me!" Malik cursed through gritted teeth as he pushed himself off the ground. Blood trickled down the corner of his lips, and one side of his face was already swollen.

"Tricked you?" Kyrogh smirked. "Tell me, what other way is there to fight against that ridiculous defense of yours? My hammer could insta-kill a Level 50 Adventurer… and now it's only shaving chunks off a Level 25 like you. So tell me—who's really being tricky here?"

Malik's face twitched, his blood boiling.

"This isn't trickery... nor talent... it's hard work!" Malik roared as his feet exploded with mana and he launched into the air like a cannonball.

"IRON FANG KICK!"

His body spun mid-air with momentum, unleashing a flurry of three rapid spinning kicks. The third one landed hard, sending Kyrogh staggering backward. Over his head, three damage values floated:

-3000 -3000 -4000

With just that combo, Malik had taken 10% of Kyrogh's HP.

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"I can do this... I can brute-force my way through him!" Malik told himself, heart pounding, confidence slowly surging back.

"Don't get cocky. The game's just getting started," Kyrogh warned, his deep voice vibrating through the clearing as his HP began to regenerate—at a pace faster than the human eye could track.