Raid Party
They emerged from the dungeon at last.
The sky had dimmed, and the world felt quiet in comparison to the chaos they left behind. Five hours spent inside that cave—and every second of that final fight still echoed in their minds.
Neither spoke at first.
Korb broke the silence. "We'll build a real party. Strong enough to wipe that skull bastard off the map."
Korb let out a dry laugh, still breathless. "Let's meet tomorrow at Seldom. I need to log out, man—I'm cooked."
"Same. Just ping me in-game."
"Later."
Korb vanished in a flash of light.
Noir stayed behind a second longer, staring at the dungeon entrance.
[Teleporting to Seldom...]
[Logging out...]
The POD hissed open. Lukas sat up and swung his legs out, sweat clinging to his back. He grabbed the water bottle on his desk and chugged almost the entire thing in one go.
"That boss…" he muttered. "What the hell was that?"
He leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "Why isn't there anything online about its last skill?"
The poison had stacked. The HP plummeted. But when they thought they'd won—the boss flipped the fight. Image of 10,000 War Experience had turned the battle into a slaughterhouse.
"Maybe no one else ever got it that low," he whispered.
*****
Noir ate in silence, head bowed over his breakfast, his mind far from the table. The clink of the spoon against his bowl was drowned beneath a thought louder than any siren.
Who are we going to invite?
His steps to work were automatic. He muttered under his breath, "If we got the Top 5 players on the leaderboard… we could definitely trash that boss." But that was easier said than done.
The workday dragged on. Same dull scanner. Same forced smile. Eight hours blurred by, but his pulse ticked faster with each passing minute. By the time the sun dipped below the skyline, he was itching to dive back in.
Noir returned home, slammed down a glass of water, and scarfed down a leftover sandwich. He pulled up an article on his phone—keywords: Bloodred Skrill. Nothing. Not a damn word about the boss's ultimate skill when it was near death. That made the fight last night all the more confusing—and exciting.
"If it has hidden mechanics, then it has rare drops," he whispered.
He logged in.
The familiar fade-in brought him to the Town of Seldom. No wasting time. He bee-lined to Ray, the blacksmith, to repair his gear. Next, the potion shop—he needed every advantage possible. As he browsed the shelves, a system ping echoed.
[Korb777: Yo Noir, meet me at the Shrine.]
[Noir: On it bro, see ya in a bit.]
Gear packed. Inventory full. He made his way to the Shrine and found Korb already waiting.
"So, what's the plan?" Noir asked, eyes sharp.
"I invited my friends. Strong ones. Trust me," Korb said with a grin.
The first to arrive was Vanilla — Level 12 Priest. She wore a flowing white robe, her staff pulsing with a steady holy light. At its top, a dark red gem shimmered ominously.
"Hello Korb! I heard we're raiding today." Her gaze shifted to Noir. "And who's this?"
"This is Noir. Assassin class. We tackled a dungeon yesterday—fast, deadly, and sneaky as hell."
Vanilla raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Interesting."
Next came Void, Level 12 Chronowalker. Noir couldn't help but stare. The robes the man wore looked like they were woven from the cosmos itself—planets, stars, and swirling galaxies. A floating hourglass hovered beside him, ticking softly. His glowing blue eyes said nothing, but they didn't need to.
Lastly, Polar stomped into view. Level 11 Warrior. A juggernaut with a massive shield and sword slung over his back.
"Wassup, people? New face? Sup, Korb!"
Korb gathered everyone. "We're diving into a dungeon today. Unknown loot, but the boss is dangerous. Me and Noir fought it yesterday. Nearly beat it, but at 10% HP, it triggered an ultimate skill—split into six clones. Couldn't keep up without support. But with you guys… I think we've got a shot."
"We'll be using Standard Loot rules," Korb added. "Randomized and fair."
"Sounds fair to me," Polar grunted.
"Let's go!" Vanilla beamed.
The party assembled:
Korb777 Lv9 [Scythe]
Noir Lv10 [Assassin]
Vanilla Lv12 [Priest]
Void Lv12 [Chronowalker]
Polar Lv11 [Warrior]
As they trekked through the forest toward the dungeon, Korb briefed them. "This boss is big—but fast. Debuffs, crazy clones, and an ultimate skill called Image of 10,000 War Experience. We need to burst the real one down the moment he splits. Otherwise, we're toast."
"If no one dies, we got this ugly bastard," Polar said, grinning.
Noir just smirked.
They reached the dungeon's jagged stone entrance.
Everyone prepped their buffs.
Korb activated Dark Circle and Helion's Blessing — +10% Attack, Max HP, and Stamina for 10 minutes.
Vanilla cast Blessing of Fortitude — +10% Max HP to allies.
Polar shouted Battle Cry, his voice shaking leaves from the trees — +10% Attack Power to all.
Then, they stepped into the darkness.
Inside, they were greeted by hordes of Redblood Mages and Fighters. Polar didn't wait.
"Let's do this!"
He charged, slammed his weapon into the ground with Taunt, pulling aggro, then braced behind his shield with Iron Will, reducing incoming damage. Shield Slam followed by Whirlwind carved enemy health down to 60%.
Void flickered forward using Temporal Step, arriving beside Polar in a burst of warped light. With a spin of his hand, he unleashed Temporal Collapse—a vortex exploded outward, distorting time and space, crushing enemies inside.
Vanilla raised her staff. Holy Chains erupted from the floor, radiant links binding enemies in place.
Korb surged forward with Curse Guillotine—a spectral blade burst from below, cleaving enemies upward.
Noir dashed in. Swift Step into the mob, then unleashed Critical Dash Slash—eight rapid strikes, four of them critical. A shimmer followed as he triggered Shadow Feint, blinking past the mob as his clone repeated the attack and finished off the stragglers.
Korb laughed, breathless. "The hell—this is overkill. We're cracked!"
Room after room, they burned through the dungeon, skill rotations tight, positioning perfect. Monsters didn't stand a chance.
After nearly an hour, they reached the final door.
Korb exhaled. "This is it."
They opened the gate—and there he was.
Bloodred Skrill – Lv. 9 [The One that Never Dies]
Nameplate glowing dark pink. The pressure in the room changed immediately.
Skrill rose from his throne, voice oozing malice.
"I never knew you peasants would crawl back this soon. I thought I scared the piss out of you before…" he cackled. "This time, I promise the gods—this will be your end."
Debuff Applied:
Malevolent Aura – All enemies: -10% Armor, -3% Movement Speed (permanent in boss room)
"Guys, it's starting," Korb muttered. "Get ready!"
"Aight, captain," Vanilla responded.
She raised her staff and activated Sanctuary Aura—a glowing dome enveloped the party, reducing all incoming damage within the radius for five minutes.
Skrill charged straight at her.
Polar intercepted with a yell, slamming his shield forward with Shield Slam, then activating Taunt and Iron Will again. Skrill's heavy axe collided with his shield—despite the buffs, the impact chipped 5% of his HP.
"Vanilla, move! Get cover!" Polar shouted.
Void blinked beside Skrill with a shimmer. He cast Paradox Clone—a translucent copy formed at his side, echoing his movements. Then came Temporal Collapse, followed by Echo Strike—a blade appeared at Skrill's back, slashed, vanished, then reappeared from another angle to strike again.
Skrill roared, whirling around. His axe cleaved into Void—50% HP gone in one brutal swing.
Void gasped. "This thing's insane." He tapped his chest—Rewind activated. His wounds sealed as if time rewound five seconds.
Skrill screamed. "You annoying pieces of shits!"
He slammed his axe down—Smash of the Century.
The ground shook. Cracks spiderwebbed across the floor. Everyone was knocked back. Void and Polar hit the stone wall hard.
Vanilla gritted her teeth. "Hold on!"
She raised her staff and cast Radiant Beacon—a pillar of golden light descended, flooding the team with healing warmth.
Skrill snarled. "You won't escape it this time…"