"Those flames are so terrifying!"
"Don't touch them!"
"Be careful!"
Despite the flaming wall separating them Liam and his friends didn't panic. Silver Blade turned towards the majestic dragon, which was already spreading its wings to gain height. She judged that the dragon was out of range and saved her [Luring Barrier] for now, preparing herself for the dragon to come again.
The bright orange flames illuminated the flat mountaintop. But they didn't last long, dimming soon. As the flames died out, only a line of black, molten rocks remained, shimmering like glass. Everyone could tell that stepping on them wasn't safe.
"Hey, what's that? I don't deal any damage!"
Suddenly Cyclone's annoyed shout sounded out. On the other side, Fortune had a similarly unpleasant expression. Just now both mages tried to attack the flying dragon. They aimed carefully and managed to hit it in the air. But to their shock a faint protective layer appeared, negating their attacks.
Silent Acacia stood not far from Cyclone. He aimed his bow, his eyes calm, predicting the dragon's movements. Suddenly he let go off the arrow. The projectile produced a long whistle as it pierced the air, perfectly reaching the dragon's large body. An almost inaudible clang rang out. The arrow hit the dragon's scales and slid off, dealing minimal damage.
[-186!]
"That beast is quite tanky…"
Balm commented while focusing her eyes on the boss, scanning its information.
[Red Dragon of the Trial
Rank: Boss
HP: 189.814/190.000
Status: Natural Magic Protection]
A few frowns spread. Balm wasn't the only one analysing the dragon's power. The friends realised how strong of an opponent they were facing. As bosses became increasingly tanky, the fights got longer, and there was more time to make mistakes. And as if the dragon's massive HP pool wasn't enough, it kept flying around, making itself difficult to hit.
"Stay vigilant! Wait for an opportunity!"
There was not much the party could do. Silent Acacia fired his arrows and Quickstep kept moving to build up her Storm. The rest was staring at the boss, ready to dodge whatever he threw at them.
"I will not let you pass this trial!"
The dragon's roar spread through the world. He dove down again, producing another wall of flames. Entirely focused on the dragon's movements the friends didn't have trouble dodging, but the space on top of the mountaintop was gradually shrinking. Silver Blade was ready to use her [Luring Barrier] but was stopped at the last moment by Liam.
After a brief explanation she understood the reason. Should she take the aggro, the dragon would stay in the air and attack her with fireballs, depleting her stance with little to gain from it.
It was better for the friends to let the dragon attack indiscriminately until a chance for retaliation presented itself.
"It's coming!"
Liam's eyes lit up watching the dragon's movements. The latter didn't spew another swell of flames. Instead, it hovered above the centre of the battlefield, staring at the adventurers with red, slit-like eyes.
"Guys! It will start to rise now! Pay attention! If flames gather in its mouth, everyone moves to the centre! If not, run towards the edges!"
"Got it!"
"Flames, centre. No flames, edge! Alright!"
The friends all acknowledged Liam's order. They stared carefully at the dragon. Silent Acacia momentarily stopped attacking. The party watched as the dragon flapped its wings, drawing narrow circles while rising higher and higher. After a few seconds it stopped, staring at the ground, disdain evident in its eyes.
"Surrender my trial and you might keep your lives!"
Threatening and fierce, the dragon had no regard for the adventurers although it was most likely not even a real dragon, but something conjured by the trail. Realizing that it received no answer the dragon snorted, sparks coming from its snout.
Back on the ground the friends were instantly alert. They gathered to the centre of the mountaintop at their highest speed. Some of the molten rocks had already cooled off, but a large part of the ground was still impossible to traverse. Silent Acacia proofed his agility by jumping over the chasm. But Radiant Shield was blocked, looking anxiously towards his friends.
"Mirage, tell me whether I am close enough already?"
"No! You need to come over here! Walk over the molten rocks, it's less damage than getting hit by the dragon!"
Radiant Shield nodded. He didn't delay further. Gritting his teeth he crossed the molten rocks in big steps. Within three seconds the damage began to stack.
[-3228!]
[-3228!]
The tank naturally wasn't happy taking so much damage for no reason at all. However, as he felt the unbearable heat assaulting his back, he knew it was the right decision.
Flaming stars were falling from the sky, like shooting stars about to raze the mountain to the ground. They crashed into the mountaintop, the flames burning brightly. Only the centre was spared. The dragon, hovering high above, kept spewing flames from its mouth, but there was no happiness in its eyes. The trial takers managed to avoid his flames, leaving him frustrated.
"Rooooaarrr!"
A frightening roar was unleashed, stirring a storm, whipping the flames. Ember mixed into the wind. They were everywhere, unavoidable. The ten players all received small amounts of damage, somewhat mitigated by Silver Blade's [Aura of the Bulwark], which used to be named [Aura of Ranged Protection], serving the same purpose.
Cyclone frowned as she watched her HP being reduced without being able to do anything about it. But as she moved her gaze around, there was at least some good news in that the strong winds blew out the flames burning everywhere, even cooling the molten stones.
A flash of lightning separated from Cyclone's luxurious robe all of a sudden. It was the robe's response to being attacked. A bolt of lightning shot into the sky, squarely hitting the dragon, having absolutely no effect. But this guided Cyclone's attention from the floating embers to the boss in the sky. Her brows furrowed.
"Guys, the boss already stopped spewing fire. Why is it still not coming down?"
Everyone's chests tightened instantly.
"Run! Run to the edges!"
Liam instantly shouted anther instruction. He didn't even have the time to praise Cyclone for the observation. Everyone started sprinting away from the centre.
Right at this moment an immense pressure bore down on everyone. The red dragon flapped its wings and turned its body, switching to a nosedive. Its speed defied all logic. It was like an apocalyptic meteor. Sparks appeared due to the friction with the air. There was not much time. Two, three seconds and the dragon reached the ground.
Boom!
The entire mountain trembled. A terrible shockwave spread in all directions. Dust rose, engulfing the dragon which had just crashed into the mountaintop.
Silver Blade and Radiant Shield were the slowest of the group. They didn't manage to get away in time. Coming to a decision they both turned towards the impact and raised their shield, digging their boots into the ground.
"AHH!"
The two tanks let out fierce shouts as the shockwave overwhelmed them. A terrifying force pushed them backwards.
[Stance -42]
[Stance -40]
The cost was immense. But despite that they were still not out of danger. Silver Blade and Radiant Shield tensed their bodies, mobilizing every single muscle. And yet they couldn't prevent themselves from being pushed back. If this continued, they might even fall from the mountain.
Fortunately, the two tanks were not alone. As they approached the edge of the mountain, multiple hands reached out and the tanks came to a stop.
"Thank you!"
"Thanks, guys!"
The others simply waved it off. Their eyes were on the dragon. The dust settled quickly and the tall beast was revealed. It stood on four thick legs, its long wings folded on top of its body. They were trembling slightly, possibly injured.
"Now is our chance!"
There was no hesitation. The party rushed forward, their weapons striking the dragon's tough scales. The damage was not much but it was a start. Only the two mages stood at the back, sulking.
It was also time to secure the boss's aggro. According to Liam's instructions the two tanks stood close together. Silver Blade activated her [Luring Barrier]. Golden sparks coalesced, creating a barrier in front of the female tank, ready to block the dragon.
"Die!"
The red-scaled beast let out a roar and raised its claw, slashing in the direction of Silver Blade. Seeing this, the two tanks instantly knew what to do. Their tacit understanding was immaculate. Without exchanging a single word, Silver Blade took a step backwards and Radiant Shield took her place, bracing himself.
Claws and shield collided and a tremor assaulted Radiant Shield's entire body. The dragon's strength was enormous.
[Stance -18]
Meanwhile Liam made use of the opportunity. He suddenly darted forward, his eyes fixed on the spot where the dragon's foot had just left. There, lying on the ground, was an inconspicuous red scale which must have fallen off the dragon's body during his dive attack. Liam ducked his body, passed below the dragon's body, and picked up the scale.
"Raaa!"
The dragon felt humiliated by the ant scurrying below its body. It folded its legs, trying to bury Liam beneath itself, but its reaction was way too slow. Liam was already in safety.