The lingering chill of the Frost Path had fully dissipated, and the four teammates fixed their gaze on the front.
Beyond the shimmering heat-distorted air lay a relatively wide magma platform. At its center, a colossal figure slowly began to rise.
It was a giant forged of pure molten lava and obsidian—[Molten Colossus · Gal].
It had no head; instead, at the center of its massive torso pulsed a violently throbbing molten core radiating terrifying heat.
Its thick arms dragged heavily against the ground, leaving behind sizzling scorch marks wherever they passed.
[Molten Colossus · Gal (Elite Boss)]
Level: 35
HP: 75,000 / 75,000
Traits: Magma Armor (greatly reduces incoming physical damage), Flame Absorption (immune to fire damage, absorbs flame-based healing), Core Overload (attack speed and damage increase over time)
Skills: Molten Smash, Groundfire Eruption, Blazing Aura, Core Pulse
"Level 35 Elite, everyone be careful!" Lina's eyes swept across the system prompt. She slammed her shield heavily onto the ground.
"Stick to the plan—Kiriya, interrupt while moving! Mira, focus main damage! Violet, keep everyone's HP stable! That Blazing Aura will burn us constantly!"
The battle erupted instantly.
Gal unleashed a voiceless roar as its massive molten fist, carrying a crushing weight, swung down toward Lina.
"BOOM!"
[Frost Shield] trembled violently, shards of ice exploding outward as Lina's HP plummeted in one sudden drop—only to be swiftly pulled back up by Violet's timely healing.
At the same moment, from Garl's body, a ring of dark red [Burning Aura] spread outward. The ground glowed scarlet, and every step the party took inflicted continuous burn damage.
"Mira!" Lina shouted.
"Get it! Ice Rose: Crystal Shard Arrow!"
Mira's staff swept through the air, unleashing a storm of crystalline ice shards that pierced into Gal's massive arms and torso, attempting to freeze and slow it. Though it could not be fully restrained, the attack succeeded in delaying its next strike.
Kiriya and his two phantoms moved like ghostly shadows, weaving around the towering body of the colossus, their blades targeting joints and the molten core's connecting points, searching for weaknesses. The glow of [Phantom Slash] flared again and again.
The battle was grueling. Gal's body was monstrously durable, and its [Groundfire Eruption] erupted randomly beneath the players' feet, forcing constant movement.
This heavily disrupted Mira's casting rhythm and put immense strain on Violet's healing.
"Careful—it's Core Pulse!" Lina cried out as Gal's molten core suddenly flared with light.
A scorching shockwave burst out in a ring. Aside from Lina, who braced with her shield, the other three were blasted backward several steps, each afflicted with a lingering burn debuff. Violet's [Purification] instantly grew frantic, cleansing one after another.
"Its armor's too thick! Physical attacks are being cut down too much!" Kiriya said in a low growl, as one coordinated strike from his phantoms yielded only pitifully small numbers.
"Final phase—hold strong!" Lina encouraged, though her shield now bore hairline cracks from repeated crushing blows.
Minute after minute passed. With their precise coordination and Violet's near-limit healing, Gal's health bar was finally worn down to less than one-third.
Its body glowed ever brighter from [Core Overload], its attacks coming faster and harder with each passing second. The situation grew increasingly dire.
But the light of victory was already within reach.
"Final burst! Everyone—unleash everything, bring it down now!" Lina roared, seizing the moment.
Mira began chanting her strongest single-target incantation, the phantom image of an ice rose blooming behind her.
Kiriya and his phantoms readied themselves to unleash their finishing strikes.
Violet gripped her staff tightly, prepared to deliver a massive healing surge at the critical moment.
And then—just as all focus centered on the boss in this moment of all-out assault—
A volley of treacherous attacks suddenly shot out from the shadows of the passage they had come from!
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Poisoned crossbow bolts whistled through the air, aimed directly at the chanting Mira and the fully-focused Violet!
"Thud!" Mira's spell was shattered, her voice cut off with a muffled groan as an arrow embedded in her shoulder. Her HP plummeted, a [Poisoned] debuff immediately spreading across her body.
Violet reacted slightly quicker, narrowly twisting to avoid a fatal shot, though her arm was grazed. Pain flared, her movements faltering.
Almost simultaneously, a blazing fireball shot straight toward Lina's exposed back as she braced against the boss's attack!
"Watch out!" Kiriya's eyes widened with fury. Controlling a phantom, without hesitation, he sent one clone flashing back with [Blink Step], throwing itself in the fireball's path. The explosion tore the clone apart instantly, scattering it into motes of light.
"Who is it?!" Lina shouted in shock and fury, now caught between the boss's crushing strikes and this sudden ambush. Her HP plummeted into the danger zone.
"Hahahaha! Well done, boys! Time to claim the spoils!"
A mocking, arrogant voice rang out. From the shadows of the passage emerged a five-man squad. At their head was a mage wielding a gold-embellished staff—ID [Rok]—his face twisted with greed and mockery. Behind him stood an assassin, a knight, an archer, and a priest—members of the guild Flame Wing.
"Sorry, but we'll be taking the first kill reward. Thanks for working so hard to wear it down for us!" Rok laughed harshly, raising his staff. "Assassin and archer, keep harassing their backline! Knight, with me—cut down their tank! Priest, keep our HP up! Pull aggro off them and onto us!"
Without hesitation, their attacks surged forward again—targeting not only Lina's team but the nearly wounded boss itself, aiming to seize aggro and control.
Lina's team was instantly pushed to the edge. In front, a raging level 35 elite boss; behind them, a fresh enemy squad at full strength with clear intent to steal the kill.
Violet's healing load skyrocketed. Mira was poisoned, her DPS crippled. Kiriya had already lost one clone, and now his body was locked down by the enemy knight.
"The team was forced into a corner in an instant…"
"Rok! You—!" Kiriya's voice finally carried an unmistakable edge—not of rage, but of icy killing intent.
"What's wrong? Not happy?" Rok sneered, casually throwing more spells at the boss to steal threat. "Kiriya, this is survival of the fittest inside a dungeon. Who said the boss had to be yours? Don't blame us—blame yourselves for being dumb enough not to notice us tailing you. How does it feel to be our unpaid labor?"
His words stabbed like poisoned daggers into all four players' hearts.
Crushing pressure. The fury of betrayal. And the looming threat of the boss still towers before them.
Kiriya parried the enemy knight's blade, his voice cold enough to freeze steel:
"You will regret this decision."
His eyes sharpened like drawn blades, his entire aura shifting in an instant.
Lina blocked another of Gal's massive strikes, only to be hit from behind by another of Locke's fireballs. Her HP plunged dangerously low. She clenched her teeth, eyes blazing with fury.
At the brink of despair—would they give up, or…?