Everything happened so fast, no one was able to react in time.
Even Cairo, who boasted speed that had made easy work of the Mini Boss, Vraxxis, only saw a golden blur before one of his teammates was attacked.
"Chaaaaaaaaaaaarles!"
Alex’s shout broke everyone from their daze, and they immediately moved to assist Alex’s fight against the purple stag that stood three meters tall.
Efa hurried to Charles’ side and checked his condition while her comrades clashed against the Boss Monster, which had taken them completely by surprise.
"Serpent Lash!" Lavinia’s sword whip extended like a deadly snake that was out for blood.
"Culling Blade!" Cairo closed the distance in a heartbeat and prepared to strike.
Alex, who had also activated his Shield Charge, closed in on the Boss Monster.
The three of them were attacking from three different directions, making sure that there was nowhere for the monster to run.
However, they might have misunderstood a very important detail.
Aurhorn, the Stag of Twilight, had no intention of escaping!
The moment Alex shouted, the Boss Monster had already raised its front hooves in preparation to unleash one of its skills—Pulse of the Deepwood.
Aurhorn slammed its hooves into the ground, releasing a shockwave that knocked Cairo and Lavinia backward.
Only Alex, whose Shield Charge helped him resist the shockwave, continued charging forward.
A few seconds later, he slammed his shield against the side of the Stag’s body, making it stagger.
Elaine didn’t miss this opportunity and unleashed one of her strongest skills at the monster at point-blank range.
Her sword was coated with blazing flames, empowering her strike. However, the Stag’s reaction speed was faster, and it used its golden antlers to cut through the Swordswoman’s strike and push her toward the wall of the dungeon using brute force.
"Argh!" the Flame Swordswoman cried out in pain as she slammed into the wall.
But Aurhorn wasn’t finished just yet.
Golden arcs of lightning danced on its antlers as it prepared one of its most lethal attacks.
It was planning to use another one of its skills, Twilight Bolt, while pinning Elaine to the wall.
This was Aurhorn’s only ranged skill, but using it at point-blank range, especially when it was pinning its enemy, was just as effective and several times more lethal.
"Balance Breaker!" Alex’s sword glowed with a faint blue light as he swung it at the Stag of Twilight.
A blue crescent blade emerged from his sword strike and hit the side of Aurhorn’s head. The monster cried out in agony and fury, temporarily forgetting about its charge attack.
Balance Breaker was a sword strike that bypassed all defenses. It briefly staggered enemies who were targeting Alex’s allies, interrupting spells or charging attacks if timed well.
The good thing about this skill was that it had a range of five meters, allowing Alex to deal damage from a short distance.
The moment Elaine was freed from the monster’s hold, she immediately raised her sword and unleashed another attack at close range.
This time, her blazing sword stabbed Aurhorn’s body, dealing significant damage to the Boss Monster.
< Aurhorn the Stag of Twilight >
Monster Rank: Rank 3 Boss Monster
Type: Wandering Boss Monster
Health: 6,336 / 6,800
Active Skills: Gleaming Rush, Twilight Bolt, Pulse of the Deepwood.
’Sh*t!’ Alex cursed internally after checking the information of the monster in front of him.
Cairo and Lavinia once again attacked the monster, but it decided to distance itself from the group to prepare another charge attack.
However, Roselia finally found an opportunity to strike and unleashed the full might of a Rank 4 Horizon Striker.
Holding a short sword in each hand, the maid of the Hartwell Clan unleashed a series of sword strikes that drew blood every time they landed.
’Too shallow.’ Roselia frowned when she realised that the monster was tougher than she had expected.
Aurhorn, who understood that the Catkin wasn’t a simple opponent, once again slammed its hooves on the ground and generated a shockwave that made Roselia skid several meters backward.
The Boss Monster then ran away to distance itself from the group in preparation for its range attack, Twilight Bolt.
A golden lightning flashed towards Roselia, prompting the Catkin to jump to her right and roll on the ground.
Alex, who finally regained a bit of composure, shared the information about their opponent.
"It’s a Named Rank 3 Boss Monster called Aurhorn, the Stag of Twilight," Alex shouted at Roselia before glancing at Efa. "We can’t afford to stay here. How is Charles?"
"He’s still alive," Efa replied. "Barely alive!"
"Elaine, pick him up and run toward the second path on the left!" Alex ordered. "We can’t afford to stay here any longer. More monsters are on their way!"
Elaine nodded and picked up the unconscious teenage boy and ran toward their original destination.
"Master, it’s a straight path, but when you reach the next intersection, pick the right path. Dim Dim, you explain the rest to Master. Lavinia, go with them. Roselia and I will hold the rear!"
"Dim!" Dim Dim nodded and jumped onto Cairo’s head.
The Catkin Swordsman looked at his disciple with a conflicted expression before running after Elaine and Efa, who had already gone ahead.
Since Roselia and Alex would stay behind, he needed to guard Charles, who had been knocked out cold.
"Be careful!" Lavinia said as she reluctantly followed behind her brother.
Alex nodded before blocking Aurhorn’s Twilight Bolt, which had him skidding several meters away from where he originally stood.
Roselia noticed that more monsters were now gathering around them, so she ran toward Alex to make their retreat.
Given enough time, they might be able to defeat the Boss Monster. However, they had no such luxury!
All of them were painfully aware of this fact, so they did what they could and ran!
Aurhorn looked at its enemies with disdain before lowering its head for another charge attack.
It then charged forward, not caring that other dungeon monsters were blocking its path.
Dying cries from the monsters reverberated in the surroundings as the Stag of Twilight bulldozed through them, effectively converting all of them into particles of light.
The Challenger was still alive, and it compelled Aurhorn to go for the kill.
It would not stop until Charles Lambert and his comrades were all dead.
The unconscious boy’s body emitted a very enticing scent that attracted all monsters, filling them with the desire to personally kill Charles and devour his flesh to attain the powers lying dormant inside his body.