The Raid Strategy
“Why the hell did that guy become the dungeon boss?!”
The wanderers gathered at the Sun Inn, just like any other day.
But the atmosphere was far more hostile than usual.
“I've already been taken out twice by that Human Hunter.”
“Same here. I can't even gauge how many respawns I have left anymore.”
The Stigmata on their bodies had all faded considerably.
Stigmata fading.
For a wanderer, that meant only one thing.
Eternal oblivion was drawing ever closer.
Realizing this ignited a belated anxiety, awakening their dormant sense of crisis.
“Haa... Any response from the management office?”
The simplest solution was for a hero-tier powerhouse to come as support, like last time.
But.
“Looks like striking out during the last support call was a fatal mistake. They're demanding concrete evidence this time. No proof, no dispatch.”
Bring us evidence.
It wasn't hard to interpret what that meant.
“They're telling us to handle it ourselves...”
The most crucial coupon had already been used up.
The trust in Starting Village, which already had a prior incident on record, plummeted to rock bottom in an instant.
Otherwise, there was no way they'd respond so coldly.
“What the hell are they expecting us to do?”
Most of Starting Village's population now consisted of total newbies who had barely taken their first steps.
A few retired veterans occasionally volunteered as guides, but even they had already fallen to the Human Hunter once.
Back then, it was just wandering the plains.
How much stronger had it gotten now that it was the boss?
The thought was too horrifying to entertain.
“I don't know what tricks it's using, but no one can take it down solo.”
A dungeon boss was on another level entirely.
Even wanderers who saw each other as rivals considered partying up a basic necessity.
Yet the Human Hunter had somehow rigged traps all over the dungeon, luring wanderers in one by one to its lair.
Just like a hunter laying snares and picking off prey.
“Urgh. Meaning someone has to solo it...”
They needed a volunteer to take the lead.
And naturally, that came with considerable risk.
Who in their right mind would dive alone into the hell of facing a dungeon boss?
But as always, someone beyond common sense stepped up.
“I'll do it.”
All eyes snapped toward the sudden voice.
“...Holland!”
A man who had just pushed open the inn's door and entered.
The Executioner Holland sat at an empty table, his gaze steely.
In the wanderers' world, where everyone tore each other down, earning a moniker was as good as being acknowledged as a powerhouse.
“Are you truly stepping up?”
A spark of hope lit in their eyes.
No one knew why he was here, but Holland was once hailed as the man closest to hero status.
He had slain countless monsters and cut down innumerable evils.
“Yes.”
Relief washed over their faces at his answer.
“Then tell me everything you know about this Human Hunter.”
They needed a strategy.
Any encounter with it, no matter how brief, could help.
Then, someone tentatively raised a hand.
“Um... Not sure, but it had a skill where it charges with a shield...”
A messy recollection, but Holland grasped it instantly.
“So the dungeon boss has a shield charge skill from mid-to-long range.”
The boy who first discovered the dungeon.
Petrol urgently raised his hand next.
“Slash! It uses an attack so powerful it slices right through my defensive magic in one go!”
A fact he'd experienced twice already.
No magic barrier held up against the Human Hunter; they all shredded too easily.
Holland nodded at the boy's words.
“Any other info?”
“Oh! It also had a roll to dodge on the ground...!”
Thus, the victims who'd faced Chiron at least once pooled their intel bit by bit.
One goal in mind.
Subjugating the nameless dungeon boss—the Human Hunter.
For the first time in ages, passion burned in the warriors' eyes as the meeting stretched through the night.
My body may have died, but my soul was still alive.
That was the conclusion I'd reached from the battle just moments ago.
Undead didn't mean completely dead after all!
That realization was enough to buoy my spirits.
The heat rising from my body in that final clash still felt vivid.
It was a sensation no lifeless thing could feel.
Fighting spirit. Will to battle.
Unlike the forced cravings before, this time my mind stayed in control for the first time.
Maybe because I wanted it this time.
Not a bad feeling.
“Ow!”
Clack clack!
As my head cooled, delayed pain surged in.
Looking down to trace the source, my arm dangled limply.
Come to think of it, I'd pushed it too hard.
If I were human, my muscles would've torn or ligaments snapped by now.
Lucky I'm a skeleton, or it'd be worse.
“Guuuh...”
Hearing my pained voice, Karen rushed over with a startled face.
She circled me anxiously, not knowing what to do.
Was she... worried about me?
Her expression said as much.
“Looks like you're hurt.”
I lightly patted Karen's head to say I was fine when Gular approached, alerted by the commotion from afar.
Seeing my dangling arm, he tapped his finger bones to his chin, intrigued.
“Hmm, so even a skeleton's arm can come loose.”
His attitude—like appraising a fascinating specimen—made me tilt my head sideways.
Don't just gawk; tell me how to fix it.
“Clack clack.”
Only after my grumbling did Gular extend a hand toward my injured arm.
“Might sting a bit.”
Sting? What're you—
Before I could question, his hand moved fast.
Crack!
“!!!”
Gular jammed the bone back into place with a sudden force.
And of course, it hurt like hell.
Ow!
It hurt so bad my already-dead body felt like dying again!
I rolled on the floor, unable even to scream.
Only after tumbling for a while did the pain subside.
“Try moving it now. Should work fine.”
As I glared daggers at the culprit Gular, about to unleash my fury, I tested my arm.
Huh?
Good as new?
It moved smoothly, unlike the limp flopping before.
Relief was short-lived; recalling the pain chilled my spine.
Never getting hurt again.
Better to shatter the bone and re:bone a new one!
An idle thought.
But reconsidering sparked a question.
Wait, what happens to the skill if the bone breaks?
I'd broken bones before, but not re:boned ones.
Now three spots had replacements.
What if a replaced bone shatters?
Skills don't vanish, right?
A vague unease crept in.
But I shelved it for now.
“Time to get back to it!”
Prep was done.
Time to wrap this up.
My level was nearing 50 before I knew it.
Should be plenty for dungeon delving, right?
One last big haul, then done.
“Someone's hit a trap!”
At Gular's words, I gripped the Drake Soul Sword I'd set aside.
Suddenly, blue light erupted in the room's center.
A man emerged from within.
Hm...? That guy's...
Recognizing him, I reacted with surprise.
Shing!
A man in heavy plate armor, glaring fiercely.
The wanderer I'd just fought moments ago.
“My name is Holland.”
Holland introduced himself like a knight before a duel.
He drew his pitch-black sword, pointing it at me.
“This time, I'll make sure you die.”
His eyes burned hotter than before, fixed on me.
And that ignited me right back.
Good.
Perfect!
React like that, and how can I not burn too?!
Defeat hadn't dimmed his fire.
If anything, a fiercer desire dwelled within.
No words needed; his intent transmitted vividly.
Kill.
His mind must be filled with that alone.
The calm I'd barely regained heated up again.
I wanted to fight that man.
To sever his neck!
But first, business.
Suppressing my excitement, I spoke.
“Chiron.”
At my name, surprise flickered in Holland's eyes.
Shocked a monster like me had a name?
Or that I could speak?
None of it mattered.
As his gaze steadied, I drew the Drake Soul Sword.
No long explanations needed.
Two beings brimming with killing intent.
“Clack clack!”
“Haat—!”
Charged straight at each other without hesitation.