Dragon Slayer (4)
It took two hits before the stun finally wore off, allowing me to resume my assault. My attack power was nothing to sneeze at by any means, but no matter how much I stabbed away, this bastard's MP bar barely budged. Thanks to its draconic insane defense and the massive level gap, the damage was getting massively mitigated.
Still, now that I could move, I dodged its terrifying tail swipes by sight. With Swift Movement active and Great Thief's boots on my feet, evading those attacks from its back was easier than expected. Of course, it helped that I had top-tier control.
"Poison Nova!"
But I couldn't let my guard down. This thing was a dragon that alternated between physical and magical attacks—the most perfectly balanced "magical creature" in all of Tayen, the pinnacle of power.
Mana Shield has absorbed 8,250 magic damage.
It was an AoE spell I couldn't dodge, but the magic damage was more bearable than I'd thought.
As expected... All those points dumped into magic resistance were worth it!
I boasted the highest magic defense in Tayen. Magic attacks only dealt about a third of the damage compared to physical ones.
Gulp! Gulp!
I chugged top-grade mana potions on cooldown, relentlessly driving my sword into it. Normally, a boss with this much attack power wouldn't switch aggro easily in the early phase—maybe later phases, but not now. Just like the Orc Lord, whose aggro went random only below 25% HP.
In other words, as long as I nailed the early aggro management, I could steadily whittle down its HP with relative stability.
After landing nearly ten hits in attack speed-accelerated frenzy, its health bar finally ticked down one notch.
Got it.
With aggro secured, I leaped off its back and dashed to the party. It spread its wings and glided after me in a low-gravity jump.
As it entered range, I called for fire. Dozens of arrows rained from either side of the downed Iron Golem. Tu Mertus was so massive and the damage so trivial that it didn't even flinch, but the NPC archers' shots landed true—arrows stuck in its scales before vanishing, none missing.
Like the proverb about drizzling rain soaking your clothes unnoticed, a drizzle began pelting the beast.
Our job now: keep the drizzle steady by dodging its breath and maintaining stable aggro. Hyunjung's Aura of Struggle buffed the party and archers; the two healers had pre-applied ample buffs. I weaved around its foreleg swipes, slipping in damage here and there.
Soon, its HP dropped by 2%—then came its first Poison Breath.
"I draw in the primordial air that purifies all!"
"Dodge it, everyone!"
As it inhaled, a vivid green wave erupted from its maw. Simultaneously, I activated Volpo's Reinforced Magic Circle for a defense boost and Shadow Step toward it.
The Green Dragon spun slowly, spewing breath in all directions. From 180 degrees behind, I mirrored its rotation. Glancing at the party, Volpo was shielding them perfectly.
Good. They're handling it great for a first try!
Despite the hyper-realism, Iron Golems couldn't be healed. It could only tank three breaths total—even with Reinforced Magic Circle. But three was huge. With a spare Volpo, by the sixth breath, we'd shave off over half its HP.
We endured the first breath, dodging attacks with movement, but my MP hit under 20%. Time for aggro swap—after one breath, perfect timing.
The proper tank: Titan Levendus.
"Levendus Summon!"
As Hyunjung stepped up per plan, I unleashed my ace for aggro reset.
Shadow Clone!
A high-level thief's signature: create clones equal to skill rank. The clones themselves don't reset aggro. The real trick? A split-second invulnerability on cast.
Usually for absorbing targeted spells, but I exploited it for aggro reset. Most mobs—including bosses—reset aggro briefly if their target goes invulnerable. Confirmed in testing, so as Levendus attacked post-summon, aggro shifted seamlessly.
Seeing Levendus hold steady, the party emerged from the golem's sides, unleashing ranged attacks. I circled behind the dragon, modulating damage to avoid stealing aggro with basic attacks.
30%, 40%, 50%... Chugging mana pots, my MP refilled as rear attacks piled up. By 100%, it prepped its second breath—but now at over 10% HP down, not 2%.
Damage is landing better than expected. That's why it's holding it till now.
But it couldn't exhale. Titans' greatness: unlike players, they could debuff colossal bosses.
Shield Attack!
"Nice timing!"
Hyunjung cut the cast the instant he saw the familiar motion—no need to shout. We gazed at the rare sight of a stunned dragon and poured on burst DPS.
With the stun breathing room, I checked the party: even Magic Swordsman Kaiser and healer Rapunzel wielded bows for DPS. As top rankers, their swap bows were Legendary gear packing serious punch. Dual healers meant everyone had Light of Vitality for attack/movement speed—actions crisp and fast.
They're all handling it perfectly on their own. This... this is what proper party hunting feels like.
Raid barely begun, yet their fierce efforts stirred something profound. Pre-raid worries faded; everyone nailed their roles flawlessly, no slips.
I'd always soloed stubbornly, across games. Tried a guild early in Tayen, but ditched it scoffing at their level. Outwardly cool, inwardly arrogant: no one matched me, solo was efficient. But that arrogance left me mid-to-upper tier at best.
Now, at ranker status with top gear, truth dawned: the opposite was real. Solo limits you. My achievements? Built on allies like Hyunjung, guildmates, Hellfire.
That childhood trauma—"no point trying my best, it'll fail anyway"—was just an excuse...
Galaxy War, Formula Rider, Mountain Ground... Poured time and youth into many games, quitting just shy of the top. Not trauma—the real reason? I was alone. Arrogance blinded me to building comrades.
My current team canceled skills seamlessly, controlled NPCs in unison without dropping buffs/heals, optimized DPS cycles flawlessly. No instructions needed—their skill shone.
Solo, the top was unreachable. Now I knew: through teamwork.
I'm not alone anymore!
This dragon raid had to succeed. Felling it wasn't just a boss kill—it was slaying my arrogant past self. Together, we'd claim the top in Tayen!
"Reinforced Magic Circle!"
Rooooar!
It lost 15% HP instantly; before Levendus' cooldown reset, it tried breath again. But second time around, the party hid behind Volpo more smoothly.
Levendus' tanking and dozens of ranged dealers maintained exquisite stability. No other tank matched a Titan's reliability; few ranged could DPS a dragon so cleanly without whiffs, sans high-level NPCs.
Early phase flew by. By Volpo's death and spare tanking two more breaths, we'd halved Tu Mertus' HP.
Then the real raid began. New phase, unseen patterns.
"Insolent humans! You thought you could challenge me here?!"
A majestic baritone echoed through the lair. Fruit-like orbs rained randomly from the ceiling. Thinking magic, I dodged trajectories—then saw what hit the ground.
Two-meter fruits sprouted into trees, morphing into ogre-sized threats.
Two, four, six... Crazy, 20 of those at once?
First time since raid start, "failure" flashed in my mind.