"We did it, we cleared it!"
"Ahhh! We really cleared it!"
"That pattern was a nightmare... Do we have to fight it again if it resets? I don’t know if I can handle that."
The fallen raid members, who had gathered at the entrance to the 2nd named boss area, blocked by the external barrier created during the battle, cheered with relief.
Beimerung let out a deep sigh, sinking to the ground.
"Haahhh..."
"Well done, Beimerung."
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Chris smiled warmly and patted Beimerung on the head.
Beimerung looked up at Chris with a pout.
"...You’ve been so into Rain lately that you don’t even pay attention to me anymore. You used to tell me how cute I was too, remember?"
"Oh come on, Da-Yeon, you’re still adorable."
"*Hehe*."
Chris, who had been looking at Beimerung with pride, suddenly checked the time.
How long had they spent fighting Zakham?
The designated time for today's raid attempt was almost over.
"This is bad. I didn’t think it would take this long."
Chris frowned in frustration.
They had hoped to finish Zakham quickly and spend the remaining time gathering information on the final boss, but the plan had gone awry.
"Still, it’s easier than I thought? Once you get used to the terrifying normal patterns, the gimmick itself doesn’t seem so bad."
Ranger Seopseop commented lightly, but Chris shook her head.
"No way. Without Rain's information, do you really think we would have been able to clear it today?"
Seopseop paused, stroking his chin thoughtfully.
"Hmm... That’s true. We wouldn’t have figured out the 12-stack *Dark Mana Rampage* strategy."
"And we’d still be in the dark about the absorption, feeding, and groggy phases."
Beimerung and Cherni chimed in agreement.
"Seriously, if we had tried to figure it out just by charging in blindly, it would’ve been way too hard. Rain’s doing this alone, right? How did she discover all these gimmicks? Was it because of the time-based nature of the fight? But still, to clear it, you have to deal 200 million damage yourself..."
"Could someone have helped her? It’s hard to imagine anyone, even Rain, clearing a raid dungeon solo."
"That can’t be. If she wasn’t alone, they would have struggled to figure out the *Dark Mana Rampage* mechanic. What party would’ve thought to restrict the *Dark Mana Infusion* to one person and trigger 12 stacks?"
"Is that really possible?"
Beimerung and Cherni exchanged confused glances at *DeathOfDeath’s* counterargument.
Chris nodded in agreement.
"Maybe if we had been trying for days, we could’ve discovered it by experimenting with different things. But in just one day? With how hard it is to even survive the normal patterns? No way."
Rain.
The more they learned about her, the harder it was to grasp the full extent of her abilities.
*Clap!*
Chris clapped her hands to get the raid members' attention.
Rain was fighting her own battles. Speculating like this wouldn’t do any good.
Chris shot a sharp look at her team that said, "Don’t annoy Rain or I’ll kill you." The raid members, who had been discussing Rain, quickly swallowed their words and quieted down.
"Alright, alright. As always, we need to focus on our own pace. Let’s start by auctioning off the loot, shall we?"
With a grin, she linked the item that had dropped.
---
[Abyssal Ring]
[Legendary Grade]
[Strength +80, Agility +80, Intelligence +80]
[Damage Reduction +12%]
[Critical Damage Reduction +30%]
[Unique Ability: Reduces all damage taken from NPCs by 10%]
(Binds on Pickup)
---
"Ohhh, as expected. The 2nd named boss drops a defensive ring. It’s similar to the elite dungeon drop tables."
"Honestly, even with gear like this, you still die in one hit in raid dungeons."
"What are you talking about? Damage reduction is super important. With this, you can even tank elite dungeons with just the Echo Stone's recovery! You don’t have to waste defensive skills on minor patterns. Even in a game like *Astria Online*, where HP is nearly meaningless, damage reduction is crucial."
"Just the stats alone make it worth it."
"If you enhance it with magic stones for PvP, you could dominate the battlefield."
"With options like that, I doubt I’d die from one hit of Zakham’s sword energy. I’d use it for dungeons and bid for another one for PvP later."
In *Astria Online*, players didn’t have traditional armor items. Against the strange powers of dark mana, metal armor was meaningless. There were decorative armor items, but they were mostly for appearances.
While NPCs could wear armor with proper defenses, players had to rely on items like rings to fulfill that role.
Rings didn’t restrict movement, provided high stats, and offered excellent defensive capabilities. They were as valuable as earrings.
However, the Red and White Raid Team members only drooled as they glanced at Chris, knowing they couldn’t outbid her.
Chris chuckled and placed her bid.
"I’ll bid 2,000 gold. You’ll be taking home a nice payout."
"Wow! As expected of our raid leader, Chris!"
"Sniff, I’ll follow you forever! Gold is the best!"
Ranger Gosungwoo shed tears of joy, a fellow lover of gold.
---
"So, the raid is extended today?"
"Tomorrow’s Sunday, right? I’ll push back the start time tomorrow, so let’s push forward a bit more today."
The 12 members of the Red and White Raid Team continued their raid even after the official raid time ended.
They moved swiftly through the 3rd zone.
Chris felt it was her duty to share information with Rain. Simply receiving the strategy didn’t sit well with her.
[Warrior 'Drizzle Rain' (Offline)]
Rain was still offline. She’d likely gotten enough sleep, but Chris guessed the Zakham attempt must have been painful.
Her real body would need time to recover as well.
Chris wiped away the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes and moved toward the 3rd zone.
They finally arrived at the deepest part of the *Abyssal Tree*. The entrance appeared to be blocked by a massive barrier of tree trunks.
Ahead of them.
A vast cavern, which appeared to be the named boss battle area.
And two giant sentinel statues.
---
[Lancer of Flames]
[HP 100,000,000 / 100,000,000 (100%)]
[Shieldbearer of Ice]
[HP 100,000,000 / 100,000,000 (100%)]
---
"This is...!"
"Are those sentinels? A mid-boss?"
The raid members felt their spirits dampen at the sight of the layout.
The battle area was split into two halves.
"It’s similar to the first named boss in the Frozen Palace, right?"
"Yeah... Even the gatekeepers are no joke."
"There's no cliff in the middle this time, though. We can move back and forth, right?"
"Do we need to split into two groups?"
Chris stared at the two sentinels with a bitter expression.
They were in a hurry.
They didn’t have time to waste on these.
But now wasn’t the time for despair.
Chris shook her head vigorously and issued her orders.
"Let’s split up. *DeathOfDeath*, you tank the Shieldbearer, and I’ll handle the Lancer."
---
The 12 raid members split into groups of six, positioning themselves in front of the Lancer and Shieldbearer.
And then.
*Bzzt.*
A demon appeared atop the tree barrier that led to the 3rd zone.
Chris looked up and gritted her teeth.
"Gatekeeper Bede...!"
It was the demon who had controlled the ants at the entrance to the 1st named boss area.
"Kakakakat! Intruders, you’ve made it all the way to the commander’s quarters! Did Zakham fail to do his job properly?"
He sneered as he looked down at the raid members.
*Thud.*
Then, he raised his hand.
*Rumble!*
Dark mana gathered in his hand.
*Boom!*
*Crrrack.*
The sentinels, which had appeared like eternal statues, began to rise at Bede’s command.
And then.
*Rumble, rumble...*
*Creak, creak...*
The *Abyssal Tree*.
The entire battle area began to move ominously.
"What the...!"
"Is it an earthquake?!"
*Rumble!*
Amid the violent shaking, the raid members crouched low, scanning their surroundings.
*Creak, creak!*
The ground beneath them.
As expected, it was part of the tree.
*Creak, creak!*
It began to move.
And the floor collapsed.
All that remained was the small square battle area surrounding the *Lancer of Flames* and the *Shieldbearer of Ice*, and the little ground beneath each of the raid members.
Everything else had fallen away, revealing a gaping, terrifying black chasm.
"A cliff!"
"It’s just like the first named boss in the Frozen Palace! Wait, no... It’s a little different? But either way, we can’t get across to the other side!"
Chris scanned the battle area with wide eyes.
The ground beneath the named bosses was still intact, but the rest had collapsed. No, there were tree pillars rising every 8 meters.
It would be difficult, but by using movement skills like *Backward Dodge*, they could leap from pillar to pillar and reach the other side.
But if they split into two groups, there would be no need to cross over, would there?
That question was soon answered as the battle began.
*Fwoosh!*
Flames enveloped all the raid members standing near the *Lancer of Flames*.
---
[Flame Infusion (3 minutes)]
[Attack power increased by 30%. After 3 minutes, instant death.]
---
The same was happening on the side of the *Shieldbearer of Ice*. Cold air began to swirl around the raid members gathered with *DeathOfDeath*.
---
[Frost Infusion (3 minutes)]
[Defense increased by 30%. After 3 minutes, instant death.]
---
Chris was horrified.
"This is insane...!"
The meaning of this buff was clear.
They had to swap places before the 3 minutes ran out.
By jumping from pillar to pillar.
Across the chasm that had just opened beneath them.
Chris screamed in despair.
"Ahh! This dungeon’s gatekeepers are named boss-level monsters too!"