Cherni sighed. Beimerung shrank back.
"So, the only real power of the No-Name Party is Rain, just one person. Ugh, what have we even been fighting against all this time?"
"I'm losing confidence more and more."
"Chris, did you know this?"
At Deathmaster's question, Chris nodded.
"Rain... When I visit her house later, I'm going to pinch her cheeks so hard!"
"Hehe."
Next to Beimerung, who was vowing revenge, Chris chuckled while looking at the wide hallway covered entirely in ice.
The path to the second named boss—at the end of it was the 'Lesser Demon’s Phantom,' which appeared to be the mid-boss.
Rain had already reached that spot, confirmed through the feed she was streaming. She was just standing there, idling.
Seeing this, Cherni clicked his tongue.
"She's so calm."
"She knows there's no party that can keep up with her."
"Well, we barely made it through the berserk phase of the first named boss ourselves."
Even though Rain was alone, she knew well that she held the upper hand more than ever. With her legendary weapon and the new skills from the Ice Tower, Rain was becoming an even more overwhelming presence.
Deathmaster’s expression was filled with doubt.
"I can't understand it. Even if she’s using a legendary weapon, Rain is still just one person, and we are four. Why is our damage output falling behind?"
"Because she's attacking both Golem Soldiers at once with her AoE skills. Both the swordsman’s slash and the Ice Tower’s new skill are area-of-effect abilities."
"As we tested earlier, when a party tries to group together and attack, the total damage output actually drops. Dealing with multiple bosses at once makes it harder to handle their patterns, the aggro keeps ping-ponging, and it’s difficult to focus targeting. The fact that Rain is constantly pouring out attacks while handling more than one named boss is bizarre."
"And on top of that, she’s perfectly calculating the timing and knocking down the exact targets. It’s the kind of play only Rain could pull off."
"How did she figure out that knocking down the named bosses could push them into another phase?"
"That’s something only a solo player would discover. The large jump they make right before their target disappears—Rain would never miss that."
The more they analyzed, the more amazed they became.
Even though the four members of Chris’s party were impressed by Rain’s performance, they couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of defeat at the same time.
"Rain deciding to stream her gameplay today means she’s confident she’ll get the first clear, even after showing all her strategies."
Chris clapped her hands with a confident smile.
"Now I want to wipe that smug look off her face. We can’t just sit here admiring her skills. Let’s make her pay for her overconfidence."
"Yes! We may have lost the first named boss, but we’ll be at an advantage if we go all the way to the end with four of us!"
"...It’s kind of sad that we’re struggling just to keep up with a solo player."
"Wait, hold on a second. I want to rewind the feed and analyze something. Look there, see how the shield-raising pattern overlaps with the spear-swinging pattern? First, they duck their head, and then, when they use their movement skill... Ack! What are you doing, Chris?!"
Chris grabbed Deathmaster by the collar as he shook his head from side to side, dragging him forward.
"Oh, oh! Chris! Look at Rain’s live feed right now!"
"Beimerung... stop watching and let’s make some progress! Why are you getting distracted too?"
Chris shot a frustrated look at Beimerung, but then she suddenly covered her mouth.
"Gasp...!"
On the screen, Rain looked directly at the camera, wiggled her fingers, and flashed two peace signs with both hands.
Then, she smiled bashfully.
Chris clutched her chest, and Beimerung grabbed her cheeks, letting out a high-pitched scream.
"Gah!"
"Kyaaa! So cute!"
"...Weren’t we supposed to be moving forward?"
"Just leave them be, Deathmaster. The 'big sisters' have lost their minds. I’ll go ahead and start dealing with the trash mobs first."
---
Looking at something like this, it definitely felt like a game.
Floating near me was a translucent sphere, like a drone. It allowed me to stream my gameplay and take screenshots in real time.
Through this screen, many people were probably watching how I played.
For a moment, I posed toward the window that connected this world and the outside world.
I made a V-sign with my fingers, smiled brightly, and even jumped side to side.
"Ahem."
Feeling a bit embarrassed, I coughed lightly, turning away.
That was embarrassing.
However, aside from the screen streaming feature, there wasn’t any setup for broadcasting, so I didn’t really feel like people were watching me.
When I look at other players’ streams, they have status bars showing buff durations, chat windows for communication, and a whole lot of other things displayed. There’s so much to see.
But doing that would break immersion. I turn off all the UI and just live in the game. The only window through which I see the world is my own eyes.
Still, it was nice to spend a little time interacting like this.
At the end of the hallway, in front of me, stood the 'Lesser Demon’s Phantom.'
It had massive arms and horns atop its demon-like head.
Could it be the same type as the 'Sealed Lesser Demon' I once saw in the desert?
Except this one wasn’t sealed. The chains that had bound its body were gone. And since it was a phantom, it was slightly transparent.
"Hmm."
[Level 48 Lesser Demon’s Phantom]
[HP: 20,000,000 / 20,000,000 (100%)]
Strange.
For a mid-boss, its HP was far higher than most named bosses.
In that case...
"A gimmick monster."
I smiled slightly and raised my sword.
Then, I charged toward the Lesser Demon.
Roar!
Wooong.
Even as I closed in and slashed at it with my sword, the demon continued gathering dark energy in its hands. Soon, it hurled the dark magic toward the ground at my feet.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
I lightly dodged, moving to the demon’s left and right, taking positions around it. The dark magic exploded on the spot where I had stood. Yet, the demon didn’t swing its arms or attack otherwise.
Its pattern was just four dark magic shots—was that all?
Wooong!
Suddenly, a monster appeared with a magic circle a short distance away.
[Level 45 Demon’s Warlock]
[HP: 800,000 / 800,000 (100%)]
A demonic creature wielding a purple sword and shield. It appeared to have been summoned by the phantom.
Taking it down should help.
Tap-tap.
I swiftly distanced myself from the phantom and dispatched the warlock in no time.
"Ugh!"
The warlock fell to my relentless attacks, leaving behind its purple shield in its place.
Special objects like these are always part of a gimmick.
This one, too.
Boom!
Dodging another dark magic shot, I rolled across the ground and grabbed the shield at the same time.
Even without mana or a holy sword, I could still move like this.
This was the agility of a hero.
I quickly raised the shield to block the next wave of dark magic.
This was the experience and knowledge of a gamer.
Wooong!
The purple shield absorbed the dark magic. After absorbing four shots, the shield began to glow with a strong purple light.
I looked at the glowing shield and muttered.
"Oh."
As I thought, it’s the same charging gimmick as the second named boss, 'Arkan,' in the ancient temple.
Except this time, it’s not a sword that’s charging.
Since I can’t attack with the shield, should I just throw it?
Whizz!
When I threw the charged shield, it struck the demon, emitting a brilliant purple light.
Boom!
Roar!
Amidst the powerful explosion, the 'Lesser Demon’s Phantom' disappeared in a flash of light.
The mid-boss’s massive HP was just for show. If I had tried to brute force it, it would’ve taken forever.
I smirked, understanding the game developer’s intentions.
It felt like they were showing me exactly how to handle this mid-boss.
How considerate.
This gimmick will definitely come into play for the second named boss.
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---
Finally, I arrived at the second named boss’s battle area. At the center of the ice-covered room stood a paradoxical being with flames that seemed to melt the ice.
It had massive arms that could easily grab my small frame in one hand, and atop its demonic head were huge horns.
The unsealed, fully-formed Lesser Demon.
Not a phantom, but a real, solid Lesser Demon.
Grrr.
With a growl, flames flickered within the demon’s mouth, holding the breath of hellfire.
Its HP was a staggering fifty million.
Compared to the first named boss, the HP had skyrocketed.
This was definitely a boss that required a gimmick to defeat.
The placement reminded me of the second named boss in Aspero’s Fortress, 'Lion Valgar.' That boss was defeated by stacking bleed stacks with cogwheel objects.
Unlike the mid-boss phantom, which had easily provided the shield, this named boss wouldn’t hand over any dark magic charging objects so easily.
I’d need to perform some sort of action. I’d have to shave off some of its HP first to figure
it out.
Five percent? Ten percent? Either way, I’d have to reduce a portion of its HP directly.
As I was fighting alone, the key would be how quickly I could whittle down its HP without relying on brute force. The gimmick could wait.
In fact, the standard patterns should be harder.
If the patterns are too easy, it won’t be easy to widen the gap between me and the party players.
A strengthened version of the 'Sealed Lesser Demon' from the desert.
If it’s unsealed, how much stronger will it be?
With a swift motion, I unsheathed Astaroth.
As silver light trailed from the blade, I charged toward the Lesser Demon.
Roar!
With a fierce roar, the Lesser Demon recognized me, and the battle against the second named boss began.
[Second Named Boss]
[Level 48 Lesser Demon]
[HP: 50,000,000 / 50,000,000 (100%)]