“Mwa-ha-ha, so much loot!”
“So worth the completionist approach.”
Maple Tree had fought scores of monsters and explored every door but the central one on the second floor. Now they were back in the entry hall.
Opening every chest had not earned them any skill scrolls—but they had gotten a huge pile of materials, equipment, and items that could be sold for profit. It had been totally worth the trouble.
“And we found what we really needed.”
“Glad we put the boss off.”
“It just happened to be the intended approach.”
The back door on the first floor had given them a key that opened a lock on the second floor.
The second floor’s left and right doors weren’t locked—so this key must be for the back door.
“Doesn’t seem like there’s anywhere left to explore…”
““So let’s go!””
“Yeah, onward!”
Maple led the way, Martyr’s Devotion still glowing. They unlocked the door and peered inside.
A short corridor led into a round room with a door on the far side. Only ten yards across…and nothing like the halls and rooms they’d been exploring.
Pausing at the line between the room and hallway, they looked it over from floor to ceiling. Silence. No signs of anything.
“Well, it sure looks like a boss room.”
“There are doors at the back. So this may not be the last chamber.”
“But something’s gotta be here. Keep an eye out.”
“Especially as we step in.”
“Yeah, let me set up a big cannon. Might come in handy.”
If the enemy wasn’t waiting for them, then they had time to prep—piling all the buffs they could on the twins and filling the entrance with cannons.
And if nothing spawned, they could just collect those tools.
“Then on three!” Maple cried.
Together, they all jumped in.
Black fires belched from the air, spreading swiftly outward.
The flames burst, and limbs covered in black scales emerged from within. There stood a woman with wings and a tail covered with the same scales.
The ruler of the fiery wasteland.
“I hid this well… I’m impressed you made it this far,” the king said. Then she generated several fireballs, which grew in size. She grinned at the party. “Unexpected guests, I’ll allow you to amuse me. Take care you do not turn to ash!”
“Maple, brace yourself!”
“Pierce Guard! Glow of Deliverance!”
“Rah!”
A powerful first blow.
Massive black fireballs filled the room. As they touched the floor, a pillar of fire enveloped everyone.
✦ ✦ ✦
When the flames died down, Maple Tree leaped out—unharmed.
The fires sealed off the corridor behind them. Perhaps that was to be expected, but the room-wide AOE had not dealt any fixed damage.
“Flash Spout!”
Sally generated a torrent, sending the twins flying high—directly toward the king.
““Destroy Mode! Double Stamp!””
Sixteen hammers swung at the king, but all were blocked by barriers of flame.
““Whoa?!””
These attacks were so strong, they’d shatter any ordinary defenses. The twins had almost never seen their attacks blocked, so their jaws dropped.
“Waterway!”
The instant the twins’ blows failed, Sally darted past them into the dancing flames. With Maple’s defenses active, there was no risk of overextending herself.
“Water Cowl! Double Slash!”
Her daggers enhanced with extra water-element strikes, Sally slashed at the king’s body. Sparks flew—proof she’d done damage.
“It worked!”
“So she can’t block everything.”
“In which case…”
“We’ll just have to make openings!”
Bait her into using those barriers, then let the twins’ attacks through after. Getting their most damaging attack to land was far more effective than engaging in a lengthy exchange.
“In that case…Full Deploy!”
Maple generated her artillery and began firing into the air. But the king nimbly darted through Maple’s barrage—firing back several flaming spears.
“Can’t let those in!”
If they looked pointy, Maple Tree couldn’t let them hit. It was their guild’s iron law. Chrome shifted Necro’s form, enlarging his shield to cover Maple.
Maple’s weapons were finite. Unlike the girl herself, they’d shatter on a hit and weren’t covered by Martyr’s Devotion. She had no way of protecting them herself.
“Thank you!”
“Sure thing!”
“Iz, let’s fence her in.”
“Yeah, I’ll follow your lead.”
“Tornado!”
“Fey, Item Boost.”
Matching Maple’s barrage, Kanade blocked the king’s escape route with an AOE spell, and Iz used her cannons to further limit the king’s options. That forced the boss to drop low enough that Kasumi could close in.
“Armored Arms! First Blade: Heat Haze!”
No matter how fast her foe was, if they were in range, this move let Kasumi teleport to them. It was nigh impossible to dodge, but those flame barriers appeared to block it.
“Now, Sally!”
“Ice Pillar!”
Ice rose up from the ground, fencing in the king, preventing her from countering Kasumi’s attack or penetrating Maple’s defenses.
“It’s all yours!”
They’d set her up. Kasumi leaped to one side, and the twins tightened their grip on their hammers, eyes on the king.
““Weapon Hurl!””
Sixteen hammers shot through the gaps between the icy pillars. Eight players had worked together to ensure the king could not escape this one attack. Every hammer hit home—and the king’s HP bar hit zero.
Mai and Yui celebrated the success, and the heap of hammers fell aside as the king got back on her feet.
“A fine attack! Any more fighting here will bring the walls down—I’ll be waiting in the final chamber. Come play with me again.”
With that, she vanished in a plume of black fire.
“Oh, she was a mid-boss.”
“Looks like.”
“But now we know what the real boss is.”
“Yes, that’s what ‘waiting’ meant.”
“We can do this! Just back the twins up like we did here!”
“Yep. We set the table so they can serve.”
““We’ll do our part!””
But first—more exploration. Only one door led farther in, and it likely wouldn’t lead directly to the boss chamber.
It would never do to let the monsters on the way to the boss take them down.
They refocused on the task at hand and pushed the door open.