[COMBAT COMMENCED]

[LEVEL SYNCED]

Welp, I assume that is the half the place we begin combating. Fortunately for each me and Steerage, it will appear that the one particular person we’ll be combating proper now was the top honcho herself.

[Vesper Mica: Level 59]

[Head Intellect of Marquee]

“Properly, that is definitely a stage far past my very own,” I chuckled, taking a look at my pitiful stage of round 36. “And right here I assumed that stage sync was speculated to even the taking part in area.”

“Haha, Moriya,” Steerage exasperatedly joked aloud. “No, the extent sync is for the advantage of the stage and fight design. It is there to be sure that no one would be capable to steamroll by dungeons and enemies, whereas additionally ensuring that every thing would stay related even when the participant had massively out leveled the content material.”

I set free a sigh as I positioned a hand on my hip. With us being caught inside an occasion once more, there was no hurt in delaying issues once more, particularly since, as soon as once more, there was no timer telling us that we needed to hurry up and end the boss.

Turning to Steerage, she was at the moment poised on the prepared, her keyboard already glowing along with her energy as she clearly analyzed the boss. having seemingly observed my gaze, she checked out me humorous earlier than letting out an ungainly frown. “What’s it now, Moriya?”

I blinked earlier than turning round and shrugging. “I do not actually know. Simply wished to take a look at you abruptly.”

“W-Wha- We do not have the time to flirt proper now, Moriya,” she stammered behind me, making me flip again round once more simply to see that cute blush on her face. “I do not know what this character does, not to mention bear in mind after I even designed her within the first place.”

“Which means we’re stepping into blind once more,” I chuckled, going again right into a extra critical state as I took my pistols out. “Seeing because it’s nonetheless simply us, I suppose that we’ll simply be repeating what we did with Lewis?”

“As if we now have another alternative,” she scoffed. “Till we be taught new info, we’ll simply follow the standard technique of hitting it till it stops transferring.”

Shrugging on the oh-so-helpful evaluation, I educated my weapons on the unmoving Head Mind. Vesper was her title… Type of manly-sounding, however I suppose it matches her clear no-nonsense perspective and scowl.

“Prepared?” I requested.

“Pull it.”

“You are the boss…”

[*BANG! BANG! BANG!*]

Going with my regular opener within the type of [Blood Shot], [Iron Spread], and [Hemolysis], the struggle formally started. Instantly, the lady… slowly walked in the direction of me and wielded her cane prefer it was some type of sword. Seeing how slowly she was strolling, I made a decision to go forward and transfer away, casually kiting the lady who hasn’t even landed successful on me but.

[ENEMY HP: 98%]

“That is type of bizarre,” I identified at Steerage as we each pelted the gradual girl with our assaults. “She’s not even attempting to chase me.”

“That simply means she’s acquired quite a lot of gimmicks up her sleeve,” Steerage rapidly replied simply as she put a regen on me. “She hasn’t finished any of her mechanics, proper?”

With my fingers nonetheless pulling on the triggers, I saved a pointy eye on my HUD as I waited for the boss to do one thing… something, actually…

“Yeah, she hasn’t finished something but,” I replied to Steerage’s prior query. “She’s simply taking our assaults like they’re nothing although.” And contemplating the truth that I bear in mind seeing this girl hack out a lung nearly an hour in the past, I had a sense that this present state of battle was going to vary drastically within the subsequent minute or so.

[ENEMY HP: 95%]

Wanting on the enemy [HP] once more, the truth that it was happening much more slowly than Lewis did type of already advised me that we have been gonna be in right here for the lengthy haul. Additionally, we have already shaved off 5 p.c of her well being, and she or he nonetheless hasn’t finished something but. Simply what on this planet was this girl ready for earlier than she started-

[*COUGH! COUGH! COUGH!*]

I virtually flinched after I thought Vesper was going to launch an assault. As a substitute, I paused as I watched her cough her lungs out, smoke erupting from her mouth as her cigarette landed on the bottom beneath her.

“Uh.. What’s she doing?” Steerage requested.

“How ought to I do know?” I rapidly identified. “Nothing confirmed up on my finish but.”

It was type of disconcerting how an entire lot of nothing had occurred but. Right here we have been taking pictures at a boss that has finished nothing besides stroll in the direction of me with a menacing swagger, taking actually no injury whereas the boss herself was taking hits like they have been nothing.

“Properly, she’s acquired to do one thing ultimately,” Steerage whined, her tone virtually coming off as impatient. “Clearly, I did not design this struggle. If I did, she ought to’ve finished one thing already.”

“Is not this a superb factor although?” I awkwardly chuckled. “If she’s doing nothing, then why are we-“

“Get into formation!”

[PROTECT THE HEAD INTELLECT: 44%]

I blinked as one thing new popped up in my HUD. The boss herself was nonetheless in the course of the sector coughing up a storm, however the glowing orange indicators on the bottom confirmed that one thing was up. That, and the actual fact that there have been now folks marching across the edges of the sector type of clued me in on what was going to occur.

“Moriya?”

“One thing’s occurring,” I rapidly referred to as out. “Go to the aspect reverse of me. There’s gonna be an assault coming throughout the sector in a cross sample.”

“Acquired it.”

Transferring into place, each Steerage and I watched as the sides of the sector all of the sudden grew to become a hive of exercise.

“FIRE!”

By the point the forged bar was crammed up, there have been folks by the tip of every of the orange indicators’ space, all of them aiming some type of weapon that then fired out within the cross formation that we simply prevented. To my shock, they then rapidly disappeared, vanishing as in the event that they have been actually ghosts that had simply finished their job.

“Properly, that is new,” I could not assist however touch upon the mechanic.

“That was… They have been Advertisements, however they weren’t?” Steerage thought aloud.

“What? What are these Advertisements now-“

“Moriya!”

[DIE: 99%]

What the-

⬛⬛⬛

“Properly then… That was an assault and a half…”

I stewed within the darkness of the void as I waited for the struggle to reset. I used to be careless in the truth that I simply stood nonetheless like an fool whereas speaking to Steerage, letting the boss slowly stroll as much as me and forged that one-shot assault on me with out even a lot as a warning. I may nonetheless see the way it occurred; along with her cane raised up excessive and her face turning into one giant snarl earlier than she then introduced the factor down on my head like a upset dad or mum.

Nonetheless, a minimum of we now knew that there was a purpose why she was that gradual. If she may one-shot us the second she acquired shut, then her being that gradual was a deliberate steadiness option to be sure that the struggle remained honest. And that one mechanic that she bothered to point out… That might suggest that her different mechanics would additionally revolve round exterior assist whereas the boss herself would simply be a strolling apocalypse that would kill folks in a single hit.

“Nonetheless, that is type of taking too lengthy…”

Crossing my arms within the void, I could not assist however hum in wait because the, properly, await me to respawn was beginning to take longer than a couple of minutes. Then once more, that will additionally imply that Steerage was one way or the other holding her personal towards the Head Mind. For the dev to final this lengthy towards the boss all on her personal meant quite a lot of issues, however that additionally meant that this struggle was extra intuitive than we thought it will be.

“When are you gonna die, Steerage?”

I chuckled at my very own sentence after a couple of minutes. For me to want dying on Steerage only for us to lastly respawn again into the struggle collectively was type of telling as to what sort of world we have been now in.

…

…

Any time now…

“Okay, that is truly taking some time…”

What on this planet was Steerage doing that was making her final this lengthy anyway? Might she even see the symptoms on the bottom that will assist her survive? Or was she simply therapeutic by the injury and attempting to make herself final that means? Both means, this has gone on for therefore lengthy that I used to be truly beginning to get bored.

Then once more, why would I even be mad about this association? If she was able to soloing the boss all on her personal, then why should not I simply let her? She clearly had all of it below management… Wait…

If that occurs, do I even get [EXP] for it?

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