The night was as dark as ink, and on the streets of Tolbana, the torchlight cast long, distorted shadows.
The bell of the high tower rang, once, then again, like a death knell for the impending duel, pressing heavily on every player's heart.
In front of the central stone pillar in the labyrinth area, firelight flickered, illuminating forty-four tense and resolute faces.
They had set off together at noon and had walked for nearly two hours to reach this place.
Diabel stood at the very front of the team, his excellent blue armor reflecting a cold gleam.
He surveyed the crowd, a gentle, knightly smile on his face, but the finger unconsciously tapping repeatedly on his sword hilt betrayed his inner turmoil.
"Everyone, thank you for coming."
Diabel's voice was loud, stirring layers of echoes in the empty stone chamber.
"Before the official raid, I will finalize the team configuration."
He unrolled the parchment in his hand, on which were the names of all participants.
"Groups A to F, six to eight people per group, each with their own duties!"
Chen Mo stood in the shadows of the crowd, his hands in his pockets, listening indifferently to Diabel's pre-battle mobilization.
Argo stood beside him, her newly equipped [Boots of Gale] giving her an air of lightness and sharpness, as if she could merge into the darkness at any moment.
"Group E, Chen Mo, Argo."
Diabel's voice was neither too loud nor too soft, yet it carried clearly.
Chen Mo's eyebrow twitched slightly.
A group with only two people?
"Your mission is mobile support," Diabel's gaze swept over them, adding, "The battlefield changes rapidly; wherever a gap appears, you will fill it."
The words were high-sounding.
But Chen Mo instantly saw through the deeper meaning.
The so-called mobile support was to completely marginalize him and Argo, these two potential "variables."
It kept them away from the main battlefield, preventing them from competing for the BOSS's aggro, and even more so from threatening Diabel's coveted final blow.
"Understood."
Chen Mo's response was calm and unruffled, as if he hadn't heard the implied meaning at all.
"Group C, Kirito, Asuna, Mito."
The three-person team was assigned to the frontal assault group, facing the BOSS directly—the most dangerous and crucial position.
Kirito nodded silently, Asuna gripped the hilt of the rapier at her waist, while Mito glanced uneasily at Chen Mo, a hint of worry in her eyes.
"Excellent!" Diabel put away the list, raised his longsword, "Then, target the BOSS room, let's go!"
The team began to move, their heavy footsteps merging into a suffocating torrent on the winding stone stairs.
Chen Mo followed at the end of the line, unhurriedly, the handwriting on Yabashi's note flashing through his mind.
Paralysis Potion.
Even with a potent poison, someone of Yabashi's caliber couldn't solo the BOSS with it.
His target could only be a person.
And among the entire team, the one he hated most was undoubtedly Chen Mo himself.
"What are you planning?"
Argo leaned closer, her voice very low, like a cat's paw scratching at one's heart.
"I'm thinking about how to save someone later."
Chen Mo's answer stunned Argo.
Save someone?
Save whom?
Before she could press further, Diabel, at the very front of the team, stopped.
"We're here!"
Before them was a giant stone door carved with ferocious dog head reliefs, and an ominous, bloody smell seeped out in wisps from its cracks.
Diabel took a deep breath, turned to face everyone, and gave his final encouragement.
"Everyone! Beyond this door is the first floor's guardian BOSS, [Kobold Lord Ilfang]!"
"According to beta test intel, he is Level 15, has 15,000 HP, and wields an axe and a round shield!"
He deliberately concealed the most crucial information.
"Remember, our core tactic is 'rotation'! Don't get greedy; retreat immediately if your HP is dangerous! Surviving is victory!"
"Are you ready?"
"Oh—!"
Forty-four players roared in unison, the sound wave almost tearing off the high tower's dome.
Diabel nodded with satisfaction, placed his hands against the stone door, and pushed with all his might.
"Creak—"
The heavy stone door slowly opened, and a foul stench, a mix of decay and blood, rushed out.
Beyond the door was a huge, empty circular throne room.
And on the throne, a colossal figure over three meters tall stood with its back to the crowd, its iron-gray armor covered in dried dark red bloodstains.
It seemed to have heard the movement behind it and slowly turned around.
A kobold head on a human body, a pair of crimson eyes glowing in the gloom, filled with savagery and hunger.
[Kobold Lord Ilfang]
[Level: 15]
[HP: 15000 / 15000]
"Roar—!"
A deafening roar transformed into a tangible sound wave that swept across the entire hall!
"Disperse as planned! Group A, move up!"
Diabel's command was like an arrow, instantly piercing the stagnation caused by fear among the crowd.
The battle erupted!
"For survival!"
The six shield warriors of Group A roared, raising their shields to form a steel defense line, charging towards the BOSS.
Ilfang grabbed the giant axe and round shield beside him, took a step, and the heavy axe blade, whistling as it tore through the air, slammed down!
Clang—!!!
Sparks flew! The violent clang of metal made eardrums ache!
The shield warrior at the very front's legs buckled, and he was sent sliding back several meters, a terrifying, bone-deep gash left on his shield!
"Now! Groups C and D, attack from the flanks!"
Diabel commanded again.
Kirito and Asuna's figures, one left and one right, like two arrows released from a bowstring, instantly cut into the battlefield.
Sword light flashed, and the brilliance of skills intertwined in the dim stone chamber, forming a dazzling web of death.
Chen Mo and Argo stood at the edge of the battlefield, like spectators uninvolved.
"The HP is dropping faster than expected," Argo stared intently at the BOSS's HP bar above its head; the red energy bar was visibly shrinking, quickly dropping below 80%.
"Too fast."
Chen Mo's brow furrowed slightly.
This was not a good sign.
The players' high morale made them a bit overzealous, and their output rhythm completely exceeded the safe range.
If this continued, the BOSS would enter its berserk phase prematurely.
And chaos was the best soil for conspiracies to grow.
Just then, a cry filled with alarm ripped through the clamor of the battlefield!
"Chen Mo! Watch out behind you!"
It was Kirito!
Chen Mo didn't even turn his head.
A gust of wind, carrying a fishy smell, was already pressing against the back of his neck.
That was the sound of a dagger cutting through the air.
In the chaos of the crowd, Yabashi's face, twisted with venom, flashed by; on the dagger in his hand, a layer of eerie purple glow was Quenching.
Paralysis Potion.
He had finally made his move.
Argo's pupils suddenly contracted, her body instinctively about to react, but Yabashi's speed was too fast, the distance too close; everything was too late!
However, Yabashi's movements, in Chen Mo's perception, were infinitely slowed down.
He could even clearly see the opponent's knuckles trembling from excitement, and those bloodshot eyes.
Now.
Chen Mo's body subtly shifted at an incredible angle.
The poisoned dagger, almost grazing his clothes, struck nothing!
Yabashi's triumphant sneer instantly froze on his face, turning into extreme bewilderment!
How could this be?!
He had no time to think, because a hand had already silently pressed against his chest.
There was no earth-shattering crash, only a dull "thump."
An irresistible, immense force instantly penetrated his body.
"Ugh—"
Yabashi felt as if he had been hit head-on by a charging rhinoceros; his breastbone shattered inch by inch, and he flew backward like a broken sack, tracing a pathetic arc in the air, crashing heavily against the distant stone wall, his HP bar instantly turning into critical red.
He couldn't get up again!
The entire process happened in a flash.
When everyone reacted, they only saw Yabashi flying backward at an extremely fast speed.
And Chen Mo had already turned around, as if he had merely casually swatted an annoying fly, and refocused his gaze on the center of the battlefield.
At that very moment, the BOSS's HP officially dropped below the 50% red alert line!
"Roar!!!"
Ilfang let out an even more ferocious roar than before, his entire body's muscles suddenly swelling, his crimson eyes glowing terrifyingly bright!
"Everyone, pay attention! The BOSS is berserk!"
Diabel's voice echoed throughout the hall, but in his tone, there was an uncontrollable fervor and excitement.
The time was almost here.