The Scavenger's Cloak was more than just a piece of fabric; it was a void. As Han Jue moved through the lower corridors, the ambient light seemed to bend around him. To the naked eye, he was nothing more than a trick of the light, a smudge of soot against the obsidian walls.
He arrived at the threshold of the Heart Chamber ten minutes before the Golden Dawn.
The room was vast, a cathedral of bone and pressurized mana. In the center stood the Boss of the Abyssal Gate: The Grave-Warden of the Sunken Epoch. It was a towering construct of fused monster skeletons and solidified shadow, held together by glowing azure runes.
[Grave-Warden of the Sunken Epoch - Level 50 (Boss)] [Current State: Dormant] [Soul Value: 250,000 Points]
Han Jue licked his lips. 250,000. That would clear a quarter of his debt in one go. But he was only Level 10. Taking this thing head-on was suicide.
[Warning: The 'Creditors' are approaching. Estimated arrival: 120 seconds.] [System Suggestion: Use 'Sovereign's Extraction' on the 'Core of Stability' to induce Berserk State.]
"Induce Berserk?" Han Jue whispered. "If it goes Berserk, it'll kill everyone in the room."
[Exactly. A Berserk Boss ignores 50% of Magic Resistance. Target 'Kael' is a Magic-based user.]
Han Jue didn't hesitate. He climbed the massive skeletal leg of the Golem, his movements fluid and silent. Near the chest cavity, a pulsing blue gem—the Core of Stability—kept the thousands of bones in alignment.
He placed his hand on the gem.
"Extraction," he hissed.
Unlike the Basilisk, the Golem didn't have flesh to wither. Instead, the blue light of the gem began to drain into Han Jue's palm. The runes on the Golem's body flickered from calm azure to a violent, bleeding crimson.
[Partial Extraction Successful!] [Absorbed: 10,000 Soul Points (Mana Purity).] [Condition Met: The Grave-Warden has entered 'Endless Rage' mode.] [New Balance: -993,750 Soul Points.]
Han Jue dropped from the Golem just as the heavy iron doors of the chamber swung open.
Kael stumbled into the room, his cape singed and his face smeared with the soot of the Glow-Worm fight. The Priest followed, her mana breathlessly low, her staff trembling.
"There it is," Kael panted, his eyes landing on the Golem. "The Heart... wait. Why is it red?"
"Captain, the energy readings are off the charts!" the Archer yelled, his bow already raised. "It's supposed to be a Rank-D Boss, but this... this feels like Rank-S!"
The Grave-Warden let out a sound like grinding tectonic plates. Its empty eye sockets ignited with red fire. It didn't wait for them to buff or prepare. It raised a massive fist made of dragon ribs and slammed it into the ground.
BOOM!
The shockwave sent the Tank flying, his heavy shield shattering like glass.
"Heal him! Use the Holy Nova!" Kael screamed, charging a fireball.
"I can't!" the Priest cried out. "The mana in the room is being drained! Something is sucking the air dry!"
From his perch in the shadows, Han Jue watched with cold satisfaction. He was the one sucking the air dry. Every spell Kael cast, every bit of mana the Priest tried to manifest, the System was "taxing" it, siphoning the overflow into Han Jue's own reservoir.
[Debt Collector's Field Activated.] [Siphoning 5% of all Mana cast in vicinity...] [Mana: 10 → 45... 80... 120!]
"It's not enough to just watch," Han Jue whispered to himself. He saw Kael preparing his ultimate spell—The Sun's Wrath. It was a high-tier A-Rank spell that could potentially end the boss even in its Berserk state.
If Kael got the kill, Han Jue got nothing.
"Executioner's Mark," Han Jue targeted the back of Kael's neck.
The red 'X' appeared.
As Kael reached the climax of his incantation, his body glowing with white-hot fire, Han Jue threw the Heart-Seeker Dagger he had purchased from the shop.
The dagger didn't aim to kill Kael. It aimed to disrupt.
The blade struck the 'X' on Kael's neck just as the fire left his hands. The spell didn't fly toward the Golem; it exploded in Kael's grip.
"ARGH!" Kael screamed as his own magic backfired, charring his arms and throwing him into the wall.
The Golem roared, sensing the weakened Mage. It raised its massive foot to crush the man who had abandoned Han Jue to the darkness.
"No... wait! Help me!" Kael pleaded, looking at his teammates.
But the Tank was unconscious, and the Archer and Priest were already running for the exit. They were doing exactly what Kael had done to Han Jue. They were leaving the "weak link" to die.
Han Jue stepped out of the shadows, the Scavenger's Cloak fluttering behind him like the wings of a crow. He walked past the screaming Kael and stood directly in the path of the Golem's descending foot.
"You're in my spot, Captain," Han Jue said, his voice echoing in the chamber.
He didn't look back at Kael's shocked, blood-filled eyes. He looked up at the Golem. His Mana was at its peak. His Debt was calling.
He raised his hand toward the Golem's chest.
"Time to collect the interest."