In the centre of the hidden realm was a black pavilion. Two people were sitting inside, conversing. One was a gorgeous young woman wearing a red skirt and a white blouse with a piece of cloth covering her eyes. The other was even younger, looking no more than sixteen years old. She had blond ponytail, wearing a short skirt, a top with a sleeveless jacket, and heavy black boots. Her pink and black style exuded a certain rebellious spirit.
Liam recognized both women. One was Toxanerla, a witch of the great circle. Liam had fought against her once as she stole the magic staff designated for Liberator Pontrakas. The other, younger woman was another witch of the great circle, Cecily Hellstone.
After getting a good grasp of the situation Liam carefully approached the pavilion. The two women were conversing, seemingly not noticing him. However, Liam was sure they were ignoring him on purpose. Only when he coughed lightly did the two women finally turn towards him.
"Oh, what an impolite guest you have, Cecily."
"Tsk. Don't know that guy. Didn't invite him. But he looks not bad. Maybe I'll allow him to stay. Hehe."
While Toxanerla had a gentle voice, Cecily appeared full of energy. She swayed on her chair and even her speech was much faster than average.
"Thank you for the offer. However, I am only here to ask a few questions.", said Liam.
"Questions? Questions? You barge into my home and want to ask questions? No no no no no. So impolite. Adventurer, the only one asking questions am I. For example, how did you find this place? Or do you have a girlfriend?"
"Miss Hellstone. Please, I am investigating…"
"So you are not answering my questions? Hmpf. I guess I need to teach you some manners. Don't worry, perhaps you will enjoy it!"
With those words Cecily suddenly jumped out of the pavilion, rushing towards Liam. In the air a large hammer made from solid stone formed in her hand and she delivered a devastating blow aiming right for Liam's head. Even the veteran was almost caught off guard, reacting purely on instinct as he ordered Reen to jump backwards.
[Stance -16]
The hammer missed its target but the wind it stirred up hit Liam's face prompting his eyes to narrow dangerously. Inside the pavilion Toxanerla stood up as well, taking a magic staff in her hand. The fight started abruptly. Liam barely had the time to check his enemies.
[Toxanerla, the poisonous witch of the third circle
Rank: Boss
Level: 59
HP: 70.000/70.000]
[Cecily Hellstone, the earthly witch of the fourth circle
Rank: Boss
Level: 59
HP: 72.000/72.000]
Two boss enemies and both were at his level. Liam knew this couldn't be a coincidence. He drew his swords, gripping them tightly. This fight would not be easy. Without a tank or healer, he couldn't endure many hits. A grin formed on his face.
At this moment Toxanerla made her move. She raised her staff and a beam of green light shot into the sky, directly crushing the pavilion to pieces.
"Toxy! My home!"
Toxanerla ignored Cecily's complaint. She gathered a vast amount of mana and pumped it into a magic circle. Green clouds shrouded the sky. A dangerous smell filled the air. A moment later a sphere of green, poisonous water rained down from the clouds right above Liam's head.
Liam naturally wouldn't remain still. He activated Reen's [Dash], his body turning into a blur. The poison was easily dodged. Liam made use of time before Cecily reacted to rush towards Toxanerla. He had decided to take her out first. A golden shimmer engulfed him as his ultimate skill [Holy Tempest] was activated. Simultaneously a dark shadow emerged behind Toxanerla's back coming from Liam's [Grip of the Dark].
The next second he was already upon the enemy. His swords flashed as Liam mercilessly struck the gorgeous witch.
[-2924!]
[-1462!]
At this point his damage against enemies of the same level was quite considerable, even if they were bosses. His normal attacks already dealt more than 4000 points of damage. But Liam was not done yet. His movements were a blur as [Cross Slash], [Holy Wave], and [Double Slash] followed instantly, causing an explosion of gorgeous holy light. The entire combo dealt around 12.000 points of damage, prompting Toxanerla to screech in pain:
"AHH! Dastardly adventurer! Don't you have any pity for beauty?!"
"Thief! Intruder! Stop! Let me smash you!", cried Cecily as well. The young-looking witch waved her hammer above her head and suddenly slammed it into the ground. The expected earthquake didn't occur. Instead, a slightly translucent hammer formed in the sky, advancing towards Liam as if someone tossed a mountain at him. An incredible pressure made it difficult to move. Liam could only help himself with an abrupt flash step.
[Stance -13]
"Haha!"
Cecily laughed excitedly. She saw Liam appear some distance away and immediately rushed over. However, Liam refused to engage with her. Thanks to Reen's speed he was able to keep his distance even without using [Dash]. He ran in a circle around Toxanerla at the centre. Poison spheres continued raining from the sky but as long as Liam kept moving, he wouldn't get hit. However, as the poison splashed on the ground it turned into puddles of poison which Liam was forced to evade.
"I said you should stop!"
With a loud cry Cecily stretched out a hand and made a grabbing motion. The rocks in front of Liam moved abruptly, forming a large rock hand which burst towards Liam in an attempt to catch him. Simultaneously Toxanerla waved her staff, sending a normal attack at Liam.
The veteran's eyes lit up. With a thought he disappeared from the spot. The shadow clinging to Toxanerla's back disappeared and was replaced with Liam's body. His swords instantly slashed from two sides like a terrifying pincer. Toxanerla let out a snort and took a step forward in an attempt to dodge. But how could this save her? Liam stuck close to her like a magnet and his swords easily reached her shoulders.
[-2924!]
[-1462!]
Due to [Grip of the Dark] three Dark Marks were gathered above the poison witch's head. Now two Holy Marks were added as well. With a thought the effect of his holy sword activated. As the blade landed, a flash of golden light shot at Toxanerla. Two of the dark marks exploded with ghostly laughter and were replaced by Holy Marks. Liam raised his sword high and smashed it down on the witch's head with extreme force as he used [Brutal Strike]. The Holy Marks erupted once more.
[-4504!]
[-635!]
Toxanerla groaned in pain and held her head. This was exactly what Liam wanted to see. His [Brutal Stike] had stunned the boss!
"Got you!"
At this moment a crisp voice came from the side. Cecily had finally caught up. Her eyes flashed with excitement as she swung her heavy hammer at Liam.
The veteran didn't dare to hesitate. But instead of dodging normally he used [Dash] to get away. Although the cost of stance was slightly higher, using [Dash] didn't reset his attacks. He could still use normal attacks right after. Thus, while he evaded Cecily's blow, his swords once again found Toxanerla.
[-2924!]
[-1462!]
However, this time something unexpected happened. Right at the moment Liam's swords hit her body, Toxanerla suddenly got rid of the stun. She instantly used a skill. Her body rotated in place like an ice skater and a poison hurricane instantly appeared around her.
"Damn!"
This time even Liam couldn't avoid it. He was hit by the poison hurricane and pushed back a few meters as a disgusting smell rose to his nose.
[-2631!]
[-2631!]
[-200!]
Two instances of the poison hurricane rocked his body, dealing more than 5000 points of damage in total. A fourth of Liam's entire HP bar disappeared. Additionally, he was affected with poison, losing two hundred HP per second.
The enemies didn't give him time to take an antidote. Cecily instantly appeared in front of him, slamming her hammer at Reen's head. Only at the very last second did he manage to take a step back, barely dodging the blow.
[Stance -15]
"You're good. Hehehe!"
Cecily laughed excitedly. She suddenly took Toxanerla as an example and spun on the spot at high speeds. Her hammer enlarged and she threatened to pulverize a large area. Liam tried to dodge but he felt a force pull him towards the witch. Just as he was about to escape with [Dash] he noticed the toxic hurricane in the distance dissipating. Toxanerla was revealed again with a sea of poison surrounding her.
Liam realized that he had to swallow the poison this time – quite literally. Reen shone in a golden and black light as luminous wings appeared on his back. With the help of a skill he shot into the sky, forming a beautiful arc as he dived down on Toxanerla. The basilisk crashed into the ground, sending out shockwaves of darkness and light, splashing poison in all directions.
[-983!]
[-666!]
"Adventurer! I will fight you to the death!"