Kaito blinked in surprise when he saw The Thief's Way holding a dagger in each hand. Dual daggers? He hadn't expected that. There was no announcement in the town about someone gaining such mastery. Could it be from a hidden quest?
Still, he quickly reasoned it out. Not everyone flaunts their achievements, and Dual Dagger Mastery wasn't something that rare. After all, once a Rogue went through their job change and picked a specialization, they could learn it from a trainer. It was powerful, yes, but not unattainable.
"After five days of practice, I finally got my Eviscerate to level 5," The Thief's Way explained with a grin. "That triggered a Town Guard quest. The reward was Dual Dagger Mastery."
Kaito raised his eyebrows. So it was a unique quest. Only the first person to reach level 5 in Eviscerate could trigger it. It was a small but solid proof of the thief's talent.
"Impressive," Kaito admitted. It was no small feat. Leveling Eviscerate to level 5 in just five days meant near-constant grinding. And proficiency in Glory wasn't gained just by spamming skills completion rate mattered too. Each time you used a skill, the game judged how well you executed it. High completion gave faster proficiency gains. Without that, reaching level 5 in just a few days was impossible.
Even Suzune and Raven Blade, both natural thieves, had only managed to get their skills to level 4. As for himself, Kaito had only pushed Cut and Cross Slash to level 5 and that was with his ten years of experience guiding his execution. Otherwise, he wouldn't have made it.
The Thief's Way beamed under the praise, his pride showing. Clearly, Kaito's acknowledgment meant a lot to him.
But they didn't waste time. They knew they only had thirty seconds of lowered armor to exploit, thanks to the thief's Armor Removal. Both men launched into a frenzy.
The Thief's Way's dual daggers danced in blurs of silver, every strike carving shallow wounds into Elder Faelion. Meanwhile, Kaito used the opening to press harder, aiming at weak points and forcing the boss to defend himself. Together, they made the silver-ranked demon cultist stumble slightly for the first time.
Outside the church, the change was obvious. Until now, most players had been stuck dealing 1 point of mandatory damage no matter what. But the moment Armor Removal landed, their attacks started to break through. Tens of damage popped above Elder Faelion's head, and the crowd erupted with excitement.
"Finally! Real damage!"
"Hit him harder, burn all your skills!"
They rushed in, unleashing everything they had. Fireballs, arrows, daggers, spears every class dumped their cooldowns without restraint. The damage spiked, but their rhythm broke. Spells missed, arrows scattered, and warriors overextended. Within minutes, their mana bars were drained, forcing them to guzzle down bread and fountain water in frustration.
Then, just as momentum built, Elder Faelion lifted his staff. With a dark shimmer, a new effect cloaked him.
Thornmail!
Half of every melee strike reflected back at the attacker.
Kaito froze for a heartbeat, sweat beading on his forehead. His chances of interrupting Elder Faelion were already slim, and now every slash risked cutting his own health in half.
"Great," Kaito muttered bitterly. "As if this wasn't hard enough already." His plan of bursting the boss down in one sustained combo was ruined. For now, he could only rely on careful, controlled basic strikes.
Beside him, The Thief's Way gritted his teeth. "Damn it! Viscount Elrick's healing is all on you Boss. He won't even toss me a single heal!" He ripped off a chunk of bread and chewed quickly to recover some health. Fortunately, Elder Faelion's hatred was locked firmly on Kaito, so the thief's way didn't have to worry about being the target.
Kaito rolled his eyes. "That's my good friend you're talking about," he shot back sarcastically, lips curling. Still, he knew the thief was right. If Elder Faelion turned his attention on his teammate, they'd be in big trouble.
Just then, Elder Faelion began chanting again, the abyssal energy thick around his staff. Kaito's instincts screamed danger. Without hesitation, he lunged in and slashed at the priest's right elbow, the spot he'd been targeting all along.
The timing was perfect. The flame-wreathed blade cut across the joint, and Elder Faelion staggered, his spell collapsing before it could complete.
"Not this time," Kaito muttered, exhaling sharply.
The fight was far from over, but with The Thief's Way at his side and his own strategy coming together, Kaito knew he had a real chance now.
The thirty-second window ended quickly. Even with hundreds of players pouring everything they had into it, Elder Faelion's health bar only dropped by about seventy percent. It was progress, but nowhere near enough. And with Armor Removal now on cooldown for two full minutes, the damage rate dropped again. Still, the brief success proved something important this boss could be killed. It wasn't hopeless.
But Kaito's third uncle wasn't convinced. He connected to Kaito through voice and said urgently, "Is there a way to get the guards to move aside? If the boss comes out into the open, more people can attack. Otherwise, our damage isn't enough. Even if we shave his health down, he'll just heal it back up!"
Kaito shook his head. "No, third uncle. That would be a mistake." His tone was calm but firm. "If we let the boss out, the fight will turn chaotic. Everyone outside will swarm in, and when the loot drops, it'll be a mess. Worse, Elder Faelion could break free of the choke point. Keeping him locked at the entrance is actually safer for us."
He paused, his eyes sharp. "Don't panic about the healing either. Let him recover. The more he spams heals, the faster his mana burns out. Once his pool is empty, he's done. That's how we'll win."
Kaito's patience was different from most players. He didn't care if this battle lasted four or five hours. For him, the loot from a level 45 Silver Boss was worth every second.
"By the way," Kaito added, glancing toward the priests in the Genesis ranks, "do any of them know Mana Burn? That skill is devastating against NPCs like him. It drains their mana directly. If anyone has it, use it now."
Mana-burning skills weren't particularly rare, and Kaito had guessed right someone in Genesis had them.
As soon as he mentioned it, his third uncle clapped his hands and called for assistance. Two priests quickly ran over, and with the help of Genesis's warriors pushing back the crowd, they managed to squeeze into the inner circle close to the church entrance. Without hesitation, both priests began casting Mana Burn on Elder Faelion.
The effect was immediate. Mana Burn was one of the most reliable ways to drain an NPC's power, and every time the priests used it, Elder Faelion let out a furious roar. At the same time, the skill was notorious for pulling aggro. Normally, priests using it would almost guarantee being targeted by the boss. But thanks to Kaito's warning, the two priests had been positioned on opposite sides of the church entrance. Even if Elder Faelion unleashed one of his devastating ultimate attacks, there was no chance of wiping them both out in a single strike.
Still, the situation remained grim. A level 45 Silver Boss appearing at this stage of the game was abnormal. Kaito couldn't help but wonder if he had exposed Elder Faelion the wrong way. Perhaps there had been another method, one that didn't turn him into such a monster. But there was no going back now. The only option left was to fight through to the end.
Two long hours dragged on. Elder Faelion's health bar remained almost untouched, still sitting at full, but his mana bar was clearly shrinking. By this point, Kaito hadn't seen him cast Abyssal Shadow Bolt for a while. The demon was relying only on basic attacks, his magical firepower sealed away.