Chapter 60

Blaine was still holding out with his gravity magic, but once its duration ended, things would get ugly. Either Theo would have to throw himself forward and land on one of the stepping stones by sheer luck, or he’d plunge straight into the lava and be rendered combat incapable.

While he hesitated, the coordinated assault began. In Phase Two, they had to dodge or block the sweeping strikes of Veer’s wings and arms while standing on the stepping stones. A single mistake meant an express trip into the molten lake.

From his perch on the swing, Blaine also started attacking Veer. Thanks to his gravity magic, he was stable as though planted on the stepping stones. With none of Veer’s strikes reaching him, it might have been the perfect position—for Blaine, anyway. Not for Theo. Maybe before he had Eternal it would have been ideal, but now he had to stick close to Veer.

With their party already short of the recommended numbers, one lost source of damage would be a massive blow.

Theo darted his gaze around, measuring the distance from the swing to the nearest stepping stone, then counting the number of stones between that one and the closest point to Veer.

Fingers curled as he counted, Theo suddenly grabbed Blaine’s arm, pulling it down mid-cast.

“Blaine, could you throw me over there?”

“Huh?”

Blaine halted his spell and blinked. Theo stretched his arm out toward the nearest stone. “There.”

“…?”

Following his finger, Blaine frowned at him, puzzled. Theo corrected himself, thinking it might sound too reckless.

“Forget throwing. Just give me a boost—I’ll jump.”

Blaine, caught off guard, still nodded and linked his arms to offer support. Theo planted one foot in Blaine’s hold, summoned his Veil, and lifted his other foot off the ground.

“How long does your gravity last?”

“About two minutes.”

“Then I’ll come get you when it’s over. Stay here until then.”

“Okay.”

Blaine looked reluctant, but Theo didn’t have time to comfort him. Once Theo was ready, Blaine braced himself and pushed, giving Theo the lift he needed. Theo soared through the air and landed safely on the first stepping stone.

He waved at Blaine to show he’d made it, then pressed onward. Seven strides later, he arrived at the stone nearest to Veer—the one Aslan was holding.

As soon as Theo stepped down, a massive curtain of darkness surged up around the stone like a veil.

The stepping stone where Aslan stood was the very front line. He noticed Theo’s arrival but had no time to talk. Instead, their gazes locked for a moment in silent acknowledgment.

With Theo joining the fray, morale surged. He weaved through the dark veils, dodging Veer’s strikes with ease, retreating to Aslan’s side only when his timing faltered. If Theo moved close, Aslan always intercepted the blow for him.

After a short bout, Theo turned back to check on Blaine. Then, even though Veer wasn’t attacking, Theo cloaked himself in Stealth and slipped into the Veil.

Running fast through the stretch of darkness, he emerged where his first leap had started. Blaine’s gravity spell had just ended—Theo grabbed him at the last second and dragged him back into the Veil.

“That was close.”

“Yeah, I thought I was done for.”

Blaine pressed a hand to his chest, still shaken. A heartbeat later and he would’ve dropped straight into lava. Just thinking about it was terrifying.

Theo led him out of the Veil and placed him at a safe spot behind the lines, then returned to the front. Blaine couldn’t handle the chaos at the vanguard, but Theo couldn’t stay back either.

Aslan, glancing sidelong at Theo, noticed where he’d gone. Blaine was no longer on the swing but on the stones instead. Aslan gave a short nod and turned back to fighting.

But almost immediately after Blaine’s arrival on the stepping stones, everyone noticed something strange. Attacks seemed to be drawn toward him. At first, they thought it was coincidence, but the more it happened, the clearer it became.

Veer’s strikes were definitely focusing on Blaine. Perhaps because he had forced the phase to advance, the patterns themselves seemed altered just for him.

Even though Blaine had never faced a mini-boss like Veer—or set foot in a dungeon like Hexi’s High Fortress—he didn’t seem shaken by the shift in patterns. Using his gravity magic, he smoothly deflected or dodged Veer’s attacks and kept up his offensive without losing pace or rhythm.

Once they had whittled Veer’s health down to about two-thirds, it suddenly bared its teeth and let out a vicious roar. At the same moment, Aslan shouted urgently,

“Fall back! Get to the swing!”

At his warning, everyone turned and sprinted toward the swing. Veer smashed its clenched fists into the stepping stones, shattering them in every direction.

Players tumbled helplessly into the lava, their paths cut off. Even so, a fair number managed to survive and scramble back onto the swing. Veer glared at them with blazing hatred, then braced itself against the wall. With a twisted motion of agony, it began pulling its massive body free.

As its body tore loose from the wall, a grotesque, slime-drenched tail dangled limply behind it. Without warning, it pitched forward and plummeted into the lava.

SPLAAASH! The impact sent molten waves surging high, crashing down on the swing. Shield-bearers quickly raised their barriers, and the party escaped unscathed.

The lava pool quieted. No one spoke. Not even a swallow broke the silence.

Four players crept cautiously toward the edge, gripping the chains as they leaned over to watch for movement below.

“There!” one shouted.

At once, a massive, lava-drenched hand burst upward, skin glowing red and cracked like dried magma. Veer’s hand clamped onto the swing, its body straining to haul itself up.

No orders were needed. Everyone rushed in, hacking and blasting at its hand. Unable to withstand the focused assault, Veer shrieked and slipped back down, vanishing beneath the molten surface with a heavy splash.

Again and again it clawed its way up, and again the players fought to beat it down. All that remained were seared chunks of flesh, clinging to the swing’s edge. The stench was unbearable—nauseating enough to make them gag. Worse, the flesh was corrosive, eating away at the swing itself. They had to scrape it off quickly, covering their noses all the while.

Just as they busied themselves cleaning, a violent tremor shook beneath their feet. Something slammed into the swing from below.

“Shields!”

Aslan roared.

They huddled toward the center as shield-bearers surrounded them, barriers flaring to life.

FWOOSH!!

Pillars of lava erupted around them, lighting up the dungeon in a hellish glow.

And climbing those columns came Veer itself.

Its body was cracked like cooling magma, lava bleeding through the fissures. Its feathers had burned away into melted clumps, its once-proud wings now skeletal frames.

The regal figure from before was gone. It shrieked in monstrous rage, seized the swing’s chains, and began biting through them.

Ranged players immediately unleashed their attacks on the chain it clung to.

CLANG!! One chain snapped. Then the opposite diagonal chain followed. The swing now dangled by only two.

Veer shrieked again, leaping to another chain and tearing into it. Ranged fighters fired desperately. They had to break the chains as quickly as it did. If it managed to outpace them, the swing would collapse into the lava like a slide.

By luck and timing, the chains were severed at the same time. The swing plunged downward. Everyone scrambled to keep balance—if one side hit too soon, the swing could flip and dump them all.

They clustered near the center, bracing themselves.

BOOOOOM!

The swing slammed onto the lava’s surface. Waves of molten rock surged up like towering walls, hissing as the floorboards began to smolder and burn. Relief flickered across their faces—until they looked up.

Veer launched itself from the lava pillars, skeletal wings spread wide, and came crashing down toward the swing.

This was it. The decisive blow. If they failed, the swing would split apart and the entire raid would fail.

Shields layered upon shields. Everyone readied their Actions, preparing to counter.

In the chaos, Blaine stood calm, his eyes locked on the descending monster. Slowly, he raised both arms. Blue light flared across his arms, tracing the patterns of magical inscriptions.

A vast magic circle bloomed beneath Veer’s falling body.

Everyone stared, dumbfounded. Even Theo.

Blaine turned his head, met Theo’s eyes, and smiled brightly. Then he unleashed the spell.

With a deafening blast, Veer’s massive body was ripped from its descent and hurled sideways, smashing into the wall with bone-crushing force. It didn’t even get the chance to resist.