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The gigantic figure in the middle of the room drew Cezar's attention the moment he entered.
Meanwhile, the others gazed incredulously at the figure before them. Though it resembled a Knoll, it also reminded Cezar of an ogre because of its large physique.
Of course, as a Knoll, despite being a variant, it still possessed its bulging stomach and horrific features, but its stalwart frame was shocking.
Compact muscles rippled with apparent power as the Knoll Chieftain lifted its scimitar to its shoulder. Compared to a normal Knoll's scimitar, the weapon it donned was many times larger and heavier. Just resting the weapon on its shoulder caused a few of the rocks near its feet to tremble.
"Mm, so the fucker is unusually large," Cezar muttered to himself while continuing to observe the Knoll Chieftain closely. In response to his action, a collection of information appeared on the enemy.
「Name: Knoll Chieftain
Ranking: D (Upper)
Type: Elemental/Physical
Health: 100%
Strength: C- Agility: D+
Wisdom: D- Dexterity: D」
Just the C- Strength attribute made the Knoll Chieftain a force to be reckoned with. Once the Strength touched upon the C Rank, it meant it was capable of high amounts of destruction. This was before using Mana to strengthen any of its attacks.
Meanwhile, everyone else's strength within the party was within the D- to D+ range. With Matthias and the other two Elites, attaining the D+ standard.
Plus, every change in ranking meant a noticeable upgrade of effectiveness that continued to snowball. After this range, the increase in effectiveness was pretty large.
In other words, an increase from D+ to C- meant at least a 25% increase in strength. This pattern continued until a C+ was approximately twice as strong as a D+ Rank attribute. Hence, the reason the Association and Corps only sought the higher-ranked individuals.
As the ranking grew, so did the power divide. Even amongst A Ranks—A-, A, and A+—there existed a large chasm in strength. It only grew worse with the appearance of the glorious S Rank.
As a result, Cezar rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Truth be told, he had enough Enhancement Points to upgrade his strength, however; the cost was becoming exorbitant. Outside of the F Rank, where each upgrade cost a single point, the cost accumulated with each successive increase, starting from E-.
But each ranking bracket possessed a unique price, calculated through a strict formula designed by the Fractured Monolith. Unless you reached the rank, you wouldn't know the cost of the upgrade. Granted, someone revealing this information ahead of time could fix this issue.
However, Cezar was already aware of the cost. Truth be told, it followed a pattern, but to find it out required a dedicated study of the numbers.
'Dad said it costs somewhere around 10 points. Compared to the earlier upgrades, that's a hefty jump,' Cezar thought. While this upgrade cost 10 points, the most costly upgrade within the D range was only 4 points! That was a 250% increase in price.
Needless to say, this was the reason behind their hoarding of points in that tutorial.
Nevertheless, this fight required matching strength. Without a second thought, Cezar used his points to increase his strength. A small shock wave emitted from his body as a visible improvement occurred in his muscle mass. Yet, the applied muscle mass didn't stay bulky, as the flow of Cezar's Mana soon chiseled it.
"Elliot, you're on defense. Do what you usually do and tank the blows. As for you, Priscilla, maintain your distance. Elaine, you're with me," Matthias commanded, issuing orders to everyone. However, issuing orders to Cezar was problematic because it was like talking to a brick wall.
"This isn't the time to rebel!" Elaine said with a frown.
But, Cezar merely clicked his tongue, "You're right. It's time for me to do what I wish."
"Whatever. Ragna, you're with me then," Matthias said, changing his plans to account for Cezar's defiance.
The moment they made their move, the Knoll Chieftain released a tremendous bellow. However, it wasn't enough to affect the team. They followed the orders received from Matthias, moving into their correct positions.
Ragna moved alongside Matthias and waited for him to fire an arrow at the Knoll Chieftain's joint, before boosting his speed with large bursts of lightning. When it came to spontaneous movement, Ragna held the top spot.
But how could such a monster be that easy to deal with?
The arrow didn't even puncture the leg as the Knoll Chieftain looked at them with a bizarre glint in its eyes. This caused Ragna to avert from his earlier plans of confronting the boss and dashed to the side.
Perhaps this display amused the Chieftain, or maybe it by the fact these kids tried to inflict damage upon its body sparked its rage. Either way, a dense shade of greenish aura appeared on its body, originating from the site of the attack.
'Oh? Its Mana is quite potent. Penetrating its defenses is going to require some effort. It looks like the Chieftain's defense is closely related to its strength attribute,' Matthias surmised, nocking another arrow, but he deluged this one with Mana. In fact, it didn't even resemble the prior arrow at all.
"Again!" Matthias instructed, aiming his shot at the opening in the Knoll Chieftain's actions.
Once again, Ragna's body flared with crackles of lightning as he dashed towards the Knoll Chieftain with a clenched fist. Some of his Mana converged at the tip of his spiked knuckled as he closed the distance.
Meanwhile, Elaine conjured two flames spears above her hands, ready to release them at a moment's notice. Blair, on the other hand, was focused on controlling forceful winds to redirect the Chieftain's steps. This allowed the team to limit the boss's realm of action.
Sadly, it proving to be more difficult than she expected. With the weight of the boss factored in, the output required of Blair to move it was absurd! Not to mention, the Knoll Chieftain put up a resistance.
Just seconds after they employed their tactics, the Knoll Chieftain released an infuriated bellow, inducing tremors within the cavern. Without pause, the Chieftain then stomped the ground, jumping towards Matthias. For its size, its speed was ludicrous.
Its speed alone allowed it to shatter the influence of Blair's winds.
"I-I can't hold it! Blair said with a strained voice as she bit her lip to uphold her concentration. Yet, no matter how much she increased the pressure of her winds, she couldn't reduce the Knolls Chieftain's speed.
Bang!
The boss's blow kicked a massive cloud of dirt up from the ground, but that wasn't all. The powerful smash obliterated the area in the position Matthias once stood. Right before the blow connected, Matthias managed to slip away through the wide radius of its attack.
As the dust cleared, it revealed Matthias in a crouched position, leaning away from the enormous scimitar embedded into the ground. He wore a smug smirk as his actions became apparent to the team.
"What a big mistake."
Matthias's bow was nocked with an overwhelming arrow, aimed directly at the Chieftain's eyes. Before the Chieftain could react, Matthias released the arrow and pierced its eye.
'Pucht!'
The sound of a bloody puncture echoed within the hollow cavern, accompanied by the anguished roars of the Knoll Chieftain. It held its bloodied eye while gazing upon Matthias with undisclosed hatred. As it continued to roar, its prior greenish energy shifted to a faint crimson color while seeping from its body.
"Oh, that thing is going berserk!" Cezar exclaimed with surprise as he monitored the battle from afar. Although he refused to join and assist, that didn't mean he would miss out on his share of the points.
Unexpectedly, the aura stopped seeping out from the boss and reversed its flowed, flooding back into the muscles of the Knoll Chieftain. As a result, the torrent of potent Mana caused its limbs to experience an expansion, ballooning to a frightening state.
"Rooarrrgghhhh!" Its bestial roar shook the entire room as it disappeared and reappeared in the next moment.
Boom!
Elliot was sent flying back like a rag-doll, despite using his shield to defend. If one looked closely, they'd discern the large indent of the shield and as well as the edge being bent at an odd angle.
"Bleurgh," Elliot's eyes widened as he spewed blood. Contrary to his typical ability, he couldn't absorb enough of that attack. After all, this berserk monster had already escaped the boundaries of a mere C monster. It had touched upon the next realm!
Therefore, the jolt of his organs caused a great deal of pain.
Fortunately, an azure cloud encased him, rapidly healing the damage done to his body This was the effect of Priscilla casting her ability upon him.
The Chieftain noticed her actions and immediately marked Priscilla as its target. It moved to dispose of her quickly. However, Matthias couldn't stand by and allow that to happen.
Matthias nocked three arrows flooded with Mana and released them simultaneously just as the Chieftain swung its scimitar.
Peng! Peng! Peng!
Each of the arrows hit the scimitar, carrying enough force to knock it off its track. However, if they wish to triumph over this situation alive, they would have to pull out all the stops. This wasn't an opponent to be trifled with.
Meanwhile, as they attempted to handle the boss, Lucian's situation was worsening, becoming extremely difficult to cope with.