Alex's back touched the arena's border. He did not have a place to go.
'I will perish here…'
His mistake? Not knowing the tactic to kill the boss since the first minute the fight started.
The fire had engulfed the entire room, and there was nowhere for him to go.
[Knight's Lich (Dungeon Boss, LVL 15)]
[Health Points: 15%/100%]
Alex almost killed the boss. He did not know the exact HP it had, like in numbers, but it only had fifteen percent!
It wouldn't take much for him to kill it, yet it was impossible to do it first try.
The knight went toward him, slashing its sword, followed by two fireballs that hit Alex's body.
Despite being inside a game, the pain was there — lower doses, sure, but it was still there. Alex gritted his teeth and accepted his fate.
[You died]
There was no EXP penalty, which was good, but Alex could die four times more only. More than that, and he would have to restart the dungeon.
But after seeing his strategy work — for some parts — Alex was confident of winning against the boss the next try!
He walked all the way back to the door and rested for a while before trying again.
Alex had a debuff on him, a result of his death. It lasted ten minutes more, so he sat on the ground and waited for it to end.
The debuff in question diminished his attributes by 10%, which was quite punishing.
'The first time I died, the boss' room was so far away the debuff ended before I got there.'
While waiting, Alex opened up the system tab and browsed through the latest information about the game.
As usual, many people were talking about him, and the fact the others were getting closer to entering the first major city!
JoshuaBigSword: Shadowborn is losing the lead! Me and my group are entering the city today, and we will surpass him!
Bodyguard0101: Yes, we are coming! Fried Bacon can wait too!
Everyone talked about two major figures: Shadowborn and FriedBaconInTheMorning. Both were the top ranked players, so it was normal for that to happen.
Alex himself was not surprised.
'They can keep talking shit. While they lose their time in the forums, I am clearing the dungeon!'
After reading some of the stuff they talked in the forums, Alex got up and faced the boss once again.
The moment he opened the door, and his feet touched the arena sand, the knight came toward him, following the same attack pattern as before.
Alex opened up his inventory and used the item he dropped from the other boss.
[Skull of the Skeleton King (Rare)]
[Description: A powerful artifact that allows the player to summon skeletal minions to aid them in battle. The minions' strength and abilities improve with the player's level up to level 35.]
The reason he did not the first time was because Alex was certain he would not kill the boss first try.
An item like that had a cooldown, so a careless usage would bite Alex in the ass.
Anyway, two skeletons appeared beside him. The skeletons had the same level as him.
Alex also used his Doppelganger skill, creating an army to fight beside him.
'Let us put this strategy to good use!'
*
The knight boss attacked a few times before using his skill, casting two fireballs.
That was the thing Alex waited for. His skeletons and Doppelganger were there to lure the boss to the fire and die with it!
Both sides received the sustaining fire damage, and while the boss focused on attacking Alex's clone and his minions, Alex took the chance to attack it from behind, following the same things he was doing the last time.
"Shadow Strike!"
[486 Damage Dealt]
The damage was the same as before, as nothing about Alex had changed since the last time he faced the boss.
Well, his mentality did, and he was eager to kill it no matter what! Everyone was saying Shadowborn would soon fall from the top, and Alex disliked that!
'I am not confident in remaining the top level player forever, but I will be the first to clear this dungeon!'
Alex's Doppelganger died, but his skill had two charges before entering cooldown, so he used again. As for his skeleton minions, they had more HP than he thought, making the fight even easier for his side!
It was an easy fight following that strategy, but it was slow. Alex remained focused, not only on his adversary, but on the terrain as well.
The only way for him to lose that fight was getting hit by the boss' attacks, or mis-stepping and hitting the fire on the ground.
stepping and hitting the fire on the ground.
[486 Damage Dealt]
[Critical Hit]
[1069 Damage Dealt]
Multiple numbers appeared above the boss' head, and after fifteen minutes of constant fight, Alex killed it! The fight drained him mentally and physically. But it was worth it.
[First Kill Bonus Reward]
[+50 Gold Coins]
[+1 Level]
[Mysterious Apple (???)]
The apple had a dark color, as it was rotten. Alex grabbed it, and looked all over it, trying to learn something about it, yet found nothing.
'Tsk.'
Alex was curious, but tossed it to the back of his mind. He noticed that only the knight died. Its black horse was still there near the room's corner, doing nothing.
He tried to offer the apple to the horse, but it did not work.
After leaving the room, without thinking, Alex went straight to the door with the symbols. Two of the symbols on the door were shining, representing the two bosses he killed, yet one was still dormant.
But even though only two of the symbols were shining, Alex pushed the door, and it opened.
An open room awaited for him on the other side, a library of some sort. The books there were old. Dust was everywhere.
Alex grabbed some books, trying to read them, but they were written in another language, one he did not know.
'Nothing else for me here? Where is the prize for clearing this dungeon?'
He was starting to lose hope when he turned around, looking at the door he had just opened. The horse was there, looking at him.
"Hey, horsey. What do you need?"
Alex offered the mysterious apple once again, but this time, the horse accepted it! It ate the apple from his hand, and then it disappeared.
A type of whistle was on the ground exactly where the horse had been.
[Night Horse Whistle (Epic)]
[Description: A whistle once belonging to a powerful Lich King. If used, it will invoke its former mount, the Night Horse.]
[Mount Level: 1]
[Mount Speed: 200% Bonus of Character Base Speed]
Alex stood there, reading the items, and only after a few seconds did his mind process what had happened.
"Hahahaha, a mount! I got a mount!"
Alex wanted to use his mount right there, but it was impossible to use it inside a dungeon. He searched through the room, looking for anything else, but there was nothing.
Well, there was a portal there, one that led to the dungeon's entrance. Alex stopped above a strange magical circle, and a notification appeared.
[Do you wish to take the portal to leave the dungeon?]
He accepted it. A blue light enveloped his body, and he vanished, appearing on the dungeon's entrance.
At that moment, more notifications popped.
[Global Announcement]
[Player Shadowborn is the first to clear a dungeon in SOLO mode]
[+100 Gold Coins]
[+Reputation in all cities of the kingdom]
Alex read everything, and before he could complain about the rewards, he noticed there were things inside his inventory that the system did not announce. Those rewards were a secret to others.
'Are the items good?'
He was about to check them when he noticed a group of players staring at him in the dungeon's entrance.
"Well, what do we have here?"
The nickname above the player's head? FriedBaconInTheMorning.
*
The door with the three symbols. Only two shone, but the moment Alex gave the horse the apple, the last symbol shone.
Alex was so focused on the mount that he did not see it. A secret place within the library opened, and a skeleton came out of it.
"So long…" the skeleton said, "Do they still remember my name? Lyrath the Undying, the strongest Lich!"