"Isla, where the hell did you run off to? Get out here, we've got mobs to clear!" Evelyn Nightshade's shout echoed from outside the cave, startling Isla Nightshade so much that she nearly jumped.
She glanced down at the unconscious DerpyKitty lying on the ground, her gaze lingering on the luxurious gear they were wearing. For a moment, a flicker of reluctance crossed her eyes. But she quickly suppressed the temptation, deciding to keep this little secret to herself for now. She'd come back after the fight to deal with it.
"Hang tight, sweetheart," she muttered under her breath before slipping out of the cave, only to bump straight into Evelyn Nightshade.
"What were you doing in there?" Evelyn asked, her tone suspicious as she narrowed her eyes.
"Uh… nothing. I was just… using the bathroom," Isla stammered, her cheeks flushing slightly as guilt crept into her voice.
"Whatever. Hurry up! There's a Crimson Skull over there—Skybreaker thinks it might be a hidden boss. He told us to get over there and back him up."
"A hidden boss?" Isla's eyebrows shot up, and a sense of urgency surged through her.
This place was full of surprises. First, she stumbled upon what seemed to be a hidden NPC—a mysterious "girl." And now, a hidden boss?
She followed Evelyn Nightshade as they hurried toward the rocky outcrop. From a distance, she could already see the so-called hidden boss.
Cold. Menacing. Bloodthirsty.
That was Isla Nightshade's first impression of Ethan.
His hollow eye sockets burned with an intense crimson flame, and his skeletal frame looked as though it had just crawled out of a pool of blood, radiating an aura that sent chills down her spine. Jagged bone spikes jutted out from his joints, glinting with a faint, eerie red glow. Draped over his back was a blood-red cloak that billowed in the wind, casting shifting shadows that seemed almost alive.
"Wow… this boss is ridiculously cool," Isla whispered in awe.
"You think so too?" Evelyn gave her a strange look.
"You think so?" Isla echoed, and the two exchanged a glance, a subtle hint of mutual appreciation flickering in their eyes.
"But… what's he holding? Is that… a water pouch and some fruit?" Evelyn asked, squinting.
"Maybe it's some weird quirk of hidden bosses?" Isla shrugged.
The two of them kept whispering as they rejoined the group.
Skybreaker noticed their return and gave a satisfied nod. "Perfect. All four Necromancers are here. With me, a high-level swordsman rocking 60 attack power, we've got a real shot at taking down this Crimson Skull!"
His voice brimmed with confidence as he quickly laid out the strategy. "Each of you summon nine Skeleton Warriors. We'll rotate them to keep him surrounded and maintain aggro. I'll handle the damage output. Just make sure your summons don't all disappear at once, or he'll start regenerating health!"
In Dark Scrolls, the game mechanics dictated that a humanoid unit could only be surrounded by a maximum of ten similar units at a time. Skybreaker clearly planned to use a war of attrition to slowly chip away at the boss's health.
"Hidden bosses drop skill books and rare-tier gear! Stay sharp, everyone!" he added, stepping closer to Ethan.
"Elsa, you summon first. Then Sora, Isla, and Evelyn. Time your rotations carefully!"
"Got it!" Elsa Nightshade responded cheerfully, raising her staff to begin summoning her Skeleton Warriors.
"Wow, Skybreaker really knows his stuff. No wonder he's a disciple of the 'Fist God,'" someone murmured in admiration.
"I didn't even know Necromancer summons could be used like this. This is next-level strategy!" another chimed in.
"Skill books and rare gear… man, we're so lucky to be in Skybreaker's party!" Elsa and Sora whispered excitedly as they prepared for battle.
But just as Skybreaker was focused on giving orders, Evelyn suddenly frowned and muttered, "Wait… is that Crimson Skull walking toward us?"
"Walking toward us?" Skybreaker froze for a moment before shaking his head. "No way. Even hidden bosses have fixed patrol zones. They don't just wander off."
But before he could finish his sentence, everyone saw something that made their jaws drop—Ethan, the Crimson Skull, was slowly but steadily closing the distance between them.
From 1,500 feet away, he was now only 150 feet away.
"This… this can't be happening!" Skybreaker's face turned pale.
At this stage of the game, no hidden boss should have such a massive roaming range, right?
The rest of the party exchanged uneasy glances, doubt creeping into their expressions. Skybreaker felt the heat of their silent judgment and clenched his jaw, forcing himself to stay calm. "Ignore it! Elsa, keep summoning!"
"Okay!" Elsa nodded and began chanting her spell.
Even though Skybreaker's earlier miscalculation had shaken their confidence, he was still one of the "Twelve Gods," a disciple of the legendary "Fist God" Saitama. The group's trust in him hadn't completely wavered.
"Oh great Lord of the Undead, heed my call and grant me the power to command the dead!" Elsa Nightshade raised her staff high, her voice clear and resolute.
As her incantation ended, the ground trembled slightly, and ten skeletal figures began to emerge from the earth.
The bones, drawn together by some unseen force, assembled into ten low-level Skeleton Warriors. Their hollow eye sockets ignited with a ghostly blue flame, and an icy aura radiated from their forms.
Meanwhile, Ethan had closed the gap even further. He was now only 120 feet away.
"Elsa, have your skeletons engage the boss. I'll keep him distracted from the side!" Skybreaker's voice was calm but carried an unmistakable air of confidence.
"Got it!" Elsa replied with a playful grin, her lips curling upward in excitement. She raised her staff and commanded her ten Skeleton Warriors to slowly advance toward Ethan.
Her heart raced with anticipation.
For any player, encountering a boss was always a thrilling moment. And what did a boss mean?
Gear. Skill books. Gold. And sometimes, rewards that could be converted into real-world money.
Not to mention the envy and admiration from friends and guildmates.
Hidden bosses, with their higher drop rates and better loot, were the ultimate jackpot. The kind of opportunity no one could resist.
"Spread out in a fan formation, keep a 90-degree angle, and surround him. Leave one spot open for me," Skybreaker instructed as he hefted his massive sword, his eyes locked on Ethan. His mind was already calculating the perfect moment to strike.
By now, he and the Skeleton Warriors were only 50 feet away from Ethan.
"Thirty feet!"
"Twenty feet!"
"Five feet!"
"Surround him!" Skybreaker barked.
At his command, the Skeleton Warriors moved swiftly, encircling Ethan completely.
Skybreaker stepped into the open spot, his iron greatsword poised and ready to strike. His plan was simple: let the first skeleton draw aggro, then deliver a devastating blow to the boss.
But what happened next was something no one could have predicted.
Ethan's blood-red cloak suddenly flared out behind him, and in an instant, a crimson-glowing Boneblade materialized in his skeletal hand.
The blade sliced through the air with a chilling, mournful hum before slashing down on the first Skeleton Warrior.
"–1089!"
A massive damage number floated above the skeleton's head. And then, almost simultaneously, more damage numbers appeared:
"–152!"
"–152!"
"–152!"
…
Ten crimson damage numbers flashed in quick succession.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
With a series of explosive sounds, all ten Skeleton Warriors were obliterated in an instant, their health bars dropping to zero. Their shattered remains clattered to the ground in piles of broken bones.
The entire sequence lasted only a few seconds.
Skybreaker stood frozen, his eyes wide with shock. His mind went blank, unable to process what had just happened.
"This… this damage is insane!" he muttered, taking an involuntary step back as alarm bells rang in his head.
Thanks to his level 10 health pool (a solid 255 HP) and the fact that he hadn't been directly hit, he had narrowly avoided death. But the sheer terror of that moment was now etched into his memory.
"Retreat!" he shouted, making a split-second decision. Planting his foot firmly, he activated the swordsman's basic skill, Wind Step, boosting his movement speed by 50%.
"Can I even get away?" he thought bitterly. As a seasoned player, he knew when to cut his losses. One failed strike, and it was time to run. His figure blurred as he dashed away like a gust of wind, retreating as fast as he could.
But just as he took his second step, an overwhelming sense of pressure bore down on him from the front.
He looked up sharply—and his heart sank.
Ethan had already predicted his escape route and was now standing directly in his path.
"What?!" Skybreaker's pupils contracted in disbelief.
Before he could react, a blinding crimson slash tore through the air, heading straight for him. The blade moved so fast that it stung his eyes, forcing him to shut them instinctively.
"–494!"
A massive damage number floated above Skybreaker's head.
In the stunned silence of his teammates, Skybreaker's body dissolved into a beam of white light, vanishing from the battlefield entirely.
Back in the real world, inside the sleek training room of the Cloud9 esports club, an eighteen-year-old boy jolted awake in his luxurious VR pod.
His chest heaved as he gasped for air, his face pale with shock and frustration. He ripped off his VR headset, his handsome features twisted in disbelief.
"What… what the hell just happened?" he muttered, his voice trembling slightly.
The memory of that final strike replayed in his mind, and a chilling realization began to take shape.
"That move… could it be…"