Part-time Boss

The Midnight Mage cast an exploding fireball that sent several skeletons flying toward him. His magic was extremely powerful; even such a common spell was astonishingly potent, directly blasting five or six skeletons to shreds. Unfortunately, magic is completely unreasonable. Once touched by the aura of death, the skeletons began to slowly regather and restore themselves.

An Adventurer said in resignation, "It's no use, these things can't be killed. Only by taking down the boss will these minions naturally disappear."

The Midnight Mage naturally understood this principle, but the boss was equally difficult to kill. With one hundred ninety thousand Health Points, even having only half left meant it still had over ninety thousand, and this creature seemed to lack the concept of a weak spot. The Dawn Divine Sword had split its dragon head wide open, yet it stubbornly refused to die.

That was the most irritating point of Undead creatures, especially these super-sized varieties.

Additionally, with so many minions constantly assaulting them, it was impossible to effectively deal damage.

Watching the adventurers' team struggle, Mo Fei once again felt a glimmer of hope—this might actually work out.

Ah, a sharp scream. An archer who had strayed slightly from the team's defensive line was immediately dragged out of formation by a group of skeletons and hacked to death in a frenzy.

The awkwardness of lacking Melee Classes became evident at this moment. With no one able to hold the line against the surging tide of Undead, they could only rely on continual damage to deplete them.

However, Mana Points were ultimately not infinite. As the skeleton army drew closer and closer, several thieves charged forward with daggers only to be swiftly overwhelmed by the skeletons. The group's druid abandoned healing, transformed into a huge bear to join the fight, but since he was a healing druid without talents like enhanced thick skin or the toughness of a mighty beast, he was just a bear covered in fluff. Surrounded and attacked by a group of skeletons, he quickly became a bloody mess, screaming in agony.

The War Priest picked up his spiked mace and joined the fray. He might not know how to dispel Undead but he was fierce in combat, his plate armor not inferior to a warrior's in durability. Truly worthy of a priest of the War God, unfortunately physical exorcism meant little against skeletons that could revive endlessly.

"Retreat! Retreat to the corner of the wall there."

With the Midnight Mage's command, the Adventurers quickly retreated, fighting as they withdrew until they reached a corner of the boss room. This position allowed them

to have their backs against two walls, only needing to deal with enemies in front. They focused the spellcasters' power for frontal output, and their magic continually tore through the approaching skeletons, making the battle seem a bit better.

But the crisis was far from over.

The Midnight Mage watched the cooldown timer of his skills. With a cooldown period of 30 minutes, twenty-seven had passed. If he could just hold on for three more minutes...

Mo Fei watched with a mix of alarm and joy. The entire Adventurers' group had been cornered by the wall, with the Dawn Divine Sword facing the boss alone. Without rear support from healers, it was clear he couldn't hold out indefinitely. As soon as he fell, the battle would be secured.

The Skeleton Dragon continued its relentless attacks, with some skeletons attempting to join the fray. However, no hint of panic could be seen on the face of the Dawn Divine Sword as he dodged, rolled, and maneuvered around. The Skeleton Dragon's tail swept at him, and he decisively dropped to the ground, causing the skeletons that had surrounded him to be swept away by the dragon's tail, reduced to a pile of bone fragments. He took the opportunity to gulp down another Life Potion.

Even amidst the chaos, he found moments to counterattack with slashes at the Skeleton Dragon. Although his basic attacks dealt average damage, he managed to hold his ground, turning what was an MMORPG into an action game of sorts.

Die, why won't you die! Mo Fei watched anxiously as the Skeleton Dragon performed another tail sweep. This time, the Dawn Divine Sword opted to block with his sword. The immense force swept him several meters away, leaving deep furrows in the ground from his feet dragging.

The Dawn Divine Sword was gasping for air, while the Skeleton Dragon was at its last leg, its body crumbling apart, the Power of Death leaking out uncontrollably.

In that moment of standoff between man and dragon—

Flamestorm Spell!

A stunning whirlwind of fire once again arose, pulling hundreds of skeletons into the swirling inferno.

In an instant, the entire scene was swept clean.

It's over. Mo Fei sighed in despair; with the skeleton army wiped out in one fell swoop and the Adventurers rejoining the fight, the Skeleton Dragon's demise was just a matter of time.

Although skeletons could still be revived, they no longer had enough time.

Finally, when the boss's health dropped to only 10%, the Skeleton Dragon collapsed with a thunderous fall.

'Step Into Death' Santazzar (Skeleton Dragon): "Lord Morphis, I have failed you..." Boom, the Skeleton Dragon disintegrated completely, turning into a heap of shattered bones. Santazzar's form had collapsed, leaving only the broken upper body somewhat intact. Devoid of arms, the torso twisted and misshaped, only the face still retained its original appearance.

Though it still had 10% of its health remaining, it obviously didn't matter anymore. The Adventurers charged and started to inflict the final blows, the outcome was clear.

Mo Fei watched and sighed. Alright, Old Sant, you did your best.

This battle was much better than the previous two boss fights, not only had it consumed a large amount of the Adventurers' team supplies, but it also successfully killed seven Adventurers. If it weren't for the skill cooldown finishing, perhaps it could have even resulted in a wipeout of the enemy.

At the same time—

"It's done, we lost seven people; this isn't good, right?"

Although they won the battle, the mood was far from jubilant. The final boss still awaited, and what was supposed to be fought with an optimal lineup had now been greatly weakened.

"Can't we resurrect them?"

"The resurrection point is too far, it'd take at least several hours, right?"

The Midnight Mage's face contorted with discomfort. They hadn't even reached the final boss yet. He pulled out two scrolls, "Bring up Xiangcheng and Chiriyu; let the others go."

Resurrection Scroll—a reward with an extremely low chance of acquisition from completing the Goddess of Life's temple quests.

Market value: ten thousand dollars each, and even then, they were nearly impossible to buy—with all the money in the world, one couldn't find a place to purchase them. The most game-breaking aspect was their usability in story campaigns.

Although they could only be used on adventurers, in a critical moment, one adventurer was one more increment of strength.

Mo Fei felt a heavy concern, grateful that the other only had two scrolls.

He glanced over his third set of tactics, but it still wasn't enough.

His melee prowess might be stronger than a Skeleton Dragon's, but live dragons have weaknesses, and he must fight with caution; a single misstep could lead to his demise.

Plus, the Skeleton Dragon could summon a skeleton army to hinder the adventurers, while he would have to face everyone's attacks along with the battle against the Dawn Divine Sword.

Even if he could wound the Dawn Divine Sword, as long as those healing supports remained, a round of healing could get it back into the fight.

He needed to change the strategy.

But how else to change it? He had already switched tactics three times.

His gaze swept over the line of battle strategies.

Perhaps he should summon Princess Katherine and take a gamble? Unsure of what this plot twist implies.

Could it be that Princess Katherine would fall in love with him, preventing the adventurers from killing him? Such a cliché storyline seemed impossible to come true.

Or maybe he could kill Princess Katherine himself, causing the enemy's morale to crumble and sweep them away effortlessly?

However, it felt like adventurers didn't have such a thing as morale. Perhaps they'd collectively go berserk, making them even more difficult to handle.

No, relying on such uncertain gambles was not an option.

Mo Fei had never been one to gamble with luck, especially not at such a critical juncture.

Although the battle revealed once more the formidable strength of the Dawn Divine Sword, he also spotted a weakness in his enemies: they were ill-prepared for unexpected situations. It seemed these adventurers had tailored their strategy against his flame Dragon Breath, rendering them less prepared for other types of attacks.

A quick kill of the Dawn Divine Sword was unlikely. Instead, the weakness lay with the adventurers themselves. Without the Dawn Divine Sword holding them at bay, he could easily sweep through these riffraff. Perhaps he could consider this...

Mo Fei's mind began to clarify a new plan, though he wasn't entirely confident due to the severe time constraints preventing him from thorough consideration.

[World Announcement: In the year 1437 of the Azure Sky Epoch, the human hero, the Midnight Mage, has slain the Dragon Worship Cult Priest Santazack and the darkness in the Dragon Nest. This event has been recorded in the Annals of the Azure Sky.]

[System Notification: All of your monster leaders have perished, and the final battle is about to commence. In the ending of "Dragon Slayer's Hymn," will the hero vanquish the Evil Dragon, saving the Princess, or will the Evil Dragon slay the hero and continue its rampage? The conclusion is about to be unveiled.

As the final boss and the ultimate antagonist of this story campaign, please make your preparations.]

In the crystal ball's surveillance display, the enemy had already begun advancing toward the final boss's chamber; there was no time left for hesitation.

Mo Fei gritted his teeth and made a decisive choice.

Meanwhile, in the passageway outside the Long Sleep Cave, hurried footsteps resonated.

They were coming!