Chương 21: Battle of the Graveyard

It was a familiar name. I quickly rolled back my memory until I found the info I stored: archer's competition, fourth place: Sylph. This meant that there was at least another expert among the players in Riverhear. I calmed down a bit. With a tank like Stone and a couple other talented players we might be able to stop Olivier – no, the Woe of Riverhear. I gathered six players, and when I reached the southern entrance, Stone and Sylph were already there. All in all, there were currently 18 players in Riverhear.

"Quickly form four teams, then I will make a raid group!" I said, taking the lead. From the looks of it, Stone and his ranger friend didn't mind this. As the parties formed up I created a raid group. Raids were working like big parties. Ten parties could join a group, so the maximum number of a raid group was fifty people. Everyone could see each other's levels, names, health and mana, so it was much easier to organize battles this way. Our group's level ranged from 7 to 10, with six of us being level 10.

Just as we were getting ready, the monster appeared from the forest, heading right towards Riverhear.

"Let's lure it to the cemetery, follow me!" I said and the 18 of us started moving in unison.

"Keep up the DPS! Stone, you're the main tank! Djon, you're his switch!" I turned towards a level 9 guardian who was wielding an interesting black, thorny shield. I figured it must be quite good since I haven't seen it before, and decided to follow my intuition. The two guardians nodded and took stances.

"Melee, focus on dodging! It's a level 15 field boss, it will absolutely kill you in one hit! Tanks, try to dodge as well, block only when absolutely necessary!" I shouted while nocking an arrow.

"Ranged, start the DPS now!" As I said, I loosed a Piercing Shot towards the Woe. To my delight, it did do damage. To my despair, not much. In fact the damage itself was quite good, but the boss' health pool was something I've never experienced before. 9 of us – various ranged DPS classes – sent out volley after volley at the boss while the others tried to keep it's aggro on them, but it's health bar barely moved. I didn't want my group to panic at the lack of progress.

I tightened my grip on my bow, turning to the dozen adventurers who had rallied at my call. - This thing's powerful, but it's not unstoppable. Stick together, focus your attacks, and don't let it isolate you! We succesfully lured the monster who was once Olivier into the cemetery, and the actual fight had begun. The Woe lunged first, its claws swiping through the air with a speed that belied its massive size.

A level 8 swordsman barely rolled out of the way in time, the ground where he'd been standing splitting apart in a jagged line.

"Spread out!" I shouted, loosing a Burning Arrow into the creature's shoulder. The flames licked at the shadows form but barely seemed to faze it. The group sprang into action. Stone stepped forward, raising his shield to block the Woe's next strike. The impact sent him sliding back, but he held firm, buying the rest of us time to reposition. From the rear, a cleric began chanting, her healing light falling on our main tank and steadying both our nerves and his HP bar.

A pair of rogues darted in from opposite sides, their blades flashing as they aimed for the creature's legs. The Woe howled, sweeping one of them aside with a backhanded strike that sent him tumbling into a gravestone. It was an insta-kill! The monster didn't stop there and attacked with a burst of dark energy, tendrils of red light erupting from its body and slamming into the adventurers closest to it. A mage screamed as he was thrown backward, his health bar plunging to zero. The others had barely survived.

I activated Nature's Howl, feeling a surge of energy flood my veins. My arrows flew faster, striking the creature in rapid succession as I aimed for weak points. Sylph has been pretty much mirroring my movements, almost keeping up with me despite my buffed attack speed. He's very good, I thought. A mage unleashed a searing wave of flame that was not part of their basic arsenal, while a druid summoned a cascade of roots using the level 1 skill Nature's Grasp to entangle the creature's legs.

The Woe roared in fury, its movements growing more erratic as the attacks began to chip away at its strength. But it was far from enough. With each of his AoE attacks, we lost someone. We were down to 14 members, and although all six of the level 10s remained, the loss of DPS was noticable. Still, the longer the fight was, the more accustomed we became to each other, and our synchronized attacks started to bother the boss quite a bit.

Just as it seemed we were gaining the upper hand, the Woe let out a deafening shriek. Its body convulsed, and from its chest erupted a shockwave of green energy that knocked everyone to the ground. My health bar dipped into the red as I scrambled to my feet, disoriented. Three of us had not gotten up. Normally, dead adventurers respawned at the nearest chapel, however right now the chapel at Riverhear was marked as 'Conflicted', meaning our fallen comrades were probably sent all the way back to Carpa.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. In the chaos, I noticed something strange. For a fleeting moment, Olivier's face flickered within the Woe's monstrous form, his expression contorted with pain and regret.

"Help... me..." His voice rasped, barely audible beneath the creature's growls, but for a moment the creature had stopped attacking. The hesitation in the Woe's movements gave us a brief opening. I didn't waste it.

"Push forward! It's weakening!" But there was too few of us. Djon charged, his shield raised high as he bashed the creature's leg with Shield Strike, forcing it to stumble. An acolyte called Ziestra loosed a volley of dark bolts, each one finding its mark on the boss. Rebecca, the level 10 rogue, the luckier one who didn't get hit at the initial charge, darted in once again, slicing at the creature's arms with Eviscerate before retreating to safety. Unfazed, the monster kept attacking.

The battle against the Woe of Riverhear was spiraling out of control. Its hulking, shadowy form loomed over us, and we all felt the desperation of the situation. Each strike of its claws sent shockwaves rippling through the cemetery, scattering players like leaves in a storm. I barely dodged a swipe with Quick Step, feeling the rush of air as the claws tore through the gravestones behind me. My mana was running low. I had a couple skills left, and the few remaining adventurers around me were in worse shape.

A cleric's healing spell fizzled as she crumbled under a blow, her health bar dropping to zero.

"We're not going to make it," Rebecca muttered, clutching her side as blood seeped from her wound from one of the claw attacks that barely glazed her, putting a damage over time effect on her character.

"Keep fighting!" I gritted my teeth, loosing a Burning Arrow at the creature's chest. The shot struck true but the Woe barely flinched. It turned its glowing green eyes toward me, letting out a guttural roar. My heart sank. We needed a miracle. Just as desperation started to sweep through our ragged group, a loud, defiant voice cut through the chaos.

"¡Por aquí, hermanos! Let's show this beast who's in charge!" I turned, disbelief flashing across my face as a group of five adventurers strode into the fray. At their head was El Verdugo, the towering berserker who had tried to haggle me down over the Battleaxe of Ur'ka just hours ago. His armor mismatched, he kept swinging his jagged blade like there was no tomorrow. Behind him were the rest of Los Asesinos, their presence as loud as their leader's voice.

I quickly invited their party in the raid group and greatfully noticed that all of them were level 10. With the five of them there were 10 of us left. Me, Stone, Sylph, Rebecca and Arias, the mage, plus our newly found reinforcements. Carmen, a cleric with a fierce expression, raised her staff high, a healing aura washing over the battlefield. Diego, a nimble brawler, readied his Claws, his grin as sharp as his weapon.

Mano Roja, the group's rogue, held his daggers in an X formation, looking worriedly at the monster they were about to face. And finally, El Rafael, a sturdy paladin, banged his shield with his sword, drawing the monster's attention. Nobody expects... the spanish inquisition, I guess? I let out a laugh.

"You looked like you needed backup, amigo," El Verdugo said, his grin wide.

"You couldn't have picked a better time," I replied, not bothering to hide the relief in my voice. With renewed hope, the battle surged forward. Los Asesinos moved as a well-oiled machine, their synergy immediately evident. -"Rafael, draw its attention!" El Verdugo shouted. The paladin charged forward, slamming his shield into the Woe's leg. His mechanics were not as clean as Stone's, but he was still fresh with plenty of mana and health. The creature roared, turning its glowing eyes toward him.

While it was distracted, El Verdugo leapt into the air, his weapon blazing as he brought it down in a powerful overhead strike. The two handed sword cleaved through shadowy flesh, cracking a rune on the Woe's torso. As soon as he equips the Battleaxe of Ur'Ka, he'll turn into a menace. Arias, one of our original level 10 members, raised her hands, summoning a pillar of fire that engulfed the Woe's leg. The flames danced across its form, weakening its movements.

Diego darted in and out, his claws flashing as he targeted the exposed parts with surgical precision. As the Woe faltered, its movements growing sluggish, El Verdugo roared, activating the level 10 berserker skill, Bloodlust, that sent him into a frenzy. His attacks became a blur of motion, each swing of his blade carving deeper into the creature's form.

"We've almost got it!" I shouted, unleashing a flurry of arrows into its chest. The remaining players rallied, focusing all their attacks on the boss. I wasn't about to surrender any last hit bonus on this one. I activated Catapult Legs, jumping straight to the face of the Woe, and let out a Piercing Shot mid-air with the remainder of my mana, shooting it point blank through the medalion that was still clinging to the creatures neck. The Woe let out a deafening scream.

For a moment, the creature froze, its claws twitched, and the green glow in its eyes flickered. Olivier's voice broke through, hoarse and filled with sorrow.

"I'm... sorry." He said something else, but the creature's screams muzzled it out as its form was convulsing as the amulet shattered. For a moment, it seemed to implode, collapsing in on itself before exploding into a cloud of green mist. The force of the blast knocked us all to the ground, the mist dissipating into the air. When the mist cleared, only Olivier's body remained, crumpled and lifeless. His face, though pale, was peaceful, as if in the end, he had found some measure of redemption.

If it wasn't for his hesitation at times, we might not have beaten the evil spirit, so we could say he had somewhat redeemed himself. The cemetery fell silent, the only sound was the ragged breathing of the players who survived. As the system notification flashed across my vision, a wave of relief washed over me. Boss Defeated: The Woe of Riverhear The adventurers stood in silence, their weapons lowered as the reality of what had just happened sank in.

Merrin arrived moments later, along with the other villagers, her face pale as she took in the scene. She clutched what was left from the medallion to her chest, tears streaming down her cheeks. The loot was scattered around the cemetery, where the Woe exploded into mist, but none of us wanted to disturb the villagers.

"¡Eso es!" El Verdugo laughed, clapping me on the shoulder.

"You owe us a drink, hermano."

"Fair enough," I said, managing a tired grin as I sent him a friend request. Next I turned to Stone.

"This was quite something, wasn't it?" he said.

"It sure was tougher than a goblin," I smiled.

"Thank you for your quick reaction, guys."

"No worries. Besides, the exp we got from this is quite insane," Sylph said.

"And the loot doesn't look too bad either."

"It sure looks good. Let's wait for the villagers to resolve things first, then the raid can roll for it." As I was saying this, I checked my status window. I leveled up to 11, and my experience bar was already almost halfway full. From what I've seen, each player gained 20, 000 experience, even the ones who had died as long as they stayed in the raid group. I opened my quest journal and checked the quest.