Another wave of healing glowed through the monsters. Killer shuddered, bolstered by the healing magic, but it didn’t touch Aster. Aster glanced at Killer. I guess this doesn’t heal humans, but… I guess he’s close enough to a monster to count. Or maybe he’s just lived in the dungeon long enough to count as a monster? Though, come to think of it, he was also healed by Milo’s human-healing magic. Aster shook his head. There’s at least one benefit to being half-human, half-monster, I suppose.

The portal shuddered. Black energy pulsed from its core, and a huge hand pushed through, so large that the shoulder filled the entire portal.

Stella sat upright. Her eyes widened. “The boss!”

“That’s the other dungeon’s boss?” Silas asked, startled. His brows furrowed. A moment later, his eyes started gleaming. “Does that mean that there’s a bossless dungeon somewhere, waiting to be reaped?”

“The invasion boss,” Stella stressed, shaking her head at Silas.

Silas sighed, disappointed. He shook his head.

“There’s such a thing as a boss for invasions? You don’t have one of those,” Aster said, startled. Do larger dungeons all have invasion bosses? Or do they generate invasion bosses before they go invade another dungeon? It seems like a waste to try to support two bosses with one dungeon’s output, unless they were about to use the boss somewhere. After all, if they succeed at the invasion, there’s a second dungeon now that the invasion boss can control, and if they fail, the invasion boss is likely dead. Long-term supporting two bosses, though… I can’t see the purpose in that.

Stella shook her head. “I’m too weak. I can’t invade yet.”

“You barely have an ordinary boss,” Aster agreed, nodding.

“There’s nothing wrong with my crystal-fire-slime,” Stella said. She frowned at Aster and shook her head hard.

“But you want your dragon back,” Aster pointed out.

“I do! I want my Momma back,” Stella said, nodding equally hard.

“So you need to work hard and become a big dungeon so you can summon your Momma back,” Aster said.

“Yes!” Stella agreed.

“But first,” Aster turned, narrowing his eyes. He lifted his finger. “It’s time to take down the boss.”

Silas drew himself upright. “Right. Leave it to me. Milo, you stand back. You’re on heals. Killer, Aster, Daiyo, you three are the front line. Viki and Stella, you two command from the rear with us. Everyone clear?”

Daiyo leaned in to Aster. Lifting a hand, he whispered unquietly, “Did he just tell us to do what we’ve been doing… but act as if it was his idea?”

Silas blushed. “It’s called leading! Look it up!”

“Silas… you really don’t need to do that. We all know what to do,” Milo said gently.

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Alice chittered from the ceiling above him. She giggled and nodded.

“You—you—you don’t understand how much good a proper party leader can do! I can… I can see the whole battlefield, and strategize—”

“A good party leader,” Aster muttered at Daiyo, who chuckled.

“Hey! Shut it, solo adventurer! What do you know?” Silas snarled.

Milo gritted his teeth in half a smile, embarrassed. “Silas… you… really don’t need to do this…”

Killer looked around at everyone. He tilted his head. “What’s going on? Why’s everyone arguing?”

Silas sighed deeply. “Alright, fine. Everyone, do your job, dammit.”

“There you go!” Aster said enthusiastically.

“Okay. I know how to do that,” Killer agreed.

Daiyo cracked his knuckles. Across the floor, all the stone spirits cracked their hands’ knuckles, too. “Let’s do this.”

Leaning in to Milo, Silas shook his head. “That’s what the problem is. It’s a party full of solo fighters.”

“Er, Silas, not to be rude, but your instructions were never particularly—”

“It’s the solo fighters, for sure,” Silas repeated, crossing his arms.

The portal shuddered again. Black energy crackled off its surface. All at once, it cracked at the sides, reality snapping at the edges where the energy broke through it.

“Ready,” Aster murmured, whirling his hammer around.

Killer trembled. Blue light glimmered in the depths of his eyes.

Daiyo silently drew back his fist.

A huge one-eyed head burst through, three snaggle-teeth bared in a hideous roar. Thick spittle splashed from the monster’s head, hissing where it landed on the other monsters. The cyclops forced its shoulder through, then tore its arm through the gap, roaring again. Blunt, yellowed fingernails bit at the stone floor. It hauled itself forward, trying to crawl free of the gap.

“Now!” Aster shouted.

He, Daiyo, and Killer all rushed the boss. The boss howled, and instantly, the monsters closed up in front of the three attackers. Daiyo pointed, and Stella shouted. Stone spirits and slimes jumped up to block the monsters.

The smaller monsters fell to the slimes and stone spirits, but the larger ones knocked them aside, careless of the little creatures. One, a giant lizard monster with a fat head and a thick tail, swept a wave of stone spirits out of the way and charged directly at them, black, curved claws dripping poison.

Aster raised his hammer. Alright. Parry the claws, then—

Howling madly, Killer rushed in. He leaped up and grabbed onto the lizard’s wrist with all four limbs and bit at the lizard’s scales. The lizard shook its arm, trying to shake Killer free. Undeterred, Killer clawed into the lizard’s flesh and scurried upward, his fingers puncturing its scales and digging into its flesh.

The lizard screeched and reared up, clawing at its own arm. Eyes glowing brilliant blue, Killer leaped off the lizard’s arm and threw himself at its neck, his mouth wide. He latched on with arms, legs, and jaw, and unrelentingly tore into the lizard. Scales, flesh, and blood flew. The lizard raised both arms and clawed at its neck. Its black claws cleaved into Killer’s flesh. As if he felt nothing, Killer fought on. Only when the lizard sank lifelessly to the ground did Killer let go and rise, his whole body soaked in the lizard’s and his own blood.

That’s a berserker, Aster thought, shaking his head.

Killer’s eyes darkened. He wavered where he stood. A second lizard rushed up at him, opening its jaws wide.

Aster charged in. He slammed his hammer into the lizard’s nose, breaking its upper jaw with a sharp crack. The lizard flinched back, but Aster pressed on. He leaped into the air and swung the hammer with the full weight of his body, smashing it at the lizard’s eye socket. Blood and gore flew, and the lizard fell backward, lying still.

Killer gasped. “Th… thanks…”

“If you can’t fight, back up and let Milo heal you,” Aster told him, forging deeper into battle. Ahead of him, Daiyo rushed at the boss, both hands raised to shield himself as he used his stony body to carve a path through the lesser monsters.

“Right.” Killer nodded and staggered backward, almost falling as he retreated.

Smashing enemies left and right, Aster chased after Daiyo, following the path the golem forged toward the boss. “Right behind you!” he shouted, coming up alongside Daiyo’s stone spirits. The little creatures ran alongside him, hefting their huge stone hands high and chittering in excitement.

“Right! Let’s do this!” Daiyo shouted back.