Welcome to floor 5: Introduction to Bosses

Floor 5 is the first semi-instanced floor within the tower, the and second to contain a system recognized Boss Monster. A semi-instanced floor can contain upwards of 10 individuals per instance. Boss monsters are recognized by the system as a being that is significantly more powerful than their level would indicate. They tend to be larger, stronger, and overall much tougher than their non-boss counterparts.

Floor Goal: Defeat the Boss monster.

I read through the description of the floor, finding it to be quite different than any of the previous floors. This one could be completed pretty damn quickly if one was able to defeat the boss. I say that because standing across the large field from me appeared to be the very boss I needed to take down. It didn’t seem to be attacking me, probably waiting for me to show some sign of hostility. That was good, as it gave me some time to think.

First of all, there had apparently been a boss monster somewhere on the previous floors that I had either not recognized as a boss or had not encountered. I was leaning more towards the latter, as I feel pretty confident the system would have let me know if I had slain a boss monster. Another supporting fact of this was the fact that nothing I had seen up to this point filled me with a sense of danger like the one I got looking at the boss before me.

The seven foot tall skeleton that was on the other side of the large grassy field was an intimidating figure. It’s eyes burned with a purple glow that cut through the darkness of the night. Its bones were thick and also had a subtle glow to them. The only weapon it wielded was a large black claymore which it wielded with both hands.

I almost wanted to call it quits right then and there. There was a reason this floor allowed up to ten people to fight something like that at once. I was just one person, there was only so much I could do. Another part of me was practically screaming to go fight that thing, to prove that I could best it. I was pretty damn strong for my level too, so why wouldn’t I be able to kill that thing?

The biggest issue I had was that I didn’t know exactly how strong that thing was. I wanted to gauge it’s power, but I really had no way to know if it would be a close fight, or one where I would end up getting slaughtered. A small spark of an idea entered my head, and I turned around to go right back where I had come from. I was going to need a little bit of help learning the skill I had in mind.

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Three hours later, I returned to the fifth floor. Upon seeing the large skeleton again, I infused my eyes with mana, trying to copy the pattern I had memorized. A small bit of magic left my eye, and a second later I got a small blue pop-up.

Skeleton Sentinel (Level 25)(Boss Monster)

You have unlocked the identify (common) skill

I let out the breath I’d been holding as I get the notification. Convincing Blair to try and teach me the skill had been hard at first, as she was extremely reluctant to turn her attention away from her work, but when I had told her that I could bring back the bones of a very powerful monster, she had not let me left until she felt that I could recreate the skill perfectly.

Even though I was a much higher level than Blair, it had taken a while to get the pattern of mana down. Some skills were inherently pretty difficult to recreate if you didn’t pick them during skill selection. She had been able to do it instinctually, while I had needed to try dozens and dozens of times before I could get it down.

Now though, I knew I was ready. The skeleton was only four levels higher than me, and with the multipliers from my title my stats were more similar to if I was level 26. That didn’t even include the 15 to each stat granted by the titles as well. Of course, the monster probably also had something boosting its stats beyond their normal levels if it was strong enough to be labeled a boss. I wasn’t too worried about that though. If the worst case scenario happened, and I got gravely injured, I could escape to the exit and get back up to the camp where I could be healed.

Okay, that wasn’t actually the worst thing that could happen. I could die instantly if my head gets cut off. But hey, if something like that happens its not like I’ll be around to complain about it.

Steadying my nerves and getting into a ready stance, I launch the first attack of the fight, a simple and trusty mana bolt.

The second the spell had left my staff, the skeleton had begun moving. It began running towards me, moving much faster than anything that size should be able to. My mana bolt impacted against its femur, which glowed a bit brighter briefly as the spell impacted. I couldn’t see any noticeable effect, and I sucked in a breath knowing that meant the boss had some kind of magic defenses. That was pretty much exactly what I'd been fearing when I saw the glow in it’s bones.

Thankfully, I knew enough about magical defenses to know that they weren’t absolutely impenetrable. A strong enough spell could pierce through the defenses, even if it is heavily weakened. I only knew this because I had picked the mana barrier spell for my level 20 skill evolution. I had done some testing with it and discovered that weakness when trying to cast mana blast on myself. That had resulted in needing to go see Jeremy for healing.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

The skeleton reached me far faster than I had been anticipating, and with a mighty swing of its sword it attempted to cut me in two right down the middle. I managed to side step quick enough to avoid the attack, but the follow up came almost as quickly as the initial strike had.

I sent a powerful cast of mana blast directly into the pelvis of the skeleton, hoping to throw it off balance enough to make some distance. It was pushed back only about an inch by the attack, though the bones began glowing much brighter than they had when my mana bolt had hit.

“Damn.” I mutter, dodging another swing of the sword. My mana blast was not powerful enough to punch through the mana barrier this skeleton used. I had been hoping it would be, but clearly I would just need to wear away at it’s defenses over time.

Through my staff, I create a hammer of mana to wield in my off hand. It would be a good enough weapon to use in melee range, and if I really needed too I could use it as a last line of defense between me and the skeleton.

After one particularly close dodge of the sword, I sprint straight for the monster and slide between its legs slamming my maul into its shins as I do. The same shine appears as when my spells had hit it, and I only now realize that it wasn’t just a magical defense it had going for it. My hammer bounces off, having done no noticeable damage. I stand up to try and attack the monster from behind, and while I do manage to hit its spine with a double cast of mana blast, it turns quickly and backhands me with its heavy hand, sending my flying back several meters.

I land on my back, and have no time to get my bearings before I need to roll away from a downward swing. I get a lucky yet ultimately meaningless kick in on the skeletons leg before standing up, dodging yet another swing of the sword. The speed and power behind each and every movement of the weapon was becoming more and more overpowering. I needed to find some way of reducing how much of a problem that sword was.

The long weapon swings my way again, and this time I know I don’t have the room to dodge. I bring my maul up between me and the skeleton, hoping that it can block the attack well enough to keep me from getting hit directly.

The sword comes into contact with the handle of the maul, and I feel my heart drop as it slices right through the magical construct. The weapon follows through, cleaving its way straight through my mana shield.

I jump back as pain shoots up my arm. Adrenaline is the only thing that manages to push off panic as I look down at the stump that is now my wrist. My hand had been severed off, and blood was starting to pour out of the open wound.

My breath quickens, but I manage to get my head in the fight enough to continue dodging the next few attacks. If it had been strong enough to overwhelm my mana shield, then I suddenly had way less room for error than I had initially thought I did.

I let out attack after attack against the boss monster, hoping to drain it’s resources enough to get rid of its defenses, but I am on the backfoot. This battle is quickly turning against me, I have the sense of mind to recognize that enough.

I could turn and run right now. I may not be faster than my enemy, but I was sure I could at least get to the exit of the floor before it killed me. I didn’t have to fight this thing right now. I could come back when I was stronger, when I was more prepared.

My mind spins in circles as I slowly get pushed further and further back. I want to run, to escape and insure my safety, but something deep within me begins to stir. It was a vaguely familiar feeling, one that I had felt not too long ago. The feeling of something trying to escape a cage deep within me. This time it felt less like it was trying to escape the shackles of its cage, and instead like it was asking to be released.

I block another swing of the sword with my staff, which thankfully doesn’t break. It gets wrenched from my hand though as the force of it receiving the impact is enough to overwhelm my grip.

In one last final act of desperation, I reach deep within myself and unleash the feeling of power from the cage that it had been stuck within. My entire body begins to feel... different. A slight buzzing feeling reverberates through every bit of me, both internal and external. My vision changes, everything taking on a deep blue hue for a brief moment before returning to normal.

The knowledge of what I had just released enters my head, and in one final act of desperation, I release what I am hoping is the last attack I am going to need. Almost the entirety of my mana pool gets used up with this one single action, and as the mana leaves my body my senses all give out on me all at once. I can’t hear, see, or feel anything as the mana all leaves my body at once. The amount of magic I had just used all at once was far, far more than I had ever been able to send out so quickly.

My cast of mana blast did not come out of my hand. Nothing came from my hand actually. No mana at all had left though my palm nor finger tips, despite me channeling the spell there.

No, the spell had come from somewhere far more devastating for my opponent. Within the skull of the boss monster, a concussive blast of mana rippled out in all directions, sending a wave of force through its skull. The spell had been released from a small blue dot at epicenter of the blast.

The skeleton managed to stumble forward one more step, the last vestiges of its life spent trying to chase down its killer. It sunk its sword into the ground, trying to stabilize it, but it was no use.

By the time I managed to recover, the skeleton was dead. It’s skull had been shattered to pieces, having been unprotected from the attack I’d unleashed. Why would it have been? There was no way it could have anticipated such an attack coming from directly within it’s head.

I lay my head back on the grass, taking a moment to ignore the countless system messages waiting for me. I needed a moment to mentally recover from what had just happened. Actually, I didn’t have that kind of time to recover. I had done a pretty decent job of dodging the many attacks of the skeleton sentinel, but nobody was perfect. My body and robe were littered with cuts, and my hand was missing.

Even as I lay there, I could feel my body and stats do their best to slowly repair the damage that had been done. I knew I wouldn’t bleed out and die if I just sat here, but personally I would prefer for my hand to be recoverable.

After searching through the grassy field for a few minutes, I had everything I needed. I used the corpse of the skeleton like a sled, putting my severed hand, my staff, and the massive claymore on top of it as I dragged it to the entrance to the next floor. After teleporting back up to the first floor, I was surrounded by gasps of shock as people saw how injured my body was. Several people ran to go get healers, and more than one person turned way and tried to suppress their squeamishness.

I just set down the skeleton and sat on the floor right there. I stared up at the sky, doing everything I could to distract myself from the pain as Jeremy and several others ran over to heal my wounds.