novelraw Chapter 61: Summoning the Final Boss
Chapter 61: Summoning the Final Boss
Before we triggered the final battle, though, we needed to ensure the battlefield itself couldn't turn against us. Scouting the area first secured the terrain advantage—perhaps the only advantage we might get.
The altar was situated at the heart of a large, circular clearing, surrounded by jagged stone outcrops and sloping hills. Unlike the previous altars, this one offered almost no natural cover—just uneven ground, weathered stone, and a few scattered boulders. Aside from the forest perimeter one to two hundred meters away, where the massive pines of the forest loomed.
More importantly, the main altar wasn’t unguarded. Several familiar monsters were lurking nearby—some of the highest leveled in the scenario so far.
[Corrupted Fangwolf – Lv.57]
[Grovedweller Shaman – Lv.50]
[Grovedweller Brute – Lv.52]
[Dark Grovedweller Shaman – Lv.60]
Threat Level: High
There were quite a few of them, at least more than a dozen, positioned around the altar like sentinels. If we recklessly charged in, there was a real possibility that the final boss would be summoned mid-battle. That much, I was completely sure of. After all, there was no way the fifth scenario would hand us victory on a silver platter.
“Should we begin?” Michelle asked steadily. “I’ve inspected the terrain and found several secure spots we can use to retreat or reposition during the fight. They'll give me solid angles for support fire, too.”
“Wait…” I said, turning toward Boris. “Boris, you still have that cape with you, right? Can you put it on and use its special ability to lure the enemies toward us?”
Boris raised an eyebrow, then grinned. “Aye, sure, I can do that.” He gave a confident thumbs-up and took out the animal-skin cape from his inventory.
It was the same cape he had commissioned the blacksmith to craft before the fourth scenario—Cape of the Mighty Bear—which came with a unique active skill capable of both intimidating and attracting enemies. Boris hadn’t been using it because he said that it was getting in the way. Now, though, it was exactly what we needed.
Boris fastened the cape over his shoulders and walked a few steps ahead, his back straight and wide like a fortress. “Just say the word.”
I nodded and walked closer to him. “Before we begin…” I placed my hand on his back. “Grant Plausibility.”
Suddenly, a golden light showered at Boris.
You have used Grant Plausibility.
You have moderately enhanced the target’s combat capabilities for half an hour.
You have moderately enhanced the target’s skill proficiency for half an hour.
A total of 60 Plausibility has been consumed.
Next, I turned toward Michelle, who looked amazed at what I had just done, and walked to her.
“Michelle, your turn,” I said before placing my hand on her shoulder. “Grant Plausibility.”
You have used Grant Plausibility.
You have moderately enhanced the target’s combat capabilities for half an hour.
You have moderately enhanced the target’s skill proficiency for half an hour.
A total of 60 Plausibility has been consumed.
Damn, that’s steep!
I winced inwardly. Spending 120 plausibility in one go wasn’t ideal, especially when a dangerous battle was just ahead, but if it helped us survive, then it was worth it. However, I didn’t buff myself since I wanted to keep some spare for Fabled Vessel when the situation called for it, and I wanted to test my combat power now that I’d invested a lot of attribute points.
“Whoa, this is amazing, Maxim. All my stats increased by 50 percent!” Michelle exclaimed, clenching her fists in excitement. “I feel like I could take on any monster right now!”
“Indeed, lad,” Boris added with an approving nod. “To think you were hiding a skill like this. Now I’m more than confident charging head-on into a horde of enemies.”
Well, it’s good that they’re in high spirits, I thought.
Michelle then climbed into position atop a nearby rocky stone, nocking an arrow to her bow. “I’m ready when you are.”
“Alright,” I said, taking a step forward. “Boris, lure them out. Michelle will cover from above, and I’ll strike from a different angle. Once they’re away from the altar, we’ll clear them fast.”
Boris chuckled. “A classic pincer. Let’s get to it.”
Without hesitation, he marched ahead into the clearing while slamming his fists together as he let out a thunderous roar.
“GROOOOAAAARRR!”
His voice echoed through the trees like a shockwave. The monsters guarding the altar staggered at the sudden loud noise. Then, almost in unison, their heads turned toward him, eyes glowing with malice, before charging at Boris at full speed. Like a wave of fury, they barreled toward Boris with murderous intent, as though they had just seen their biggest enemy.
Naturally, Boris met the charging monsters head-on, activating his Iron Body skill as a metallic sheen coated his skin. He stretched his arms wide, bracing himself like a man preparing to wrestle a charging bull. Without the slightest hint of fear in his eyes, he dashed forward to meet them head-on.
Good.
Michelle quickly loosed the first arrow and struck one of the brutes clean between the eyes. But instead of merely lodging into the skull, the arrow punched straight through, bursting out the back of its head. The brute collapsed in an instant, headless and lifeless.
Taking it as a signal, I dashed into action from the left flank, feeling my passive movement skill activate and lighten my steps. My target was a shaman near the rear of the group, separated from the brutes and less guarded.
“{Mana Arrow}!” I chanted.
The shining arrow formed before me and fired in a blink. It drilled straight through the creature’s neck, dropping it before it could even react.
You have hunted [Grovedweller Shaman Lv.50].
You have gained 60 EXP.
Not bad. My training yesterday sure had borne fruit.
By then, Boris had already crashed into the thick of the enemy formation. With Iron Body active and the cape flaring behind him, he bulldozed through the corrupted wolves, grabbing one by the throat and slamming it into another with bone-shattering force.
Michelle continued firing from her elevated position, eliminating one enemy after another every single shot without having to switch to using her special arrows. On my end, I weaved through the chaos, striking enemies down with my sword while deliberately conserving mana for later.
Within minutes, the clearing fell into silence.
It hadn’t taken nearly as much effort as expected to wipe out the entire group. If anything, it felt like we were a scythe cutting through a field of grain. Of course, the credit mostly went to Boris and Michelle. After receiving the buff, their combat power had transcended far beyond that of typical Bet-rank divine warriors.
Just as the last corpse hit the ground, I could feel that there was a pressure gathering from the altar… The final boss was waking up and would reveal its form the moment we stepped closer. No doubt.
The scenario’s boss is just ahead; I can’t afford to get complacent here. With this thought in mind, I opened my status screen and allocated nearly all my free attribute points. I put thirty-five points into Strength, forty into Dexterity, fifty into Stamina, and twenty-nine into Magic Power.
Strength: 165 → 200
Dexterity: 126 → 166
Stamina: 93 → 143
Magic Power: 63 → 92
That left me with just thirty-five free points in reserve—enough for an emergency adjustment, if needed. It wasn’t much, but it might be the difference between survival and death.
Immediately, I could feel the changes take hold in my body: my limbs felt more solid, as if I could punch through steel; my steps grew lighter than ever, almost as if I were walking on air; my chest no longer tightened with every breath like it had during prolonged combat; and the mana within me felt denser and more refined, like I could now cast dozens of spells without pause.
Your Strength has reached 200 points.
You have learned a skill: [Extraordinary Power].
[Extraordinary Power]
Rank: Rare
Type: Passive
Your physical prowess has surpassed the limits of ordinary warriors. This skill grants a substantial boost to melee impact force, carrying capacity, and resistance to knockback effects.
I was pretty sure that this passive skill—gained from reaching two hundred points in Strength—was the exact reason Boris’s physical prowess had skyrocketed in the previous scenario. That was why I had intentionally aimed to unlock it first. Against the final boss, raw force would be key. I needed to be able to injure it, no matter how tough it was; otherwise, I could just forget about trying to kill it.
Closing the status screen, I turned to Boris and Michelle. They had that look of determination on their faces as their eyes focused on the altar ahead. It was now pulsing with an eerie violet glow.
“Are you two ready?” The question was mostly rhetorical, but I couldn’t help asking.
“Ha! Of course I’m ready!” Boris grinned, punching his fists together.
“I’m also ready,” Michelle said with a calm nod.
With that, there was no more hesitation. It was time to face whatever monster waited at the altar… and finish the fifth scenario once and for all.
Subsequently, we approached the altar one careful step at a time until the sky suddenly turned darker and rumbled with lightning. Like a bolt from the blue, a System message popped up in glowing red text before my eyes:
Warning: The final trial has begun!
You have offered and sacrificed five Corrupted Antler Stags’ heads into the five altars.
The Corrupted Divine Spirit Stag, Eikthyrnir, has fully awakened.
He’s extremely angry and will chase after you to the end of the world.
From the altar, a pillar of violet light erupted into the sky, piercing the thunderclouds above. The storm churned violently, and then, through the light, two menacing eyes emerged. A monstrous beast emerged from there.
It was an abnormally large stag, towering over the trees. Iron chains hung loosely around its electrified, blood-red antlers, crackling with arcs of blue lightning. Its hooves struck the ground with the sound of thunder, and its breath came out in hissing bursts of black mist.
I instinctively gulped, feeling the suffocating pressure from the boss, unlike anything I had ever felt before.
[Corrupted Divine Spirit Stag, Eikthyrnir – Lv.100]
A corrupted celestial beast bound in chains to suppress its true divinity. Now unshackled by five offerings, its wrath flows through the forest like a storm. Its antlers are as hard as the strongest metal, and it is capable of controlling lightning to punish heretics who defy its sacred authority.
Threat Level: Extremely High
“Oh fuck!”