“Let's see who will die first!”

  The monster attacks Bawl first and manages to shoot him into the roof. It then attacks Eonni who tries to cut it, but fails and is almost hit, but she manages to dodge just in time and tries to trip the boss.

  This action fails, and the monster tries tracking her again. Once again, she dodges and jumps back. This gives Alexander room to try attacking the boss. However, this fails as the boss jumps to avoid the strike.

  Alexander stops just short of Eonni and is kicked towards her. “Damn it!” Alexander flies into Eonni and they are sent towards a wall with the boss closing in on them.

  Bawl finally recovered from being thrown in the air and jumped towards the monster from above using his fingers to hold onto the ceiling.

  He hits the monster on the neck, which stuns it briefly. Bawl grabs Eonni and Alexander and moves them from their spot. The boss recovers and rushes towards Bawl.

  “Catching me by surprise? Pathetic!”

  Bawl blocks the attacks the monster delivers while also trying to attack it as well. Alexander rushes behind the monster to sneak attack it but the tentacles start blocking the attacks.

  “WHAT! I SHOULD BE CUTTING THROUGH! HOW IS IT USING FLESH TO BLOCK MY STRIKES?” Alexander thought to himself. Eonni also joins in and tries cutting the boss from above.

  “Jumping. Typical. You’re far too weak to handle me!” The monster ignites itself, fire covering its entire body. “About time, my flames are finally released.” The beast jumps to the other side of the room.

  “Damn it!” Alexander said, hitting the ground. Bawl didn’t think anything, and Eonni realized now why she noticed the heat increase.

  “So, it was coming from the boss.”

  The monster starts getting even bigger and more monstrous. It grows a tail that sticks to the ground and seems to be absorbing energy from below.

  The boss opens its mouth and seems to be charging up a blast.

  “GET OVER HERE NOW!” Alexander screams. Eonni and Bawl run towards Alexander while he opens his shield, disabling his sword and putting all his power into his shield.

  “Will it help?” Bawl asked, now behind Alexander, “I don’t know, maybe.”

  “I can block the attack. I’ll go in front of you.” Bawl goes in between Alexander's arms to be in front of him.

  “You can use my saws as extra shielding too.” Eonni has her saws go big and land in front of the shield.

  “Hmph, I guess a savior needs help from time to time.”

  The boss fires off the blast and they all push forward, preparing for the blast to hit. The blast hits the saws his first, but they don’t last long and are destroyed. The shield manages to hold it back but does not reflect it. The trio is being pushed back as a result of the blast and cannot seem to hold it for long.

  “Crap. If it puts us against the wall, we won’t survive. We need to hold on!” Alexander thought to himself, doing his best to keep the shield up. Bawl seems to be preventing them from getting pushed back too far, but at his current percentage of strength, it’s not enough.

  “Should I unscrew? No, Mom said that it only lasts 5 minutes.” Bawl thinks back to how Belle taught him about seconds and minutes today before leaving the house.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  The three are being pushed back little by little, doing their best to hold their ground.

  “Oh my gosh, please, please don’t fail.” Eonni thinks, fearing for her life, realizing just how helpless they are. “My weapons are destroyed; I have nothing left and we’re just barely holding on. If we survive, I’ll just be in the way.”

  The blast seems to be weakening as it continues. “Seems the attack is ending, just a little more, and when the attack is finished, I’ll quickly try to slice the monster.” Alexander thought, getting his feet ready to execute his plan. Bawl keeps pushing back and Eonni tries her best.

  The attack after 5 minutes, comes to an end and the shield disappears. Bawl and Alexander seemingly and are seemingly already in front of the boss, prepared to attack.

  “After a boss uses an ultimate attack, normally they have an opening. This is the opening.” Alexander thought, his sword seemingly longer and brighter than it was before.

  Bawl is behind the boss, launching himself towards the monster, clenching his fist for a powerful punch. The boss, as Alexander predicted, is stunned, unable to move.

  “DAMMIT, I CAN’T MOVE, THESE DAMNED RAIDERS! ONLY GOOD FOR JUMPING, NO FAITH OF A 1 ON 1!” The monster screams in its head, trying to move but unable to.

  As they get closer, the heat gets more unbearable for Alexander, but he persists, however, for Bawl, he doesn’t seem affected by the heat increase that much. Alexander manages to cut the monster in half while Bawl destroys the boss’s head. Eonni smiles, believing that the 2 boys have beaten the boss.

  “HELL YEAH!” Alexander keeps his pose for dramatic effect while Bawl walks away, shaking the blood off his hand. The boss seems to be defeated until a rumbling occurs. Alexander looks around and sees the boss beginning to move again. He is shocked and runs back to Bawl and Eonni, “THE BOSS ISN’T DEAD!”

  “WHAT! Eonni screamed.

  “GET READY!”

  The boss begins to regenerate again, this time getting even bigger and surrounded by even more flames. The three look around and see the entire area is being engulfed in flames, appearing as if they are in hell itself. The concrete melted, lava shooting out from the ground, and the sound of the boss roaring.

  Bawl stands in front of Alexander and Eonni, getting ready to unscrew, the heat still not affecting him but Alexander and Eonni are sweating profusely.

  The boss has finally taken its final form, appearing more like an eldritch monster from hell, the surrounding area perfectly encapsulating its presence.

  “I’M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL! I'LL BURN YOU ALL TO DEATH!”

  The boss steps forward, prepared to kill the three. The three know they have no hope of winning, they already had little hope of victory, but the current circumstances stripped them of any hope.

  Alexander puts up his shield, “I don’t intend to die unless I die fighting!”

  A chain surrounds the trio that seemingly comes from the door. The door is pulled from its hinges, and the trio is pulled out of the room.

  “HUH! What happened?” Alexander looked to see the same man who entered after them, the chain coming from a little device in his hand.

  Bawl and Eonni are also surprised, Bawl is upset he couldn’t unscrew but Eonni glad they can live another day.

  “You’re one of the Big 7, aren’t you? I can recognize that outfit anywhere.”

  “Yes, yes, I am. You should leave. I’ll deal with the boss.”

  “Could we watch?” Eonni asked.

  “No. Leave.”

  The feminine man enters the dungeon and puts the door back on its hinges. With nothing else to do, all three of them leave the dungeon.

  When they exit the portal, they are met with Belle, who is standing outside, furious at Bawl.

  “What did I tell you, Bawl?” Bawl seems to feel a bit guilty.

  “Not to enter portals until tomorrow.”

  “Yeah. So, tell me, WHY did you go into the dungeon?”

  “The cool guy said it would be fine.” Belle looks at Alexander and Eonni, “All three of you are coming with me.”

  “Huh? WHY!” Alexander retaliated, wanting to do his own thing.

  “Would you rather I turn you in?”

  Alexander pauses for a moment, thinking to himself, realizing that she is right. “Alright, fine.”

  “And you?” Looking at Eonni.

  “Yeah, I’ll follow you.”

  “Good. Now get your ass moving.” She says while walking away. Bawl, Alexander, and Eonni follow behind, knowing damn well they’re going to get their asses beat.