[DING!]
• [Level Up!]
• [Level Up!]
• [Level Up!]
The blue panel of the system appeared in front of Silas's eyes from the thin air, illuminating his exhausted face.
[You are now Level 52]
[Stat Points Gained: +33]
Silas wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, brushing the dirt off his face. "Level-fifty-two already, huh?" He muttered under his breath, a little breathless. "Not bad at all."
His entire body buzzed with the thrill of the fight. Every nerve felt awake. His muscles felt light and warm.
His heartbeat was steady, but excited — the kind of steady that came from surviving something he had no business surviving.
"System," Silas muttered under his breath, waving a hand towards the screen like trying to make it disappear. "Don't bug me about the stat points for now. Leave them unassigned for now, I wanna keep them saved for the boss fight."
[As you wish, Host. But unassigned stats can be the difference between living and dying.]
A smirk curled up on Silas's face. "Then I'll make sure that I don't die, haha." He said with a cocky grin on his face, brushing his hand through his hair like trying to style it.
He sheathed his sword, shook the tension out of his shoulders by stretching them a bit and turned towards the massive gate at the end of the room.
The Boss Room gate. The obsidian door was half-open, glowing faintly from within, as if the dungeon itself were exhaling hot air.
The glow of the lava inside the dungeon shifted as each passed by, like a furnace burning.
"Alright," Silas whispered as his eyes fixated on the front, tone dripping with motivation. "Let's finish this and get to a nice cafe for a canapéchino."
He pushed the door open, and a loud ancient creak filled the air.
The Boss Room wasn't just big — it was enormous. A wide cavern stretched out before him, large enough to swallow an entire stadium. The floor was cracked volcanic stone, warm beneath his boots. Rivers of lava ran through carved channels, casting long orange shadows.
Skeletons littered the ground—old, brittle and twisted into the shapes that suggested they didn't die so quickly.
Silas swallowed once; his voice came low. "Nice decor."
A throne, which was made out of jagged obsidian, stood in the centre of the room. On it sat the boss - a massive skeleton, wrapped in broken armour which was fused with the scorched flames.
One glowing red eye flickered from behind the ruined realm. Beside it was the huge greatsword, buried inside the floor.
The pressure coming off the knight was heavy… old… tired, but violent.
Silas took a few breaths, trying his best to control his ragged breathing.
The system slowly echoed inside his mind; the chime was mechanical.
[Boss Identified: Ember Skeleton Knight]
[Rank: D+]
[Level: 60]
[Type: Undead – Fire Variant]
[Status: Aggressive. Combat will begin immediately.]
Silas only had the time to read through half of it before the boss moved from its throne.
The knight slowly stood up with a harsh, cracking nose—bone was grinding against the molten metal. It grabbed its sword and charged straight towards Silas.
"Shit!"
The ground shook beneath Silas's feet. The knight swung its flaming blade in a wide horizontal arc, aiming to cut Silas clean in half.
Silas then vanished in a blur, leaving his after-image behind.
[Phantom Step!]
He reappeared behind the boss and stabbed at its spine with a quick [Piercing Thrust.], but—
CLANG!
The sword just scraped against the thick armor of its, barely leaving a scratch on it.
Silas barely had any time to curse before the Knight spun and smashed its elbow into Silas's gut. Air left through his lungs without wasting a second; the impact lifted him off the ground and threw him into the nearest wall. Silas went flying towards the wall and smashed into it with a loud thud.
"F—fuck…" A loud groan escaped through his mouth.
The system screen appeared in front of his eyes with a faint echo in his mind.
[Health: 93/100]
Silas pushed himself to his feet, wiping the blood from the corner of his lip. Voice came low, pain was mixed with it. "He hit me like a damn fucking truck… that strength."