Slowly and carefully, Axel walked step by step across the constantly swaying suspension bridge. He kept holding his breath, occasionally releasing it, with both hands gripping the bridge ropes. Meanwhile, the five wraiths followed, hovering directly beneath him, ready to catch him if he fell.
Axel glanced to the right and saw a massive chain connected to the cave wall and the chasm wall where the castle stood. He looked to the left and saw the same huge chain also hooked into the wall and the chasm. He instantly realized something and stopped, his eyes focused on the black castle ahead.
"What's the point of those chains? That's weird," Axel wondered in his mind.
He cautiously continued to step forward, watching the five wraiths fluttering beneath him. After a long moment of struggle, swaying back and forth on the bridge, Axel finally set foot on the ground right in front of a massive wall with the black castle looming behind it. The five wraiths landed behind him and stayed silent, staring at the huge black castle in front of them, which looked like a fortified city with a keep inside.
Axel sighed, then he stepped into the fortress entrance. Once inside the courtyard, he saw many small, ruined buildings around him, a large stable, and a long building that looked like knight barracks. Axel continued walking across the courtyard toward the barred gate ahead, but suddenly,
"Kek… kek… kek,"
Axel immediately tensed up, seeing a skeleton wearing a robe like a sorcerer, a crown of upward-jutting thorns on its head, and carrying a staff in its hand, floating in front of him. Its body was shrouded in a terrifying green fiery aura, and its head was burning. It stared at him with red, hollow eyes that looked like they had fire inside and seemed to be laughing.
"Ugh… another mini-boss… this time a Necro Lich, but Necro Liches are supposed to show up in the final King's castle… why is it here… this is strange… am I strong enough to fight it," Axel muttered, feeling a slight lack of confidence.
Before Axel finished sizing up the enemy in front of him, the Necro Lich raised its staff. The ground immediately cracked open, and dozens of zombies and skeletons, shrouded in green fire, rose from the earth. Axel quickly prepared himself, spotting the gemstone on the Necro Lich's forehead. Both of Axel's palms opened to the side, and two magic circles appeared in front of his palms.
"Double Blood Scythe Slash,"
Two gigantic, blood-red scythes, curved like crescent moons, instantly appeared. Both scythes simultaneously slashed the army of green-fire-shrouded zombies and living skeletons over a wide attack range. The entire army of zombies and living skeletons was instantly smashed to pieces, but soon after, their bodies reassembled and stood up again.
"Graaaaah,"
They started walking toward Axel again, ready to attack under the Necro Lich's command. Axel tried the same skill one more time, and the result was identical: the zombies and living skeletons got back up and started walking toward him. Axel looked up at the Necro Lich floating in the air.
"I have to attack the source," Axel muttered.
Axel raised his hand, and several magic circles instantly appeared around him and began to spin.
"Blood arrow rain,"
Hundreds of blood-light arrows immediately shot toward the Necro Lich floating in the air, but all the arrows were blocked by a green flame that formed a barrier around its body.
"Damn, it has a shield too," Axel muttered, looking up.
Axel swung his sword and fired his pistol at the zombies that were getting very close, retreating while looking for a way to strike the Necro Lich floating in the air and seemingly mocking him. Axel was starting to feel pressured and pessimistic about defeating the Necro Lich, since he knew the Lich was a top-tier mini-boss, and his heart began to pound as he kept thinking.
Suddenly, "swoooosh," the five wraiths behind Axel shot toward the Necro Lich. Sharon and Bella immediately grabbed both of the Lich's arms, Valerie snatched its staff, Hailey kicked its stomach, and Avery, getting behind the Lich, tore off its head.
Then they all immediately flew back toward Axel and presented the Necro Lich's head, which was still moving its jaw, right in front of him. Axel instantly aimed his pistol at the gem on the skull's forehead and "blam," he shot it. The Necro Lich's head instantly crumbled into light dust, as did its body and the army it had summoned.
"Blugh," Axel dropped to the floor, while the five wraiths immediately surrounded him. Then Axel looked at them one by one.
"Thank you, all of you," Axel said simply.
"You're welcome," Sharon replied, smiling.
"Yeah, happy to help," Valerie added.
"But nothing dropped, huh," Bella said, looking toward where the Lich's body had vanished.
"Mini-bosses don't drop anything," Axel replied.
"Oh, I didn't know that," Bella replied.
"The important thing is it's defeated, we won," Hailey stated.
"For once, I agree with you," Avery added.
They looked at the dark castle in front of them with many bats flying around it. Then Axel opened his status to check his level.
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Name : Axelirius Von Aldrich (Axel).
Age : 15.
Race : Half vampire / Dhampir.
Level : 320 level up to 1100 / 9999 (100,500 / 550,500).
Health : 5,200 / 6,600 up to 22,200.
Spirit : 1,800 / 3,300 up to 11,100.
STR : 5,000 up to 22,000. (moon relic set + 1000)
AGI : 5,000 up to 22,000. (moon relic set + 1000)
STA : 5,000 up to 22,000. (moon relic set + 1000)
LUC : 5,000 up to 22,000 (Lucky pendant + 200).
********************************************
"Wow… that's a huge jump… I knew it, the Necro Lich should have been a monster that appeared near the end of the game," Axel muttered.
"This isn't the end-game area?" Sharon asked.
"No, this is a mid-game area," Axel said, standing up.
"Oh, I see. So we have to go into that castle?" Hailey asked, pointing toward the black castle in front of them.
"Yeah, we have no other choice but to go forward. Like it or not, we have to go inside. Let's go in and find the answers," Axel muttered, looking at the castle and motioning to the five wraiths with him.
"Okay," Sharon, Valerie, Bella, Hailey, and Avery replied cheerfully, giving their eerie smiles.
They walked toward the barred gate at the end of the courtyard, remaining cautious, afraid of being ambushed by more enemies. When they reached the gate, "gleng… greeek," the barred gate lifted on its own, as if inviting Axel and the five wraiths to enter. After sighing and steeling his heart, Axel stepped inside, followed by the five wraiths behind him. Once Axel was inside, "greeek… gleng," the barred gate closed tightly again, and silence returned.