The oversized rat came to a stop close to Silver Blade, swaying its head as if it was dizzy. Everyone immediately took the chance to attack.
Melodious Edelweiss contemplated for a moment before playing a certain tune and producing a red note which quickly caught up with Liam, allowing him to ignore part of the enemy's armor for a second.
With the party attacking at the same time the rat suffered heavy damage although everyone's most important skills were still on cooldown.
It let out an angry hiss, slamming its body against Radiant Shield.
[-524!]
However, what answered it was the next rotation of attacks, bringing its HP dangerously low. Just as the party thought they could end the fight, the boss's tiny eyes turned blood red.
An oppressive air filled the cave. Not giving the party a chance, the boss opened its mouth, revealing a pair of incredibly sharp teeth and bit towards the ground.
The rat's mouth moved unbelievably fast, crushing the stone below it with ease. In no time at all the huge body vanished into the floor. Only a desperate squeak echoed through the cave.
The party members looked at Liam, their eyes questioning if they should follow the boss. But the path was suddenly covered by a yellow barrier.
For a moment an oppressive silence fell on the cave. Silver Blade felt the situation wasn't right, signaling the party to stick together. Right then low crunching sounds spread as holes appeared all over the cave.
Heads peeked out, sending a shiver down everyone's spines. Rats could be found on all sides. It didn't take long for eight of them to drop into the cave and swarm the party.
"Careful! Shield, Felix, help me take the aggro! Don't let them attack our backline!"
The two men didn't need Silver Blade's reminder, quickly getting into position. Together the trio blocked the way for all the rats, bundling the attacks on them.
"Good job.", praised Liam generously while working to reduce the enemies.
After the initial shock the fight wasn't that difficult. Radiant Shield even stood there without moving, letting the rats attack him freely. He was just short of taking a nap.
Silver Blade and Final Fend couldn't be quite as leisurely but with Melodious Edelweiss's heals they held on well.
Soon, the first wave of rats was defeated but it was quickly followed by ten more of the spiked rodents.
This time the party had to struggle a bit as one of the rats made it past the tanks. Liam was forced to draw aggro. Coupled with the reflective damage he was stuck in a pinch.
The party focused on the enemy attacking Liam to free him up. Only after that rat died could they fight without distraction.
However, after the second wave a third one naturally followed. This time Liam was forced to take on two rats, putting quite the pressure on the party.
Liam appeared to be struggling, juggling his ult to regain stance and dodge carefully.
But suddenly he glanced towards a certain hollow, before immediately pulling his eyes away.
[Bleary Mirage: Braag, now!]
Braag couldn't stay as indifferent. He clearly revealed an exited grin on his face as his launcher heated up, glowing in a flaming red. A massive sphere was shot, flying towards the hollow.
Black Rat had observed the fight patiently, never daring to move. Only when it looked like the battle was nearing its end and Bleary Mirage was in a situation requiring all his attention did he finally make a move.
The thief felt his hair stand on end as he sneaked between the rats, heading for the hollow.
But just as he was about to reach it, he felt a strange sensation, which vanished immediately. Black Rat doubted himself for a moment, not sure whether he should advance.
Suddenly he jolted his head to the side, his eyes falling on Braag. A massive bomb left the dwarf's launcher, heading right for the hollow.
Black Rat felt his heart skip a beat. Without hesitation he immediately turned around trying to escape.
But it was still too late. A heavy explosion shook the cave. Its edge caught the thief, dispersing his stealth and revealing him to everyone's eyes.
Black Rat was shocked and jumped away from the hollow. His head turned towards Bleary Mirage as a sigh escaped his lips. Suddenly he waved his hand, throwing a black ball on the floor.
A cloud of smoke erupted covering the thief's surroundings.
"I lost. Well played."
Those words lingered in the cave as the smoke slowly dispersed, Black Rat nowhere to be found.
Liam raised his brows, a smile playing on his lips:
"Master thief?"
"What?"
"A thief class purely focused on stealing. Coming and going undetected. It's usually quite popular but only the best can make it work."
"How would you rate that guy's skill level?", asked Braag curiously.
"Not bad…"
The others reacted strangely upon hearing this evaluation. Without Liam it was questionable if they would've detected Black Rat. If this was 'not bad', then what about them?
Liam glanced at the faces and nodded calmly.
"I can guess what you're thinking. Your detection skills are indeed not up to par. Something else we should put on the agenda."
The others smiled wryly, knowing that even more training was waiting for them. Luckily Final Fend's shout diverted their attention:
"Guys, can we focus back on the fight?"
Glancing at the young man everyone noticed his HP decreasing dangerously. Since he was only level 19, even the common rats dealt considerable damage.
Melodious Edelweiss immediately produced a green note, healing against the damage. Simultaneously Fortune had just finished her cast, sending out an [Arcane Sphere] in Final Fend's direction.
Two rats died, lifting the pressure of him. Ultimately Final Fend still needed to drink a health potion before the last enemy fell.
Uncertain squeaks spread through the cave. The few rats still watching appeared intimidated, slowly drawing back into their tunnels.
Suddenly the floor trembled. A large piece of rock broke away, revealing a furious rat boss jumping out of the ground. Its angry squeaks were directed at its brethren, admonishing them for their disloyalty.
But before the king itself managed to get another attack in, swords and magic arrived from all sides. Letting out an unwilling squeak the boss dropped to the floor.
Immediately the other rats lost all their shackles and scattered.
"Another boss falls under our blade. A valiant effort, my friends.", praised Radiant Shield with a light nod.
Watching everyone's faces Melodious Edelweiss felt conflicting sensations. She gathered her courage, asking in a low voice:
"Aren't you happy?"
The others were startled, looking at each other. The fight neither held a high significance nor difficulty, thus not stirring their emotions. But Silver Blade's thoughts moved quickly, answering with a bright smile:
"I'm happy that we discovered a new talent! Congratulations to your first boss kill as part of Hotpot, Edelweiss!"
"Sis, shouldn't it be Dream Avenue now?"
"Haha, right!"
The friends smiled joyfully, some even clapping for Melodious Edelweiss. After getting to know the bard everyone could tell that she was rather shy. Maybe some acknowledgement might help to increase her confidence.
The young woman on the other hand was taken aback by the reaction, thanking Silver Blade in a barely audible voice.
While the friends were talking, the bodies around them gradually disappeared. Braag looked distressed as many of the rats still carried the wealth stacks applied by his passive. The dwarf quickly reached out to one of the rats but didn't receive any reaction.
Braag realized that the bodies couldn't be looted. With a sigh he moved towards the boss, hoping that it could make up for his losses.
When the progress bar vanished, a pair of leather gloves appeared in his hands. They were of uncommon quality, increasing INT and STR, fitting perfectly for the dwarf.
But even though Braag wasn't a core member of Hotpot he found it difficult to get excited over the uncommon equipment. He wore the gloves with a neutral expression while searching his inventory for the rest of the loot. After a moment he noticed something interesting, taking out a light-blue scroll.
"Hey guys, look at this!"
"Hmm, what makes you so excited?", asked Final Fend with a laugh, prompting Braag to share the item in the chat.
[Intermediate White Blizzard
Category: Uncommon
Effect: Unleash a blizzard in an area of 30 meters, dealing 300 points of magical damage per second to all affected enemies. The spell lasts for 60 seconds.
Restrictions: Can only be used during guild wars
A scroll famously produced by the Blizzard Tower of Svebrial academy. In case of war the entire empire can be turned into a freezing hell.]
It took only a moment for Final Fend to exclaim in shock:
"What? This sounds so op!"
Silver Blade, knowing her brother, rolled her eyes.
"Did you even read the restriction?"
"Restriction? Oh…"
A few chuckles rang through the cave while Braag already approached the hollow which was targeted by Black Rat earlier. He rubbed his hands in preparation as his eyes fell on the half-hidden treasure chest.