Nate's words lingered in the air after the crab's corpse turned into ash.
Arthur followed behind in silence, his grip tight around the hilt of his axe. Ivy no longer asked questions, and Alice kept her thoughts to herself.
No one argued.
However, the silence didn't last forever.
Oliver cracked a joke in a thin attempt to shake off the tension.
It worked, just a little.
Nate's eyes narrowed, spotting another suitable monster.
"This one works," He announced, turning around to them.
He said, "No complaining now," in a dominant, assertive tone.
One by one, they nodded. Not in agreement, but in fear of what fate had stored for them.
The monster walked on two strong hind legs, covered in sharp, rocky scales. It looked like a dragon, but had no wings.
A dinosaur. A t-rex, as they saw it.
However, it had two strong arms with sharp crimson claws. Its huge jaw was filled with sharp, edgy, stone teeth.
"Gadormas are blind, but they aren't a joke either," Nate warned, pointing at their empty eyes.
It was seven feet tall and moving slowly. Each heavy step shook the ground.
'I hope it's not a variant.' Nate thought.
Gadormas were mostly warriors with no elemental attacks.
But sometimes, a variant or two would appear with different classes.
Such ones were more difficult to deal with.
Thus, it was risky.
Nate ordered, "My summons won't suffice; everyone participates."
But there were advantages.
Such a monster would be at least level fifteen or above. Not only would killing give them experience, but decent items would also drop.
"Oliver and Hobo, start sending projectiles in two opposite directions," Nate commanded.
The best tactic to take it down was confusion.
But Nate wondered, 'Would a human sync well with a monster?'
Oliver didn't have a connection to Hobo like Nate did, so it could be very rough to work together.
Suddenly, Hobo screamed, pointing in one direction before firing up.
He shocked Nate with his intelligence, choosing a side to prevent pointless conflict and confusion.
Hobo's action left Oliver with a single choice, forcing him to shoot at the opposite side.
The Gadorm roared to the left, then threw itself to the right, taking a defensive stance.
"It's working!" Arthur exclaimed.
Nate smiled, "It does, and it's your turn now."
"You are a low level, so Hunter will take the lead. He will slash a leg and act as bait. Then you will take the chance to strike the other." He instructed.
"I have to escape afterwards, right?" Arthur asked.
"You must not have to. One attack and you are dead, but I have countermeasures. Once both of your attacks land, Oliver and Hobo will attack its head." Nate grinned.
Arthur grumbled, "Your grin unsettles me, this is not easy..."
Despite his fear, Arthur followed the plan. He had no better.
"It's not. But high risk, high reward," Alice commented, surprising Nate by taking the lead.
"Alright, I'm ready when he's...ready?" Arthur answered, Hunter's excitement confusing him.
'This gadroma is five times your size! Why and how are you even excited?!' He screamed internally, feeling offended.
Nate ignored Arthur's reaction, he instructed Oliver and Hobo to continue.
Both snuck, marching toward the monster. They made sure their presence remained completely hidden.
Gadorma was throwing itself from one side to another, trying to figure out where the attacks came from.
Suddenly, it roared.
Hunter swung his claws at the right foot, crushing a chunk of its scales before pinning it down with ice.
The gadorma shook, chasing behind Hunter.
Arthur took the chance, striking the same foot from behind.
His heart bounded as the monster's hollow eyes locked onto him...
"Fuck, fuck, fuck," He cursed angerly, hating the plan Nate came up with. It roared, chasing after him as if it were a horror movie, becoming a reality to him.
He ran in terror, praying for Nate to hurry with his countermeasure.
"Now, aim for the bloody head!" Nate roared as Hobo and Oliver sent the projectiles at the gadorma's jaws.
It roared, erupting in rage. It diverted its attention, charging furiously at them.
"What do we do now?!" Oliver screamed in terror.
The sight of the titan charging at them sent a shiver down his spine.
Ivy clung to Alice, trembling in fear.
Nate understood their fear was a normal reaction, but he couldn't stand it.
"Shut up, Oliver! Remeber what I said?" Nate snapped, glaring at Oliver.
The gadorma was tracing their attack.
If he caught its attention by noise, then it would give them a safety window.
'Since I started this, I should end it,' Nate thought, taking the responsibility for his action.
"All of you stay here, no moving, no noises, nothing!" Nate whispered, then ran quickly to the left.
He screamed intentionally, striking the ground with loud and noisy steps.
The gadorma took the bait, it turned around, accelerating behind him.
'It's catching up, but futile...' He thought, knowing how to deal with such a situation.
His past was full of experience, worth flaunting if revealing didn't risk ruining the future.
'We must win,' Nate thought.
He had with many monsters in the past, and couldn't allow a single gadorma to stand in their way to victory.
He suddenly halted, turning to the opposite direction as the gadorma caught up to him.
The monster roared, snapping its jaws as Nate ran past it, passing between its legs.
He struck the wound left by the previous attacker with his sword, whining "Bloody shit!"
Nate saw the ten damage points he dealt as pathetic, not even worth a dime.
'Probably too high for me and Arthur at the moment.' He thought, gesturing at Hobo.
No chat. No command. But he understood what it had to do.
"Grehk," Hobo roared excitedly, sending seven massive fireballs at the gadorma's wounded leg.
The gadorma cried as the flames devoured its leg, destroying it.
With only a single leg left, the godroma couldn't support itself. It crumbled, crashing heavily on its left side.
"Phew!" Nate breathed heavily, feeling exhausted from the crazy chase.
He collapsed on the ground, taking a rest before continuing. The gadorma was alive, but weakened and jaded.
It had no more chances against them, not with a missing leg.
"Alice, heal its leg!" Nate shouted. He couldn't allow death to claim his prey.
Alice nodded silently. She approached the thrashing monster, maintaining caution.
It missed a leg, but the rest of its body remained... One mistake and it could easily cost her life.
Meanwhile, Oliver approached Nate.
He offered him a hand. "You alright?" he asked.
"Was it thrilling?" Nate asked, gripping Oliver's hand and standing up proudly.
"Maybe too thrilling... Let's hope it was worth it." Olver responded, having mixed feelings on the situation.
Suddenly, Arthur stepped in.
"It should be," he said, smiling with conviction. "Just believe in Nate."