Chapter 27: Vaguis the Bounded[2]
--Chapter 27--
Title>> Vaguis the bounded[2]
Xavier’s dagger work was going through the gears.
Heads were flying and bodies were crumpling into nothingness, but that was also when he witnessed something.
Amongst the spawns of Vaguis, the one at the back of the line seemed to have hit its head hard.
Because instead of charging towards the party to attack them, the tiny nuisance was going in the opposite direction.
It was moving towards the throne and towards Vaguis instead.
"Hmmm..."
Xavier’s eyes squinted in slight introspection of what that meant.
’Why would it b-?’ His eyes widened in realization...
This was because as soon as the spawn reached the base of the chains and stopped,
its body shuddered dramatically before its skin split open, allowing something like grease to pour out of it.
The unknown substance seeped into the chains like lubricant and travelled upwards,
where Vaguis was waiting on the chained throne.
Vaguis’s HP bar glowed and pulsed.
[Vaguis the Bounded - HP: 4505/4500]
"Isn’t that something..." Xavier let out a low breath.
It wasn’t that he was seeing this for the first time. No. It wasn’t that.
However, he had never faced this feature of the boss on medium or lower difficulty.
Truth be told, it wasn’t much of a game changer at first glance.
The spawns added a total of five points. It was an insignificant fraction in the grand scheme of things.
But then you realized the spawns numbered into the fifties and hundreds.
Yeah... it might just get annoying then.
"The spawns are feeding him," Xavier called out. "They’re sacrificing themselves to increase his base HP. Don’t let them reach the throne."
The atmosphere in the room changed the moment Xavier spoke.
No words were exchanged, but the rest of the party understood the assignment.
Timothee sprang into action, leaping forward in a quick burst. He positioned himself like a mountain to block the path to the throne.
But it seemed even his immediate response wasn’t good enough.
One of the spawns was on the brink of slipping away alongside another.
Timothee reacted quickly, but he was only able to intercept one of them.
Grabbing it by the crown of its head, Timothee slammed it face first into the nearby floor.
[Player Timothee: Vaguis Spawn Defeated!]
[Rewards: 30 EXP Accumulated to Party]
"Priya! Cover!"
Timothee didn’t need to repeat himself before Priya appeared beside him, her eyes solid white with a blue tint.
Her sword work, alongside Juo’s water skills, made sure the spawn that slipped away from Timothee was the last one.
***
A few moments later...
The last of the spawns dyed the air with grey mist that disappeared just as fast as it died.
The cathedral’s mirror floors at this point were littered with the fading corpses of spawns and scorch marks from minor explosions.
"Quite the massacre," Xavier reappeared at the center of the group.
Timothee looked battered. He’d taken a spray to the shoulder that was slowly blistering.
Dex was still favoring his back, and his HP wasn’t pretty either.
But at the very least, they were all alive.
That counted for something.
"Krrhh..."
The breathing sounds from above changed for the worse.
They became more inhumane and somewhat aggravated.
The group’s eyes moved to the darkness above, staring into the blackness.
But just then, the chains all stopped moving completely and instead began producing protrusions like branches.
The branches spread out in the blink of an eye to cover the whole area, forming an enclosure as the chains knitted together into a sphere.
[Domain: False Bound]
Just as the Domain was formed, Vaguis rose from the throne, the chains bound to his back rattling with each step he took.
The HUD over the nightmarish Vaguis displayed:
[Vaguis the Bounded – Level 10]
[HP: 4510/4500]
The instant the Imp’s feet touched the ground, the mirror floor cracked beneath the weight of his presence.
Screech!
The jagged sword in its hand was so long Xavier could’ve sworn it was as long as he was tall.
"Bloody... diabolical," Xavier said excitedly in his mind.
This was it...
The battle he’d been waiting for since they entered the Hollowgate Dungeon.
But instead of charging, Vaguis simply approached slowly, almost like it was counting its own steps.
It was totally unbothered that its prey might escape, or maybe it just saw no reason for haste.
However, that patience, the lack of urgency in its first approach, was always the flaw that Xavier used against it.
Turning to the party, Xavier began. "It’s weighing its options."
He raised his fingers and gestured accordingly.
"Prepare for the Aggro in three... two... one."
And just as he said...
Vaguis’s blood-red eyes suddenly snapped toward the tank, Timothee.
"Timothee, you’re up. Get the Sentinel’s Shield from the pool and move."
Just as the words left Xavier’s mouth, he began moving.
"Everyone else, watch for the chain."
"Chain? What chain?" Dex raised an eyebrow as he nocked his arrow.
And just as he asked...
Well... the chain answered.
It moved like a snake and definitely didn’t hiss...
Emerging from the left, it didn’t come from Vaguis. Instead, it came from the darkness beyond the pillars.
And without warning, the rusted serpent lashed out even before the boss made a move.
Its snappy tip silently wrapped around Dex’s ankle and yanked.
[Player Dexter: HP: 42/110]
"THAT CHAIN!" Xavier shouted.
"Fuck!" Dex screamed as he was pulled across the floor like a rag doll.
Even with Aggro on him, Timothee moved to Dex’s rescue.
Quickly, he stomped on the chain with full force, stopping the pull before grabbing it with both hands.
Timothee didn’t hold back, pulling the chain even as his muscles bulged.
"Ahhnnn," he grunted as the links of the chain groaned, the rusty edges flaked, and then...
Snap!
The chain couldn’t resist the raw strength of the man. It broke and quickly retreated into the darkness.
Dex scrambled back to his feet, his HP already in the red.
"Backline," Xavier ordered. "Now. And stay there."
The words barely left Xavier’s lips when Vaguis appeared before Timothee.
The boy had barely recovered from saving Dex when the shadow of death loomed over him.
But luckily for him, Vaguis’s attack lacked speed, or better still, it didn’t try catching anyone by surprise.
Vaguis’s massive sword descended in an overhead swing that would easily cleave Timothee in two.
"Fuck..."
Timothee moved, trying to raise the Sentinel’s Shield that the system had rewarded them with.
But he was too late, or so it seemed.
That was until Xavier appeared from an unexpected angle.
The instant he appeared, his clenched fist slammed clean into Vaguis’s jaw with explosive force.
Bam!
The punch twisted the demon’s head into an unnatural position.
One that would’ve killed a human easily.
The sight made everyone pause in relief, but Xavier knew better.
This bastard was by no means dead...
The creature’s head slowly twisted back like a puppet toward Xavier, its bloodshot eyes burning with rage.
Timothee stumbled back after the failed block, still clutching the Sentinel’s Shield.
"I’ve got Aggro!" Xavier shouted. "Hit it now!"
Whoosh!
Priya came from the opposite direction, her Talent fully activated, marking Vaguis in its entirety.
With the perfect angle her Talent granted, her blade found the gap where the obsidian plates thinned at Vaguis’s ribs. And she slashed.
[Critical Hit]
[567]
And for the first time since he left the chained throne.
Vaguis staggered.
–End of Chapter–