Afterlife Dream

Half of the squad already gathered on the fourth floor of the Cursed Tower by the time Cecilia and I arrived. And we were one hour early. Cecilia whistled, "You guys sure are enthusiastic. Okay, please give me some time to set the squad."

After Twelve and Dominion stopped ambushing each other's runs, the raids had taken a rather peaceful note.

After the bridges that connected to the Fairy Forest had been established, players had been able to proceed with the game smoothly. It was a relief.

As always, I was grouped together with my friends. It was a good decision because we had great dynamics when playing together. The chance of us killing each other was quite small.

"Before we proceed, I believe it makes sense to share a little about the Dark Fairy," ZhaoYun started. Since he, Livina, HellWitch, and Lazarus already joined a few raids, these words were mainly directed to me and DragonTalon.

"Sure!" DragonTalon answered happily. "Please share with me all the tips and tricks that you have inside your sleeves!"

Livina giggled. "There is not much to share, only that the Dark Fairy is a ranged boss. It is impossible to avoid her attacks."

"So she throws knives and stars?" I queried.

"Well... No. She throws a bunch of sharp leaves."

"Oh."

"I am sure the bowmen can avoid the attacks easily. They have 'Winged Steps'," DragonTalon pointed out, to which Lazarus tossed out grim laughter.

"Nope, the leaves will follow their targets around until they hit."

"It's alright, I will burn them before they hit," DragonTalon said with a wink.

HellWitch raised a finger as a warning. "The word 'before' is very important. Whatever you do, do not stay idle anywhere inside the map."

"Roger that."

We also got some insight regarding the 50% HP and the 20% HP special attacks. At 50% HP, the Dark Fairy employed a skill that trapped players on their respective spots on the ground and then launch a destructive AoE all over the map. At 20% HP, the Dark Fairy turned the map into a sea of blood and all players would drown.

"..."

"..."

"What the heck? What kind of an attack is that???" Both DragonTalon and I were enraged.

The other four cackled in delight.

"Just remember to climb or fly during the two special attacks," HellWitch told us.

DragonTalon was beyond unhappy. He shot me a jealous look. "If I knew that the Angel Wings were so godly, I would have traded my Dimensional Points for the Angel Feathers!"

ZhaoYun tapped him on the shoulder like a commiserating brother-in-arm. "I know, dude. I also regret not making the best use of my Dimensional Points."

It was 15.30 and we were in the middle of setting up the squad. Cecilia was busy with the squad interface screen. Players who had been assigned to their parties grouped together at a corner to chat in a low voice. When Cecilia was finally done, she looked up and blood quickly drained from her face.
"Guys?" she asked in disbelief, "Where did the NPC go...?"

We all turned our heads to where Princess Shi Ran, the NPC was supposed to be standing. She was gone.

"Huhhh???"

"She was here!!!"

"I think I just saw her five minutes ago!!!"

All of us started to scatter around in panic. What the hell happened? Map NPCs were not supposed to be able to move! If we could not find Princess Shi Ran, we could not enter the raid!

"I guess this is not supposed to happen," I said slowly, more to myself than to anyone else.

"Yupp..." HellWitch said with a frown. "This is not supposed to happen at all."

Just then, a cold voice echoed throughout the fourth floor.

"You dirty wench. How dare you go against me? I am going to destroy you!!!"

"AAHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

I pressed both hands against my ears to prevent my eardrums from being pierced through by the shrill, high-pitch scream.

"I am going to turn you into a malicious ghost. You shall relive hell on earth, HAHAHAAHHA!!!"

"Okay, this Dark Fairy is sick," ZhaoYun said, his face full of disgust. "It's just that this scenario is completely new."

Less than 30 minutes left before we enter the raid, and Afterlife Dream came up with a new scenario! I was not sure if I was lucky or unlucky.

The game's mechanical voice was heard not long after Princess Shi Ran's blood-curdling scream died out.

"Dear Adventurers, the Dimensional Master's appearance has strengthened the power of all the raid bosses. There will be a few scenario changes within each raid. We wish you the greatest luck during the runs."

With a horror-inducing creak, the double door in front of us opened up to reveal nothing but the red color of hellfire. The surface rippled with a surge of energy, saturated with an evil aura.

We all exchanged fearful looks. We all automatically took a few steps in retreat.

"What to do?"

Cecilia stepped closer and tried to squint through the curtain of bright red color.

"I can't see anything. I guess we have to go in to find out."

The Bow Master glanced at the digital clock above our heads. It showed 15.45, and the time kept running.

"Either we go or we skip. Guys, this is already the third day since the countdown started. We only have three runs left including today's. What do you guys want to do?"

The gloveless players were of course eager to go. That included me.

"We should do it. In fact, the game said that all raids had been tempered with. There is no other way but forward," I said.

"Antares is right," HellWitch said. "Of course we are the unlucky ones to have to run the first raid after the scenario change, but even if we aren't, Dominion is not going to share us the tips and tricks to finish the raid. We have to rely on ourselves."

HellWitch's words quickly gained approval. We decided to go ahead and enter the raid.

The parties were lined up before the double door. The melees stood at the front side with the healers behind them, and then the ranged attackers some distance away.

"Enter one by one, party after party," Cecilia instructed. "The best of luck to all of us!"

Our party was the third to enter. We saw the red curtain swallow the two parties before us with a lot of anxiety. I stood behind ZhaoYun and HellWitch, who both had their weapons ready to attack. Behind me, Lazarus, Livina, and DragonTalon stood in full alert mode.

"Ready, guys?" ZhaoYun asked.

"Ready."

"Yupp."

HellWitch and ZhaoYun stepped beyond the threshold and into the red curtain of light. I held my hands in front of me to feel the curtain before I stepped in. It was a little warm but not scorching hot like the impression that it gave. I sucked in a deep breath and crossed through the double door.

As soon as I entered, something warm splattered on my face. The familiar metallic taste spread in my mouth when the warm liquid made it past my lips.

Blood!

I widened my eyes in fear.

When I saw the silvery gleam of a blade before my eyes before, I automatically raised my arms and blocked the attack using my Dark Moon Staff. There was a screeching sound along with flying fire sparks when the metal scraped against the obsidian stone of the staff handle. The fire sparks illuminated the face of my enemy. Under his helmet, his face was shrouded in dark smoke. I was unable to recognize him.

Fearing that the handle could not hold on any longer, I raised a leg and kicked at my enemy's stomach with all my might. The enemy retreated a few steps, holding his stomach in pain.

All around me, fights broke out. The first two parties who entered before us were not visible at all. Amongst the sound of metals clashing against each other, I could hear ZhaoYun's screams.

"ANTARES! DRAGONTALON!"

Bang bang clang.

"HELLWITCH! LAZARUS!"

Clang clang boom.

"LIVINA! ARE YOU HERE???"

"I AM HERE!" I shouted, dodging another enemy soldier's attack. "ZHAOYUN, WHERE ARE YOU!"


"ANTARES! TRY TO COME TO THE MIDDLE!"

"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!" DragonTalon's cry was heard somewhere behind me.

DragonTalon, Livina, and Lazarus finally entered the map as well.

"COME TO THE CENTER OF THE MAP!" I shouted, repeating after ZhaoYun as I fought my way to the middle of the map.

In the middle of the map, I recognized our guild members who were in the first two parties that entered. They formed a circle, protecting each other's back as they fought the enemies ferociously.

In the middle of the circle lay a few players who were badly wounded. My heart almost stopped when I recognized one of them.

"HellWitch!!!"

Blood trickled down HellWitch's face as she lay on the ground. She opened her eyes when she heard me calling his name, but then her eyes quickly fell shut and she slowly disappeared.