For several seconds, Fayzan could do nothing but stare at the broken weapon in his hand.
The sword that had carried him through countless battles was gone.
Only the damaged hilt remained between his fingers.
Fragments of metal continued to fall around his feet, glowing faintly from the heat that had been transferred through the weapon before it shattered.
Clink.
One fragment landed beside his boot.
Then another.
Fayzan's breathing became heavier.
He slowly looked up.
Apollonius was still standing directly in front of him.
Her enormous body was illuminated by the flames surrounding her.
The twenty-one-foot-tall warrior looked almost divine beneath the orange light.
Her massive flame sword remained raised.
The blade was already descending.
Fayzan's instincts screamed.
Move.
He immediately threw himself to the side.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The giant sword smashed into the ground where he had been standing.
The impact shattered the stone floor.
Chunks of rock erupted into the air.
A deep crater formed beneath Apollonius's weapon.
Fayzan rolled across the ground and quickly pushed himself upright.
He barely had time to breathe.
Apollonius turned toward him.
Her expression remained completely emotionless.
Then—
she kicked.
The enormous leg struck Fayzan directly in the chest.
BAAAAAAM!
"GAH!"
Fayzan's body launched backward.
He flew several meters through the air before slamming against the stone floor.
He rolled violently across the battlefield.
His armor scraped against the ground.
His health bar dropped again.
Fayzan coughed as he tried to stand.
"...She doesn't even need the sword."
His voice trembled slightly.
Apollonius slowly turned toward him.
The massive flame sword dissolved.
Fire gathered around her arms.
Then—
the flames stretched outward.
The bow returned.
Fayzan's eyes widened.
"No..."
Apollonius immediately raised the weapon.
Ryota saw what was happening.
"FAYZAN!"
Fayzan looked toward him.
"Move!"
Apollonius drew the string.
The flames around the bow began to intensify.
Ryota immediately started running.
But Apollonius wasn't aiming at him.
Her burning eyes remained fixed on Fayzan.
A single arrow formed.
Then another.
Then another.
The bow began producing them faster than before.
Fayzan's expression changed.
"...That's a lot."
Apollonius pulled the string.
The arrows began glowing.
Then the boss released them.
FWOOOOOOOOOSH!
A barrage of flaming arrows tore across the chamber.
Fayzan immediately jumped backward.
The first arrow passed directly beside him.
Another struck the floor.
Another flew over his head.
Another exploded against the wall.
He moved between them as quickly as possible.
But he was already injured.
His sword was gone.
And his opponent was controlling the entire battlefield.
One arrow suddenly curved toward him.
Fayzan's eyes widened.
He twisted his body.
The arrow barely missed.
BOOOOOOM!
The explosion threw him sideways.
Fayzan landed hard.
He tried to stand.
Another arrow was already approaching.
Then—
CLANG!
A sword intercepted it.
Ryota appeared between them.
The flaming projectile exploded against his blade.
The blast pushed him backward.
But he held his ground.
"Fayzan!"
"You alright?"
Fayzan stared at him.
"...My sword's gone."
Ryota glanced at the broken weapon.
Then smiled.
"Then we'll fight without it."
Fayzan laughed weakly.
"Easy for you to say."
Ryota raised his sword.
"Come on."
"We've got a boss to beat."
Fayzan slowly stood.
Even without his weapon—
he still had his fists.
And he wasn't going to surrender.
Apollonius watched them.
Then something changed.
Her bow lowered slightly.
The flames around her body became brighter.
Ryota's smile disappeared.
"...She's doing something."
Fayzan looked around.
"What?"
"I don't know."
Apollonius slowly raised her bow.
But instead of aiming toward either of them—
she pointed the weapon toward the ground.
The flames surrounding the bow began gathering.
Unlike her previous attacks, this energy didn't immediately become an arrow.
It began spreading.
A glowing circle appeared beneath her feet.
Orange light crawled across the stone floor.
Ancient symbols appeared around the boss.
The temperature rose.
Then rose again.
Ramos, who was still hiding behind a pile of broken stone, felt the heat reaching even his hiding place.
His face became pale.
"What is she doing now...?"
Ryota looked toward him.
"Stay there!"
Ramos nodded frantically.
"Gladly!"
Apollonius remained completely still.
Her bow pointed downward.
The energy continued gathering.
Fayzan stared at her.
"Ryota..."
"Yeah?"
"That doesn't look good."
Ryota tightened his grip.
"No."
"It doesn't."
The glowing circle beneath Apollonius expanded.
Then—
the entire chamber trembled.
A notification appeared.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[Boss Skill: Sunshine Scatter]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Ryota's eyes widened.
"Sunshine Scatter?"
Fayzan looked upward.
"What does that mean?"
Ryota didn't answer.
Because Apollonius had already fired.
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
Instead of one arrow—
dozens erupted from her bow.
The projectiles spread outward in every direction.
They didn't fly randomly.
Each one immediately adjusted its trajectory.
They curved through the air.
Some traveled upward before descending.
Others flew directly toward Fayzan.
Several moved toward Ryota.
The attack covered nearly the entire chamber.
Fayzan stared in disbelief.
"There's nowhere to run!"
Ryota immediately looked around.
He saw Fayzan surrounded.
Five arrows approached from the front.
Three from the left.
Four from above.
Two from behind.
Fayzan had nowhere to go.
Ryota didn't hesitate.
"GET DOWN!"
Fayzan dropped.
Ryota sprinted toward him.
His sword began glowing white.
Light gathered along the blade.
His eyes sharpened.
[Sword Skill: Radiance Cascade]
He swung.
SHIIIIIIIIING!
A burst of brilliant white energy erupted from his sword.
Instead of a single attack—
multiple spheres of condensed light appeared around him.
One.
Two.
Five.
Ten.
Then dozens.
They hovered for a fraction of a second.
Then—
they launched.
FWOOOSH!
The white spheres collided with the incoming fire arrows.
BOOM!
One arrow disappeared.
Another.
Another.
Ryota continued firing the spheres.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The chamber became filled with collisions between white energy and burning projectiles.
Fayzan shielded his face.
Fragments of fire scattered around him.
Ryota kept attacking.
His sword moved repeatedly.
Each swing produced another group of radiant spheres.
The barrage continued.
For every flaming arrow that approached—
another sphere intercepted it.
The battlefield became a storm of white and orange light.
Fayzan looked up.
"...He's destroying them."
Ryota gritted his teeth.
"Not enough!"
Another cluster of arrows slipped through.
Fayzan immediately moved.
One arrow passed beside his shoulder.
Another struck the ground.
A third flew toward his back.
Ryota turned.
His sword intercepted it.
CLANG!
The explosion forced him backward.
He skidded across the floor.
His arms trembled.
He looked toward Apollonius.
The boss had stopped firing.
She was watching him.
Studying him.
Her burning eyes remained fixed on Ryota.
Then—
Apollonius slowly lowered her bow.
The flames around her weapon changed.
Ryota narrowed his eyes.
"...She's looking at me."
Fayzan glanced toward her.
"Maybe she realized you're the bigger threat."
Ryota laughed nervously.
"That's not exactly reassuring."
Apollonius raised the bow again.
But this time—
she wasn't aiming at either player.
Her weapon was pointed directly toward the stone floor.
Ryota's expression immediately became serious.
"Everyone..."
"Move away from her."
Fayzan stepped backward.
"Why?"
"I don't know."
Ryota stared at the glowing energy gathering around the boss.
"But I've got a really bad feeling."
The floor beneath Apollonius began glowing brighter.
Cracks of orange light spread outward.
The entire chamber seemed to react to her presence.
Even the ancient stone walls began radiating heat.
Ramos slowly peeked from behind his cover.
His eyes widened.
"...Is the dungeon supposed to do that?"
Fayzan shook his head.
"I hope not."
Ryota tightened his grip around his sword.
The flames continued gathering.
Apollonius's bow remained pointed toward the ground.
She didn't move.
She didn't speak.
She didn't need to.
The pressure alone was enough.
Then—
the entire room became silent.
No arrows.
No explosions.
No movement.
Just the sound of the flames surrounding Apollonius.
Ryota stared at her.
His instincts screamed louder than ever.
Something much worse was coming.
Fayzan stepped beside him.
"Ryota."
"Yeah?"
"What do we do?"
Ryota didn't answer immediately.
He looked at the shattered floor.
Then at Apollonius.
Then at the broken sword lying several meters away.
Finally—
he tightened his grip.
"We survive."
Apollonius slowly raised her head.
The flames around her body exploded outward.
And the next phase of the battle began.
The chamber had gone completely silent.
For several seconds, neither Ryota nor Fayzan moved.
They stood several meters apart, their attention locked entirely on Apollonius.
The massive flame warrior remained at the center of the ruined chamber.
Her twenty-one-foot body was surrounded by roaring flames, yet the fire no longer behaved like ordinary fire.
It moved with purpose.
It flowed around her body like a living aura, rising and falling with every breath she took.
Her massive bow remained pointed toward the ground.
Beneath her feet, the ancient stone floor had begun glowing orange.
Thin cracks of light spread outward from her position.
One.
Then another.
Then dozens.
The entire chamber looked as though something beneath the dungeon was beginning to awaken.
Fayzan swallowed.
"...I really don't like this."
Ryota tightened his grip around his sword.
"Neither do I."
Behind them, Ramos remained hidden behind a large piece of broken stone.
He slowly raised his head.
His face was pale.
"Is that... normal?"
Ryota glanced toward him.
"No."
Ramos immediately lowered himself again.
"...Wonderful."
Apollonius suddenly lifted her bow.
The movement was slow.
Almost deliberate.
Her burning eyes remained fixed on the two players.
Then—
she released the string.
Not toward them.
Toward the ground.
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
The arrow struck the stone floor.
For half a second—
nothing happened.
Then the entire chamber exploded with light.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
A gigantic wave of flames erupted outward from the point of impact.
The fire traveled across the floor like a tidal wave.
Ryota's eyes widened.
"FAYZAN!"
Fayzan immediately jumped backward.
The flames reached them.
SHAAAAAA!
The ground beneath their feet suddenly illuminated.
Something erupted from the floor.
Chains.
Massive chains made entirely from fire.
They wrapped around Fayzan's ankles.
Then his legs.
Then his waist.
Fayzan's expression changed instantly.
"What—?!"
He tried pulling himself free.
The chains tightened.
The flames didn't burn like ordinary fire.
Instead, they behaved almost like magical restraints.
Fayzan's body became completely immobilized.
"RYOTA!"
Ryota attempted to move.
A second chain erupted beneath him.
It wrapped around his ankle.
Then another wrapped around his opposite leg.
Then another around his waist.
Within seconds—
both players were trapped.
Ryota pulled against the restraints.
Nothing.
He activated his strength.
The chains tightened.
His boots dug into the stone floor.
"These things won't break!"
Fayzan struggled beside him.
"I noticed!"
The chains continued multiplying.
More flames erupted around them.
The battlefield itself became covered in burning restraints.
Then—
Apollonius smiled.
For the first time since the battle began—
the expression on the enormous flame warrior's face changed.
It wasn't a warm smile.
It wasn't happiness.
It was the expression of a hunter who had finally caught its prey.
Ryota's eyes narrowed.
"...She's enjoying this."
Fayzan looked toward her.
"That's bad."
Apollonius slowly raised her bow.
The flames surrounding her body suddenly became brighter.
The temperature inside the chamber skyrocketed.
Then a system notification appeared.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
[Boss Skill: Sunshine Scortcher]
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Ryota's eyes widened.
"...Oh."
Fayzan looked toward him.
"What?"
Ryota stared at the boss.
"She's charging something."
Apollonius drew a single arrow.
Unlike her previous arrows—
this one was enormous.
Fire gathered around the shaft.
At first, the flames were small.
Then they grew.
The arrow became brighter.
Longer.
Thicker.
The heat surrounding it became unbearable.
The air itself began distorting.
Stone beneath Apollonius's feet started melting.
Fayzan stared.
"...That's one arrow?"
Ryota's expression became serious.
"Apparently."
The fire continued gathering.
The arrow began absorbing the flames around Apollonius.
The surrounding fire seemed to disappear into the projectile.
The more energy it absorbed—
the brighter it became.
Orange.
Then yellow.
Then almost white.
The chamber trembled.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Small stones rolled across the floor.
Ramos stared from behind his hiding place.
"...We're going to die."
Ryota didn't answer.
Because he was thinking the exact same thing.
Apollonius pulled the bowstring farther.
The flames around the arrow compressed.
The entire chamber became unnaturally quiet.
Then—
she fired.
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!
The arrow launched.
A massive shockwave erupted behind it.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The blast sent debris flying across the chamber.
Ramos was forced to cover his head.
The arrow itself accelerated.
Faster.
And faster.
As it traveled—
the fire surrounding it continued gathering.
The projectile became larger.
Its power continued increasing.
Ryota's eyes widened.
"It gets stronger the longer it travels!"
Fayzan looked horrified.
"Then why is she doing that?!"
"Because we're trapped!"
Both players struggled.
They pulled against the chains.
They twisted.
They kicked.
They attempted to break free.
Nothing worked.
The flames around their bodies tightened.
Ryota activated his strength.
His muscles strained.
The chains didn't move.
Fayzan slammed his shoulder against them.
Nothing.
The arrow continued approaching.
Ten meters.
Eight.
Six.
Four.
Three.
Two.
The projectile was now only a few feet away.
The chamber became illuminated entirely by its burning light.
Ryota could feel the heat against his face.
Fayzan gritted his teeth.
"...Ryota."
"Yeah?"
"Any ideas?"
Ryota stared at the incoming arrow.
"...Not yet."
The arrow grew brighter.
The flames around it compressed into an enormous sphere of destructive energy.
The chains continued holding them down.
Neither could move.
Neither could escape.
The arrow was almost there.
Then—
something changed.
A faint blue light appeared above Ryota.
At first—
it was barely visible.
A small glow.
Like a distant star.
Ryota noticed it.
His eyes widened.
"...What?"
Fayzan looked upward.
"What is that?"
The blue light became brighter.
It expanded.
A magical circle appeared above Ryota's head.
Ancient symbols rotated around it.
The air suddenly became cold.
The flames surrounding them flickered.
Then—
something emerged from the light.
A small creature.
Blue scales.
Tiny wings.
Sharp horns.
A long serpentine body.
The dragon floated above Ryota's head.
Its eyes opened.
Bright blue.
Filled with ancient power.
Ryota stared upward.
"...Indra?"
The small dragon roared.
It was tiny compared to Apollonius.
Almost adorable.
Yet the moment its voice echoed through the chamber—
the entire atmosphere changed.
ROOOOOOOOOOOAR!
A powerful blue aura exploded from Indra's body.
The flames around Ryota and Fayzan were pushed outward.
The dragon flew downward.
Its tiny body positioned itself directly between them and the incoming arrow.
Blue energy gathered around it.
Then—
a massive barrier appeared.
A translucent dome of blue light surrounded Ryota and Fayzan.
Fayzan stared.
"...That dragon?"
Ryota looked just as confused.
"I don't know!"
The arrow arrived.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The world disappeared in fire.
A gigantic explosion consumed the chamber.
The shockwave expanded outward.
Stone walls shattered.
Pillars collapsed.
The floor cracked apart.
Fragments of rock were launched through the air.
The entire battlefield became engulfed in orange flames.
Ramos screamed from behind his cover.
"RYOTAAAA!"
The explosion continued.
The force was so enormous that the dungeon itself seemed to shake.
Cracks raced across the walls.
Chunks of the ceiling collapsed.
The ancient stone floor shattered beneath the pressure.
Yet—
inside the blue barrier—
Ryota and Fayzan remained alive.
The barrier trembled violently.
Blue energy rippled across its surface.
Indra remained directly above them.
Its tiny body glowed brighter.
Holding.
Protecting.
Refusing to let the flames through.
Ryota stared at the dragon.
"...You're protecting us."
Indra didn't respond.
It simply continued maintaining the barrier.
Outside—
the explosion finally began to fade.
The flames slowly disappeared.
Smoke filled the chamber.
Dust drifted through the air.
The battlefield had been completely transformed.
Where there had once been stone pillars—
there were now piles of rubble.
The floor was covered in cracks.
Several sections had been completely destroyed.
The walls were blackened.
Fayzan slowly looked around.
"...That was one arrow."
Ryota swallowed.
"Yeah."
He looked toward the massive crater surrounding them.
"...One arrow."
The blue barrier finally began fading.
Indra slowly floated downward.
Its body remained glowing faintly.
Ryota looked at the little dragon in disbelief.
"Indra..."
The creature turned toward him.
For a moment—
their eyes met.
Then the dragon gave a tiny growl.
Ryota couldn't help smiling.
"...Thanks."
Indra's glow dimmed slightly.
But it remained beside him.
Watching.
Protecting.
Waiting.
Across the ruined battlefield—
the flames began clearing.
And through the smoke—
Apollonius slowly emerged.
Her enormous bow remained in her hand.
She stared at the destroyed chamber.
Then at the blue dragon.
Her expression changed.
For the first time—
she looked surprised.
Her burning eyes narrowed.
As if she had encountered something she had never seen before.
Ryota slowly stood.
The chains around him had weakened from the explosion.
Fayzan pulled himself free as well.
The two players looked at one another.
Then toward Apollonius.
Ryota tightened his grip around his sword.
Fayzan clenched his fists.
The battle wasn't over.
But something had changed.
They were no longer fighting Apollonius alone.
A mysterious blue dragon had entered the battlefield.
And whatever Indra truly was—
it had just saved their lives.
The flames around Apollonius suddenly intensified again.
She slowly raised her bow.
Ryota's smile disappeared.
"...Looks like she wants another round."
Fayzan stepped beside him.
"Then let's give her one."
Above them—
Indra spread its tiny wings.
Blue light illuminated the ruined chamber.
And once again the battle resumed.