Hacking the Game Didn’t Go as Intended

The Volturax turned its massive head, only to meet the gleam of a long sword. The weapon was poised to plunge into its eye, only to be met with a third eyelid—a membrane that was as strong as metal causing the blade to utterly fail to pierce it.

The Volturax reared its head, sending Finnian flying off its snout. His trajectory led him toward a spiked tail poised to skewer and pummel him, but a golden chain coiled around his arm, swiftly pulling the samurai out of harm’s way.

Daisuke shoved an Etherberry into his mouth. Then a cleverly placed Frost Prism—an item that inflicts ice damage—detonated to form a large pillar of ice underneath the Volturax, flipping it onto its back.

Moving quickly while the beast was disoriented, Daisuke shifted to close quarter combat. The creature’s tail was so flexible that he assumed the base had to be vulnerable to accommodate its dexterity.

His theory proved accurate as both his daggers sunk into the underside of the hide. Then, like a man gone mad, Daisuke began stabbing and slashing frantically until he inflicted the Bleed Status.

“Aura Blade!”

“Justice Sword!”

Both Finnian and Gavric attacked with a vengeance.

Finnian’s long sword, enveloped in energy, sliced into the tail with a series of swift slashes, while Gavric spawned a large claymore made of mana overhead, which descended like a falling star.

Elena, just before missing the window of opportunity, hastened her spell’s chant and fired a fireball that hit its mark with a satisfying explosion.

The party cautiously retreated as the beast righted itself, its golden eyes wide with rage. A deep roar dispersed the smoke from the explosion, and in its wake, a diverse pack of wolves were summoned from each of the dungeon’s twelve floors.

Daisuke cast Finnian a silent command, who immediately deployed a smokescreen to shroud the area. In the same beat, Zephyr used Extreme Speed and Divine Armament. Together with Daisuke and Finnian, they quickly went about exterminating the newly arrived foes.

Zephyr utilized his keen sense of smell to navigate the battlefield, while Daisuke used the Eye of Verity and Finnian relied on a skill that detected spiritual energy.

Before the Volturax could use its olfactory senses to follow suit, it detected magic in the distance and instinctively started barreling toward the source.

As the beast approached, it spotted the silhouette of a mage through the dense smoke and smelled a female’s presence. But upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a hat and robe affixed to an old spear. Behind it, an illumination skill cast a convincing shadow.

This mistake came with dire consequences.

“Aiyaa!” Milo cried out as he clumsily plunged Gavric’s sword into the base of the monster’s tail. The moment the beast let out a pained roar, the weapon’s owner emerged from the concealing smoke and wedged his shield into the creature’s gaping maw to keep it open.

“Poison Dart!”

In the same beat, Elena appeared and launched the deadly toxin into the creature’s mouth. They quickly retreated as the Volturax entered a blind rage while frothing purple liquid from the mouth. It roared and slammed its head into the cavern wall as the poison and bleed effects took their toll.

Daisuke arrived on the scene just in time to witness the creature’s change in temperament. It was well-known that some Boss Monsters became berserk when their health dropped below 50%. Like Zephyr, they received a boost in speed and Attack Power.

“Like this thing wasn’t strong enough already,” he muttered as he popped another Etherberry into his mouth. “Everyone, be on guard!” he shouted urgently. “This fight is about to get a hell of a lot harder!”

Daisuke’s words were prophetic, but the Volturax was about to demonstrate that his warning was futile. Electricity, which had previously only rippled or discharged from the creature’s body upon attacking, became a constant phenomenon. And its once-golden eyes were now a fiery red.

RAWRRRRRR!

Another deafening roar reverberated through the chamber.

DING!

[The Volturax’s skill «Predator’s Dominion» has induced the fear status.]

DING!

[You were subjected to a mental attack. Αφινίτη’s Blessing has countered the threat and preserved the sanctity of your mental state.]

Daisuke’s heart sank, and a sense of dread twisted his stomach. The System Notification brought only partially good news. His expression crumpled when he turned to look at the party, noting the petrified and defeated expressions etched on their faces.

Elena slowly slumped to the floor, her body trembling uncontrollably. Milo had passed out, and Gavric clung to his sword and shield, his mouth agape in trepidation. Lyanna struggled to catch her breath, while Zephyr remained unaffected, likely thanks to his secret passive skill. Finnian wrestled to maintain his composure with his warrior’s spirit.

But the Volturax couldn’t wait; it wouldn’t—not while its blood boiled like liquid magma in its veins. Every fiber of its being thirsted for retribution, and the destructive electricity discharging from its massive frame reflected its immeasurable fury.

Defying the laws of gravity, the beast raced along the side of the wall in a mindless rage. It coiled into a ball and hurtled toward Daisuke like a giant, spiked bowling ball. Rocks and debris exploded as electricity rippled outward.

Time seemed to slow, and despair hung in the air like a dark shroud. Daisuke’s eyes widened as the meteorite-like sphere descended upon him, and he couldn’t help but wonder, After everything I’ve been through, is this the end?

DING!

[The Composure Stat has increased by 7 points.]

Summoning every ounce of his self-control, Daisuke’s expression shifted, his eyes narrowing in calculation as he crafted a plan. He couldn’t afford to lose his cool; not when there were so many lives riding on the decision he would make in the next few microseconds.

In an instant, a faint memory surfaced amidst the sea of thoughts flooding his mind, serving as a guiding light. From there, he took a daring gamble.

“Zephyr!” he called out with a commanding tone.

Simultaneously, Daisuke’s body dipped low, his daggers held in a reverse grip, his eyes gleaming with the intensity of a predator. Then, in the blink of an eye, he vanished, reappearing elsewhere, coating his blades with the residual poison left over from Elena’s prior Poison Dart spell.

BOOOOOOOOM!

Zephyr, blessed with extraordinary speed and fortified defenses from his Extreme Speed, Berserk, and Divine Armament skills, crashed into the side of the rolling Volturax like a battering ram.

The impact sent the beast slamming into the cavern wall and falling onto its back, averting a potential disaster that would have flattened the party. Zephyr’s impact also triggered the Paralysis and Blindness debuffs on the creature, effectively immobilizing it.

Then, like a demon from hell, Daisuke descended upon the beast. His speed was beyond anything the party had witnessed before, his movements were blurred, his arms moving like bullets. His daggers found their way into the Volturax’s eye before its third eyelid could close.

The creature’s agonized roar only made it more vulnerable to further trauma. Daisuke was there in an instant, relentlessly attacking its tongue in a series of stabs and slashes. Then Zephyr took over, unleashing a deadly torrent of flames down the creature’s throat.

Daisuke felt no pity or remorse, no hesitation or pause. Fear and the instinct for survival had forged him into a cold-hearted killer. He targeted the Volturax’s sole weakness—the base of its tail—and unleashed a relentless barrage of attacks.

Even as his muscles and bones screamed in pain, begging for respite, Daisuke didn’t stop. He knew Haste only lasted for 30 seconds, and his weapons and equipment were subpar. Zephyr would also succumb to exhaustion and collapse when his Berserk skill ended.

To ensure their survival, he had to maintain both the Poison and Bleed Status and extinguish the monster’s health completely. The Volturax couldn’t be allowed to rise again.

“AGHHHHHHHHHH!”

Daisuke roared at the top of his lungs, pouring every ounce of energy into his arms. Warm blood sprayed from the creature's tail as it was severed, and Daisuke’s eyes widened in alarm as the paralysis wore off and the beast's legs began to twitch.

In a final, desperate gambit, he hurled a pair of Flarial Seeds and a Frost Prism into the creature's gaping maw. Without a moment to spare, he scooped up Zephyr and bolted, his heart pounding with adrenaline. A fierce explosion erupted as the opposing elements collided, sending the entire party hurtling helplessly through the air.

DING!

[Congratulations! You have slain the Dungeon Boss «Volturax»!]