The boss of the Fog Graveyard.
Gravedigger Hayes.
He was quite the tricky boss.
After all, he was the one who created this fog, so he could manipulate it and see through it. For us, who had to rely on sound and instinct, he was bound to be a challenging opponent.
On top of that, his body was made of fog, so physical attacks barely worked except at certain timings—making him one of the more troublesome bosses.
There was some backstory about a necromancer embedding a crystal that emitted fog into the corpse of the gravedigger who had managed this grave his whole life, but that wasn’t particularly important.
The boss we had to defeat was our enemy, and having personal feelings toward an enemy was just a waste of emotion.
In that time, we might as well pity a wilted flower instead.
At least we could get some moral satisfaction from that.
“…Attention. We are about to face the master of this graveyard. He is by no means a simple opponent, so be careful.”
At my words, everyone nodded in unison.
“Lastly, let’s place all the backpacks on the cart. Carry only the necessary items.”
A brief bustling sound tickled my ears. With the weight of the backpack that had been pressing on my shoulders gone, I felt like my body could almost float.
“Everyone, move away from the cart.”
Once my party had stepped away, I looked at the cart and spoke.
“Crafting.”
A large box made from the grave’s dirt surrounded the cart. This prevented the undead from tearing apart or contaminating the contents, so it was time to jump into the real boss battle.
“If you’re thirsty, drink now, and if you’re hungry, go ahead and nibble on the jerky you brought. Once we cross into his domain, we won’t have time to eat.”
“Johann, do you have any food?”
“I do.”
“Share a little. Hehe.”
I took out a pouch with jerky and tore off a piece the size of my finger, offering it to Millia. She seemed too lazy to use her hands, so she snatched the jerky with her mouth but quickly made a face.
“Salty.”
“Jerky is supposed to be like that.”
Expensive jerky is soaked in marinade to avoid such saltiness, but most jerky sold in stores is made with salt.
This was the classic cheap jerky; it was essentially just a lump of salt, but it was great for snapping me back to my senses.
The maddening saltiness jolted my consciousness awake.
Having at least one element that could bring me back to reality was extremely important.
For survival.
“I’m going in now.”
I nodded, and we walked toward the hazy structure.
————
Just like in the original. The underground stairs in the grave led to a massive shape seated with its back turned.
Although I couldn’t see it due to the fog, that had to be the real Hayes.
“Sif and Millia, stick close to Karina.”
“Okay!”
“Don’t worry about me, just smash it quickly and come back.”
Like always, we proceeded carefully with only five of us left. The closer we got to the source of the fog, the thicker it became, so we held hands as we moved.
We had been moving like this for a while.
The massive shape that had been still among the fog began to move.
Crack. Crack. The grotesque sound was like bones being assembled for the first time, and I recalled Hayes’ first pattern.
First Pattern, Arm Swing.
“%@!)#& ()#@&!!!*”
With a monster’s scream, incredibly long and thick arms swung wildly.
“Lewis.”
The blue blade of light intercepted the arm. Amazingly, the arm grazed the blade wrapped in aura, barely cutting through the skin.
“That creature can only turn into fog when it’s not attacking, so remember that we have to land our spells when it’s lunging at us.”
“Four!”
“Yes…”
“Prepare 3rd-grade flame magic.”
I chased after the form disappearing into the fog; it seemed irritated at its attack being blocked, letting out loud shrieks. Luckily, we were in the underground joint of the fog graveyard.
The space itself wasn’t very large, so the area in which it could move wasn’t too wide either.
“@!#*)(#!()!!”
“Crafting.”
The colossal arm halts as it slams into a wall sprouted from the ground. I glanced at the partially crumbling wall and used my skill again.
“Crafting. Crafting. Crafting. Crafting.”
Small walls, large walls, and a hole. I twisted the terrain and waited. With just this, Hayes’s first pattern would be perfectly sealed.
As I awaited Hayes to use his second pattern, I commanded Viola.
“Viola. Prepare to throw the potion.”
“Okay? Got it.”
While we exchanged words for just a moment, the surrounding silence returned.
But this silence was merely a prelude to the second pattern.
In the pitch-black fog, it was time for Hayes’s roaring charge filled with fury.
As expected, alongside a vibration in the ground, an immense sound echoed from the front. The pressure felt like a truck was rushing towards us.
The figure rapidly approached through the fog. I shouted before it could smash us.
“Attack!”
No sooner had my words ended than I felt a burst of intense heat rushing at my back. Two fireballs and one potion.
“!@()*#)!&!!”
A pained wail and a staggering form. True to its fog-like nature, and being an undead, it was weak to fire. I couldn’t take it out with this one move, but it had to have suffered significant damage. In game terms, I’d say around 30% health was cut away.
That was quite minimal for our typical damage-dealing crew.
But it was unavoidable.
Since the opponent could launch invincible moves whenever he got flustered.
“Use the next spell immediately.”
Now that it was engulfed in flames, revealing its shape, I had to dispatch it quickly before it could regain its senses. I had to inflict at least a bit more damage…
Tsk.
“What a surprisingly patient creature.”
Even while its entire body burned, it was still holding onto its breath. It was absurd how a dead thing could have such a desire to survive.
Ideally, I wanted to avoid seeing its third pattern.
I gestured to Lewis to look behind, then immediately instructed Elisa and Shuri to watch their sides.
“Uncle, what about me?”
“Prepare to throw the potion.”
…The third pattern.
Clone Technique.
This was why the Fog Graveyard was selected as one of the Survival Academy’s notoriously tricky dungeons.
The fog noticeably thinned, and three forms appeared in front and on both sides.
“Three, three monsters?”
“Be careful. It seems each one is equal to the body.”
I gripped my shovel tightly.
In the game, when the clone technique was used with minimal mercy, it couldn’t use its fog form, but this was real life. It wouldn’t be surprising if all three clones used the fog form as well.
“Lewis. Hold the one in front. I’ll deal with the ones on the sides, but don’t stray too far away.”
“Can I take it down?”
With a voice filled with determination, I patted Lewis on the shoulder and turned my gaze away.
If we excluded myself and Renny, he was the most powerful, so I could trust him with that.
“Elisa, Shuri. When I give the signal, use your magic.”
“Okay!”
“Viola, hand me a flammable potion.”
“Alright.”
I opened the lid of the potion that Viola handed me and downed it in one go.
[…Sometimes, I think my contractor isn’t in their right mind.]
“Why on earth would you drink that?! That’s not a potion!”
“It’s fine. It’s a bit nauseating, but it’s not enough to make me throw up. Focus all firepower on the one on the right. I’ll hold back the left one.”
Ugh, it’s nauseating.
But to boost my firepower, this was the most effective method.
“I’ll be back.”
The distance was about thirty paces.
Neither too far nor too close—a subtle distance.
I aim to finish it before Hayes makes his move.
That was my goal.
I kicked off the ground, bending low. Just in time, a log-like arm brushed past my head.
Woosh!
That gave me chills.
If I had been a moment late, my head might’ve flown off.
But since I wasn’t dead, it was my turn now.
“Call of the Abyss.”
“‘!*@#&(#$!”
The target is its neck.
My tendrils wrapped around its neck and pulled. However, I couldn’t pull the bulk of the monster towards me, so I was pulled in the opposite direction. I took a deep breath before the monster could rip my tentacles off.
Hiss…
Hah—
So this is what it feels like to unleash a breath attack.
My neck feels a bit prickly.
I learned that when I spew fire, my throat bothers me. Guess you have to experience everything.
After belching out until I couldn’t breathe fire anymore, I kicked off from Hayes’ body and pulled back. Hayes was twisting its body around while letting out a chilling scream.
“!(@)*!()#&!!”
The sight of Hayes getting roasted alive from my breath attack was hardly a pleasant spectacle, but I had to confirm it was dying.
The flames imbued with the power of the Phoenix wouldn’t become easy to extinguish.
As expected, Hayes couldn’t turn into fog and continued to burn.
“!@&!(#&!!”
How annoyingly loud.
“Crafting.”
Wall. Wall. Wall. Wall.
Four walls summoned at once blocked Hayes’s movements. If he were in perfect health, it might have been a different story, but in his current state, with flames dancing around him, breaking through the walls was out of the question.
“Crafting.”
Adding a ceiling as well.
Burn until you die.
Just to be safe, I drilled a hole in the wall and unleashed another breath attack while quickly turning to look at the kids fighting Hayes.
Faintly but with a booming echo, they seemed to be holding their own.
But I should go provide support.
If I slack off now, the last phase will be tough to handle.
Without sparing a glance at the back, which was devoid of burning sounds, I advanced towards the children.
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