Chapter 37
When I first planned the Elder Lich raid, I spent a lot of time thinking about the first gate.
Unlike regular dungeons, raid bosses offer great rewards, so a cooldown of one week was implemented.
But a 32-player raid with a large-scale battle setting every week? Wouldn’t that lead to severe fatigue?
Even with Echoes of the Restless, which is efficient, the hunting fatigue is so high that it’s considered an unpopular hunting ground.
Doing a large-scale battle every week? This could go beyond tiring to downright annoying.
“That’s why I added a skip feature.”
Once a player has cleared the first gate even once, they can skip the large-scale battle.
Of course, it doesn’t skip the gate itself, only up to the point where the Corpse Golem is summoned.
This skip feature is designed so that if even one person in the raid lacks a clear record, it can’t be used.
This was because there was a high risk of misuse.
For example, things like power-levelling services, or workshops.
“It’s tough to gather 32 players every week.”
So unlike the first gate, the difficulty of the second and third gates increases with the number of people.
“Stigma? Can Wit detect debuffs?”
“Wait a second… Every time a player affected by Stigma gets hit by Elder Lich’s patterns, Elder Lich’s health recovers.”
Elder Lich’s Stigma. This debuff is randomly assigned to half of the players who enter the raid.
“Oh, damn. It keeps recovering.”
“Sixteen people. Half the total number of players.”
Elder Lich’s patterns are numerous, with most having wide attack ranges that are hard to avoid.
In particular, Elder Lich keeps changing aggro, making the patterns difficult to predict.
“This isn’t going to work.”
In the end, Daehyeop Kim had no choice but to halt the raid and decide to disband the assault party.
Thus, the raid split into eight parties, forming a competitive structure.
“It’s definitely more manageable than before.”
“Finally making some progress.”
“Watch out for the thorns coming out of the shadows!”
With the number of players affected by Stigma reduced from sixteen to two, it was much more doable.
“The raid boss’s difficulty adjusts according to the number of participants.”
If they keep banging their heads against it for half a day, they might find a solution.
Although, even if they find the solution, it’s not a raid that can be cleared right away.
Still, seeing their determination, I felt a sense of pride and fulfillment as the creator.
“Their suffering is quite enjoyable to watch.”
When the large company party’s progression rate was around 30%, most of the other parties were struggling at around 20%.
“Now that I look at it, they’re all a group of people overly invested in Raven.”
Especially Daehyeop Kim and Sweet. The feelings these two held for Raven were very special.
As for Suzuka, she considered Raven to be someone precious.
Paegwi, as a head of a household, viewed Raven as a daughter.
So I was even more excited. The boss transformation at the 0th line of the third gate.
I was dying to see how people would react upon witnessing that.
I kept eagerly watching the large company party’s raid, waiting for that moment.
***
[Sweet’s stream has started. – Akashic Records, 22 hours ago]
Twenty-two hours into the Elder Lich raid, the large company party cleared the second gate.
In the clear cutscene, Elder Lich didn’t die and retreated somewhere out of sight.
“Wow. That was so damn hard.”
Thud.
Sweet, who was known for never swearing, let out a curse and sank to the floor.
Now, only the third gate remains. Just one more step, and they can take down Elder Lich.
“Everyone, great job.”
“Phew, that was tough.”
Paegwi, who had protected his teammates from Elder Lich’s patterns throughout the raid, also set down his heavy sword and shield and sat down beside Sweet.
“Hmm. Shall we call it a day here?”
Unlike the others, Daehyeop Kim looked relatively fine and showed some reluctance to stop.
Seeing this, Suzuka shook her head with a look of exasperation.
“Then let’s just take a peek at the third gate and disband.”
“Shall we?”
“I agree, at least with that much.”
With a unified decision, Daehyeop Kim helped the two sitting teammates to their feet.
“Daehyeop, you really have incredible stamina.”
“What? I’m just at an average level.”
“Average people are all dead by now.”
With all preparations complete, the large company party entered the third gate for the first time.
The four of them looked around, feeling as though they were being sucked in from somewhere.
“This place…”
“We’ve definitely entered the ruined castle.”
“The Raven Kingdom, perhaps.”
The background of the second gate was the rear of the battlefield where the large-scale war had erupted.
It was a barren wasteland surrounded by cliffs, where the silhouette of a castle could be observed beyond the cliffs.
On the minimap, the castle’s location matched that of the destroyed Raven Kingdom, obliterated by Elder Lich’s resurrection.
The Audience Chamber.
Bloodstains on the carpet and the skeletal remains of knights were visible in various places.
In the eerie atmosphere, Elder Lich appeared in front of the throne.
“It’s a bit different.”
A pitch-black inverted cross. A lantern holding blue flames. A staff covered in decayed flesh.
It was exactly as it appeared in the first trailer, the latest cinematic trailer, and the teaser.
[Raid Boss Incomplete Ancient Necromancer Lv.55]
“It’s not Elder Lich.”
It resembled the Elder Lich they had faced before.
But the sheer sense of pressure made it clear that it was a separate entity.
Shiver—
Sweet suddenly gripped his wrist with his other hand as it started to shake.
His hand tremor, which had been fine for a while, decided to flare up at the worst possible moment.
The Ancient Necromancer wearing Elder Lich’s guise shook the lantern.
Sweet, with his gaze drawn to the lantern, felt an odd discomfort.
Currently, Sweet’s subclass was an Appraiser.
As an Appraiser, his skill “Appraisal” had a wide range of target options.
Not only could he gather information on items, but also on unknown debuffs or buffs.
He could even use it on monsters or specify the current map as a target.
Among many choices, Sweet instinctively used Appraisal on that lantern.
[Nightmare Lantern Trapping Raven]
- Raven’s will is being tested.
- Time remaining until nightmare realization: 29:45
As a system message depicting brutal reality appeared, his vision turned black and white.
[You have died.]
―――
The Ancient Necromancer was a raid boss who used an instant-kill attack right from the first pattern.
If you looked at the lantern when it shook, you’d be swallowed by a nightmare and die instantly.
There were two main ways to counter this pattern.
Either avoid looking at the lantern, or stop it from shaking.
“No longer getting caught by that.”
Maybe it was because he had a good sleep last night.
The large company party was now handling the lantern pattern with ease.
“Feeling impatient, aren’t you?”
Yesterday, Sweet had shared the information he discovered through Appraisal with his party.
Since Raven was trapped in the lantern, destroying it was impossible.
According to the story, the goal of the Elder Lich raid was to rescue Raven.
As a result, they had to keep focusing on the lantern pattern, which brought a psychological burden.
Even so, the large company party had dedicated half a day and was close to clearing it.
“Three minutes left on the time limit.”
The Ancient Necromancer’s remaining health was down to just two bars.
Maintaining his composure in this tense situation, Paegwi successfully parried like a ghost.
Sweet, who had been positioning himself, then used a Blink-Frostbite combo and began chanting Fireball.
“We got it!”
They finally succeeded in taking down the Ancient Necromancer.
As the large company party gathered and cheered together—
The Ancient Necromancer’s spirit appeared before Raven, who had been freed from the Nightmare Lantern.
“Reluctantly, I’ll have to take even half of it.”
The Ancient Necromancer abandoned Elder Lich’s body and possessed Raven.
“Accept me. If not, I’ll tear that precious friend of yours apart beyond recognition.”
The Ancient Necromancer indeed had the power to do so.
Of course, using that power would lead to his spirit’s annihilation and eternal rest.
Raven knew this as well.
He had been subjected to the Ancient Necromancer’s ideology all this time.
He had endured torture so excruciating it defied description.
With his mind shattered by endless nightmares—
Raven couldn’t resist the Ancient Necromancer’s threats.
He didn’t want to see a cherished bond die, so he chose to sacrifice himself again.
In the end, Raven accepted the Ancient Necromancer’s spirit.
[Raid Boss Perfected Raven Lv.60]
This was the final moment of the Elder Lich raid I had prepared.
―――
The conclusion of the Elder Lich raid had been unveiled.
The large company party was left speechless, while the community exploded with reactions.
[Indie Minor Game Gallery]
―――
Spoiler: Raven turning into a boss caught me off guard [1191]
??? : It’s still warm… [1589]
Compilation of large company party’s expressions during the final phase.jpg [946]
Fact: Since he’s an affinity NPC, he doesn’t die even if you kill him [1234]
From Suzuka’s perspective, Raven appears as a man [1003]
―――
[Title] Spoiler: Surprised that Raven turned into a boss
(Image of Raven transformed into a boss)
Wasn’t this supposed to be “Saving Private Raven”?
Likes: 150 Dislikes: 2,999
―――
[Comment 1191]
This asshole spoils everything in the title and then has the nerve to put “Spoiler” in it.
ㄴ For real lol
ㄴ Just adding “Spoiler” doesn’t make it not a spoiler.
ㄴ I want to slap the author’s face so bad.
What’s the author’s job in Akare?
ㄴ (Author) I don’t even play Akare!
ㄴ This asshole.
ㄴ Ugh, a game newbie.
―――
Currently, the large company party was progressing through the Raven raid.
Despite Raven’s incredible presence when he appeared, his patterns were simple.
At the same time, his lack of aggressive attacks seemed to reflect Raven’s state of mind.
Even so, the Raven raid was by no means easy.
Although he wasn’t attacking proactively, each of his patterns was extremely deadly.
And while the patterns were simple, he used far more than the Ancient Necromancer did.
―――
[Title] But am I the only one who thinks Raven looks more attractive as a boss?
(Image of Raven with silver hair and red eyes)
Originally, he had blonde hair, blue eyes, and a bright look.
But with silver hair and red eyes and a darker vibe, it’s even more appealing.
Maybe the Ancient Necromancer was a connoisseur of aesthetics all along?
Likes: 850 Dislikes: 3
―――
[Comment 455]
I won’t forget you, Ancient Necromancer.
ㄴ He’s still alive inside Raven, man.
ㄴ Inside Raven…?
ㄴ (Unicorn in rage emoji)
―――
While theories about Raven’s altered appearance circulated briefly, they didn’t last long.
After several retries, the large company party finally defeated Raven.
And so, the ending of the long-awaited Elder Lich raid began to unfold.
—
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