[Skeleton Knight Lv 15]

[HP 1000/1000]

[MP 100/100]

[ATK: 78]

[DEF: 20]

[Death stare: able to stun a target for 6 seconds]

[Death Slash: Deals 100 damage to a target]

[Bone collecting: uses scattered bones to repair it self]

A chill ran down Kenshin’s spine when he saw the stats of the boss. An attack of 78 and defense of 20! Not to mention the 1000 points of HP. This creature alone can lay waste to a party of 6 low-level hunters.

Seeing this monstrous creature’s stats, Kenshin had an urge to check his own stats;

[Muto Kenshin][Human]

[Level 10][7685 Exps for next level up]

[HP 300/300]

[MP 42/42]

[ATK: 27; DEF: 20; AGI: 33(+4); PHY: 30; INT: 19(+2); LUK: 9]

[Unassigned Attribute points: 0]

[Unassigned Skill points: 2]

[Lives: 0] 

[Skills]

[1. Replication Lv 1][1000 Exp to next level up]

[2. Passive Regeneration (Passive/Always active) Lv 5][125 Exp to next level up]

[3. Tireless Body (Passive/Always active) Lv 1][870 EXP to next level up]

[4. Flaming Slash Lv 0][990 EXP to next level up]

[Equipment]

[Worn out Gloves DUR: 10/20][+4 AGI]

[Cape of Intelligence DUR 15/34][+2 INT]

[Low-quality Long sword DUR 9/14][+10 ATK]

Hmm! Not enough!

He was seriously outclassed by the boss, both in strength and skills.

‘What should I do?’ Kenshin began thinking of solutions. He could have chosen to flee but whenever a boss appears; all the gateways are sealed automatically. There was only two way, either kill the boss or get yourself killed by it.

Kenshin had no intention to die here. His only option was to fight with his life in line.

This boss has 1000 HP and a defense of 20 points. Kenshin’s normal attack with his sword was 37. Deducting the defense value, he can only deal a measly 17 damage to the boss. With only 17 damage, it will take him forever to kill it.

Besides that, the boss has a normal attacking power of 78 and a magic attack of 100. It also has a stun effect skill and a healing skill. Forget about a six-man party; this boss could lay waste to a 10 man party.

How will he fight it?

Suddenly he remembered his replications skill. It was his inborn skill that could copy any skills.

[Ding* You have used skill Replication]

[Ding* currently you are unable to replicate any skill of the opponent!]

[Ding* Replication level was too low]

[Skill replication has gained +850 EXP]

‘What!? Failed? My skill failed to activate?’ the sudden notification has startled Kenshin in a bad way. Although he had yet to explore all the options of his U.I, he still hadn’t expected something like this!

Fortunately, Replication didn’t use MP but STA or else he would have wept for his loss. But from this he also realized an important fact; there were certain conditions applied to his Replication skill.

The boss had spawned on one of the corners of the dungeon, as such, it still hadn’t located Kenshin or the other men. But, it won’t be long before it attacks them as it was steadily making its way towards the portal.

Unwilling to accept defeat, he used the skill on the boss again.  

[Ding* You have used skill Replication]

[Ding* currently you are unable to replicate any skill of the opponent!]

[Ding* Replication level is too low]

[Skill replication has gained +850 EXP]

[Congratulations* Skill Replication has gained a level]

[Replication Lv 2][1300 EXP to next level up]

[Use: Can replicate any skill may it be active or passive]

[Maximum replicable skill: 2]

His skill replication had leveled up and now allowed him to replicate and store two skills at a time. But, he had failed to replicate the boss’s skill again. After failing twice, he shifted his eyes towards the eight cowering middle-aged men.

One by one, all the eight men’s name and status appeared in separate blue boxes. Out of them, only two people have a skill.

[Ougi Sora][Lv 5]

[HP 154/180][MP 15/15]

[ATK 17][DEF 23]

[Skill]

[Metal Hands: Transform one of the hands to metal. Increases ATK and DEF of the hand it was used upon exponentially]

[Iwao][Lv 6]

[HP 104/190][MP 12/12]

[ATK 14][DEF 30]

[Skill]

[Stone Skin: Increases DEF by a factor of 3 for 15 minutes at the cost of AGI]

‘Their skills are strong!’ Kenshin muttered looking at their skills. These two old guys had a really strong skill, but, their potential was very low. Even with this strong skill, they are still level 5.

He used his Replication on one of them.

[Ding* You have used skill Replication]

[Ding* You are successful in replicating a skill]

[Ding* You have gained the skill, Metal Hands]

[Skill replication has gained +50 EXP]

[Metal Hands Lv 0][200 EXP to next level up]

[Use: Turns one of the hands to metal, exponentially increasing it’s ATK and DEF]

[Cost: 5 STA/Minute]

‘I see! So, that’s how it is!’ it made sense now. The main reason behind why he couldn’t replicate the boss’s skills was not because his skill works poorly but because its level was lower than the boss’s skills. His replication was only Level 2, whereas the boss’s skill must have reached level 4 or level 5. It’s no wonder his skill had failed to activate. As his doubts cleared, Kenshin’s heart became light. He concentrated on the problem at hand; that was the approaching boss.

“You guys, can you help me slaughter that thing?” Kenshin asked the eight men. Although he was somewhat confident in beating the boss, still, two (eight in this case) was better than one.

“Yes! Of course, we will help!” all eight of them agreed in a heartbeat. It's not because they were a helpful bunch but because there was no other way. Unless they slay the boss, the portal to the outside of the dungeon won't open. And, as far as, slaying the boss goes, they have no confidence in doing that.

Since they had the assistance of a magic skill user, a powerful one at that; why would they hesitate? Besides, it was always welcomed to have a magic skill user as a friend.

Kenshin somewhat knew what these men are thinking, but, he didn’t mind them.

“Thank you! The boss is very strong. So, it was better to leave the boss to me. While I keep its attention fixed on me, you guys clear out the surroundings. When I signal you; come quickly to my side and hack the boss. Okay!?” it didn’t take long for Kenshin to plan out how to kill the boss.

This boss doesn’t have an AoE skill, as such, its attention would be on the person standing in front. Kenshin was prepared to fill in this role.

The other eight people would concentrate on clearing the nearby minions. They are the annoying ones in the battle. One little distraction on his part would enough for the boss to land a fatal hit on him.

“Okay! Leave them to us!” the eight of them exhaled a relieved sigh of relief. They have half expected for Kenshin to ask them directly confronting the boss.

Taking a deep breath, Kenshin steadily made his way towards the approaching boss. His hands are shaking a bit; both in excitement and some fear.

His steady walk slowly turned into a jog; before long, he was already sprinting at a breakneck speed.

[You have used skill ‘Metal Hands’ on your right hand]

[-5 STA]

[+10 ATK][+10 DEF]

[You have used Skill ‘Flame Slash’]

[-10 MP]

A red ‘-30’ floated above the boss which, only Kenshin could see.

40 ATK from his flaming slash + 10 ATK from his metal hands, this was the damage he dealt the boss on the first strike.

The battle had just begun!!