Aisha spoke.
"Everyone," her voice was calm, yet sharp enough to cut through the thick silence that followed their laughter. "Don’t forget... the boss is still alive."
The words dropped like a boulder in still water, sending shockwaves through the group.
The cheerful atmosphere vanished in an instant. The warmth of victory was devoured by the creeping cold of reality.
She was right.
The dungeon wasn’t cleared yet.
They had slain the corrupted hunters—traitors who had once been human like them. Their blood still stained the ground, their broken weapons scattered like bones. But that wasn’t the end.
The true challenge still awaited—the Dungeon Boss.
The heart of this nightmare.
And so, their joy withered. The fire in their eyes dimd but didn’t die. Instead, it sharpened into steel.
Weapons were raised once more. Tired limbs steadied. Bloodied bodies stood tall.
They had survived this long. They would not fall now.
---
The Path to the Boss
The group moved in silence through the twisted corridors of the dungeon. The air was heavier now, carrying the tallic stench of blood and the bitter tang of mana. Their boots crunched on the shattered stone as they mined mana crystals along the way—precious resources they couldn’t afford to waste.
For hours, they walked deeper into the abyss. The path stretched endlessly, like a serpent winding toward its nest.
Then, suddenly—
A low, mocking laugh broke the silence.
"Go," a voice sneered from behind. "And find your deaths, you morons."
The group froze.
Surya.
His voice was cold, dripping with venom even in defeat.
They turned—and saw him standing, his body broken yet still burning with hatred.
Before anyone could react, a blur of black-purple light flashed.
SHING!
A head rolled on the ground, eyes still wide with malice.
Surya’s body fell like a sack of at.
"You’re the only moron here," Maya said flatly, her sword dripping crimson.
Her voice carried no emotion. No anger. No satisfaction.
Just cold, rciless finality.
---
Hazzy blinked, his mouth half-open. "Damn, Maya... remind never to piss you off."
Phaphy’s eyes widened. "That was... brutal."
AK stared at her, silent for a mont. Then a smirk tugged at his lips.
"She didn’t even hesitate," he thought. "That’s... Maya for you."
---
They moved again, faster this ti. No one spoke. The only sounds were their footsteps and the faint hum of mana pulsing through the dungeon walls.
Hours passed.
At last, they stopped.
A massive obsidian door lood before them, etched with glowing green runes that pulsed like a heartbeat.
The Boss Room.
Phaphy exhaled heavily. "Finally... we found it."
Hazzy groaned. "Ugh, this part is always boring. Why does finding the boss room feel like a side quest?"
Ash muttered, "This ti it was worse. All the goblins were already slaughtered by Surya and his freak squad."
"Yeah," AK added with a dry chuckle. "What if the boss is dead too? Wouldn’t that be anticlimactic?"
Maya stepped forward, her gaze fixed on the door. Her voice was sharp as a blade.
"No," she said. "It’s still here. I can feel the aura coming from inside."
She gripped her sword tighter. "Stay alert. No one knows what kind of monster awaits us."
With that, Maya pushed the door open.
---
The room beyond was a cathedral of darkness. Green flas flickered in iron sconces, casting warped shadows on the walls. At the center stood an altar—and upon it, the Boss.
A towering goblin priest, draped in blood-soaked robes, its eyes glowing with malevolent intelligence. Its staff, crowned with a skull, pulsed with unholy energy.
AK froze.
So that’s why the first dungeon had a different boss...
"This tiline... everything’s changing."
Hazzy let out a tired laugh. "One more fight, huh? Great."
Ash rolled his shoulders. "Could be worse. At least it’s not a dragon."
Phaphy clenched her fists, determination blazing in her eyes. "Then let’s end this! Together!"
Aisha stepped closer, her soft voice barely a whisper, yet firm. "Be careful."
AK smirked as he noticed her standing near Hazzy. "Huh," he thought. "Hazzy and Aisha, huh? Interesting..."
"Let’s finish this," Maya commanded, her aura flaring once more. "Everyone—move!"
---
They charged as one.
Maya led the assault, her sword slicing through the air with a shriek like tearing steel. Hazzy flanked left, blades flashing in a deadly rhythm. AK rushed forward beside Maya, his twin daggers gleaming.
Behind them, Ash hurled spears of condensed mana, while Phaphy unleashed blazing arrows that streaked like teors. Aisha stood at the rear, her hands glowing as she cast barrier after barrier, shielding her comrades from the priest’s curses.
The goblin priest raised its staff—and the room trembled. Black tendrils erupted from the ground, whipping like serpents.
"Not today!" Hazzy snarled, spinning mid-air as his blades carved through the tendrils. Sparks and ichor flew in every direction.
AK darted between the shadows, his movents swift, lethal. Every strike was precise—throat, joints, arteries. Blood sprayed as he moved like a phantom.
Maya was a tempest. Her black-purple aura devoured the light, her strikes splitting stone, her eyes burning like athyst fire.
The priest roared, summoning spectral goblins that clawed at the ground.
"Annoying trash!" Ash growled, skewering the phantoms with mana spears. "Stay dead this ti!"
Phaphy loosed an arrow wreathed in fla, piercing the priest’s shoulder. It howled, staggering back.
"Now!" Maya bellowed.
AK was already there.
His blades flashed—
SHRRK!
Both daggers sank into the priest’s chest.
With a final, ear-splitting shriek, the goblin priest collapsed.
The silence that followed was deafening.
---
Victory... or So They Thought
AK stood over the corpse, chest heaving. His blades dripped green blood.
"Is he weak... or have we beco stronger?" he thought, frowning.
They mined the mana stones quickly, filling their pouches until they bulged. Ti was running out—they needed to leave before the dungeon collapsed.
As they exited, exhaustion hit like a tidal wave. Yet relief carried them forward.
Outside, under the pale light of dusk, laughter returned.
---
Phaphy threw his arms up. "We freaking did it! AGAIN!"
Hazzy smirked. "Yeah, yeah. Try not to sound so surprised."
Ash groaned dramatically. "Next ti, let’s fight sothing that doesn’t summon a damn army, okay?"
Phaphy grinned. "Aw, poor baby Ash. Did the scary goblins or corrupted hunters hurt your feelings?"
Ash shot him a glare. "Keep talking, shorty."
"I’m not short!" she yelled, stomping his foot.
Hazzy chuckled. "He’s fun-sized."
Phaphy whirled on him. "NOT HELPING!"
Even Aisha giggled softly behind her hand. "You all are very funny..."
---
AK walked beside Maya, sneaking glances at her.
"So..." he began, scratching his neck. "That last move—you were flying. And that... berserker mode? Impressive."
Maya looked at him briefly, then ahead. "Berserker skill. My elental affinity is wind. That’s all you need to know."
"Wind, huh?" AK smirked. "Figures. You blow everyone away."
She raised an eyebrow. "Was that supposed to be a joke?"
"Maybe," he said, grinning.
She didn’t smile—but for a mont, her lips twitched.
---
As they neared the city gates, the group slowed. The sun was sinking, painting the sky crimson.
"Guess this is goodbye—for now," Ash said.
"Until the next raid," Hazzy added, bumping AK’s shoulder. "Try not to die before then, partner."
AK grinned. "Sa to you."
One by one, they split off, heading toward their respective hos.
---
AK’s Thoughts
Walking alone, AK’s smirk faded.
His mind churned.
What the hell is happening?
"I’ve raided all these dungeons before... so why do I only rember the first one? Why does everything feel... rewritten?"
He clenched his fists.
"Is this... the damn Fourth Wall again?"
The thought sent a shiver crawling down his spine.
Sothing was coming.
Sothing big.
And AK wasn’t sure if even he was ready for it.
When AK finally reached ho, he sank into a chair at the wooden table. Slowly, he pulled out a crumpled sheet of paper—the one where he had written down all his questions for RED. His eyes scanned the words, each question burning deeper into his mind.
1. Why are you helping ?
2. How did you isekai into your own novel?
3. Why is every single character we’ve t so far written so well?
4. Who are the new characters you haven’t even added to your novel yet?
5. Why do the characters have such funny nas, like Phaphy and Mozamillium?
6. I’ve noticed that my mory is slowly starting to blur.Is this also forth wall doing
There were only six questions written on the paper so far, but AK’s mind was drowning in thousands more. Let’s first get fresh and eat sothing. I’m starving, he thought.
After a long bath, AK sat down to eat the food he had ordered online. He lived alone now—his mother and father had died in a tragic car accident, leaving him as their only son.
AK lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. But suddenly, a thought struck him. (Let’s exercise for a minute. I want to see how many push-ups, squats, and crunches I can do.)
He jumped up from the bed and dropped to the floor, starting his push-ups.
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight... twenty."
As soon as his count reached twenty, a crisp system notification appeared before his eyes:
[ CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR STRENGTH HAS INCREASED BY 1 ]
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