Chapter 7:

Detours

Brought into my Unfinished Game World


Alpha opened the gate. A gigantic one eyed ogre was waiting for him. One archer kobold at his side and what seemed to be a mage kobold in the back. This time Dave was not willing to help Alpha unless he made a fatal mistake. But then again, his gear gave him a totally unfair advantage. He was in control of the situation. Both the monsters and Alpha circle around the room, observing each other and waiting for either side to take the initiative. Alpha could not afford to take a hit and the archer was being the most threatening target for this challenge. The archer kobold had his bow drawn and was aiming at Alpha, ready to shoot at the slightest opening. Alpha knew this. That's why he needed him to shoot first. The opportunity he was waiting for finally came when the ogre growled something to the kobold at his side. The little guy then shot his arrow which came flying toward Alpha's head. He easily dodged it and so during the time the archer was readying another arrow, it was too late. With a swift dash, Alpha cut his arm before taking a step back from the ogre who was about to smash him to the ground with a thick cleaver. While Alpha was catching a little breather from this little maneuver, he noticed the mage kobold was actually a healer and he was trying to reattach the archer's arm.

— So that is the strategy behind this boss, said Alpha to Dave who seemed to be enjoying the show.

— It's a classic formation, I reckon, declared Dave. You're smart enough to not focus on the ogre, though, I can tell you that!

— I see... The ogre's role is to overwhelm me with a barrage of attacks while the other two support him in the back and are looking for an opening.

— Maybe you're right, maybe not, said Dave with a grin.

— I know when you're bluffing, you don't have this malicious smile of yours right now. This means that this is all there is to it. You would not put up a more complex formation for a boss monster this early in your world. It would go against the "enjoyment" of players, right? Same with when everything is too easy... When everything is too hard, it leads to frustration instead of boredom.

— Can't believe you already know me so well, said Dave with a sigh of resignation. But the fight isn't over yet, and remember: one hit and it's your loss!

Alpha nodded with a smile. He suddenly heard a grunt from the ogre and he then dodged another arrow by less than an inch. The ogre then jumped himself in the air and tried to land a strike on Alpha who rolled out of the way and avoided any kind of damage. Alpha suspected that the archer was waiting for his boss' orders to shoot his arrows which made his attack patterns predictable. He decided to switch things up and adapt his strategy. The ogre grunted once again, it was his signal. Alpha preemptively ducked down as a projectile came flying above his head. Alpha used his crouched position to jump toward their healer with much more speed. Surprised by how fast he was, the ogre could not react fast enough and he let his healer fall down on his belly, lifeless.

— Now they can no longer prolong this fight, said Alpha with a smug smile.

Dave just shrugged as he knew this fight was already half done. He was actually happy that his partner was able to come up with strategies on his own. He was a bit afraid since Alpha confessed he was insecure about his lack of imagination. Nevertheless, he seemed to be doing much better than he expected without his assistance.

The ogre looked at his dead ally as to mourn him for a brief moment. That's when he howled with pure rage. Alpha looked at him and noticed his offensive stats improved dramatically as he entered a [rage_state]. While Alpha was astounded by this phenomena, an arrow was shot at him. Fortunately, Alpha reflexively raised his shield and deflected it at the last moment.

— Maybe the ogre's howl was misunderstood by the surviving kobold as an order, muttered Alpha.

— Oops, I guess I messed up the code... No, this could actually become a feature, thought Dave out loud. Also, minus points for blocking and not dodging! he said to Alpha.

— Oh, shut up! You did not even know about this interaction right until now!

— That's why I said "minus point" and not "You fail!".

Alpha sighed and tried to regain his focus. As the Ogre finished powering up, he charged at full speed toward Alpha who almost did not make it. He was surprised at how much faster the ogre became and also feared his newfound power. Alpha successfully got away from the attack, but the ogre just left a huge hole into the cave's wall. Even if it was already part of the challenge, he could not underestimate his opponent anymore. While he could block his attack, it must only be used as a last resort. He was afraid that even if he did, he would still sustain some disabling injuries such as the negative status effect [broken_limb] which weakened the effectiveness of physical weaponry.

The ogre growled in frustration, this would also be considered as a signal and Alpha became wary of the archer which shot his arrow but failed to reach a target. Alpha is already used to this pattern but he cannot close the gap between him and the remaining kobold as he always tries to position himself behind his leader. Alpha then thought he had to take down the ogre first. He noticed that the boss was having trouble getting out of the crater he made earlier. He took this opportunity and got closer. He raised his hand and cast a spell:

— [blindness2] ! shouted Alpha.

— Oh so you're finally using magic. Blindness on a close range enemy... That's their most basic and cliche weakness, but I always intended for players to find his Achilles heel. I'm glad you found it, said Dave to Alpha.

The ogre was waving his weapon at random directions, trying to hit anything he could. It did not matter if it was foes or friends. The kobold realized he was no longer safe in the vicinity of his boss as he might suffer an unlucky strike from his own ally. The ogre grunted in frustration, the archer shot, Alpha dodged. There was no need to overthink this anymore and Alpha made a sprint toward the kobold before ending his life for sure this time. Meanwhile, the ogre was still swinging his cleaver left and right, blinded not only by Alpha's spell but also by his own rage. Alpha just waited patiently until his [rage_state] faded away. The monster then laid down one of his knees on the ground and was struggling to even breathe. Alpha raised his sword and in one clean swing he beheaded the boss.

— Congratulations on defeating your first boss! you can now claim his most precious treasure! declared Dave.

— You mean his thong, right?

— Yup! Look at this beautiful piece of art, said Dave as he pointed his finger at the leftover loot.Then the data panel of the garment popped out. Dave checked it out just in case. His eyes lit up and he bore his infamous smile.

— Did... Did you actually find anything good?

— We're going to make a fortune out of this... We're going to be rich! MUAHAHAHAHAH!

— Again with his obnoxious laugh, shrugged Alpha.  

[name: one_eyed_ogre_thong
rarity: 10
attributes: none]

Don.Coals
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