NOVPUBReaching the boss' room, Luka didn't hesitate for even a breath.
He shoved open the massive twin stone doors, their weight groaning loudly as they swung inward.
Dust fell from the ceiling with the movement, the hinges grinding like they hadn't been used in centuries.
The sound echoed ominously through the vast, empty room beyond.
Luka stepped inside, his sharp eyes scanning around.
The room was mostly barren, its floor smooth gray stone.
But dead center, like a gaping wound in the earth, was a large, murky water pit.
Luka sighed the moment he saw it.
He already knew what that meant.
"Of course," he muttered.
Without wasting a second, he broke into a sprint, boots thudding softly against the stone.
As he neared the water, a sudden, violent splash erupted from its surface—water exploding into the air like a geyser.
Rising from the pool came a hulking white crocodile, its body covered in old scars, its eyes glowing an eerie crimson.
It let out a guttural, bone-rattling roar as it lunged forward.
"Shit." Luka darted to the side in an instant, sliding across the stone and narrowly avoiding the monster's jaws.
Coming to a skidding stop, he already had an arrow notched.
He let it fly—straight at the monster's eye.
CLANG!
The monster spun its massive body, its tail sweeping out like a steel club.
The arrow deflected harmlessly, snapping in the air.
"Tsk." Luka clicked his tongue, annoyed. 'Of course I get a defense-focused boss…'
He recognized it instantly—Swamp Tyrant.
Its armored scales were nearly impenetrable, the only true weak spot being its eyes.
Fortunately, this one was a low-level variant—smaller and slower than the fully grown ones lurking in out in the game-like world.
Still, dangerous.
The Swamp Tyrant charged again, snapping its jaws.
Luka kept his distance, circling the edge of the room.
Each step was calculated—just enough to stay out of range, just enough to line up another shot.
He fired again.
And again.
Each arrow aimed for the eyes, though most never reached—batted away or dodged by the Swamp Tyrant.
Another roar split the air, the very walls trembling under its fury.
"Hmm?" Luka narrowed his eyes as something above caught his attention—stalactites, hanging precariously from the ceiling.
The vibrations from the roar had loosened them slightly, causing small bits of rock and dust to fall.
A smirk touched Luka's lips. "Fucking idiot."
Without pause, he adjusted his aim and loosed an arrow—not at the monster, but at the ceiling.
CRACK!
The arrow hit true, and the first stalactite broke loose, plummeting toward the Swamp Tyrant.
The monster let out a hiss, instinctively retreating back into the water to avoid the falling stone.
The splash echoed as it disappeared beneath the murk once more.
"Yeah, that's what I thought," Luka muttered, lowering his bow slightly.
As he approached the edge of the murky pool, tension crackled in the air like a pulled bowstring.
He knew what was coming.
With a thunderous splash, the Swamp Tyrant exploded from the water again, jaws wide in a furious roar.
Luka narrowly dodged right, his feet sliding against the slick stone floor as the monster crashed down where he once stood.
But this time, it didn't linger.
It dove straight back down—then surged upward again, water trailing from its armored back like a veil.
The cycle repeated, a relentless rhythm of ambush and retreat, as if the monster was trying to break the human's pattern.
But Luka was watching, reading its movements.
Anticipating.
Then, without warning, Luka halted his dodging and retreated fully across the room, eyes locked onto the trembling water.
The Swamp Tyrant surfaced again, but this time, it charged—its massive form crashing forward at terrifying speed.
Luka didn't flinch.
He fired.
The arrow struck a stalactite overhead, and it plummeted toward the monster.
But instead of dodging like before, the Swamp Tyrant whipped its tail, shattering the falling stone mid-air.
That was what Luka had been waiting for.
Thwip!
A second arrow was already in flight—this one aimed true.
Thunk!
It pierced the Swamp Tyrant's eye.
The monster let out a deafening, guttural scream, thrashing as blood burst from the wounded socket.
Luka chuckled, already moving. "There we go!"
He hadn't meant to kill with the stalactite—just to bait an opening.
And it had worked flawlessly.
As the monster stumbled back toward the water, blinded and flailing, Luka tossed his bow aside and unsheathed his long dagger in one smooth motion.
He sprinted, leaped, and landed squarely on the Swamp Tyrant's back—legs braced, one hand gripping the ridge of its armored spine like a rodeo rider.
The monster went berserk.
It bucked and twisted, flinging its body in wild arcs, crashing against walls and rolling in desperation—but Luka held on with tenacity, crawling up its back toward the head.
"I'm not letting go, you bastard!"
With a fierce growl of effort, Luka drove his dagger into the Swamp Tyrant's remaining eye.
The scream that followed was bone-shaking.
Still, it fought.
It staggered into the water, splashing violently, trying to shake the human loose.
Luka held his breath as they submerged, twisting the blade mercilessly.
The water turned bloody.
The Swamp Tyrant rolled, thrashed, even dove deeper into the pool, but Luka refused to let go.
However—
Bubbles escaped Luka's lips.
His lungs burned.
'Shit…' he thought. 'I need air… FUCK! I need to kill this monster!'
Luka's fingers clutched the hilt of the dagger, twisting again and again.
'I'm setting this new record no matter what!'
His vision blurred, his lungs screaming for air as the icy water crushed in around him like a vice.
He clenched his teeth, the taste of blood on his tongue from biting his lip.
It was then did the system's voice resound inside Luka's head like a countdown to death. It repeated over and over, growing louder each time.
[Warning! Oxygen levels critical!]
[You're running out of air — stay here any longer and you will suffocate!]
[All Hit Points will be lost!]
