The Verdant Wall was indeed very thick. The party walked for what seemed a mile or two before reaching the dungeon door.
Arthos glanced back looking at his party members. They all gave a slow nod of approval.
Arthos retrieved the Dungeon Raid ticket and placed it against the dungeon door. A bright light was seen for an instant, followed by the door and ticket disappearing. The door opened, and the party went inside.
The Elderwood Grove dungeon was nothing like the party expected. Most dungeons were dark and gloomy caves or caverns…this one was a beautiful forest filled with flowers, trees, and colorful plants. It felt more like an exquisite garden rather than a dungeon. The garden extended in every direction for miles upon miles.
Deep into the garden, a giant tree could be seen resembling the trees from the Verdant Wall. It was so large that it could be seen from many miles away…towering like a guardian in the middle of the garden.
"Let's move onward…be ready for anything." Arthos warned the group.
The party moved through the Elderwood Grove quietly and carefully for over an hour without encountering a single mob or dangerous creature. Occasionally a rabbit or squirrel would be seen…but they did not seem to pose any threat.
"Guys…we have been walking for over an hour and we haven't seen a single enemy…what kind of dungeon is this?" Wain asked in disbelief.
"We are getting close to the giant tree…I guess we will find out soon enough." Arthos said with a serious tone.
The group reached a clearing, a large area where no trees or flowers grew. It stretched out a similar distance to a football field. At the center was the large tree…standing tall like an ancient guardian in the middle of the garden.
As the group approached the tree, vines quickly sprang from the ground wrapping around and completely immobilizing Wain, Kristan, Hector, and Percy. As the group struggled to break free, the vines grew taller suspending the four party members in mid-air.
"Are you guys ok?" Arthos yelled as he attempted to cut-down his friends.
"Yes! We are ok…the vines are not hurting us…strangely they are simply holding us in place." Wain said somewhat relieved.
Before Arthos could help his friends, a large figured dropped down from the tree.
!ALERT!
[DUNGEON BOSS – TREE GUARDIAN]
[LEVEL 100]
A humanoid tree figured stood looking at Arthos. It's legs, arms, body, and head were made of dark brown wood-like material wrapped around steel thick vines. The guardian extended its arms which caused two large sword-like objects to grow.
"Shit! That's an S-rank dungeon boss…no way he can handle it alone. We need to help him!" Percy shouted as he desperately kicked, twisted, and wrenched his body trying to break free.
In the five years that Avalor was live, never had a S-rank dungeon appeared…and never had a S-rank dungeon boss appeared either.
Arthos rested his hand lightly on the hilt of his sword, fingers relaxed, shoulders loose, and eyes fixed. Every cell in his body screamed "danger". Even without looking at the system notification, he could feel the immense mana radiating from his opponent.
The guardian shifted his weight by a tiny fraction, revealing that it intended to lunge forward in a quick and powerful strike.
The guardian's sword flashed as light caught its surface creating the illusion of a clean glowing arc in the air. Arthos parried with the calculated precision of an expert swordsman. Their blades met with a sharp ring that echoed through the peaceful garden.
Arthos pushed forward and unleashed a volley of flashing strikes…each one probing the guardian's defense for weakness. With the agility and speed of a ninja, the guardian twisted its body as it dodged and blocked the sword strikes. It fell back a few feet from Arthos, shifted it's stance and disappeared in a blinding flash of movement.
Arthos strained his body to keep up with the guardian's increased speed.
Meanwhile, Wain, Kristan, and Hector struggled to keep up with the battle, their eyes perceived blades blurring together in a frenzy of attacks and parries. Unlike other dungeon bosses, this one fought like a master swordsman…each strike carried honed discipline and purpose…with no wasted effort or wasted energy.
Arthos lost his footing as the guardian pushed forward quickly. Unable to properly block the incoming sword strike, Arthos lost his grip on his sword which went flying backwards leaving him unarmed.
Having sparred and trained daily with Hector and Kristan, he closed the gap between himself and the guardian blocking its arms from attacking. He delivered a powerful elbow to the guardian's "stomach" followed by a left-hand punch and right hook to its face.
The guardian jumped back creating distance between the two fighters. Spikes began to sprout from its back, chest, arms and legs. The spikes projected forward at tremendous speeds like whips piercing the ground. Arthos tumbled, rolled, and dove evading the spiked whips while attempting to regain his sword.
With his sword back into his hands, Arthos blocked the barrage of spiked whips as he desperately tried to get close to his opponent. The closer he got, the faster the spiked whips projected from the guardian's body…forcing Arthos to fall back and try again.
After five or six unsuccessful attempts, Arthos realized he would need to try a different strategy if he hoped to beat the boss. As he desperately thought of different ideas, he felt his heartbeat irregularly…it stirred inside…which made it felt like a hiccup at first.
'What is this feeling…this stirring in my heart? I'm I pushing my body too hard?' Arthos thought to himself.
As he continued to dodge and block the avalanche of spike-whips, he felt the hiccup again…and again.
The feeling started to change…it felt like something ancient, something primitive within his DNA was awakening deep inside his soul.
Driven by instinct, Arthos stepped back from the guardian.
He gripped his longsword with both hands while focusing on the 'feeling' deep inside his chest. His sword glowed bright red…like molten iron…hotter and hotter it grew. The heat from his sword could be felt hundreds of feet away…like standing at the mouth of a volcano ready to erupt.
This was not an attack.
Not a special skill.
Not a fighting technique he had seen or practiced.
It was something far more primitive. Something raw and ancient. A feeling, a guiding hand deep in his soul drove him.
Arthos continued to gather, condense, and mold vast amounts of mana until it reached its boiling point.
He swung his sword at the guardian with one powerful strike.
"CALIBUR!!!"
Arthos shouted…like a giant lion roaring into the night.
Arthos had never before heard that name…it was the feeling inside him that told him the attack's name and how to perform it.
As he swung his sword, the earth underneath his feet trembled violently then cracked. Energy erupted from the sword swing like hot lava erupting from a volcano…violent, hot, and extremely fast. The sword swing carved space itself with a single perfect arc of blazing yellow-red-white light…as if heavens itself was sliced in two.
The impact of the strike split the guardian in half while scorching the tissue at the incision.
!ALERT!
[TREE GUARDIAN DEFEATED]
[YOU LEVELED UP!]
[YOU LEVELED UP!]
[YOU LEVELED UP!]
[YOU LEVELED UP!]