Boss Fight (1)

The fearsome creature appeared in front of Gil's party. Its head bore a striking resemblance to that of a bull, sporting sharp, elegantly curved horns that protruded from its forehead. Beneath the horn-adorned cranium, a robust, sinewy body commanded attention. This hulking frame was enveloped in a coarse, mottled fur, its hues ranging from earthy browns to deep blacks, contributing to an aura of intimidation and threat.

Its eyes blazed with an infernal intensity as they fixated on the individuals before it. Detecting intruders, the pair of minotaurs swiftly surged into motion, charging headlong toward Gil's party.

"Lack! Engage the one on the right. I'll handle the left," Anderson shouted, his response swift and instinctual as he perceived the imminent peril.

Lack obeyed Anderson's command without hesitation, immediately taking on the monster to the right. Meanwhile, Anderson lunged toward the second minotaur, determined to impede its approach.

Armed with massive axes in both hands, the two minotaurs unleashed their swings upon the encroaching enemies. Reacting swiftly, Lack positioned his shield as a staunch barrier, countering the minotaur's attack with unyielding resolve. Simultaneously, Anderson deftly evaded the other minotaur's strike, employing his agility with practiced finesse. The collision of the minotaur's axe against Lack's shield reverberated, filling the air with a resonant clash. On the opposite end, the second minotaur's axe crashed onto the ground, causing the earth to shudder and rupture.

Having successfully halted the enemy's advance, Anderson swiftly issued commands to Gil and Elise. "Elise, focus your spell on the minotaur before me while I keep its attention. Brat, assist Lack in dealing with the other one!" His voice carried authority as he shouted over the chaos.

In response, Gil left Elise's side and approached the area where Lack was locked in combat. Finding his stance, Gil crouched down and aimed his gun at the minotaur's head. With Lack skillfully fending off the creature's attacks using his shield, Gil steadied his aim and squeezed the trigger.

*Bang*

A barrage of projectiles hurtled from Gil's gun toward the minotaur at breakneck speed. The minotaur, preoccupied with Lack's defensive maneuvers, remained unknown to the incoming attack. Suddenly, a volley of magical bullets struck its face from seemingly out of nowhere. However, the minotaur's tough skin only sustained superficial scratches from the impact.

Annoyance flickered across Gil's expression. He had anticipated this outcome. The magic gun he had brought along for this quest fell short in terms of dealing damage to a formidable opponent like the minotaur.

The minotaur, in turn, experienced nothing more than the sensation of pebbles striking its face. The blows were inconsequential, and the worst thing was Gil succeeded in stirring the monster's annoyance.

A resounding roar erupted from the minotaur, its anger stoked by what struck it before. Fueled by fury, the creature abruptly shoved Lack aside with its axe and charged towards Gil's location. Caught off guard by the sudden shift in the monster's trajectory, Lack struggled to regain his footing. The force of the minotaur's axe swing had caught him unprepared, leaving him stumbling and off balance.

"Shit!" Gil's curse escaped his lips as he realized the minotaur was now directing a pursuit at him.

Recognizing that he was now the monster's target, he swiftly abandoned his current position and sprinted away. Yet, no matter how he maneuvered around the battleground, the minotaur doggedly pursued him without faltering. Gil even attempted to exploit the chaos to divert its attention. Still, to his mounting trepidation, the beast remained solely fixated on him.

In a matter of moments, the minotaur closed the distance between them. As it reached striking range, the creature hoisted its formidable axe high into the air, preparing to unleash a devastating blow upon Gil. Luckily, he saw what the minotaur was going to do. Reacting with split-second intuition, Gil's attack sprang sideways, narrowly evading the axe's deadly arc.

But even so, the minotaur didn't just stop there as it lifted its axe again. And this time, Gil was still falling on the ground. Late to get up, Gil saw the monster already ready for its next attack. He tried to evade it as hard as he could. But one could see that Gil couldn't escape this time.

'Shit, I'm dead for real.' he thought, a rush of anxiety flooding over him.

Regret surged through his mind like a torrent. What had he done to lead to this dire outcome? Was it because he came too early? The circumstances differed significantly from the game – An inactive dungeon and the presence of two minotaurs were stark deviations from his expectations. Many aspects of this raid defied the knowledge he had come to know.

Regardless of the cause, Gil was acutely aware that he had made a big mistake and was now paying the price. He couldn't shake off the guilt of dragging the others into his selfish quest. Maybe not Anderson and Elise, but Lack, in particular, shouldn't have been entangled in this hard situation.

"If only I hadn't insisted on facing these minotaurs. Maybe there would've been a chance..." he mused, his thoughts consumed by remorse and the nagging hope for an alternate outcome.

As the minotaur's axe arced towards him, Gil instinctively closed his eyes, bracing for the impending impact. Yet, against all expectations, silence lingered in the air instead of the anticipated strike. Something different had occurred.

A jarring clash of metal resounded before Gil, causing him to involuntarily flinch and shield his ears from the shockwave of noise.

"F*ck!" Gil cursed under his breath, his unpreparedness evident. Slowly, he opened his eyes to see what was happening.

To his astonishment, standing before him was the person he had desperately hoped to stay alive. Armed with a shield in one hand, this guy intercepted the minotaur's strike, singlehandedly fending off the impending blow and even redirecting the monster's momentum to the side.

"Your opponent is me, dumbass!" He taunted the minotaur, his voice a mixture of defiance and provocation.

Far from silent, the minotaur responded with a bellow of its own, its fury rekindled by this fresh intrusion. It lunged repeatedly, its massive axe slashing through the air with ferocity. But the resolute figure held firm, countering each assault with steadfast deflections.

Meanwhile, Gil, positioned behind the unfolding scene, could only gape in awe. No amount of novels or manga detailing adventurer-monster battles could match the raw intensity of what was transpiring before him. He had once believed that witnessing such a clash in real-time would forever remain a mere dream, yet here it was, reality outstripping his wildest fantasies.

True, there had been a fight earlier in their trip here, but he had always remained at a distance from the front. Now, with the action unfolding right before his eyes, he found himself utterly captivated.

'Holy shit, he is so cool.' Gil mused to himself, his admiration unmistakable.

The battle between Lack and the minotaur raged on, each exchange a display of skill and determination. However, it was evident that fatigue was taking its toll on Lack. He took a deliberate step back, allowing himself to catch his breath. In that brief respite, he quickly glanced in Gil's direction.

"Hey, don't just stay there. Help me fight this guy."

In an instant, Gil snapped out of his trance. Reacting swiftly, he retrieved his gun and took aim at the minotaur. Projectiles erupted from the firearm, hurtling toward the creature in a rapid succession of shots.

Infuriated once more, the minotaur redirected its attention toward Gil, eager to retaliate. However, its movements now were promptly curtailed by Lack's intervention.

At this juncture, a tense deadlock ensued. The minotaur, Lack, and Gil found themselves locked in a precarious standoff, each side refusing to yield. Meanwhile, the second minotaur was about to endure a huge blow.

Elise summoned a formidable spell, conjuring a towering, elongated ice lance that materialized above her head.

"Ice Lance!"

Her voice resonated with power as the ice magic surged forth, hurtling towards the second minotaur with incredible speed. Reacting to Elise's shout, Anderson swiftly distanced himself from the impending chaos, positioning himself out of harm's way.

Caught unawares, the minotaur's response was too sluggish to evade the incoming icy projectile. The jagged ice collided with the monster's abdomen, eliciting a pained groan as it stumbled to one knee.

As one minotaur was felled, a fleeting moment of relief washed over the party, the mood lightening. Yet, this respite was short-lived as an astonishing development unfolded before their eyes.

The downed minotaur defied the party's expectations, moving its arms with a determined effort to extract the impaled ice lance from its body. The realization jolted the party into alertness.

"Anderson, keep that monster at bay. I'll reinforce the ice so it will freeze that monster's body." Elise's urgent command pierced the tense atmosphere.

Without thinking, Anderson charged toward the wounded minotaur, following Elise's instructions instinctively.

It seemed the battle was still far from over.