Vol.01: Ch.15: The Rewards of Risk - The Scorched Raven General's Downfall

As the instructors continued to watch, Athena murmured to herself, "This is shaping up to be a real boss battle."

...

Inside the training hall,

Darell's heart rate began to quicken at the sight of the imposing Scorched Raven General. Despite his nerves, he couldn't help but feel a rush of adrenaline as if his body was eagerly anticipating the challenge ahead.

Without hesitation, he activated his Inspect skill to analyze the General's stats.

[ Beast - Scorched Raven General ]

[ Rank - 06 ]

[ STR - 768 ]

[ AGI - 895 ]

[ VIT - 632 ]

[ DEF - 801 ]

[ Ability - Fire ]

He was left in utter shock because the beast's stats were off the charts, making it seem impossible for Darell to defeat it at the moment. However, before he could fully process the situation, the system's notifications interrupted his thoughts.

[DING]

[Quest - Defeat the Scorched Ravens]

[Reward - 1000 XP]

[Special Quest - Kill the Scorched Raven General]

[Reward - SuperNova (Skill)]

Darell's eyes widened in disbelief as he read the notifications. He wasn't surprised by the quests themselves, as he was accustomed to the system's challenges, but the reward for the special quest left him speechless. The last time he was granted a skill by the system was when he first entered the Forest of Fyn. He remembered how useful it had been, and how he had searched the system shop to determine its rank, only to find that it was beyond classification.

Despite his excitement, Darell took a moment to survey the chaos around him. His friends were fiercely battling the Raven's horde, and he knew that he needed to focus on the task at hand. He took a deep breath, steeling his resolve, and clenched his fists.

Darell's eyes gleamed with excitement as he spoke, "Time to go all out," and activated his offensive skills,

"Burst!"

"Death's Touch!"

"Star Strike!"

The Ravens immediately turned their attention towards Darell, and even his companions, Emma, Lilith, Eric, and Ariel, felt the overwhelming pressure from his display of power.

The Scorched Raven General trembled at the sight of Darell, sensing the danger he posed. The General knew he had to eliminate Darell quickly before he became a threat to his plans. He issued orders to his army of Ravens to attack Darell, hoping to wear him down with their numbers.

The Ravens were attacking Emma, Lilith, Eric, and Ariel with ferocity, their beaks and claws lashing out in a flurry of attacks. But then, as if on cue, the majority of the flock suddenly veered towards Darell, honing in on his location like a pack of hungry predators.

Despite the overwhelming number of enemies closing in on him, Darell remained cool and composed. A devious smirk played across his lips, and his eyes glinted with determination as he hatched a plan to take down the Scorched Raven General. He knew that he couldn't do it alone - he needed his friends' help to succeed.

With a confident flourish, Darell unleashed a torrent of deadly strikes, each one aimed at the Raven horde. His strikes connected with deadly accuracy, felling Raven after Raven as they closed in on him. He knew that this was only the first step in his plan, but he also knew that he had to make it count.

Darell's muscles ached from the intense exertion he had put into his attacks after a few minutes. Though he had managed to take down a significant number of the attacking Ravens, their numbers seemed endless. Darell knew that his strength had reached its limit after using Burst and Star Strike. He felt his mana rapidly depleting, and the cost of his attacks had become too great.

As the onslaught continued, Darell felt himself becoming increasingly annoyed. No matter how many Ravens he took down, they would be quickly replaced. He knew that he needed to end this battle quickly before he ran out of energy.

The Raven General snarled as it summoned two towering fire golems. The golems charged towards Darell with their fiery swords, but he stood unfazed. With a quick motion, Darell unleashed his sword combat technique, Earth-Shattering Slash, and cleaved through the golems in one fell swoop.

Unwilling to give up, the Raven General created more fire golems, but Darell dispatched them with ease as he continued to take down the swarming horde of Ravens. Seeing his minions' futility, the Raven General conjured a massive fireball, dark and menacing in color, and launched it at Darell.

Thinking on his feet, Darell activated his Teleport skill and disappeared, reappearing a hundred meters away from his previous position. The fireball crashed into the ground, creating a deep crater that spanned five meters.

Darell's eyes glittered with excitement and defiance as he taunted the Raven General with a bold gesture, beckoning him to come forward. The Raven General was infuriated by Darell's impudence, and in his rage, he unleashed a barrage of fiery projectiles at Darell.

Darell's smile widened as he nimbly dodged the incoming fireballs, using his Teleport ability to evade them with ease. In the midst of his dodging, he locked eyes with Lilith, sharing a silent message with her through their gaze. With a wink, he employed Space Tear to dodge another incoming fireball before quickly teleporting away.

Lilith caught on to Darell's plan and smiled to herself as she whispered. Meanwhile, Ariel was locked in battle with the Ravens on the other side of the battlefield when she heard Lilith's whispered instructions. Using a hypnosis skill she had acquired previously, Ariel managed to commandeer a flock of Ravens to attack the Raven General from behind.

As Emma, Lilith, and Eric continued to fight off the endless horde of Ravens, they silently coordinated with each other, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. With the Raven General fully engaged in his battle with Darell, the trio launched a surprise attack on the distracted bird with all their skills.

The Raven General felt a strange sensation as he noticed that his connection with the Ravens had been severed. But he was too focused on fighting Darell to dwell on it and continued his assault.

Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his back and quickly turned his head, only to find all of the Ravens that were previously attacking him now hurling fireballs his way, with Emma, Lilith, Eric, and Ariel now joining the fray.

As he turned to face them, he made a crucial mistake. Darell saw the opening and used his Teleport skill to appear right behind the Raven General.

Darell's fist connected with the Raven General's body, unleashing a thunderous boom that echoed across the battlefield.

* BOOM *

The Raven General was caught off guard by the sudden attack and was hurled to the ground, skidding across the dirt.

As Darell landed on the ground, he observed the Raven General's reaction. The Raven General's eyes blazed with fury as he rose to his feet. Dark red flames ignited across his body, engulfing him in a fiery aura.

Darell realized that the Raven General was finally taking him seriously. He steeled himself for the upcoming fight.

With a mighty flap of his wings, the Raven General sent a barrage of red-hot feathers flying towards Darell. But Darell had anticipated this move and activated his skill, Nihility. The feathers passed harmlessly through his body.

Without missing a beat, Darell charged at the Raven General and unleashed a flurry of punches, kicks, and slashes. The two engaged in a fierce battle that lasted for several minutes.

Darell struggled to keep himself upright as he leaned against a tree, gasping for air. His sword lay shattered on the ground and his right arm hung broken and useless at his side. The pain was excruciating, but he gritted his teeth and refused to give up.

Through blurred vision, he surveyed the scene before him. The Raven General was in even worse shape; its beak was broken, one wing hung limp, and the other was stripped of its once-dark red feathers. Darell knew that he was close to victory, but he couldn't let his guard down just yet.

[ WARNING! ]

[ WARNING! ]

[ WARNING! ]

[ WARNING! ]

[ YOUR MP IS LOW! 

STOP USING YOUR SKILLS! ]

[ WARNING! ]

[ WARNING! ]

[ WARNING! ]

Darell ignored the system as he was determined to complete the quests and receive the rewards, despite it's warning. The system had purposely offered the skill as a reward to test Darell's capabilities.

The Raven General took a desperate risk and created another fireball, hoping to finally defeat Darell. Aware that he did not have enough MP to dodge the incoming attack, Darell gritted his teeth and charged towards the Raven General.

"Die!" he shouted, as he threw a powerful punch towards the fireball.

* BOOOOM *

As the smoke and dust cleared, Emma, Lilith, Eric, and Ariel slowly picked themselves up from the ground, wincing at the pain and bruises from the impact of the explosion. They looked over to see Darell, standing alone in the middle of the battlefield. Despite the devastation surrounding him, he was still standing, albeit barely and saw his eyes staring blankly ahead.

Darell heard a barrage of notifications from the system, but his mind was hazy, and his vision was blurred. He looked down at his hands, only to find them unrecognizable, charred beyond belief. He could see the bones of his fingers, and his arms, and the pain was excruciating.

"Oh...Shit..." Darell muttered weakly before his body gave out, and he collapsed onto the ground, losing consciousness.

"DARELL!"

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