Chapter 84. Taking Turns to Attack

The Ogre was more enraged by Jack, so it ignored the others and chased after Jack. He led the Boss towards position J where John and the others could use their range attacks.

"I'm coming!" He said in team chat.

"Took you some time," John commented in the chat.

"Screw you! You try holding the Boss yourself," Jack retorted.

"Okay, we can see the Boss. All Magicians, attack!" John commanded in chat.

As soon as he finished the command, multiple balls of energy were sent flying from three directions. All three Magicians had simultaneously used Energy Bolts as their first spell. Thirteen Bolts homed in on the Ogre and bombarded it ferociously. The combined attack scored 420 damage!

Despite suffering so much damage, the Ogre just barreled through the rain of bolts as if it was nothing. It kept on chasing Jack.

"Team 3 move in to engage the Boss! Team 4 stand by. Team 1 and Team 2 recuperate your health!" John gave out instructions as he and the other Magicians continued to cast spells and shoot standard attacks.

The four Fighters from Team 3 charged in as they shouted their war cry. Jack could continue to fight, but he followed the strategy so as not to disrupt the rhythm. He disengaged and went towards where Flame and Trap were hiding. The Ogre wanted to continue chasing him, but the four fighters surrounded it and started to hack away at it.

Enraged, the Ogre shot out a wide swing. Two of the Fighters were knocked flying, each suffering over 100 damage. The third one managed to evade by ducking. The fourth Fighter, who found himself facing the Boss' back, immediately used the opportunity and executed Power Strike on it.

But this made him the Ogre's main target and he soon got knocked flying too. The last Fighter still within the Boss' melee range made a quick slash on its legs He intended to jump back before the club could swing back at him, but, to his surprise, the Ogre used his other hand to grab his waist and throw him away like a piece of rock. The Fighter slammed to one of the stalagmites and almost broke it. He suffered 93 damage.

"F**k! So Fast? Team 4, engage! Engage!!" John shouted.

The Ogre was stomping towards the Fighter he had just thrown away to finish him off, but another wave of four fighters appeared. The Boss thought with irritation; these annoying flies are so detestable, they keep coming one after another!

Team 4 fared as well as Team 3. One hit from the Ogre took out roughly one-third of their health. They could at most take two hits before they needed to run away.

"Team 1, are you ready to engage again?" John asked.

"Damn it! I'm still in healing!" The Man answered.

"Bloody hell! Use your restorative potions! We don't have time to wait for your Natural Recovery crap!!" John yelled.

"Team 2 will engage!" Jack said as he saw that all of Team 4's Fighters were already running for their lives.

He charged towards the Boss with Flame and Trap following by his side. "You two flank it! I will get its attention." Jack told them.

When the Ogre saw them coming, it immediately remembered them. These three were the ones who woke him up. He made a loud cry. The three almost had a heart attack; they thought they would be afflicted by Disorient again. But fortunately, there was no such notification; it was just a normal roar. However, the massive club was starting to glow with yellow light.

Seeing that, Jack immediately had a bad feeling. He promptly halted their advance and shouted, "fall back! Fall back!"

The club came down and slammed into the floor. This time, when the ground cracked, yellow light spread out, and sharp stalactites came crashing down from the ceiling. Jack and the others just missed getting impaled! The stalactites disintegrated as they hit the ground.

"Holy shit! It can cast a skill too!" Bowler howled.

"It is a Boss, after all. It would be weird if it didn't have a trump card. But that skill should have a long cooldown. Hurry up and attack while it can't cast the skill!" John ordered while he threw range attacks.

"Hell! Easy for you to say! You're just standing there shooting from a distance!" Trap complained.

"Friend, if you want to complain, then complain that you chose a melee class," John countered.

While they were bantering, Jack and Flame had rushed back. They realized that the Ogre wasn't attacking; it looked dazed, like it needed a rest after its special attack. They immediately capitalized on this chance to land as many strikes as they could.

Trap came to join them. But as he arrived, the Boss came out of its trance and immediately swung its club. Trap was so shocked that he immediately performed Roll. Despite his effort, the tip of the club still hit him and sent him flying. Even though the Roll skill doubled his defense, the hit cost him almost half his HP.

Jack and Flame continued to send slashes and stabs in the meantime. The Boss frenziedly sent swing after swing towards them, but they utilized their speed to evade the attacks. They positioned themselves opposite each other. When Jack dodged, Flame attacked. When the Ogre turned and swung at Flame, Jack took his chance to attack.

"Those two are good!" John commented.

"Damn right they are!" Bowler exclaimed with pride.

"What the hell are you so proud of? You are not even half as good as they are," John said.

"F**k you!" Bowler gave him the middle finger while casting Mana Bullet at the Ogre.

"I am ready!" they suddenly heard The Man declare.

"F**k me! Took your damn sweet time. Just stand by! Charge in if Team 2 has a problem holding," John said.

Jack and Flame were still harassing the Boss with the same method. To the others it almost seemed like they could continue their grinding pattern until the Boss expired. But as this thought surfaced in their minds, the Ogre's eyes suddenly glowed yellow.

'Crap! It's going to unleash another skill,' Jack thought. He was just about to warn Flame to pull back, but the Boss suddenly stomped his feet on the ground. A gust of wind knocked them up into the air, leaving them completely defenseless. It then made a 360-degree swing with its club, knocking back both Jack and Flame.  Jack lost 138 health while Flame lost 161 health. The Boss was so fast they weren't able to execute any defensive moves.

Flame fell a distance away. Her HP down to one-third! The Ogre, as if knowing she was close to death, strode towards Flame. Another hit and she would lose her life.

"Cover her! Cover her!" Bowler shouted in panic.

Jack was still getting to his feet. He knew he couldn't get to her in time. Jack could only watch, disheartened and helplessness. Then he heard a shout.

"No worries! The Man is here!"

The Man leaped from a nearby patch of high ground and crashed his large two-handed broadsword into the Ogre's shoulder carving a large gash. The Boss screamed in rage. It shifted its attention to The Man who had just cost him pain and swung at him madly.

Flame used the chance to escape from the vicinity. Jack could still fight, but he moved away and regrouped with Flame and Trap. They took out their restorative foods and ate them quickly.

The Man's movement was pretty fluid for a guy his size, as he expertly dodged the Ogre's attack. However, his speed was not as fast as Jack's or Flame's. On the Ogre's fourth swing, he couldn't dodge and instead had to block with Parry. The Man backed up several steps as he lost HP. His two teammates stepped in front of him and started to attack, taking the pressure off him.

The teams continued taking turns grinding the Boss, while the three Magicians continued to cast their spells and send range attacks non-stop. They also activated their fourth skill: Heightened State, which increased their mana regeneration and reduced their skills' cooldown. When their mana got too low, they drank energy potions to replenish it.