Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented

Chapter 29

"D-Damn it...!"

I stomped my feet in frustration as I escaped from the named boss battle area.

What the hell were those magic orbs filling the battlefield!?

Back when I was a hero, I could just slice through that kind of attack with my sword energy. But now, my body is constrained by the game’s system.

Even though my stats have improved significantly from leveling up and farming, they were still pitiful compared to my peak strength.

Galovan, too, was bound by the game’s system. He didn’t chase me once I left the kitchen building.

"Sigh."

There’s no point in longing for power I no longer have.

Even though this world is based on *Astra*, it’s still a game, and I have to approach it accordingly.

Galovan’s magic orbs severely restricted my movement, and eventually, they would cover the entire battlefield.

They were like mines—triggered when I got too close, creating a time-attack scenario.

It reminded me of the second named boss in the level 25 elite dungeon, *Gaju’s Statue*.

If you didn't defeat the boss within a certain amount of time, the battlefield would shrink, or the number of minions would increase, making things progressively harder.

For a solo player like me, that pattern was especially challenging.

The battlefield in Galovan’s room was a square.

The magic orbs created by Galovan would chase me for about five seconds before stopping.

In my first battle, I didn’t know how Galovan would attack, so the orbs ended up in the center of the field.

"The initial placement of those orbs is crucial."

---

Whirr.

A violet orb rose from Galovan’s hand and began chasing me.

I quickly moved, leading the orb toward the edge of the battlefield.

After five seconds, I stopped near the outer boundary.

Whirr!

The orb glowed brightly and came to a halt.

Clang!

I approached Galovan and crossed swords with him.

From now on, there would be no time to rest.

I had successfully moved the first orb to the edge of the battlefield.

Without wasting any time, I threw myself into Galovan’s relentless attacks.

I didn’t have time to block every strike. I didn’t release *Sword Drawing Stance*.

By relying on the increased agility from *Sword Drawing Stance* and making quick, reactive movements, I minimized the damage.

Slash! Slash!

Galovan's daggers grazed me repeatedly, leaving cuts, but I still didn’t release *Sword Drawing Stance*.

Like a swordsman willing to trade blows, I countered his strikes, matching each wound with a strike of my own.

This damage was manageable.

The only thing I needed to block was the final, powerful strike of his combo.

Clang!

At just the right moment, I raised my sword and blocked Galovan’s final strike.

---

[Block (A)]

- Blocks attacks from the front within a 180-degree range.

- (A-Rank) Successful block within 0.2 seconds triggers a 10-second "Vitality" buff that increases all damage.

---

I successfully triggered the "Just Guard" effect, activating the buff from blocking perfectly.

A faint glow emanated from my body, indicating that I could now rapidly whittle down Galovan’s HP for the next ten seconds.

The magic orbs were piling up, even though I had carefully placed them at the edges. Soon, they would fill the entire battlefield.

Placing the orbs early on was only a way to create room to use *Counterattack* freely during the battle.

I only blocked the most dangerous attacks. I endured the ones that only caused minimal damage, relying on potions to recover.

Ignoring the pain.

Before the battlefield was filled with violet orbs...

I had to defeat Galovan.

"This is way too hard!"

Thud, thud!

Chris angrily kicked at one of the barracks tents.

Beimerung, trying to calm down the frustrated Chris, spoke up.

"Maybe this is where we need to make use of the 'invincibility during casting' mechanic?"

"Seems like it. It’s incredibly hard due to the synchronization rate and the short invincibility window, but with enough practice, it’s possible."

In fact, Deathmaster had almost completely avoided taking damage from the first wide-area attack by mastering that mechanic.

"S-Sorry."

Beimerung looked crestfallen, feeling responsible for failing to dodge and nearly causing the party’s wipe.

"The timing of the damage isn’t very intuitive, but with enough tries, you can get used to it. Still, if only the invincibility lasted a bit longer."

"Yeah! The backstep invincibility window for mages is way too short!"

Cherni quickly agreed with Beimerung’s complaint.

Chris stroked her chin in thought.

Dodging the first attack individually, then tanking the second with their bodies... It was a risky strategy, but it worked for now.

The second attack would drop their HP to near-zero, but they wouldn’t die.

Afterward, they could cautiously heal with potions.

It wasn’t the safest plan, but it was their only option.

Chris sighed.

"We’ve only had three attempts where all four of us dodged successfully."

"And after that, elite soldiers respawn, and another special phase begins. It’s a nightmare."

Cherni, lost in thought, spoke up.

"Isn’t it strange? *Astra Online* has never thrown us impossible patterns before. Even with the *Black Wyvern*, we could use the surrounding environment."

"You’re right. But this first named boss has no environment to work with. The barracks get destroyed right away, and the battlefield is just an open space. Maybe we need to take a closer look at our skills for a solution."

"Huh?"

Beimerung made a curious sound.

"What’s up, Beimerung?"

"I just leveled up my *Ice Barrier* skill while fighting the elites. Take a look at this."

Chris peered at Beimerung’s shared skill interface.

---

[Frozen Prison]

[Targets party members within 30 meters]

[Encases party members in ice, granting 'invincibility' against all attacks once.]

[Cooldown: 1 minute]

---

"See? I unlocked a derivative skill from *Ice Barrier*."

"A party protection skill...!"

Chris let out a low whistle.

"True, we don’t know what new skills or effects will emerge until our skills rank up."

"Most mages go for the fire tree because of its raw damage potential. It’s practically the meta. But since I’ve been assigned to crowd control for our party, I’ve had to use *Ice Barrier* a lot."

"Looks like by using a variety of skills, you naturally unlock this at around level 30!"

The party members’ faces lit up with excitement.

Beimerung’s *Frozen Prison* would give them a way to withstand one wide-area attack.

"Most gamers probably don’t know about this, given the focus on efficiency."

"Still, I bet some of the vanguard parties have already discovered this."

"Even the summoner class has some niche elemental trees that were abandoned. They might have..."

Chris nodded in agreement. While melee classes might not have this skill, there

was a good chance magic classes did.

Some of the more advanced parties might have already used this knowledge to get ahead.

"But there’s no time to go and train different skills now. We’ll have to stick with backstep for one attack. Tanking the damage is way too risky. Even if we survive, a single hit from the elites afterward will take us down."

Mastering the 'invincibility during casting' mechanic tied to backstep.

In that aspect, the *Chris Raid Party* was likely ahead of the rest.

Chris rolled up her sleeves, a confident smile spreading across her face.

"Alright! We’ve got a plan! Let’s get back in there and crush it!"