The depth of the Toxic Sewers didn't just smell like death; it smelled like ancient death.
Arthur sprinted along a narrow, moss-covered pipe suspended over a river of boiling green sludge.
HP: 9,210 / 9,280[Poison Resist: 32%][Environmental Damage: -34 HP/sec]
The numbers were manageable. With his massive health pool and the resistance gear, the lethal environment was reduced to a mild annoyance. He popped a [Minor Health Potion] every few minutes just to top off, not because he needed to, but because he liked seeing the bar full.
BOOM.
A dull vibration shook the pipe under his feet. Dust rained down from the ceiling.
Arthur stopped and looked back. Far behind him, near the entrance sector, flashes of fire magic were illuminating the green fog.
"They're fast," Arthur muttered.
The Ironblood Cartel hadn't just sent a squad. They had sent a demolition crew. With the resistance potions Arthur sold them, they were brute-forcing their way through the dungeon, blowing up mobs and obstacles alike.
They moved like a bulldozer. Arthur moved like a needle.
"I have maybe ten minutes," Arthur calculated.
He turned and accelerated. The Swamp Walker's Boots gripped the slick metal pipe perfectly. No slipping. No wasted movement.
Ahead, the pipe ended at a massive circular chamber. The walls were lined with glowing eggs.
Hiss.
Three Plague Lizards (Level 4) dropped from the ceiling, blocking the path.
Arthur didn't slow down.
"Move," he growled.
He didn't have a shield (he hadn't found a replacement yet), so he held Brutus's Mace with both hands.
The first lizard lunged. Arthur took the bite on his left shoulder.
-45 Damage.
It hurt, but Arthur didn't flinch. His health bar barely moved.
He swung the mace. Strength 10.
CRACK.
The heavy iron head connected with the lizard's skull. It wasn't a clean cut like a sword; it was a catastrophic impact. Bone shattered. The lizard was launched sideways off the pipe, falling into the acid river below.
The other two lizards hesitated. They sensed something wrong. This prey didn't smell like fear. He smelled like iron.
Arthur stepped forward. [Skill: Heavy Strike].
The mace glowed red. He swung it in a horizontal arc.
SPLAT.
He hit both lizards at once. The force was enough to crush the first one instantly and send the second one spinning into the wall, dead on impact.
[Experience Gained: 120 EXP]
Arthur stepped over the corpses. He didn't check for loot. No time.
The Inner Sanctum
Five minutes later, Arthur stood before the Boss Room.
It was a massive drainage cistern. In the center, rising from a pool of concentrated toxic waste, was the nightmare of Sector 8.
[Boss Identified]Venomous Hydra (Rank E - Boss)Level: 8Status: Elite / Raid Boss
It had three heads. Scales the color of bruised plums. Each head was the size of a small car.
It was asleep.
Arthur checked the room. There was only one entrance: the blast door he was standing in.
BOOM.
The explosion was louder this time. Much closer. He could hear voices echoing down the tunnel behind him.
"Clear left! Healer, top up the tank!" "Move, move! Gus said the Vendor came this way!"
It was Vance's voice.
Arthur cursed. They were right behind him. Maybe two minutes away.
If he started the fight now, the Hydra would wake up and scream. The Cartel would hear it, rush in, and steal the kill. A solo player couldn't out-DPS a raid team.
"I can't kill it fast enough," Arthur realized. "It has 5,000 HP. I do maybe 50 DPS with the mace. That's 100 seconds of perfect combat. The Cartel will be here in 60."
He needed a way to lock them out.
Arthur looked at the heavy blast door. The control panel was rusted, sparking with dead wires.
He looked at his inventory. He had the Mace. He had the Dagger. And he had...
His eyes landed on the [Concentrated Venom Crystals] he hadn't sold. And the [Goblin Bombs] that Rat had dropped in Chapter 3? No, Rat took those. Wait. Brutus.
Arthur checked the pouch he looted from Brutus. Inside were three [Standard Grenades].
"Primitive," Arthur grinned. "But effective."
He didn't use them on the Boss. He used them on the doorframe.
Arthur wedged the grenades into the rusted hinges of the blast door. He pulled the pins and sprinted into the room.
BANG!
The explosion wasn't massive, but it was enough. The rusted metal groaned, gave way, and the heavy blast door slammed shut, jamming into the warped frame. It wouldn't hold them forever—maybe 5 minutes—but it blocked the view.
And it woke the Hydra.
ROAAAR!
Three heads snapped up. Six yellow eyes locked onto Arthur.
[Boss Encounter Started]
"Just you and me, ugly," Arthur said, equipping the mace.
HP: 9,285 / 9,285
The Hydra spat. A stream of pressurized acid shot from the middle head.
Arthur didn't dodge. He raised his arms and tanked it.
[Environmental Crit! You took 150 Acid Damage!][Armor Melted: Defense -2]
Smoke rose from Arthur's armor. His skin sizzled.
HP: 9,135 / 9,285
Arthur laughed. "Is that all?"
He charged.
The Hydra was confused. Prey usually ran. Prey usually melted. This prey was running through the acid bath, swinging a hammer.
Arthur reached the Hydra's body. He wasn't aiming for the heads—they were too high. He aimed for the base of the necks.
SMASH.
-42 Damage.
It was going to be a long fight.
Outside the Blast Door
"Hold fire!" Vance shouted.
The Alpha Squad skidded to a halt. The path ahead was blocked by a collapsed blast door. Smoke was pouring from the hinges.
"Someone blew the door," Kael said, examining the wreckage. "Recently."
From the other side of the metal, they heard dull thuds. And roaring.
ROAAR!CLANG!
"The Boss is engaged," Vance's face went cold. "Someone beat us here."
"Who?" Gus panted, catching up. "Who is crazy enough to solo a Raid Boss? The poison alone..."
Vance stared at the door. He remembered the hooded figure selling potions. He remembered the "Error" report.
"The Vendor," Vance whispered.
"Get the breaching charges!" Vance ordered. "Blow this door! I don't care if you bring the ceiling down! If he kills that Boss, we lose the First Clear achievement!"
The soldiers scrambled.
Inside the Boss Room
Arthur was in a trance.
Smash. Sidestep. Tank. Smash.
Hydra HP: 45%Arthur HP: 85%
He was winning the attrition war. The Hydra's venom did nothing to his massive health pool. His regeneration was almost keeping up with the damage.
But the blast door was glowing red. THUMP. THUMP. The Cartel was cutting through.
"Die faster!" Arthur roared.
He activated [Heavy Strike]. He aimed for an open wound on the Hydra's left neck.
CRUNCH.
The left head went limp.
Hydra HP: 30%
Suddenly, the Hydra changed tactics. The remaining two heads didn't attack Arthur. They turned... and bit into the dead neck.
They tore chunks of flesh from their own body.
[Boss Skill: Cannibal Regeneration][Hydra HP: 30% -> 50%]
Arthur stopped.
"You have got to be kidding me."
It healed. He had burned all his stamina to get it to 30%, and it just healed back to half.
The blast door groaned. A hole appeared in the center. A welder's torch cut through.
"I see him!" a voice shouted through the hole. "It's one guy! He's fighting it alone!"
Arthur looked at the hole. Then at the healing Hydra.
He couldn't out-DPS the heal. Not with a Mace. He needed burst damage. Massive burst damage.
He looked at his inventory. He had one [Concentrated Venom Crystal] left. And he had the [Potion of Greater Antidote].
An idea formed. A crazy, stupid idea.
Alchemy wasn't just about mixing potions in a lab. It was about chemical reactions. Venom Crystal = Concentrated Toxin. Antidote = Neutralizing Agent. Mixing them usually resulted in a cure. But mixing them inside a monster? Violently?
"Science time," Arthur gritted his teeth.
He waited for the middle head to lunge. It opened its mouth to bite him.
Arthur didn't hit it. He threw the Venom Crystal straight into its throat.
The Hydra swallowed it instinctively.
Then, Arthur uncorked the Greater Antidote.
"Open wide!"
He jumped. He shoved his entire left arm—bottle included—into the Hydra's maw.
Sharp teeth closed on his arm.
[Critical Hit! You took 300 Physical Damage!][Left Arm Crippled.]
Arthur screamed, but he smashed the bottle inside the Hydra's throat.
Reaction.
The Antidote hit the Crystal in the stomach. Neutralization releases energy. Heat. Pressure. Expanding gas.
The Hydra's eyes bulged. Its neck expanded like a balloon.
BOOM.
It wasn't an explosion of fire. It was an explosion of biology. The middle neck ruptured from the inside out. Green sludge geysered everywhere.
[Critical Weak Point Hit!][Massive Internal Damage!][Damage: 2,500]
The Hydra screeched silently—its vocal cords were gone—and collapsed.
Hydra HP: 0%
Arthur fell back into the sludge, clutching his mangled arm.
Just as the Hydra's body hit the floor, the blast door exploded inward. Vance and the Alpha Squad stormed in, weapons raised.
They froze.
They saw the massive, headless corpse of the Hydra dissolving into ash. And they saw Arthur, sitting in the toxic pool, looking bored, holding his regenerating arm.
[Server Announcement][Congratulations to Player "Arthur" for the First Clear of "Toxic Sewers"!][Reward: ???]
Arthur looked at Vance. He smiled, blood dripping from his teeth.
"You're late."