"It can’t die just like that, could it?" An unsettling silence descended on the battlefield. Nox stared at the massive, unmoving corpse of the Dreadfiend Tyrant. His breaths were ragged, his muscles ached from the brutal fight, and his mind buzzed with confusion. ’That was… too easy,’ he thought. A boss of this magnitude shouldn’t have gone down without more resistance. The fight, though intense, felt anticlimactic at the end. His instincts screamed at him that something was wrong. Nox clenched his fists and summoned his status panel, specifically reactivating his [Monster Kill Notification]. He had turned it off earlier to avoid distractions during the life-or-death encounter. [Monster Kill Notification: Activated.] He waited. Nothing. His eyes widened. No kill notification. A faint vibration rumbled beneath his feet. Nox’s heart raced. His grip tightened around the hilt of Oblivion Edge. The air grew heavy with an oppressive, familiar malice. Without hesitation, he launched himself backward. BOOOOOM! The ground where the monster had fallen exploded into a geyser of rock and debris. From the shattered crater, the Dreadfiend Tyrant rose once more. Its body, which had previously been riddled with deadly wounds, was now unblemished. The gaping skull wound was gone. Its crimson eyes reignited with a terrifying glow. The creature’s voice resonated through the air like grinding stone. The monster raised one of its limbs and pointed directly at Nox. "Dammit!" Nox whispered, his eyes narrowing. He triggered his skill [Analyze] and focused on the beast. --- [Dreadfiend Tyrant – Legendary Lv1] HP: ??? Skills: Absorption Core, Earth Sovereign, Seismic Rupture, Titan’s Grip, Earthen Reinforcement, Adaptive Predation, Monolithic Regeneration, Cataclysm Hammer, Worldshatter Tremor, Abyssal Devour, Ruinous Rebirth, Primordial Fortitude, Tyrant’s Dominion, [Rewind]. Progress: 72% --- Your next read is at freewebnovel [Rewind] (ultimate Skill) Description: The Dreadfiend Tyrant can activate [Rewind] to restore its body to a previous undamaged state, reversing any fatal or critical injuries sustained within the last 60 seconds. This skill does not restore expended energy or lost stamina but fully regenerates physical damage. [Rewind] requires the Absorption Core to reach full capacity, drawing power from absorbed attacks. Overuse strains the core, weakening subsequent regeneration. Cooldown: 10 minutes after each activation. — "Rewind…so it reversed the fatal blow?" Nox realized with a sinking feeling. The skill allowed the monster to undo lethal damage. Worse, its Absorption Core had been gathering energy throughout their fight, converting his attacks into power. The more damage it received, the stronger it became. It was never losing. It was preparing. The beast lunged at Nox with newfound speed, the runic axe seemingly vanishing as twin earthen hammers formed in its hands. "Shit!" Nox hissed. He activated Runic Dominion. Blood runes formed around him as crimson spikes launched toward the charging monster. The projectiles slammed into the creature’s torso. SPLAT! The Tyrant barely flinched. It swung its colossal hammer. Nox sidestepped, narrowly avoiding a strike that shattered the ground beneath him. BOOM! The earth cracked open into a jagged canyon. Shards of rock sliced through the air like deadly projectiles. The Tyrant followed with another hammer strike. Nox ducked and retaliated with a slash of Oblivion Edge, aiming for the creature’s knees. SLASH! Dark blood sprayed, but the monster absorbed the damage with eerie ease. The beast roared, its voice resonating across the battlefield. [Worldshatter Tremor]! The ground beneath Nox’s feet trembled violently. CRAAAACK! Jagged spikes erupted from the ground. One pierced his thigh. "Argh!" Nox groaned, staggering backward as pain shot through his leg. The Tyrant capitalized on his momentary weakness, raising a hammer twice Nox’s size. Too fast. Nox clenched his teeth. "Barbarian Strength!" he bellowed. Mana surged through his veins. His muscles expanded, and his veins pulsed with unnatural power. The hammer descended like a falling mountain. Nox caught it with both hands. BOOM! The ground beneath him cracked from the pressure. His arms trembled, but he held firm. "Grahhh!" He twisted his torso and hurled the weapon aside. The beast staggered. Nox didn’t waste the opportunity. He lunged, driving Oblivion Edge into the Tyrant’s abdomen. SCHLUNK! The monster bellowed in pain, dark ichor pouring from the wound. But the wound began closing almost immediately. Monolithic Regeneration. "Dammit, I hate facing monsters like this." Nox frowned, recalling the ice elemental beast back at Snowhelm. It was from that beast he had learned the ennyernak rebirth skills. High above, Blazy circled with Astralus. The emberhawk flapped its wings, its flames burning brighter with renewed resolve. [Master, it’s absorbing all elemental damage. We need to strike with something different!] Blazy’s voice echoed telepathically. "I already know that." Nox grunted, slightly annoyed. At that precise moment, the Tyrant lashed out again. Nox ducked beneath its swing, activating Shadow Oblivion out of habit… he hadn’t intended to, but it had been instinctual, almost like a second nature. A beam of shadowy darkness shot from his palm. BOOM! The Tyrant absorbed it effortlessly. "Of course," Nox muttered, leaping backward. The monster’s Progress bar ticked upward. 74%...75%...76%. Its aura swelled with increasing menace. Nox started to rack his brain; he needed to think of a way to beat the creature. But in his skill arsenal, he only had destructive skills. Nox’s thoughts were a mess as he stared at the monster. Hitting it just made it stronger, and nothing seemed to work. He was pretty sure that wasn’t how boss fights were supposed to go. Usually, you hit the big thing until it dies. Simple. But this thing was different. The skill [Rewind] was the problem. As long as that weird glowing core in its chest was intact, the monster could just undo any killing blow. But there had to be a catch. It couldn’t just rewind forever… right? While he was lost in thought, suddenly, three streaks of light blazed through the forest and slammed into the Tyrant’s flank. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The monster stumbled, roaring in surprise. Nox’s eyes widened as he saw the figures. From the shadows, figures emerged. Lutton, Wendy, Nyx, Theo, Zara, Glen, Blake, Jared, and Kali. They were all here! But the person that stood out the most was… Commander Luthair, an imposing figure in black, rune-etched armor. Sensing Nox’s gaze, Commander Luthair looked at him and displayed a light smile as he said in a deep voice, "Well done, it’s not every day a level 40 Awakened survives this long against a legendary-tier monster. Good job, kid." Luthair nodded, with a hint of respect shining in his eyes. The runic energy in his armor glowed as he stepped forward, approaching Nox. "We saw the seismic shockwaves," Luthair said, stepping beside Nox without taking his eyes off the monster. "What’s the situation?" "It absorbs attacks and gets stronger. It’s at 76% progression. Elemental attacks are useless." Luthair grimaced. "That explains its resilience. We’ll focus on immobilizing it. You finish it off." The Tyrant roared and charged. "Positions!" Luthair barked at Lutton and the group of students. Meanwhile, a voice that didn’t belong to anyone present whispered excitedly: "This is my chance!"