Former Hero, Solo Play Oriented-Chapter 191

*Whoosh!*

The enormous spear swung toward me. Its length exceeded ten meters, and the swirling light and shadow encasing it reflected its wielder’s contradictory existence.

Archangel Uriel—a paradoxical being.

Was it still a servant of the goddess, or had it fully become a pawn of the demons?

*Clang!*

I intercepted the blow with precise timing, executing a *Just Guard* to negate the knockback and damage.

However, Chris, an Onmyoji, lacked access to such precise counters.

*Thud!*

"Ahhh!"

Chris managed to block Uriel’s spear using her *Barrier Talisman* technique, but the knockback effect launched her several meters away. She stumbled before regaining her footing and shouted to me.

"Rain! I can’t get close! There’s a range limit around it!"

"I understand. Just stay safe and operate at maximum talisman range for now."

*Papapap!*

Chris quickly moved to the edge of her effective attack range, 15 meters from Uriel, and began unleashing a flurry of talismans. Maintaining distance was crucial against a boss like this. Though she likely wanted to move closer to apply debuffs and chained damage skills, Uriel’s expansive attack radius made that impossible.

*Whoosh!*

"Ugh, the area of effect is massive!" Chris muttered as she took another cautious step back, narrowly avoiding the edge of Uriel’s spear.

Her contributions would be limited in this battle due to her inability to close the distance. I had to draw Uriel’s attention and keep its attacks focused on me.

*Tatatat!*

I sprinted, circling Uriel to shift its focus away from Chris and forcing it to direct its front-facing attacks toward me. By controlling its 180-degree attack patterns, I could prevent it from targeting her.

The enormous wing twitched as Uriel turned to face me. Its expressionless stone face locked on, raising its spear mechanically before slamming it downward.

*Whoomph! Crash!*

The spear came down with a crushing force, but I sidestepped to my left, dodging the blow. Without hesitation, I swung my sword, slashing across its body. Sparks and shards of stone erupted as my blade struck.

Uriel’s patched body was a mix of stone and what felt like reinforced metal. Could materials from this chimera be used to craft divine relics? Its form, a grotesque fusion of light and dark energies, exemplified the demons’ mastery of forbidden techniques. Were it not for my intervention, this being might have evolved into another Demon King.

Uriel’s attack patterns were varied. It twirled its massive spear, performed overhead strikes, and even lunged with shocking speed. Despite its size, the spear’s thrusts were lightning-fast, brushing past my face and creating a deafening *whoosh*. Before I could recover, the spear swept horizontally toward me. I dropped low, narrowly avoiding decapitation.

Was this how ancient heroes might have fought if their statues came to life? It felt surreal.

For now, Uriel relied solely on physical attacks. If its patterns were limited to these, we might stand a chance—but I doubted that would be the case.

"There’s more to this," I muttered.

Like the *Death Knight Zakham* in the Abyssal Woods raid, which had over ten unique attack cycles, Uriel likely hadn’t yet revealed its full repertoire.

My instincts were proven correct moments later.

*Thud. Thud.*

Uriel abruptly slammed its spear twice into the ground, an action that felt deliberate.

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"A warning for an area-wide attack?" Chris called out, panic in her voice as she activated a defensive talisman. I immediately deployed my *Sword Barrier*.

*Flash!*

Blinding golden light erupted from Uriel, scattering beams of energy in all directions. The radiance scraped past my barrier, a reprisal of the attack that had obliterated Bade earlier.

*Papapap!*

Though swift and threatening, the beams were singular bursts and didn’t bypass invincibility frames. Still, a direct hit would mean instant death.

Something about this attack felt off. Raid dungeon mechanics rarely provided such clear warnings.

My unease was justified.

*Wooom!*

Above us, the stone masks on the dome’s ceiling began glowing with golden light. Realizing the danger, I shouted to Chris.

"Chris! Watch the masks!"

"I see them!"

She evaded a beam from a nearby mask, her movements quick and calculated. As we moved, more masks began glowing, targeting us.

*Zap!*

Beams of light fired in rapid succession. Forced to retreat from Uriel, I found myself back-to-back with Chris. Thankfully, the angel had paused after its burst attack, giving us a moment to regroup.

"This feels similar to the Seventh-Tier Angel," I noted aloud.

Chris bit her lip in frustration. "But the masks are way too high up! We can’t destroy them like we did the shields."

Indeed, the masks were mounted high on the dome’s ceiling, far out of reach. Unlike the earlier boss, which had exposed shields we could shatter, these beams had no such counterplay.

"We’ll have to deal with the masks while fighting Uriel," I concluded.

"That’s... not going to be easy," Chris said grimly.

"Can you manage?"

"Yeah. It’s actually better than before. The beams have fixed positions and intervals. Four seconds per shot," she replied confidently.

Her calm assessment steadied my nerves. Despite the chaos, Chris had already analyzed the attack intervals and patterns.

*Zap! Zap!*

Two masks targeted us simultaneously. Still back-to-back, Chris and I executed synchronized dodges, moving in opposite directions. Using the opportunity, I closed the gap between myself and Uriel.

*Thud!*

Uriel raised its spear once more, its movements resuming.

[[Offer your sacrifices!]]

*Whoosh!*

The battle continued.

---

[Second Named Boss]

[Level 58 Archangel Uriel]

[HP: 955,114,505 / 1,000,000,000 (96%)]

---

As a beam grazed past my side, I was forced to reevaluate the fight.

This was tougher than I’d anticipated.

Ranged players would fare better in this raid, but melee combatants were at a severe disadvantage. Even for me, the challenge was immense. For an average raid group, this could take weeks—or even months—to master. A tank with exceptional endurance paired with an all-ranged party seemed the optimal strategy.

Even as I worked tirelessly, my focus remained split between Uriel’s spear and the glowing masks. My attacks were cautious, my movements calculated.

"Ten minutes in!" Chris called out, her voice tinged with anxiety.

"Tch." I gritted my teeth and lunged at Uriel, landing a heavy slash before retreating.

As the primary damage dealer, I couldn’t afford to hold back. If I faltered, there was no way we’d defeat this boss.

*Papapap!*

I weaved through Uriel’s attacks, dodging beams and spear thrusts with precision. Using all my skills—*One Slash*, *Counterstrike*, *Backward Evasion*, and *Sword Barrier*—I maximized my output, balancing cooldowns meticulously.

Starlight cascaded down upon Uriel, marking the first significant dent in its health.

At 95% HP, Uriel suddenly halted.

*Thud. Thud.*

It slammed its spear into the ground again. A special pattern?

[[Offer your sacrifices!]]

"What does it want us to sacrifice...?" I muttered, frustration building.

As I leaped toward Uriel, aiming a decisive strike, my peripheral vision caught something ominous.

*Drip. Drip.*

A dark, viscous liquid began pooling at the edges of the arena—the ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) same substance emitted by the *Nightmare Amalgam* in the Thousand Abyss Plains.

The liquid crept closer, its malevolent presence filling the battlefield.

[[Offer your sacrifices!]]