Chapter 16: First Clear

This wasn’t a regular raid group.

They were just people who’d recently gathered and were trying their first run together.

With no way to gauge their skills, I’d judged them solely on their specs.

A wipeout was well within expectations.

The flow, which had been going well, was now broken.

It meant we needed a moment to reassess the situation.

Once everyone had resurrected, we gathered in front of the boss in silence.

The atmosphere was different this time.

With spirits dampened, they cautiously looked to me.

One by one, I checked each mage who had used Blink and gotten themselves killed earlier.

Do they at least know it was their mistake?

They avoided my gaze, heads lowered.

I didn’t sigh.

A raid leader must remain calm at all times.

“Unlucky break. Let’s take a 10-minute break and go again.”

With the wipeout, the effects of the doping items had expired.

A break was needed.

Arms crossed, I reviewed the playback of the previous fight.

Everything had been perfect.

My performance was flawless.

It was simply the mages’ mistake.

Knowing this, I still replayed the video.

Ten minutes.

A very short time.

When I saw that the raid members had adequately rested and gathered, I spoke up.

“Let’s go again. This time, absolutely no using Blink.”

And so, the retry began.

The same situation repeated.

I held the boss’s aggro, positioning the sub-tanks with the mage line to catch the charge pattern’s aggro.

Then, the handoff.

I observed the situation with calm.

So far, no problems.

Everyone was doing well.

But the issue arose when the boss’s HP dropped to 50%.

“Assist Lord Krasia!”

As before, elite orcs poured in from all directions with a resounding battle cry.

The elite orcs’ attacks alone weren’t enough to break through the mages’ mana barriers.

With mana barriers up, they could hold out long enough for the sub-tanks to grab the aggro.

But panic is an emotion that often leads to mistakes.

“Ah!”

With a brief scream from one of the sub-tanks, several orcs slipped through to the mage line.

The orcs that entered the DPS line began swinging their swords, pounding on the mages’ barriers.

It wasn’t even a crisis.

If they waited calmly, the sub-tank would be able to come over and reclaim the aggro before anyone died.

“Dodge! Dodge!”

Not all the DPS players were lacking.

Blue orbs of ice fell onto the orcs that had broken through.

Boom!

It was an ice-type spell, a skill that immobilized targets within the impact radius for a brief period.

But despite the orcs being restrained, some mages still used Blink.

“I said don’t use Blink!”

This time, three mages used Blink.

The moment they did, Krasia took advantage of the situation, shoving me aside and charging toward the mages.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

His massive form raced toward the mages.

Crash!

Krasia slammed his enormous greatsword into the ground, unleashing a massive shockwave.

Three mages who hadn’t used Blink in time were taken down.

But it was okay.

There were still enough DPS players left.

“Stop hitting the boss! Clear the orcs first!”

The sub-tank briefly took hold of Krasia’s aggro, then handed it back off, moving away from the DPS line.

Elite orcs appeared at regular intervals, meaning that the longer the fight dragged on, the worse our odds would get.

“Once the orcs are down, focus on the boss again!”

With the elite orcs swiftly cleared, ranged magic attacks began pouring in once more.

Krasia’s health started to drop rapidly.

When it hit 30% from 50%, the orcs’ battle cry echoed again.

“Assist Lord Krasia!”

Then, without warning, Krasia’s charge pattern triggered.

Krasia’s enormous arm slammed into the ground, knocking me backward.

Crash!

I bit my lip. The pattern had been disrupted.

The boss’s charge pattern had activated before the sub-tanks could grab the elite orcs’ aggro.

“Dieeee!”

Krasia’s sudden charge shook the DPS line severely.

Those who escaped with Blink and those who couldn’t were separated.

The mages were casting long-casting spells to deal with the elite orcs.

Less than half of the mages managed to interrupt their casting and use Blink.

In a single blow, half of our numbers were gone.

This was unavoidable.

No one was at fault.

“Again!”

Retry.

This was the second wipe.

Everyone watching the broadcast had a thought.

• Can they really clear this today?

This was the tenth attempt.

As the time stretched on, players’ concentration began to wane.

Small mistakes, ones they hadn’t made in the beginning, piled up, leading to the raid’s repeated wipeouts.

The girl didn’t smile.

She didn’t get angry either.

In an even tone, she encouraged the raid members.

[Looks like they won’t clear it today?]

[Isn’t it almost 10?]

[Wow… Middle schooler-chan has to go to bed by 10…]

Up until the third try, there had been hope.

Hope that they could actually clear it.

During the third attempt, they’d gotten the boss’s health down to 15%.

But it was only that one time.

Since then, they hadn’t managed to bring the boss’s health below 30%.

[Well, they did clear all the named mobs on the first day, right? Not bad.]

[This is good enough to be a regular raid group.]

[In my opinion, the problem is with those mages. If they swap out the low DPS guys and bring in top-tier players, they could clear it.]

[lol I’m gonna remember those scrubs’ usernames and avoid them lol]

As the chat continued, the raid wiped once more.

People expected her to calmly encourage the raid members again in her steady voice.

But she didn’t.

“Ah—”

A brief sigh escaped from her, filled with burning frustration.

“Why can’t you do it?”

She was talking to herself, but everyone could hear her.

“Is it… is it really that hard? No. Is it hard? Everyone, is it really hard? Is this something you can’t do?”

Cold words poured from her mouth.

Her gaze was far from friendly.

This was not the same even tone as before.

Her voice, now laced with harsh criticism, started to crush the spirits of the mages.

“Why can’t you do it? Why. Can’t. You do something that simple?”

In that moment, the girl’s cold eyes fell on one particular mage.

He was the one who had failed to out-damage the tank and had the highest death count in the raid.

Everyone expected harsh words.

But the small girl simply sighed, releasing everything with a single breath.

“Ha… Everyone, let’s go for one last try, then we’ll distribute the gold. I’m changing up the tactics, so please listen closely.”

She spoke of changing the tactics.

It was strange.

To anyone watching, the raid’s strategy was flawless.

The only issue was that the DPS players couldn’t keep up with it.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself.

I was more agitated than usual.

I had almost lashed out because the raid members weren’t meeting my expectations.

A raid leader had to see things through to the end.

I couldn’t betray the trust of the raid members who had come to rely on me.

No matter how poorly someone performed, it wasn’t wise to call them out in front of everyone.

Changing the DPS lineup would have to wait.

Today, I would see this raid through with the members I had.

My mind was racing.

Even now, my overwhelming talent was exploring multiple options.

The strategy… The strategy needed to be changed.

“I’m switching the main tank.”

“What? All of a sudden?”

I spoke of changing the main tank.

Everyone started murmuring in confusion.

“Dogrik, you’ll take the main tank role, and I’ll take the sub-tank position.”

Dogrik was reliable.

As long as the healer line was strong, he could hold his ground.

Dogrik nodded at my words and started checking his gear.

I was calculating how many healers I’d need for the tactic I was envisioning.

At least one. At most, two.

“Assign four healers to the main tank, two to me, and one to the remaining member.”

The priest leader nodded, though with a puzzled expression.

It was time to explain the tactic I had in mind.

“DPS players, this time, don’t touch the elite orcs. Just focus on the boss. Absolutely only hit the boss. Use Blink only for the charge pattern.”

They would likely be confused.

But this was the right approach for now.

We had to keep the fight as short as possible.

We needed to end this before people’s focus slipped any further.

“Dogrik, do as I did. After the charge pattern, hand off the boss to the sub-tank and move to the corner. I’ll handle all the elite orcs.”

After finishing my explanation, I exchanged glances with the raid members.

They looked uncertain but had no choice but to nod.

And so, the next attempt began.

Dogrik rushed forward, tanking Krasia as I had done before.

Krasia’s patterns weren’t especially difficult.

The main issue was the elite orcs that poured out when Krasia’s health hit 50%.

As the battle continued, Krasia’s health quickly dropped.

Then, it happened.

“[Help Krasia!]”

The orcs’ shouts, which I had heard countless times, erupted once more.

Without hesitation, I charged at the elite orcs.

My head felt like it was burning up.

Even as the tank, taking hits from thirty elite orcs without defending would drain my health faster than taking hits from the boss.

I dodged what I could and raised my shield to deflect attacks, all while ensuring I gathered every orc’s aggro.

To prevent the healers’ continued healing from drawing the orcs’ attention, I had to keep swinging my sword while moving.

I dashed swiftly, weaving through the orcs to secure their aggro.

Thirty elite orcs attacked from all directions, and I made sure to keep them all focused on me.

“Focus your damage on the boss! DPS, don’t worry about me! Off-tank, just keep an eye on the boss’s charge pattern!”

I took them on entirely alone, continuously maneuvering to keep all thirty orcs following me.

I had to maintain a safe distance without straying too far; if I left them, the orcs would scatter, risking a total wipe for the team.

Since we ignored the elite orcs, all our firepower concentrated on the boss.

The boss’s health was quickly whittled down until only 20% remained.

At that moment, the orcs’ rallying cries erupted once again.

“[Help Krasia!]”

Another wave of thirty orcs appeared.

Once again, I had to handle them alone.

Not a single one could be let loose.

I steeled myself, focusing on swift, precise sword swings.

As the golden light of my blade brushed past the orcs, a full sixty orcs began following me.

If I stopped, I would die; if I strayed too far, the orcs would scatter, and the team would be wiped out.

Mistakes could not be made.

My head burned so hot, it felt like my brain might overheat.

I dodged and swung my sword, keeping the orcs’ aggro locked on me with each glowing slash.

I focused solely on that task.

I concentrated more than ever.

The feel of my sword became clearer in my grasp.

While moving in a near trance-like state, the sixty orcs chasing me suddenly collapsed all at once, and a booming, majestic voice echoed.

“[This… cannot be… my empire…]”

Thud!

Krasia’s massive form fell to the ground.

“[Server First Achievement Unlocked!]”

The title “[Conqueror of the Empire’s Ambition]” has been delivered to your mailbox.

Through my blurry vision, I saw a translucent message window pop up.

My hands were trembling.

My head throbbed, strained to its limit.

My legs gave out, and I sank to the ground.