Liam had never faced The Mustelid before, but he knew a thing or two about its kit.
Unstoppable and Berserk were standard fare—the bread-and-butter of bosses in Capital City. Nearly every boss there possessed these two abilities. Unstoppable granted total immunity to crowd control, excluding curses and specific suppression-type skills. Berserk, on the other hand, sacrificed dual resistances to massively boost offensive output. Some of the more powerful bosses could even see their damage ten-fold while in a Berserk state.
Mustelid Illusion was a psychological skill. Its effectiveness depended entirely on the target’s mental fortitude; the more resilient the mind, the weaker the illusion's pull.
However, Soul Siphon and Soul Control were the truly broken parts of The Mustelid’s arsenal.
Soul Siphon allowed the boss to forcibly tear away a portion of an opponent's soul. The victim would fall into a weakened state and suffer a continuous health drain. The most ridiculous part? The drain lasted for twenty-four hours. Unless The Mustelid was killed, the victim would bleed out for an entire day. To survive, a player would be forced to camp inside an Altar of Rebirth, relying on the Altar’s regenerative properties just to stay alive.
As for Soul Control, it was even more insane. It had a chance to seize a target’s soul, turning them into a puppet to fight on the boss's behalf. This effect also lasted twenty-four hours.
It was absolutely absurd.
But Liam hadn’t engaged the boss just to survive; he was here to kill it.
As long as The Mustelid was suspended in the air and hadn't activated Unstoppable, it couldn't touch the ground. Typically, bosses waited until their health was low to pop Unstoppable and Berserk simultaneously for a final, desperate struggle.
The Mustelid was different. As a humanoid monster, it was significantly smarter than the average beast boss—its intelligence was on par with a regular adult human. In the early days of the game, players who treated NPCs as simple, scripted programs had paid a heavy price for their arrogance.
Twilight of the Gods was never just a game.
"Unstoppable!"
Just as Liam predicted, the moment The Mustelid’s health dipped to one million, it didn't hesitate to trigger the skill. Under the effects of Unstoppable, the knockback from the arrows vanished. The boss broke the CC and plummeted to the earth.
The moment its feet hit the dirt, it raised a hand to launch a skill at Liam.
Then, its hand faltered and dropped.
The reason was simple: out of range.
Most monsters, even bosses, had skill ranges roughly equal to an Archer’s Basic Attack. However, thanks to Liam’s Basic Reach skill, his Basic Attack range was ten percent longer than a standard Archer’s. By exploiting this narrow margin, Liam danced exactly at the edge of the boss's reach, forcing it into a clunky animation loop of raising its hand to cast and then aborting as Liam stepped back.
This was a classic high-level maneuver from the PC era. Pro players would kite at the absolute limit of their range to maximize damage while staying untouchable.
However, Liam’s movement speed remained his Achilles' heel. Compared to The Mustelid, he was slow. Within two seconds, the boss had closed the gap.
Liam’s eyes narrowed. The Mustelid’s hand was up again, and this time, the skill was coming. With Unstoppable active, there was no way to interrupt the cast. More importantly, Soul Siphon was a locked-on skill; no amount of fancy footwork could dodge it.
A short distance away, Shadow-Slayer began to smirk. Is he finally going to hit a wall?
But the smirk froze on the Assassin's face in the next heartbeat.
Liam hot-swapped his primary weapon. He traded his bow for a shield, completing the full Black Iron Treant Set. With the weapon swap, Liam’s resistances and health pool surged.
The set bonuses for the Black Iron Treant Set were far more overtuned than the Elite version:
Health Regeneration: 200 HP per second.
Damage Reflection: 20% of incoming damage.
Tenacity: Increased by 10%.
Since Soul Siphon applied a weakened effect, the extra Tenacity provided a crucial bit of mitigation against the debuff.
-2,254!!
A bright red number flashed over Liam’s head.
-102.
-102.
...
The forced health drain began immediately. Liam swapped his primary weapon back and resumed his assault. Without the Black Iron set’s specific primary weapon active, his passive health regen dropped from 200 to 100 per second. Combined with his Resurgence skill, he was recovering 150 HP every second. When factoring in the innate regen stats of the Black Iron Treant armor pieces themselves, his actual recovery sat at 180 HP per second.
He could tank Soul Siphon indefinitely.
The weakened effect, however, was a nuisance. Liam’s Attack Velocity plummeted from 3.63 to 2.41—nearly a thirty percent reduction. And that was after the mitigation from his gear swap.
Watching the green recovery numbers ticking over Liam’s head, Shadow-Slayer was stunned once again. He’s regenerating over a hundred health every second?
Moreover, The Mustelid’s Soul Siphon—a move that should have been devastating—hadn't even shaved off ten percent of Liam’s health bar.
"I’ll help you."
Whatever Shadow-Slayer was thinking, he decided to stop spectating. He blurred into motion, appearing behind The Mustelid. He planted a foot on the boss's back, vaulted upward, and executed a lightning-fast Throat-Slit.
-215.
Bleeding...
-25.
-25.
...
Shadow-Slayer’s sudden intervention caught Liam off guard. The Mustelid still had over 900,000 HP, so it didn't look like a blatant attempt to kill-steal.
"We can talk later," Shadow-Slayer called out. "I'll help you down to ten percent, then I’m backing off. Don't worry about me stealing the boss."
Liam was surprised. Did I scare this Assassin so badly he's just giving in?
He didn't overthink it. If the Assassin wanted to tank the aggro, the fight was essentially won. Unstoppable had a duration. While Liam couldn't recall the exact timer for this specific boss, a Novice Village boss wouldn't have an infinite buff.
Infuriated by the Assassin’s sneak attack, The Mustelid roared and swung a massive claw backward. Shadow-Slayer seemed to have anticipated the move; he leaned his body back, the sharp talons whistling inches from his face. In the same motion, he flicked his dagger, carving a line across the boss's wrist.
-121.
The damage was low, and no bleed effect triggered this time. Liam seized the opening, letting a flurry of arrows fly.
Three arrows per second.
Each shot thudded into the back of the boss's head—a critical weak point.
"Damn you!!" The Mustelid bellowed. An eerie, ghostly light erupted from its body.
Suddenly, the world shifted.
The Mustelid vanished from Liam’s sight. In its place stood a woman with porcelain skin and long, slender legs, draped in a sheer, flowing gown that accentuated every curve of her body. She smiled, a look of intoxicating charm that could steal a man's soul, and beckoned him with a finger.
"Come, my lord... why don't you come play with me?"
Liam frowned.
He knew exactly what this was: an illusion. If his mind wavered for even a second, he would be lost in the phantasm. To break it, he had to keep his focus.
He used a very simple counter-measure: mental projection.
He took the image of the gorgeous woman and mentally superimposed it over the three-meter-tall, hairy, snarling beast that was The Mustelid. He forced himself to see the monster underneath the "skin."
Looking at the "beauty" again, Liam couldn't help but imagine the actual Mustelid trying to act seductive and coy in front of him.
Gag.
Liam nearly threw up. Just the thought of it made his stomach churn with pure disgust.
The illusory woman froze, looking confused. Does this guy prefer men?
The illusion shifted instantly.
A "pretty boy" appeared before Liam, dribbling a basketball with smooth, fluid motions, his jersey rising and falling with his athletic movements...
Gag.
Liam felt like The Mustelid was actively insulting him now.
Whiz!
An arrow tore through the air, striking true.
-1,028.
A massive damage number appeared, and the illusion shattered like glass.
To Liam’s surprise, Shadow-Slayer had actually broken out of the illusion before he did. The Assassin performed a low slide, passing directly between The Mustelid’s legs, and drove his dagger upward with a vicious thrust.
"Awoooo!"
The Mustelid’s legs slammed shut as it let out a high-pitched shriek of agony. The attack didn't do much damage, but the disrespect was off the charts.
Liam realized Shadow-Slayer was intentionally drawing aggro, trying to buy time for the Unstoppable buff to wear off. Sure enough, after its scream of pain, the boss spun around and lunged at the Assassin.
Whiz!
With the boss's back turned, Liam pushed his Attack Velocity to the limit. He rained down arrows without mercy, every shot a critical hit to the back of the skull.
"Roar!! Roar!!"
The Mustelid’s rage reached a boiling point. It knew it was being toyed with. Seeing its Unstoppable timer nearly depleted, it didn't hesitate to trigger Berserk.
Its speed spiked.
Shadow-Slayer reacted instantly, but The Mustelid was faster. It raised a hand, and Soul Siphon descended instantly, deleting the Assassin’s remaining health in a single burst.
Liam facepalmed.
That was Shadow-Slayer’s third death of the day. Twice by Liam’s hand, and the third while trying to save him.
After finishing off the Assassin, The Mustelid snapped its gaze to Liam. It raised its hand again and cast Soul Control.
Liam felt his soul freeze. A cold, necrotic energy invaded his mind. Piece by piece, he felt his control over his own limbs slipping away.
In that split second, Liam swapped his gear. He ditched the Thunder-Strike Bow for his shield. If he couldn't tank the coming onslaught, he’d be dead in seconds. He was also worried the boss would force him to commit suicide; a shield was the safest bet for damage mitigation.
With Liam suppressed, The Mustelid charged. It slammed a massive palm into Liam’s helmet.
Crit...
-1,512!
A massive red number popped up, followed by a torrential rain of blows.
Slash!
A claw tore across Liam’s throat.
-1,626.
Bleeding...
-300.
-300.
...
The attack opened a bleeding wound. Liam fought with everything he had, struggling against the spiritual shackles. It took a full twenty thousand health before he finally managed to break the Soul Control.
The moment he regained his body, Liam kicked The Mustelid in the knee, using the momentum to transition into a backflip.
Spiral-Draw Archery!
Whiz!
Unstoppable finally flickered out. Liam’s heavy, spinning arrow streaked toward The Mustelid’s throat. However, in its Berserk state, the boss's reflexes were heightened; it actually caught the arrow mid-air with its palm.
Liam was impressed, but he didn't lose his cool. He fired again. And again.
Without Unstoppable, the difficulty of managing The Mustelid dropped significantly. He kept up a steady stream of Spiral-Draw shots. Initially, the boss could parry or dodge, but Liam’s angles became increasingly erratic. One tiny slip-up was all it took—the massive impact of a Spiral-Draw arrow sent the boss staggering back.
"Now."
A cold glint flashed in Liam’s eyes. He fired an arrow into the boss's left leg, ruining its balance and sending it pitching forward. He followed up immediately with a second shot to the brow. The combined forces caught the boss in a moment of instability, popping it into the air.
"Exactly what I needed."
With the boss airborne and Unstoppable on cooldown, the rest was easy. Liam began to juggle. Under his relentless "Air-Juggle" technique, The Mustelid couldn't find a way back to the ground.
A short distance away, another player was approaching.
He was currently live-streaming, smiling at his camera. "Alright brothers, I know you’re all grinding in The Twisted Thicket, but did you know there’s a Bard out here? My guess is he’s got a legendary quest. If I can land it, I might just become as big as Frost Monarch."
The Riverside Don continued toward Liam's position. But as he rounded the corner, he froze.
"Holy sht. Holy sht, holy sht, holy sht!"
Because the camera was pointed at his own face, the viewers in the chat were confused.
What’s the streamer seeing? Is someone getting it on in the wild?
Heh, some club owner said he was moving his business into the game, but I heard you need a shop or territory for that stuff or the NPCs fine you.
Turn the camera, Don! Is it human-on-beast? Who’s that depraved?
The Riverside Don swallowed hard before finally turning the lens toward Liam.
The chat fell into a sudden, stunned silence.
Seconds later...
Holy sht! Holy sht! Wtf...
The Riverside Don’s chat exploded.
Is that a boss? That Archer is keeping a boss in the air and it can't even land!
I thought Archers had hit detection issues? I play an Archer and I miss stationary mobs sometimes. How is he doing that?
My mom asked why I was watching a stream on my knees. She looked at the screen and now she’s kneeling next to me.
The stream was hitting peak engagement as everyone watched Liam's Spiral-Draw Archery keep The Mustelid in an infinite air-juggle.
But just as The Riverside Don was getting into the flow of the stream, his screen suddenly went black.
He had been killed instantly.
Behind his corpse stood an Assassin.