47 Golden Gauntle

"Everyone, before we fight, I have a few things I want to say."

Arthur looked back at the boss before saying with a smile, "Like I thought. Seems like it won't budge from its place until we cross the circle." He then looked back at the parties of players. "Before we fight, we have to agree on a few strategies so that we don't run around like headless chicken when we face the boss."

"And what are these strategies that you propose?" A bulky man holding a warhammer asked.

Arthur looked around before saying, "Well, first of all, we have to change our party compositions. We need to have a party of tanks, another for off tanks, consistent DPS, mages, priests, and assassins. That way each party has only one task to focus on."

"Yeah, that's a fair judgment." A man clad in a black cloak made his way from the crowd and said, "My name is Nebula. I lead a party full of assassins."

A party of seven men and women all clad in a black cloak showed itself.

"We can one-shot the boss from 15k HP if you make it drop that low."

"Great," Arthur responded, a smile beaming from his face. "That would help a lot for when the Wolf King enters its Berserk mode."

The bulky man from before stepped up too and said, "My name is Hector. Our party is fairly balanced, with healers, mages, assassins, and a swordsman. I am the tank. If I understood you well, you want us to separate and each of us to go into a team of his own class, right?"

"That's exactly correct," Arthur responded. "At the end of the day, once the fight starts, the way everyone will be positioned will make it more favorable for each class to have a party of its own."

"You're right. Everyone, you heard him, let's have each class make its own party. Those of you who are tanks, come towards me."

Leo looked at Shesmu in hesitation, looking for his opinion on the matter. Shesmu nodded at him in agreement and said, "You can go. The strategy is well-thought-out."

Once Leo received Shesmu's agreement, he walked forth towards Hector. The latter smiled at him and said, "Welcome to the team, buddy."

"All mages, come here!"

This time, it was Sakura that made the announcement. Her sudden shout scared the hell out of Ryuji who couldn't help but fidget at all the attention they were given.

Seconds passed and no one made any move towards Sakura. Seeing this, she seethed before bursting out once again, "What are you waiting for you all? You want me to point at each one of you before you make a move?!"

Hector laughed at Sakura's hostile nature before saying, "Robin, come help our little friend here out."

A black-haired woman wearing a purple robe made her way towards Sakura before saying, "Hey, nice to meet you. What's your name?"

"Sakura," She responded. "And nice to meet you too."

After Robin joined Sakura, a mage from Arthur's party joined them too. And then came another one, and another, until all the mages gathered around Sakura.

"Okay guys and gals, let��s show everyone what our magic is truly capable of!"

All the mages cheered after Sakura's pep-talk. Shesmu couldn't help but smile at such a turn of events. However, his face soon turned serious as his eyes focused on Arthur. The sword in his sheath made it clear that they will end up on the same team.

"Okay, great! Since the tanks and the mages have already gathered. It's time for us warriors too."

The underlying meaning behind his words was clear. All warriors should gather under him. If it was anyone else, the warriors might have had some qualms about it. However, Arthur had already cemented himself as a figurehead of the parties of players challenging the Tower of Might. As such, players gathered around him without any protest.

Shesmu put Ryan down, far from the golden circle, before following the crowd. He saw no point antagonizing Arthur at this stage. In fact, this was a good opportunity. Arthur was now the focal point of everyone's attention, while he could look at his actions and analyze them from the shadows. The moment he would slip, Shesmu would pounce at the opportunity.

Every class soon made its own party. Shesmu was about to accept the party invitation from Arthur when he remembered Ryan. If he were to dissolve the party, he would have a hard time inviting Ryan back—especially considering the contents of the next floor. As such, he rejected Arthur's party invitation.

Surprisingly, he didn't bring up the topic with Shesmu. The only thing he did was give him a glancing look before focusing back on the boss in front of them.

"Everyone, the preparations are complete. Give it your all!"

"You bet we will!"

"Let's fuck him up!"

Arthur chuckled at the crudeness of his fellow players before making his way towards the boss. Once everyone crossed the golden circle, a white light emerged from the ground. Golden energy erupted from the perimeter of the circle before making a golden dome that surrounded all the players.

One of the priests tried to touch the dome only to be pushed back by an electric shock. His HP was reduced by 200 points while his hand was charred from the electricity.

"Damn, we're forced to fight within this circle," someone from the crowd said.

While everyone's eyes were on the poor priest, Shesmu was focusing on Arthur. He was showing an expression of true concern towards his comrade before he masked it with a more stoic face.

"Everyone, don't focus on the golden dome. I want everyone's eyes to be solely on the boss! As long as we follow the strategy, we will win!"

However, the boss wasn't one to wait for him to finish his speech.

"Awoo!"

With a mighty howl, the boss jumped in front of the players and showed them his terrible fangs. The hot air coming from its breath almost scorched their faces.

"Tanks, charge!" Hector's order signaled the start of the fight.