Chapter 12: Five Minutes – Part 2
The air inside the boss chamber was heavy.
Xavier stood still, shoulders relaxed, eyes locked on the skeleton seated atop the dark stone throne. The skeletal mage leaned forward slightly, empty eye sockets glowing with faint violet flames. Cracks ran through the stone beneath the throne, pulsing as dark mana slowly seeped into the room.
Serena stood off to the side, arms crossed.
"Alright," she said calmly. "Timer starts in three… two… one."
The moment the countdown ended, Xavier moved.
He had memorized his status the instant he accepted the bet.
Engine Sync didn't just boost him—it allowed him to rearrange his stats while active.
As synchronization surged through his body, Xavier felt the invisible engine roar to life. His muscles tightened, his heartbeat accelerated, and numbers flashed through his mind.
Total available points: 91.
Without hesitation, Xavier dumped all ninety-one points into Speed.
The world slowed.
The stone floor cracked beneath his feet as he vanished in a blur, reappearing directly in front of the skeleton.
The skeleton reacted instantly, rising from the throne and raising its bony arms to block—
—but just before impact, Xavier shifted again.
–50 Speed
+50 Strength
The punch landed.
A shockwave exploded through the chamber.
The skeleton was launched backward like a cannonball, smashing into a pillar hard enough to splinter solid stone. Dust and debris rained from the ceiling as the undead mage crashed to the ground.
For a brief moment, silence followed.
Then dark mana surged.
The skeleton rose slowly, its body cloaked in thick black armor that formed piece by piece, plating over bone like molten obsidian.
"Death Heavy Armor."
The skeleton charged.
There was no elegance.
No swordplay.
No magic flurries.
It was raw, brutal combat.
Fist met fist.
Bone clashed against flesh reinforced by Engine Sync.
Xavier ducked one punch, took another to the shoulder, and countered with a hook to the ribs. The skeleton staggered, retaliating with a heavy swing that clipped Xavier's jaw and sent him skidding across the floor.
Both fighters rose again.
Neither was particularly skilled.
It became a war of endurance.
"Haa… haa…" Xavier wiped blood from the corner of his mouth and grinned. "You're pretty tough for a skeleton."
The skeleton said nothing. It only advanced.
They collided again.
An uppercut snapped the skeleton's skull back. A counterpunch slammed into Xavier's ribs. Xavier slipped, stepped in close, and drove a knee into the skeleton's torso.
Cracks spread across the dark armor.
"Three minutes left," Serena called out calmly.
The skeleton was slowing.
Its movements grew more rigid, more predictable. It tried to create distance, leaping backward—but Xavier instantly reallocated his stats and closed the gap again.
Another punch.
Another crack.
"Come on," Xavier taunted between breaths. "You're getting sloppy."
The skeleton hissed.
"Do not grow arrogant, human. You have not yet won."
"Oh?" Xavier smirked. "Then show me."
Dark mana exploded outward.
The skeleton raised one hand toward the ceiling.
A massive black bird formed from condensed shadow, wings stretching wide as it let out a shrill screech—the same monster that had nearly wiped out Iron Will.
The guild members hiding behind the pillars froze in fear.
"That thing—!" someone whispered.
Without hesitation, they scrambled further into cover.
Xavier didn't move.
Neither did Serena.
"Four minutes," Serena said. "One minute left. Lose, and we're going shopping."
Xavier clicked his tongue.
"Can't have that."
This time, he didn't charge.
Instead, he shifted all ninety-one points into Wisdom.
The change was immediate.
The battlefield slowed—not physically, but mentally.
Patterns emerged.
Mana flow.
Positioning.
Restrictions.
Xavier's eyes narrowed as he walked forward calmly, sidestepping attacks from both the skeleton and the summoned bird with minimal effort.
The skeleton's confidence faltered.
"You're not attacking," it snarled.
Xavier stopped directly in front of the throne.
Then he spoke.
"You can't move while your ability is active," Xavier said calmly. "That's why you sat on the throne earlier while fighting them."
The skeleton froze.
Its glowing eyes widened.
The guild members peeking from behind the pillars stared in disbelief.
"You need the throne to anchor your core," Xavier continued. "That armor, the summon—everything you're doing right now depends on staying rooted."
The skeleton tried to step back.
It couldn't.
"Sorry, skeleton buddy," Xavier said, placing his hand against its chest. "This is my win."
He plunged his hand inward.
With a sharp crack, Xavier tore out a pulsing dark core from the skeleton's chest.
The black armor shattered.
The summoned bird screamed once before dissolving into smoke.
The skeleton's eyes dimmed instantly as its body collapsed into a lifeless pile of bones.
Silence filled the chamber.
Then—
Serena smiled.
"Five minutes exactly."
Xavier exhaled and stretched his arms.
"Guess that means you're helping me make dinner."
Serena sighed dramatically.
"…Fine. But you're doing the dishes."