The group followed Ethan's gaze and found themselves staring at a massive dwarven statue, towering over the distance.

"All we need to do is attack from up there. Even if we only chip away one point of health at a time, we'll eventually take them down," Ethan explained.

"Chip away? Boss, don't tell me this is how you always level up?" Slashblade asked, looking skeptical.

Ethan nodded. "Pretty much."

The entire group turned to stare at him like he'd lost his mind.

They understood the concept of monster kiting, after all, they had used similar strategies in other games. But while it was an efficient way to level up, spending hours, or even days, whittling away at a single enemy was a level of patience most people didn't have.

Most players preferred forming parties to clear out mobs at their level or even slightly below. It was slower, but at least it was social. They could chat, joke around, and make the grind bearable.

Solo grinding high-level monsters with absolute focus? That was the definition of suffering.

"Boss, your patience is insane. You and Slashblade are basically the same kind of people," Skyblade muttered, looking pained.

Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"You don't know? Back in the day, Slashblade once had to complete a mission where he lay in a tree for nineteen days straight. When he got back, his chest had fused with his shirt, and they had to surgically remove it," Skyblade explained.

Ethan turned to Slashblade. "Sniper?"

Slashblade shrugged, his tone indifferent. "That was a long time ago." But despite his casual words, there was a glint of nostalgia in his eyes.

The missions had been brutal, but those days in the military had been the best of his life. If he had a choice, he'd still be out there.

"Boss, your plan might work, but how are we supposed to get over there?" Meatball asked, eyeing the ground below.

"Yeah, even if we make it, how do we climb up?" Lyla added.

Ethan grinned. "That's where Slashblade comes in. Let's move."

Without further explanation, he led the group up the spiral staircase, returning to a raised platform. Once there, he double-checked their position before heading a few hundred meters forward, stopping at the edge of a dark pit.

"This is it. Slashblade, give everyone a Levitation spell."

Without waiting for a response, Ethan shifted into his Night Owl form.

With a powerful beat of his wings, he dove straight into the abyss.

The group exchanged uncertain glances.

"What the hell is he doing?"

Seeing their leader had already gone in, Slashblade cast Levitation on everyone before stepping into the void himself. The spell lasted ten minutes, and they spent a full seven drifting downwards. The opening was barely a meter wide, forcing them into a controlled descent.

"Holy shit, Boss is a genius," Skyblade murmured in the party chat as they emerged.

Because now, they were directly above the statue's head.

Normally, Levitation allowed for gradual gliding, but the long, uninterrupted fall had worked like a bullet fired from a barrel, keeping them in a perfect downward trajectory.

Ethan was already waiting, standing atop the statue, waving them over. One by one, they landed, looking at Ethan with newfound admiration.

Finding a spot like this? They had no idea how he did it.

"Well, looks like I'm finally useful," Skyblade muttered.

Everyone stared at Skyblade, completely lost.

He grinned mischievously, then pulled something from his inventory and tossed it onto the ground.

With a thud, the item expanded instantly, transforming into a full-sized bed. The entire group, including Ethan, blinked in disbelief.

It was a bed. A real, full-sized bed.

Meatball pointed a shaking finger at him. "You—"

"You what? Get to work. Hey, Williams, come on, let's relax," Skyblade said smugly, flopping onto the bed and motioning for SeraphWarrior to join him.

"I…" SeraphWarrior hesitated.

"I what? We're both melee fighters, and we can't hit anything from here. What else are we supposed to do, stare at the fight like idiots?" Skyblade reasoned, then casually pulled out a cigar and lit it.

Slashblade winced. "You actually spent ten silver on a system cigar? Are you insane?"

Skyblade ignored him, pulling out another one and tossing it to Ethan. "Boss, you want one?"

Ethan caught it, his fingers tightening slightly around the familiar object.

This scene…

It was just like before.

In his past life, Skyblade always carried that ridiculous bed. Every time they escaped from a pursuit, every time they found themselves stranded in the middle of nowhere, he'd throw it down, stretch out, and smoke his overpriced cigars without a care in the world.

Back then, if it weren't for Skyblade's company, Ethan might not have made it through those years.

Him… and Lyla.

Ethan clenched the cigar in his hand, suppressing the wave of memories.

"Boss, should we kick him out of the party?" SeraphWarrior suggested.

Ethan chuckled. "No need. You two can rest. You're right, melee fighters aren't much use here. But before you get too comfortable, let's have Moonbeam put on a little show for us first."

At his words, everyone turned expectantly to Lyla.

She shifted uncomfortably under their collective gaze before pulling Frostbound Reverie from her back.

"Just drop it in the center of the plaza. That's where they're most concentrated," Ethan instructed.

He was more than familiar with Forbidden Spells. He had never obtained one himself in his past life, but he knew their mechanics well. They had an absurd range, especially area-of-effect ones, which could reach distances of up to a kilometer.

After all, if a Forbidden Spell had a short casting range, it would be the equivalent of throwing a grenade at your own feet.

Lyla nodded and pulled back her bowstring, murmuring an incantation in an ancient language no one else understood.

"Slashblade, keep her healed," Ethan reminded.

As Lyla finished her chant, the conjured arrow trembled violently, a white vortex forming at its tip.

A freezing aura began spiraling outward, as if the vortex had punctured a hole into another realm, drawing pure, chilling energy into the physical world.

Gradually, the icy mist condensed into a massive arrowhead.

From their perch atop the hundred-meter-tall statue, the dwarves below sensed something strange in the air but remained oblivious to the presence of humans above their revered monument.

Two minutes passed.

The enormous ice arrow solidified, its lethal form shimmering in the air…