After confirming his choice, Ben saw the game screen go dark as the loading screen skipped by.
The next moment, he appeared in front of a fog gate.
He didn't rush in to start the boss fight right away. Instead, Ben checked his gear first.
Right now, he was holding the silver knight shield in one hand and a guandao in the other.
Before this, he usually carried the grass crest shield on his back to recover stamina faster and dual-wielded the guandao.
But now that he was playing in Death mode, he decided to go with a shield for more safety and margin for error.
After all, according to the update notes, bosses in this mode didn't just have stronger AI—they also had boosted stats.
The reason he used to dual-wield the guandao was mainly for better poise-breaking.
But in this mode, even though it wasn't explicitly stated, Ben felt that bosses probably had higher poise.
So he chose a safer playstyle.
In front of the fog gate, he finished all his preparations, took a deep breath, and stepped inside.
He was a little excited. What if he actually managed to take down Artorias in Death mode on his first try?
It wasn't impossible! Ben pictured the fight in his mind.
As the white fog cleared, Ben fell silent for a moment when he saw Artorias in front of him.
Just as the update had described, this was the Artorias in his prime.
The one he fought before was already consumed by the Abyss, his left arm rotting and useless, his shield gone, his sword chipped and broken, armor in tatters, and his mind completely gone—fighting only on instinct.
Even then, he was terrifying. One wrong move and you'd get crushed.
But now? This Artorias…
Ben stayed quiet for a moment.
A blue cape flowed behind his shining knight armor, radiating power and authority. One hand gripped a greatsword, the other held a shield.
This was one of the Four Knights of Gwyn—the Blue Knight: Artorias!
There was no boss health bar yet. Artorias just stood there in silence as the background music started playing.
Ben instantly felt his nerves tighten.
A heavy sense of pressure filled his chest.
The battlefield was the same as before, but somehow it felt bigger—maybe it was just his imagination.
Ben took a deep breath, faced Artorias, and did the "Praise the Sun" gesture.
To his surprise, Artorias actually returned a knight's salute.
"I'm pulling the boss now!" Ben gripped his mouse nervously and glanced at Zack.
Hearing that, Zack gave him a speechless look. "You're the one fighting, not me. Why ask me? Just do it. Not like you're beating A-tier Artorias anyway."
"Damn it!" Ben cursed, then moved his character forward.
At that moment, Artorias's name and health bar appeared at the bottom of the screen.
The battle had begun, and the music swelled to a fierce crescendo.
But Artorias on the other side just slowly circled around Ben.
Back when he first fought Artorias, that guy's attacks were crazy aggressive, nonstop thrusts and jumping slashes.
And now he's just standing there? Like two normal players in a PvP match. After all, in Dark Souls, defense and counterattacks are usually better than rushing in.
"Fine, I'll make the first move!" Ben couldn't stand watching Artorias move like an old lady crossing the street.
He stepped forward and swung his guandao at Artorias.
One glance at Artorias's health bar showed a clear chunk missing.
Looks like the guandao still packs a punch.
Judging from Artorias's total health, that hit was about one twenty-fifth of his bar.
So in theory, just 25 clean hits and Artorias would be down.
By the damage numbers, this version of Artorias probably has around 10,000 HP.
After the hit, Ben didn't get greedy. He rolled back to keep some distance.
But the moment he rolled, Artorias suddenly jumped into the air and slammed his greatsword down where Ben had just been.
Seeing this, Ben didn't panic during his roll—he was already on his feet.
He rolled again to dodge the attack, but then Artorias did something shocking: he rolled too, canceling the recovery from his jump attack, and followed up with a sweeping slash.
This time Ben rolled too late because he never saw that coming.
In the original game, after a jump attack, Artorias always had clear recovery frames.
But now?
He can roll?!
That's an undead player's signature move! When did you learn that, huh?!
Ben didn't make it in time and got smashed by a huge slash, losing a big chunk of health. Panicking, he chugged an Estus Flask.
"What the hell, is this boss even fair?!"
Sure, the boss can't one-shot him, but the real problem is its reaction speed—it's completely different now!
It feels like the boss has become self-aware. The attacks are still Artorias's usual moves, but now they're way more fluid—like a jump attack instantly flowing into a sweep.
In the original, there was always a short recovery after each move.
Now? It's smooth as water.
The boss even rolls to dodge! And that huge shield in his hand isn't just for show—he can actually block Ben's attacks with it.
The moves are still the same old ones. Besides rolling and blocking, Ben hasn't seen any new attacks.
But old moves with faster combos and dodging mixed in?
The difficulty just skyrocketed.
Before, if Artorias started charging a thrust or a jump slash, it was basically a scripted pattern: dodge, counter.
It felt almost turn-based.
But now?
It's like fighting a real player in PvP. The guy even roll-chases you!
"I don't believe this! No way this boss is THAT good!"
Ben healed up and carefully watched the boss's movements.
Soon Ben noticed something: the boss still uses the same few moves over and over.
It just adapts better now.
For example, the original Artorias would have recovery after a thrust. But this one thrusts, then instantly rolls to cancel recovery.
Same for jump attacks and everything else.
"Stay calm… now's the time!"
Ben stuck to his principle: dodge when he can by rolling.
If he can't dodge, block with his shield—just make sure the stamina bar doesn't break.
One slash after another, chipping away at his health, making sure not to get greedy.
Slowly, Ben managed to take away about one-fifth of Artorias's HP.
At that moment, Ben suddenly felt the pressure grow heavier.
Artorias's attack speed seemed to increase, and his aggression was much stronger.
Even though his attack power was still the same, dealing the same amount of damage,
the frequency had clearly gone up!
Seeing the boss ready to use a move, Ben raised his shield, because this was that straight thrust the boss had used before.
He could block this move with the shield, and then there would be a sweeping slash right after.
But that sweep couldn't be blocked. He had to roll to dodge it, or his stamina bar would get completely drained.
But in the next second, to Ben's shock, Artorias suddenly rolled forward and appeared behind him.
Then the greatsword scraped the ground, sparks flying, before slamming into his unguarded back.
"You Died!" Those familiar words showed up again.
At least he didn't lose any of his souls.
Clearly, this mode didn't take anything away, except the items he had used.
"This boss is insane!"
Respawning at Firelink Shrine, Ben was completely stunned.
The boss can change its moves?
Wasn't it supposed to hit his shield first, then he rolls away from the second strike?
Why did it roll away instead and backstab him?!
That's not how the script goes!
The rest of the night continued as usual. By the way, I played mahjong this afternoon—actually got Nine Gates in just five rounds! Feels like I used up all my luck for the month.
(End of The Chapter)
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