A/N Refresher:
Miyuki - Warden
Yuuki - Dragoon
Isashiki - Duelist
Kuramochi - Assassin
Azuma - Destroyer
Kawakami - Warlock
Sawamura - Summoner
Furuya - Sorcerer
Kominato - Blade Master
Tanba - Archer
Shirasu - Brawler
Masuko - Warrior

"Why do we have to wait so long?' Sawamura genuinely asked with a slight tilt of his head. The first string was currently filing in to sit around the long, wooden table in Seido's conference room, waiting to discuss the details of their next raid. "Doesn't it only take a day for them to revive?" He continued, posing the question for anyone to answer.

"Yes, for dungeon bosses," Kazuya begins, "For raid bosses, it takes a week. The Yakushi Guild just cleared it yesterday, so we have nearly a full seven days to wait."

Kazuya had purposefully plopped himself down in the seat next to Sawamura, knowing his mere proximity would serve as an annoyance. And predictably, Sawamura turned a heated glare at him out of reflex before he even processed Kazuya's clarification. When the information did sink in, Sawamura's expression took on a look of contemplation as his eyes focused somewhere over Kazuya's shoulder. Within seconds, it morphed to puzzlement as his eyebrows drew together and his gaze found Kazuya again, "What if someone beats us there then?"

"No one should," he explained, "Guilds have to apply with a down payment to run raids in advance. We've been in the queue for this one for a little over a month now. It prevents fights between guilds this way." Kazuya shrugged nonchalantly. It was basic information at this point, but then again, he supposed Sawamura did come from a small town with only dungeons in the surrounding area, so he couldn't necessarily fault him for not knowing the standard functions regarding raids.

"Wait," Sawamura squeaked out in alarm, eyes widening, "We have to pay?! " Several members turned amused glances towards Sawamura from where they had seated themselves at the table.

Kazuya couldn't help the small chuckle at the reaction, "It's not that bad, a single raid can normally more than double the amount we paid."

"I guess that's true," Sawamura slowly, almost hesitantly responded, before he continued with more confidence, "I got more gold from the last raid than my entire career of running dungeons." And didn't that say a lot? The loot that they were able to sell from Tengoku's Labyrinth, about averaged out as decent in comparison to the few runs that earned them the most back. Once loot from a raid was sold, the funds were divided between the guild itself and all the members that participated. However, if someone sold old gear, they did not have to split what they got with the guild or even the other participants. So the coin Azuma made from selling his old weapon went straight to his pocket. Leaving Azuma to essentially walk away from that raid with the most gold.

Though to be fair, the sealing charm Azuma had to buy from the marketplace simply so he could sell his previous legendary weapon, cost nearly half of what he ended up getting back. This was why it was so important to watch the marketplace, to see when the price rate on the charms dropped. Unfortunately, Azuma was too impatient to sell the ax that he ended up buying one while the rates were high, while Kazuya would rather sit on an old weapon until the charms were going for at least twenty-five hundred gold. He refused to spend anything more, even if that meant he had to hold on to the weapon for longer.

The rest of the first string had all settled into their seats around the table. In front of each chair, was a stack of parchment that Chris and Nabe so kindly copied down the details they were going to discuss. Next to the stacks, were quills and ink as everyone was expected to take notes, especially if it regarded their role in the raid specifically. A good thing about being the main tank was that Kazuya's role always remained the same. While he could play DPS if he really wanted to, as he had the damage output, Kazuya enjoyed tanking the most.

Well, technically, Kazuya could only be DPS if there was a strong healer in the party, or else he would run the risk of quite literally tearing himself apart. Warden's main attributes were blood, light, and fire. All blood-based skills offered Kazuya his most consistent damage, with the caveat that each attack also hurt him. To balance it out, the light skills, which mainly focus on defense, heal him a little with each block or attack he resists. On the other hand, the fire attribute skills deal massive damage, only they could be incredibly exhausting to use consecutively. Typically, Kazuya used blood attribute skills for sustained damage, which meant he had to actively block attacks to replenish the health he naturally lost over time. He tended to save his fire-based skills for moments when the party needed to burst down a boss's health, and occasionally if he gets swarmed by lesser mobs since those skills could easily wipe them out.

Thankfully, Seido had gotten a hold of a few more ranged classes, as they had been sorely lacking in that department for a while. They had Tanba, an archer, who did massive damage to single targets. Kawakami, a warlock, specialized in DOT, and also had one of the most sought-after party buffs; Spirit Burst. Now, they had Furuya, a sorcerer, the glass cannon that did insane AOE damage, but had a high mortality rate if not with a good tank. And Sawamura, a summoner, was the most versatile of all the ranged classes with; single target skills, AOE, heals, buffs, and even party saves. So far, the only one in the first string that had a skill to protect the entire party had been Kazuya, but now they had Sawamura who should have skills that could protect the party, and if Kazuya remembered correctly, sorcerer also had a skill.

Now they just had to get Sawamura and Furuya properly geared.

Chris and Nabe situated themselves at the head of the table while sifting through their much larger stack of parchment, "Since we're all here, let's begin," Chris said, eyes still scanning the contents of one page then handed it over to Nabe, "We spoke with other guilds that had completed Shinkai Ruins, and from the sound of it, there are two bosses that can spawn."

"So we'll have to fight two at the same time?!" Isashiki questioned; flabbergasted.

"No, it's random which one you'll get per run," Nabe corrected. Chris nodded his head in agreement.

"You guys will either encounter Tateshi or Kenshi. Tateshi has a massive amount of defense and health. According to the Yakushi Guild, they went up against it, and it took them nearly a full twenty-four hours to whittle it down. Apparently, it also spawns Adds that will heal it unless they can be killed quick enough. While its damage is fairly low, it has several room-wide AOE that staggers you if you get hit. Its main gimmick seems to be to prolong the battle until whoever is fighting gets too exhausted to continue." Chris explained.

Nabe scoured his stack and upon finding the sheet he was hunting for, pulled it free to lay at the top, "Kenshi, however, has lower defenses and health, but deals a ton of damage. Apparently, it's nicknamed the 'Sorcerer Killer' since it will randomly teleport on top of anyone in the party, attack them, and move on to another. This attack is known for one-shotting sorcerers, even in the best of gear," At that, they all turned towards Furuya, who sat stone-faced.

"Should Furuya sit this one out?" Masuko murmured in speculation.

And that got a reaction, as Furuya whipped his head in Masuko's direction, eyes wide, "I have a sheath," Furuya said in a rush.

"A sheath?" Sawamura repeated in confusion.

"Ice Sheath," Kazuya supplied. Furuya nodded aggressively, "It's a party save skill." Sawamura's mouth formed a silent oh in understanding, "Kind of like Veil that you used in Tengoku's Labyrinth, only Ice Sheath protects from all attacks. From what I've seen, if it's timed correctly, seconds before a boss attack lands, it'll encase everyone in ice. But if it's mistimed, then most of the party will get hit unless they can provide their own protection or dodge at the very last second."

"Can't Miyuki just provoke the boss to prevent it from randomly attacking?" Azuma asked, with a hint of annoyance. He had his head resting on his hand while he watched the discussion. Typically, Azuma didn't care for these meetings.

"Unfortunately, in those instances, no matter how much Miyuki provokes or how high his threat level is, the boss will always teleport around," Chris, ever calm that he was, deadpanned while Azuma clicked his tongue at the answer, "However, it'll always return to Miyuki. In fact, Kenshi apparently has some sort of vendetta against tank classes, in that, it'll try its damndest to kill them. It has several skills that grab or restrain the tank to drain away their life force. If that happens, the rest of the raid has to use a stun or knockdown to prevent it from succeeding."

Kazuya chuckled, "That sounds like a challenge. Should be fun." It wouldn't be the first boss that took special exception to tanks, and if anything, it only added a little extra thrill to the fight. Now Kazuya kind of hoped they got Kenshi.

"Famous last words," Sawamura mumbled, casting a suspicious side-eye at Kazuya.

"Don't think I can take it?" Kazuya inquired with a smirk that only widened as he watched the way Sawamura's brows furrowed in irritation.

"With that cockiness, I'm surprised you've lasted this long."

"I think you mispronounced confidence. I've made it this far because I'm good at what I do. Though I suppose it helps to have a strong raid group as well."

"I dunno, your head is lookin' real big right now."

"That's not the only thing that's big, –"

"Guys," Kuramochi began with an exasperated sigh, but Kazuya paid him no mind, determined to finish his sentence.

" –so is my –"

"Guys!" The exasperation quickly took on an edge of panic.

" –sword." He concluded. This was followed by several groans from around the table, with a lovely, wide-eyed Sawamura.

Kuramochi buried his face in his hands, "Can you two please not flirt while we're in the middle of a meeting?"

Immediately, Sawamura's face turned beet red as he whipped his head around to face Kuramochi across the table. He slapped his hands on the wooden surface, and pushed himself out of his seat, "We're not flirting!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Kuramochi waved a dismissive hand, "Now sit your ass back down so we can continue." He then shot a glare Kazuya's way as Sawamura plopped back onto his chair, "And you," Kuramochi aggressively pointed a finger towards him, "cool it."

Kazuya gave him his best innocent I-don't-know-what-you're-talking-about look that predictably only irritated him more. Kuramochi opened his mouth to snap back, but before he could, Yuuki cleared his throat to effectively cut off any more bickering. At once, the entire table fell silent.

"May we continue?" Chris asked; redundant. His eyes flickered between him and Sawamura then finally back to his notes, "As we were saying, Kenshi will be the biggest problem for Miyuki and Furuya. For Tateshi, we're torn if you guys will have enough DPS, as Sawamura and Furuya are still building their gear." Sawamura straightened in his chair at that, as it quickly began to sound as if Chris were about to suggest Sawamura and Furuya sit out for this run.

Kazuya could understand where Chris was coming from, as with either Boss, they both were under-geared, which spelled higher death rates for them, or potentially the whole raid group for when the rest had to cover for Sawamura and Furuya. However, Kazuya also believed that they would learn best if they actively participated. All raids were dangerous and they couldn't have them sit out constantly while the rest of the group brought back gear for them. It was all about the experience in the long run. Even with the best gear, without the knowledge and gained confidence, they'll be as good as dead regardless.

However, it was Kazuya's job as the main tank to make sure the whole group survived; properly geared or under-geard. Experienced or no experience. Whatever the case, if they were in his party, Kazuya would do anything within his power to not only make sure they succeed but live to raid another day.

It appeared that Yuuki also caught on to what Chris hinted at, "We used to run raids with ten members as opposed to the max of twelve and beat bosses that were high in defense. Even if it does take us longer, I'm confident we can still beat Tateshi. As for Kenshi, we play it safe but attack hard. If we can take it down quickly, we'll also avoid some of its more troublesome stages."

"As Miyuki said, if Furuya can time his Ice Sheath well, it'll save the whole group," Tanba chimed in.

"How much damage can it take before it breaks?" Isashiki asked as he leaned his elbows against the table to peer at Furuya.

On Furuya's part, he appeared taken back briefly, but answered, "It doesn't have a durability. You can break out of it early, or it naturally thaws after five seconds."

"So within those five seconds, it can withstand any type of attack? Regardless of how strong?" Isashiki continued to press, with a suspicious gleam in his eyes. Furuya simply nodded his head in response, "What's the range of that?"

Furuya tilted his head in thought before he hesitantly answered, "About fifty meters?"

Isashiki threw his head back and laughed, "That's better than Miyuki's! You practically gotta stand right next to him to avoid certain attacks."

"Hey," Kazuya said with mock chagrin, "Ward has saved your ass countless times."

"Yeah, after I ran across an entire room to get within range."

"Survival of the fittest," Kazuya said with a shrug.

"And what will you do if you mistime it?" Chris suddenly cut in. Everyone turned to regard him in silence. They were borderline a sensitive topic, one that to this day gave Chris nightmares. To Furuya, and to an extent Sawamura, Chris must come off as rude with his insistence that they weren't ready, however, those that were aware, know that Chris has been overly cautious ever since his near death. That he wouldn't wish that experience or the subsequent injury on anyone, especially not for someone still so new to raiding.

"I –," Furuya began, voice not quite a yell, but louder than his usual soft tone. He seemed to catch himself and tried again, "I have another. It'll only encase me and lasts fifteen seconds. I can break out early or it thaws, but afterward, it gives me damage reduction for twenty seconds." Furuya hesitated, voice going quieter, "I can't use it that often, which is why I don't plan to fail."

Chris remained silent for several long seconds, "And Sawamura?" His gaze traveled to land on Sawamura, who was startled at the unexpected question.

"I–um–what?"

"What do you have for worst-case scenarios?"

"Oh, I have Shroud. It completely blocks the next five attacks I would have taken."

At that, Chris let out a long, slow exhale and picked up the next parchment paper; temporarily placated, even if he wasn't necessarily happy about it, but would let it go for now, "The best way you can tell Tateshi and Kenshi apart, is that Tateshi is bulkier, especially in the shoulders and tends to remain in one spot. On the other hand, Kenshi is slim in build and moves around a lot; mainly via teleportation."

"The raid itself won't be as winding or barren compared to the Labyrinth you were just in," Nabe jumped in, "But in comparison, it may feel cramped. It'll be littered with primordial demons, varying between ranged attacks and melee. Though according to our sources, there are also a few small fiends that rush in and immediately explode. The explosion will do damage, but the most worrisome is the slowness that'll affect anyone within range. While the blast damage can be blocked or resisted, the curse effect can not."

"Um," Sawamura started, going so far as to even raise a hand slightly. Once he had everyone's attention he continued, "I have a heal – and I would like to clarify real quick, that it's not the best heal cause I'm not a healer, but it gives a small speed boost and purifies most curse effects."

"Well, guess that's one less thing we have to worry about," Kominato said.

"About that," Sawamura replied with an uneasy chuckle as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I can't guarantee Rejuvenation will cleanse it, but the speed boost should at least counteract it."

"Still better than nothing, which is what we've been doing so far," Kominato shrugged, "That or we waste gold on very specific potions that will only cleanse certain curses."

"Speaking of potions," Nabe began as he twirled his quill, "I highly recommend buying a large stock of health and stamina potions. If you guys get Tateshi, you'll need to be able to sustain yourselves for the long haul. And with Kenshi, since it hits hard, you'll want to keep your health as high as possible at all times; to hopefully survive a hit or two and buy you more time to drink a potion."

"Azuma, that means you're gonna have to buy appropriate potions, and not cheap out on the weaker stuff," Kazuya said with a laugh and shot a pointed look his way.

Azuma grunted, "Fuck that, I can take a few hits."

"Suit yourself, but no one's gonna drag your corpse back," Isashiki readily dismissed, which earned him a glare, but Yuuki cut in, preventing a comeback.

"So we'll have to plan ahead for both bosses. There's still a week before Shinkai Ruins opens up again. During that time, practice what you feel you need to work on. Whether that be a certain skill or your dodges; however, be sure to not over-strain yourselves. We'll meet again every evening to discuss our plans, but for tonight, go over any notes, and let's call it here." As Yuuki finished, he rose to a stand, gathering his stack of parchment. The rest all followed his example and packed away their things to get a start on some practice.

A/N:

DPS = Damage Per Second

DOT = Damage Over Time

AOE = Area of Effect