Summoned with an SSS-Rank Portal Skill

While William was eager to fight the creature, the girls looked uneasy.

"I don't know if we can win against that thing," one of them said. "Maybe we should wait for someone stronger to come along."

The adventurers under William's command shared the same concern. None of them wanted to take the risk.

William, however, was the only one excited for the battle.

"But I want to fight it," he said. "You can stay here and keep watch—make sure no one else tries to ambush me."

His group wasn't the only one lurking in the area, preying on adventurers. If he engaged the boss, there was a high chance another group might show up to take advantage of the situation.

But with his team guarding his back, he could focus entirely on the fight ahead.

"Are you sure you want to try it?" the girl in plate armor asked. "This is no ordinary monster."

The girls doubted William had the strength to face such a beast. But the adventurers who'd seen him fight the night before? They trusted him completely.

"I think you can defeat it," the ex-leader said. "In fact, I believe it might be an easy fight for you—if you use your powers."

The girls exchanged confused glances. What exactly was he implying?

William understood perfectly. The ex-leader was suggesting that William would have to unleash some of his powers to defeat the Cerberus.

The adventurers had already witnessed his demonic transformation—only the girls had not.

"I probably won't see them again," William thought. "And it's not like they can do anything with the knowledge of my power…"

In the end, William decided to go for it and try his luck. If he succeeded in killing the boss creature, he'd not only earn a lot of EXP but maybe even some valuable items too!

William walked toward the creature, and everyone else stayed behind, keeping a careful watch over him. The Cerberus stood inside a ruined stone church, blocking the portal. When William stepped forward, the beast roared, but it didn't move. It had the same behavior as those bosses in video games that don't leave their designated area.

"I need to provoke it to start the fight," William thought. "Just like in a game."

William braced himself as the Cerberus charged. Despite its massive size, the creature moved with terrifying speed, closing the distance in an instant. A massive claw lashed out, aiming straight for his throat.

Reacting on instinct, William raised his sword just in time to block the strike—but the sheer force behind the blow sent him flying! His back slammed into the cold stone wall of the ruined church.

"Damn it," he muttered under his breath.

The impact stung, but he'd taken worse. More importantly, he had learned something—this beast was far stronger than any enemy he'd faced before.

Still, he wanted to see if he could win without using his full demonic transformation. That would be a challenge, but maybe—just maybe—it was possible.

He pushed himself to his feet and quickly started casting. Dark energy swirled around his left hand, growing denser until a massive black fireball hovered above it.

From a distance, the girl in plate armor's eyes widened. "What is that? The energy coming from it is insane!"

Even from far away, the group could feel the sheer intensity of the magic. William had perfected this attack—it was one of his most powerful.

With a sharp motion, he hurled the fireball toward the Cerberus. The black flames shot through the air like a meteor, but the beast wasn't foolish enough to take the hit head-on. It leaped to the side with surprising agility.

Still, the fireball managed to graze its right arm, and the moment it did, the beast let out a deafening roar. The dark flames seared its flesh, leaving a charred wound. The damage was minor, but it was something.

William used the brief moment to activate his body-enhancing spells. His magic surged through his veins:

Swiftfoot—Agility +50, movement speed increased by 30%.

Enhanced Strength—Raw power increased, Strength +70.

These buffs wouldn't last forever, and they drained a huge chunk of his mana. His mana pool had never been his strongest attribute—actually, it was his weakest.

Ever since his demonic powers had awakened, he noticed his mana was slowly being replaced. It was vanishing, gradually being converted into something else—demonic essence.

Unlike mana, demonic essence was a more potent, refined energy, but it came with a cost: he couldn't use both at the same time.

It was as if his very existence was shifting. He wasn't just learning to use demonic powers—he was becoming something different.

And now, as he faced the monstrous three-headed Cerberus, he wondered…

Would his human side be enough to win this fight?

The Cerberus roared again, but this time, it was different. Energy appeared in three different locations—a reddish type of mana.

Then, from the areas with this mana, werewolves emerged! The Cerberus had just summoned minions to help him in the fight.

Not only that, but those werewolves were clearly stronger than the ones William had faced throughout the floor.

The fight was not looking good for him, but he didn't panic. The first werewolf came running toward him while the other two circled around him.

William dashed forward. Letting the werewolves trap him in a circle was not a good idea. He wanted to push forward and kill at least one of them.

With Asura in hand, he quickly got close to the werewolf. Dark energy surrounded the sword, and when it struck the werewolf's chest, it burned him—similar to his fireball!

A massive cut opened in the werewolf's chest. The creature stopped moving and collapsed, almost lifeless.

"Incredible!" the girls said.

The adventurers weren't that surprised, having already witnessed William's power the other night.

When William looked up at the Cerberus, he saw the creature's mouth inflating as it gathered a massive amount of energy.

It was preparing an attack—a powerful one at that. A magma fireball came flying toward him.

It was fast, but that wasn't even the worst part. The worst part was its size—it was big enough to engulf the entire church.

William had nowhere to hide or run. He looked up, spotting a stone pillar he could jump to. Summoning all the strength in his legs, he leaped!

He felt the heat and saw the fireball passing beneath him, but in the end, it didn't hit him.

It was close. When William saw the destruction caused by the attack—burning everything it touched—he was relieved that it hadn't hit him.

The girls and adventurers watching the fight had been terrified for a moment, but they sighed in relief after seeing how swiftly William had avoided the attack.

While the battle raged on, something else occurred. Another group of people arrived. But unlike those who tried to steal or kill others during boss fights, they had a different goal—they just wanted to reach the portal.

"Someone is finally fighting the Cerberus," a man said. "I was starting to worry we might never reach the hub."

"Who are you?" the girl in plate armor asked, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword.

She had promised to protect William while he fought the Cerberus. The adventurers under William's command also placed their hands on their weapons, ready to defend him.

The man noticed their tension and raised his hands. "Calm down. I'm just here to use the portal, nothing more. I'm not one of those bastards who steal from people."

The ex-leader of the bandits felt guilty hearing that, but he remained silent.

"We'll keep an eye on you and your group," the girl in plate armor said.

The man had arrived with two others. They didn't seem evil, but one could never be too careful.

"No problem," the man said. "I'll stay here and watch with you."

William could see the crowd forming to watch his fight. He didn't like it.

"I just want to fight in peace, and now this has turned into a damn show… It's reminding me of when I had to fight for that bastard noble," he thought.

The Cerberus didn't attack again. From his vantage point on the stone pillar, William noticed that the beast looked more exhausted than usual.

"That attack drained him!" he realized.

That magma fireball had been incredibly powerful, but it wasn't something the Cerberus could use repeatedly. It had been one of its strongest moves.

William couldn't waste this opportunity. He jumped from the stone pillar and attacked the Cerberus with everything he had.

Demonic energy surged around Asura, making the sword appear even larger. It transformed into a massive black blade, nearly five meters in length!

Despite its enormous size, the sword felt light in his hands. William swung it with full force, aiming at one of the Cerberus's heads.

The blade cleaved through cleanly, severing the head with ease and cutting even deeper into the beast's body. The demonic energy burned through the creature's flesh, just as it had with the weaker werewolves.

Speaking of them, two werewolves still remained. But William wasn't concerned. Without hesitation, he leaped back and struck them down in quick succession. Neither could withstand a single blow from his sword.

The Cerberus, on the other hand, got angry after losing one of his heads. His eyes were red and bloodthirst, and William knew the real fight was just beginning.