Chapter 39
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 39
Chapter Title: Leaving Megrana Pit (2)
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As you pass through the seaweed-wrapped buildings of Azelchen, two paths come into view.
One is the fog-shrouded path guarded by the Merman King. Crossing it leads to the Fog Mine and the mining city of Megrana Pit.
The other path gradually starts to flood with water as you walk.
Prepare an item that grants underwater breathing, swim through the blue seaweed and schools of fish, and soon, several branching paths appear.
Paths that split like numerous caves. At the end of those paths, even more branches await.
And nearly every one of them ends in a wall of blue lava.
This was all the players had uncovered about the underwater maze.
'What the hell are we supposed to do here?'
It sure seemed like breaking through here would lead to a new area.
But no solution was in sight.
The entrance to Azelchen's flooded path was packed to the brim with players agonizing over how to conquer the underwater maze.
One streamer let out a massive sigh as she gazed at the crowd.
"I wanna get a limited title too.... I have no idea what to do."
Adventure Party day 5 since formation. 0 hiddens found lolololol
Limited titles don't come to Yorong
Yorong will be meritless till servers shut down
Yokai Dragon. Abyss streamer affectionately called Yorong by her viewers.
Her eyes turned to the chat window scratching at her.
Kruk?
Yorong grabbed a lens monster covered in dragon scales and shook it wildly.
Kraaa stop ittt
Dizzy;;;;;;
"Don't call Yorong meritless. Yorong wants to escape meritless status too...."
Then we'll just call you an idiot
"You're banned."
On the launch day of Ariant World, hearing that developer Kang Yu-hyun had hidden all sorts of elements, the first player to clear the tutorial got a limited title. Emboldened by that, she formed an unofficial streamer guild, the Adventure Party.
Their haul as captain of that guild? Zero so far. They'd scoured the village and turned everything upside down, but no hiddens, no limited titles.
Thus, her nickname: Meritless Yorong.
"How can we run twenty hours a day and find nothing?!"
The other two streamers had logged out exhausted. Only Yorong was still online.
"I don't know! No clues at all!"
The golden dragon flapped indignantly.
They'd tried everything they could think of.
Even the theories posted on the Abyss boards where Yorong's fans gathered, and rare speculations—they'd applied them all.
"Can't go into the lava at all. Tried drowning in the water. Did a waterweed ritual too."
But no answers.
"What the hell are we supposed to do?! Every path is blocked, and there doesn't seem to be a secret one!"
Just give up and level in Megrana Pit first. Might not be accessible yet.
Megrana Pit might have ways to other areas too.
Reading the chat, Yorong looked dejected as she scanned the players at the flooded entrance.
"That might be right. But with so many players here, it feels like the underwater maze could be solved any second, and that's scary."
Still, you gonna find the answer just standing here?
Lvl 8 noob acting cocky
But wasn't discovering Megrana Pit also through a maze?? How'd that happen.
"...I'll level up steadily. And I have something to say about discovering Megrana Pit."
Yorong showed her viewers a photo.
"This is the Megrana Pit map. Discovering it meant spotting the mine cart on an unmapped Fog Mine."
She pointed to the mine cart spot on the map—a clear rectangular shape.
"But someone found that station in one go."
Difference between meritful and meritless
Fr, can't rub two meritfuls on Yorong
Thanks for the 1000 won gift!
Honestly, how was Yorong supposed to become meritful? Good physicals? Brainpower? Neither.
"...Quiet down. Anyway, I analyzed how they found it in one go."
How'd they do it?
Yorong can analyze too??
The golden wings sprouting from Yorong's back twitched irritably.
"Stop scratching! Anyway, analysis shows the Fog Mine wasn't a real maze. The map had a clear anomalous terrain—no reason to get lost. Dodging fog wraith attacks to reach it was the obstacle."
Discovering Megrana Pit wasn't through a maze.
"So this flooded maze is the first real maze terrain. Nothing to learn from Megrana Pit."
After twenty hours solely in the underwater maze, Yorong felt nauseous just looking at it. Even sadder: no sense of it after all that time.
"I have no clue how to solve it. Feels like I've tried everything."
Lava passage theory. Drowning theory. Waterweed ritual theory. Seaweed collection theory. 1000 waterweeds theory. Bailing water theory. Sea serpent aggro theory.
All theories failed spectacularly.
Won't work Yorong, guess we're staying meritless.
Adventure Party meritless forever~
"...The Adventure Party will conquer this underwater maze! We'll escape meritless! Yorong will escape meritless too!"
Thanks for the 1000 won gift!
Want me to tell you how Adventure Party escapes meritless?
"Ah, please do."
Yorong's expectant face crumpled in an instant.
Thanks for the 1000 won gift!
Recruit a meritful streamer gg
"That's not a solution!"
No matter how I think, that's the best
Won't work. Adventure Party meritless forever
"Adventure Party will escape meritless! Not forever meritless!"
^Dream^
"Not a dream!"
"Log in."
After murmuring briefly in the capsule, Cheisi opened her eyes to Megrana Pit's murky air.
Current location: the blacksmith guild where she'd logged out.
A message waited in her friends list.
-Sa, save me.
From Yuwol.
-Where are you?
-In the smelter.
Warping to the smelter, she saw a silver-haired girl in distress.
Well, precisely, no head visible. Legs instead.
Yuwol was stuck upside down in the smelter floor.
Her robe hem flipped up, exposing pale thighs.
Cheisi yanked the groaning Yuwol, who looked tagged for stuck_in_wall, out of the floor.
"H-huugh.... Did I survive...."
"Why the hell were you stuck in the floor?"
"Trying to pick up a coin down there...."
Yuwol pointed to the spot she'd just been pulled from, making excuses.
Sure enough, a crack had formed in the smelter floor. She'd visited many times but missed the tiny gap.
Peering in, coins were indeed wedged there.
Cheisi summoned a lens monster to fetch them.
Three Megrana Pit coins—pocket change to Cheisi. Yuwol beamed as she took them.
"Thanks!"
"No biggie."
Cheisi eyed the smelter's tiny crevice.
'...But why coins here?'
Someone drop them?
Sending the lens monster deeper—
Flap...
It flapped in refusal.
The crevice narrowed gradually; even the lens monster couldn't go deep.
'...That.'
Cheisi spotted something glowing inside. Like red ore.
｢Notification｣
Target too far to check info.
Info check failed.
Couldn't check info, but it was checkable.
Around the red ore was empty space. Meant a chamber below the crevice. Not huge for a new area, but explorable by person.
'Can I get in there?'
Cheisi pondered. Crevice too small. Lens monster couldn't.
'Smash the floor?'
She tried scraping with her dagger. Not even a scratch.
Felt like attacking the statue in the graveyard. Same material?
Back then, title effect made it easy. This floor seemed impossible now.
'Later for that.'
First, check Azelchen's flooded area.
Test if Cleaver of Fog's lava immunity works in the maze players were lost in.
Cheisi turned on her stream.
[Heading to the flooded area]
"Y-you're turning on the stream?"
Yuwol gulped beside her.
"Why? Nervous?"
"Wh-what if they think my face is weird?"
That was her worry.
Cheisi chuckled at the trembling silver-haired beauty.
"You'll be fine. Or wanna disband party now?"
"N-no, not that."
Yuwol shook her head vigorously.
Cheisi started the stream.
"Here's our new party member."
"H-hi everyone.... Oh, Yuwol."
[Thanks for the 100,000 won donation]
Geumdasal
Instant 100k donation.
Told Yuwol, and she jumped in shock.
"R-really...?"
Her eyes shook, then a smile bloomed.
"Thanks! I'll work hard by Cheisi's side!"
Cheisi was slightly surprised at Yuwol.
'...She's surprisingly good at this?'
Even forced logout from body glitch, she stayed calm. With helmet on, but talentless couldn't.
'She'd be great as streamer. Need capsule gear, mic, account... convince first....'
Gazing at Yuwol cooing emotionally to the lens monster.
The cat hatched a wicked plan.
'Streaming's a happy thing, after all.'