Studying advanced herbalism from Laura took more time than Zen expected. Thankfully, the game had a way of providing cheats for him. Instead of cramming all the knowledge into his head that would give him a splitting migraine, it provided a useful guidebook that would prompt him on what a particular herb does upon location and what combinations he could use it for with other known herbs.
The problem was, to truly master this skill, he had to pass the final test. Laura’s pop quiz only had ten questions. However, there was a timer. While Zen could attempt it infinitely, there were thousands of herb combinations to remember. Not having any formal education in either of his past lives, the young chef faltered. “You may use anything in this cottage as a reference for your test,” Laura smirked. “All the best. I hope you won’t disappoint me.” Stressing over the best method to find what he needed, Zen tested a few things. Firstly, when Laura said that the new skill would instAfter scouting the Minotaur’s patrol route, Charlie returned to the group with positive news.“I found him,” he grinned cheekily. “Are you ready, Matador?”Unamused, Zen wondered why everyone insisted on dressing him in blood-painted armour. The Minotaur had poor eyesight. He was almost as blind as Liu Feng was. Why on earth did Zen need to role-play with a monster?“Smile at the birdie!” Damian grinned and quickly took a screenshot to share it with the rest of the Godly Food Party members before Zen could protest. Jessica allowed herself a small smirk, and Benjamin chuckled at the gamer’s horrified expression.It did not take long for Party Freedom to become accustomed to adventuring at Zen’s pace. It was a little long-winded, but it was far from boring. If anything, the constant riffs and banters between Damian and Zen made great entertainment in the labyrinth’s doom and gloom. Whatever initial i
The dhampir worked quickly back at his cabin in the kitchen. Damian was allowed to hover near him because he was interested in the crafting process. Although the watcher did not tell him the recipe for the master magic candelabra, he showed the cyborg magician how his infamous watcher lantern was created.Mixing glowing wax with the royal jelly allowed the lamp to absorb mana from the labyrinth to glow eternally. As it did not emit mana, monsters will assume it was a natural source of light. More importantly. The flame that burned in the lantern could be used to relight the common wax candelabras that were put out by monster hoards rushing past it in the labyrinth.According to the watcher, he spotted three candelabras that needed relighting during his patrol. To make the errand easier for the adventurers, he included a more detailed map of the labyrinth, including positions of traps he planted for hunting monsters.“Remember to release the glow bees after you r
Of all the things Zen could expect from a game, he was not expecting a dhampir with a beekeeping hobby. What he thought were fireflies turned out to be glow bees. It was a great thing nobody attacked the insects. According to the watcher, cave bees did not hum or buzz. They were closer to scavengers who ate rotting meat and built their hives in rocks. Once attacked, the colony would swarm and exterminate the threat.“Unlike regular bees, they don’t make honey in their hives, although they build wax combs. After many generations of cross-breeding, the original hive of cave bees has now fully converted to glow bees. I harvest the wax and blood gel they store for food and candles.”Blood gel? Now that Zen thought about it, the dhampir had an unusually large amount of what he previously assumed were strawberry jam in jars on the shelves in the kitchen. The watcher was already eccentric, to begin with. The young chef did not want to judge a person by their pan
As the group approached the watcher’s hut, Zen took the lead. On closer inspection, the green glow had a yellowish tinge to it. It just wasn’t as visible in the distance. Smiling, he marched confidently towards it.“Is this a firefly?” Jessica blinked in surprise when they were within range. One of the green specs came up close enough for the adventurers to realise what it was.Chuckling from the front, Zen nodded. “I don’t think they’re poisonous, but don’t squish them. Firefly bugs have a liquid that can irritate the skin. That same liquid makes them glow, although I don’t know if the same logic applies here. Maybe they are poisonous bugs.”Somewhere from the darkness behind them, a voice spoke up.“These are guardians of the labyrinth. They are harmless.”Jumping, Charlie flew right into Remi, and the two non-combatants tumbled to the ground while the power couple readied for battle.
“Oh! Adventurers, what brings you here? This is a forbidden ground that guards a dangerous monster. Please turn back at once!” the old gatekeeper, who appeared half blind, spoke before Zen could offer a greeting.The NPC looked rather nervous, and Zen was immediately reminded of the Shady Merchant NPC when he was up to no good.“You seem a little troubled,” Zen smiled. “Is there something wrong?”Watching Zen interact with the NPC from behind, Party Freedom found his human-like interaction with unreal characters fascinating. Zen spoke to the NPC as if he were a real human, something nobody did. Damian, used to Zen’s method of coaxing more information from NPCs, stood back and told them to watch the master fisher in his element.At the mention of trouble, the old gatekeeper trembled. His eyes quivered as he looked around, licking his lips nervously.“Y-young man, you can’t say things like that. The King wi
Meeting at the entrance of floor tenth’s labyrinth, Zen quickly checked on Party Freedom’s in-game gear. They were not the best, and it was surprising how they made it to floor fifteen using pure skills. Unlike Zen, who relied on many in-game mechanics to compensate for his lack of combat abilities, the others powered through using the polished skills gained from years of training. Compared to them, he felt like a fraud.“You’re going to all need better equipment,” Zen stated after a brief check. “I’ll send Tracer the list of crafting materials I need before logging out to prepare lunch. However, these gears will not get you to the hellish final boss on floor twenty.”Having seen what the demon lord could do, Zen wondered how the party of four climbed half of the labyrinth stage. It was like using a piece of rock to cut sushi.The Minotaur Boss’ loot was the best for crafting armour in preparation for clearing the
After confirming that Party Freedom was still stuck at floor fifteen, Zen confirmed that he would be better off making progress with them instead of slowing the vanguard team.When in doubt, keep to the left.” That was what I did when I cleared the labyrinth floors, including the tenth floor. Anything with a maze-like structure can be easily cleared if you follow a strict path.”…Nobody else spoke about the advice that Liu Feng gave. In theory, that was correct. However, it was easier said than done. Most people would turn back upon discovering a trap or an enemy. Not to mention, some paths might be blocked. What the Seer was telling them was to brute force their way through a maze. If he had a map and a destination, Zen had no doubt that his sworn brother would have broken down all the walls standing in his way to reach the final boss dungeon.“Oh, one more thing. That minotaur boss is actually blind. It makes sense because it has
By the time Zen’s morning alarm went off, the tissues stuffed in his nose had already fallen out during the night. Thankfully, they were not covered in booger or snot. More importantly, the ointment stopped stinking.Checking his ribs and stretching cautiously, Zen immediately noticed the lack of sharp pain in his sides when stretched. Traditional medicine was truly miraculous! At this rate, his fractured ribs might be fully healed in the next few days."You’re up,” Liu Feng noted after he left the bathroom.Last night’s sparring with Akiko loosened his stiff muscles from dungeon diving. The morning workout went smoothly, even if his hunt for Chatura made no progress. Hearing how quickly Zen was able to move, his ribs must be feeling better. The medicine his brother sent was expensive. Thankfully, it worked for civilians too.“Thank you for the ointment,” Zen beamed. “I should make a full recovery in a few days at t
From floor five to floor nine, Zen discovered many changing elements in the virtual world. The dungeon mechanics became more complex as they climbed the floors. It was difficult to believe that until floor ten, they were still in the tutorial stages.Damian’s game guide from floor five was very different from Zen’s version. The cyborg logged every single type of equipment and monster as an encyclopaedia page, including replicated screenshot images. He rated them according to their value, usage, frequency of occurrence, something Zen had not considered, and prices. The floor map was also marked to indicate where they could commonly be located, along with an estimated loot drop guide. Compared to Zen’s walkthrough guide, Damian created a very different and detailed directory.Although their styles were very different, Zen teared up with gratefulness for the guide Damian put together. If Zen excelled at game progression strategy, Damian’s information w