The Laboratory and the Boss

"These are notes left behind by a former player!"

Lin Yuan immediately realized the parchment's immense value and continued reading.

Unfortunately, the parchment seemed ancient, with damage in many places throughout. Lin Yuan could barely make out some of its contents.

[...the advancement failed. Without player status or a system, the difficulty is completely different from before.]

[Found records concerning... Perhaps what he left behind can...]

[That thing is in Paradise! There goes that chance!]

[It actually worked... I've returned to Paradise. I must...]

[Found... but why is what the 'Nature Shepherd' left behind filled with the aura of death?]

[My contracted treant, 'Gru,' has been corrupted. It has lost its power. I stationed it on the outskirts as a lookout, though there shouldn't be anything in Paradise that can threaten me.]

[Built a laboratory on the island. This time, I'll either unravel that thing's secrets and advance, or sink along with Paradise!]

[Failed. It's all over... Why has Gru come? Is it here to say goodbye to me?]

[I hope we can endure the scouring seawater. May these notes help my future self recover my memories...]

The parchment ended there.

It now seemed that the parchment's owner had ultimately failed to endure the scouring seawater.

Lin Yuan couldn't help recalling what Lilia had said earlier-

Those who failed to endure the scouring seawater and lost themselves could never regain their sanity.

Perhaps one of those skeletons earlier had been the owner of these notes?

Lin Yuan's spirits immediately grew heavy.

On this parchment, he had seen a player's struggle and failure unfold.

And how many players in Lin Yuan's group would follow in the parchment owner's footsteps?

"The Main Quest-that's the key! The parchment owner's tragedy began when he failed his Main Quest and lost his player status."

"Lose your player status, and you become an Island Dweller or one of the Sunken Folk."

Research Institute 3154 had briefly mentioned the Main Quest before, but Lin Yuan hadn't paid it much attention at the time.

Now it seemed that the Main Quest was the rule that determined whether players lived or died.

What would the first Main Quest issued by the system be?

Many thoughts ran through Lin Yuan's mind, but he soon pulled his attention back.

He would put the future aside for now and focus on how to grow stronger in the present.

And an opportunity to grow stronger lay right before him.

"The laboratory drawn on the plans contains something the parchment's owner obtained. It seems to have been the key to his advancement!"

Moreover, judging by the notes, it was very likely a powerful Transcendent Item.

But the parchment hadn't described the laboratory's location.

It looked like finding it would take some searching.

Fortunately, he had a crew member who needed no sleep and had unlimited stamina.

The puppet girl was perfect for this sort of work, and her brainlessness made her especially suited to being exploited.

Seen that way, Lilia really was a useful helper.

Hmm, perhaps I should treat her a little better from now on?

Maybe ask her if there's anything she wants or wants to do?

Lin Yuan did feel a little guilty about constantly using this free labor.

He returned to the coffin and kicked its side panel.

"Lilia? I'm done here. Get ready to move out!"

"Huh? Quick-Draw Captain, you've already finished fighting? I didn't even feel a thing."

"...Why does that sound so wrong? Didn't you hear that huge explosion just now?" Lin Yuan was speechless and decided to take back his favorable assessment of this idiotic girl.

"Explosion? No. I think I had a dream after I respawned. I only just woke up."

"A dream? What kind of dream? Don't you not need sleep?" Lin Yuan immediately grew curious. Could puppets dream too?

Besides, he hadn't dreamed once since entering this sea, though he didn't know whether that was from exhaustion or some other reason.

"Hmm, I'm not sure it was a dream either. Anyway, I felt like I'd turned into a treant and followed some strange fellow to an island. There was a skull-shaped rock on that island..."

"Wait, isn't that this island?!"

"Huh? You're right! I never thought of that. Captain, you're a real genius!"

"Lilia, you... Never mind. What happened next?"

"Then... that weirdo left, and I stayed all alone in one place for a really, really long time..."

Lin Yuan realized that Lilia had experienced the perspective of the parchment owner's contracted creature, the treant Gru-the Undead Tree from just now!

Could the Undead Tree have passed its memories to Lilia along with that attack after it awoke?

Lin Yuan felt there was more to it, but now wasn't the time to dwell on that.

"Lilia, think carefully. Did you see somewhere like a laboratory in your dream?"

"A laboratory? No."

"I see..." Lin Yuan couldn't help feeling disappointed, but then remembered that the parchment's owner had left the treant on the island's outskirts because Gru had been corrupted, then gone off to build the laboratory himself.

So it was perfectly normal that Lilia hadn't dreamed of the laboratory's location. It seemed they would still have to find it themselves.

"That's fine. Then we'll just..." Lin Yuan was halfway through speaking when Lilia interrupted.

"But at the end of the dream, I followed a path and found that weirdo. He was fiddling with bottles and jars and things in a strange house, acting completely crazy."

"Isn't that the laboratory?!" Lin Yuan's eyes immediately widened.

"Oh, so that kind of room is a laboratory. Then I know where it is."

"Lilia, you..." Lin Yuan clenched his fists, relaxed them, then clenched them again before finally letting out a long sigh.

"Never mind. This one's on me. I failed to account for your intelligence."

Lilia didn't understand what Lin Yuan meant, but since her captain had apologized, she decided to be a magnanimous crew member.

"It's fine. I forgive you. Remember to be more careful next time."

Bang!

Lin Yuan flung open the coffin lid and stared at Lilia lying inside, his face livid.

"Get out! I'm going in to rest. Drag me to that laboratory and call me when we get there!"

"Oh, okay. Captain, are you sick? You don't look very well."

Bang!

Without a word, Lin Yuan lay down inside and shut the coffin.

He ought to exploit Lilia mercilessly, without feeling the slightest bit guilty!

He deserved that much after this wretched creature had infuriated him so many times!

"What a strange captain."

Lilia didn't mind Lin Yuan's lack of response either. She shrugged and dragged the coffin toward the center of the island.

With the Undead Tree eliminated, the journey was very peaceful.

Occasionally, a few Skeleton Pirates foolish enough to get in their way jumped out, but Lilia put them all down.

Soon, they arrived beneath the Skeleton Giant Rock.

The laboratory is inside the Skeleton Giant Rock in the middle of the road? That makes sense. This is a dungeon. It's perfectly normal for an important area to be in the most conspicuous spot at its center.

Watching the situation outside through their mental link, Lin Yuan understood.

But hadn't he forgotten something?

Meanwhile, Lilia circled around to the back of the Skeleton Giant Rock and fiddled with an inconspicuous stone a couple of times.

A section of the giant rock's smooth surface immediately shattered like a mirror, revealing a long passage.

Many torches burning with green Soulfire hung along both sides of the passage, and the outline of a small room was faintly visible in its depths.

"We're here! This is the place!" Lilia cried happily, then dragged the coffin through the entrance.

The instant she stepped into the passage, a shrill voice suddenly rang out.

"How dare you intrude upon my room! You're courting death!"

Shit!

Lin Yuan slapped his forehead, remembering what he had forgotten.

Since this was a dungeon, of course there would be a boss in the important area!