Ch 10: The Chimera of the Lake [pt1]

Once the spicy chicken had been dealt with, Soma approached the lake cautiously. 

The water glittered clearly, but the true face of this lake was a prison.

More specifically, the prison that held the hidden boss of this tutorial - the undead soldier Igniras.

Hidden bosses were difficult to find in the tower, and few were there.

But they all yielded incredible results if you challenged them that it was worth the hassle.

Hidden bosses were the gems of the tower, but they were only supposed to be discovered 200 years later.

The player with the titles 'Ganesha' and 'God of Luck' was the first to find a hidden boss and get a massive reward.

It was a pity, but Soma would steal his achievement for humanity's survival.

But first, Soma needed a way to breathe underwater long enough to reach the hidden entrance.

"Shopkeeper, are you there?"

Soma called out, and the small fairy popped into existence.

"What may I help you with-"

"Shop screen. I want to buy something."

Soma cut the fairy's speech.

The vast screen of skills showed more skills now but nothing that would help Soma breathe underwater.

'Looks like the regular shop has nothing to help me. I will have to deploy 'that' method.'

Soma sighed before he opened the potion section.

He picked up more Fire crystals as well as a stamina-boosting potion.

But the main thing he needed from the shop this time was Kelp Weed.

[Kelp Weed acquired. Tutorial exclusive item, available one per account. The item will allow you to understand the joys of underwater navigation.]

Kelp Weed was helpful, but it would become useless as soon as one became a ranker and had access to better items for exploration.

'I must have spent nearly 50,000 coins on a simple item I cannot use once this tutorial ends. My past self would have smacked myself in the back.'

"Is that all you want to buy? We have some premium options. Don't worry if it looks too costly. You can always take out a lone…"

The shopkeeper tried to entice Soma into buying costly options from his shop.

The true purpose of these tiny fairies was to get the players to spend their money.

Quite a few ignorant (and some experienced) players could not hold their temptations back and spent a massive load on any skills they could find.

"Sorry, but I do not like to collect junk. Come back when you have a better selection of goods."

The fairy looked attacked.

"Better selection? This shop has the best selection of skills. If you have enough money, you can buy elite skills as well. Want me to show you?"

The fairy's ego seemed to have been hurt by Soma's words, so it offered such a huge service.

"Oh! So, you will show me some premium items from your shop?"

Luck had struck Soma today.

The ignorant fairy opened the shopping menu and showed Soma the skills.

Soma's eyes were instantly attracted to an item he knew exceptionally well, and he bought it.

"I will take this item. I will pay the money upfront."

Soma was so excited to see the item called 'Arms of Ingenuity.'

The item cost 200,000 coins and took up all of Soma's current wealth.

[Arms of Ingenuity: Crafting bonus +20%, Has a 5% chance to refund products when equipped]

It was a treasure for any crafting class and would save Soma a lot of trouble in the future.

"Y-You cannot buy that item in tutorial stages. Hurry up and cancel the transaction."

The fairy looked nervous to see Soma paying so much money.

The fairy had not expected a player in the tutorial stages to have this kind of mad money.

"I cannot buy this item? But it is available in the shop, and I already paid for it. So, isn't that item mine?"

Soma grilled the fairy, and he noticed that the small thing was caving in.

"W-Well, you are not wrong. But still! That item is not for sale. I will refund your money so…"

"I don't want to refund. You showed me the store, and I bought it with my money. If you have any complaints, take it up with the administrator of the floor."

Soma replied, causing the fairy to fume.

"Y-You heathen! I hope that you die during the next fight."

The fairy yelled.

But unlike the fairy from the previous trail, this one did not curse Soma.

Or rather, it could not curse Soma no matter how much it wanted to.

The Administrator had been pissed when he found out about a player being cursed by the shopkeepers and took away all fairy's cursing powers.

"Oh! Are you just going to curse me verbally? You won't use your debuff on me?"

Soma asked, trying to taunt the shopkeeper to use its skill.

"It's not worth cursing a useless human like you. You will die soon anyway."

The fairy disappeared before Soma could catch it to teach it a lesson.

But at least Soma managed to buy the artifact that he wanted.

"I will get that fairy next time. It's time to head down below water."

Soma gulped down the Kelp Weed and almost choked at its fishy taste.

The weed stuck to Soma's throat, threatening to choke him if he did not drink some water.

And finally, even after the Weed settled in Soma's stomach, he felt it trying to push itself out.

But despite that, the most uncomfortable feeling Soma had was when he tried to breathe.

The Kelp Weed had changed his constitution, causing Soma's body to struggle with breathing above water.

Soma grabbed his knife hard, his knuckles turning white in his effort to keep himself upright.

And then Soma dropped himself into the water.

The cold and refreshing feeling made Soma feel alive.

The water that rushed into his body felt incredibly refreshing, causing Soma to close his eyes and bask in its glow.

Water rushed into his eyes, but the sting Soma should feel did not occur.

[Kelp Weed's effect is offsetting the impact of water.]

Soma breathed a mouthful of water and felt something exit his neck.

Gills-like contraptions formed around Soma's neck, making breathing easier for him.

But it was weird to feel the water moving through his throat.

The water was clear enough to show the bottom of the lake.

The sunlight made it sparkle, and Soma noticed the ground shining.

There was only one corner of the lake that was dark, and Soma instantly headed toward that dark corner of the lake.

Soma had expected the dark corner to have the opening he was looking for, and Soma was glad not to be proven wrong in his assumption.

He quickly entered the lake and instantly entered the air cavity.

However, he could still not enter the cavity in his current state.

[Kelp Weed remaining time: 5 minutes.]

Soma waited those five minutes and quickly got out of the water once the time was up.

The inside of the cave looked like a beautifully crafted sculpture. 

Pin-sized holes caused light to fall on certain crystals and get dispersed due to refraction.

It caused the inside of the cave to get dyed in rainbow colors.

Soma passed through the light, but these crystals did not interest him.

'I bet these crystals would fetch much money on Earth.'

Unfortunately, staying in the tower diminished one's sense of beauty. 

Jewels and other precious metals were seen as mere distractions no one wanted.

The hidden boss was in one of the inner chambers of this cave, but there needed to be a map to get to it.

Soma wandered around while looking at his system.

There were two days left to find the exit of this tutorial, but he still needed to be done.

Soma already knew the location of the exit, but he had priorities he needed to follow.

The first chamber was empty, but there was some stuff Soma could sell for a profit.

He quickly pocketed what he could from that chamber and entered the second connected chamber.

There were no signs of the Chimera, but Soma did not let his guard down.

Something moved in the periphery of his vision, and Soma twisted his body around.

Metal met sharp claws, causing Soma to clench his teeth and endure the force behind that attack.

Soma's body was pushed back as the Chimera attacked him head-on.

'Tsk, this will never end. I need to do something urgently to stop that claw first.'

Some moved out of the way a second after he tried to stop the hidden boss with his strings.

He did not try tugging them once the Chimera pulled him.

Going against that beast with raw strength was not an option.

Luckily, some were full of ideas because of the lake around him.

Even a Chimera could not endure being frozen solid and having no room to breathe.

'The only problem is - how to get the Chimera to the lake.'