Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] Chapter 190: Book 3: Chapter 42: Fetch

Read chapter 190 of Aetherios System [Slow Build OP MC, Isekai LitRPG/Cultivation] by TTReynolds on NovelPedia.

Book 3: Chapter 42: Fetch Chapter 42: Fetch “Everyone over here,” Alex called. The squad clustered around the table, heads craning in to see. The plaque’s surface gleamed faintly in the filtered garden light, every line and etching distinct even under years of grime. Peter let out a low whistle. “That’s… yeah, that’s the whole place. Courtyards and hedges, and they even show the pathways, so it’s a maze.” “Maze,” Garret repeated flatly. “Great. Just what I wanted. To get lost in a leafy hell forever.” “Shut up,” Allie muttered as she leaned in closer. She tapped one of the etched symbols on the plaque. It was a tiny, diamond-like gem cut into the metal. “What about these? There’s more than one.” Alex followed her finger as she traced the many symbols. There looked to be seven of them scattered across the map at different points in the maze. Gem-shaped marks, but they were all somewhat unique, each one slightly varied. “Treasure, loot?” Lance asked hopefully. Eric shook his head. “The System doesn’t hand out freebies like that. But, if it marked them, it wants us to go to them.” “Objectives then,” Holly said softly. “Seven of them.” Peter clicked his tongue disapprovingly and frowned down at the etching. “Could be trial markers. Maybe the dungeon wants us to activate these, same as the statues back in the tundra.” “That would track,” Alex admitted as his eyes scanned the picture of the maze. From what he could see, the paths twisted and spiraled in maddening ways, almost as if it was intentionally disorienting. A shocker, that. The gems were spaced widely apart, leaving no direct line between them. They’d have to make choices to take turns, or possibly backtrack a lot while collecting them in a group. “Seven points of interest. Seven tasks.” Peter’s brow furrowed as he looked at the plaque. “But why gems? Doesn’t really fit the garden theme.” “Could just be how the System marks them. Or maybe we’re supposed to collect something.” Allie said. “Or destroy something, I wouldn’t mind smashing a few overgrown weeds with magic crystals stuck in ‘em.” Garret offered with a grin. Alex straightened and rubbed his chin. The plaque didn’t give any more details, there was no text or hint beyond the layout and the symbols. Just a maze, and the promise of seven unknowns. Which in System terms meant seven ways to bleed and die in painful ways. “Doesn’t matter what they are yet. What matters is getting to them. So I say we pick a path, we follow it, and we see what the dungeon throws at us.” He finally came to a conclusion, though it was less of a plan, and more a general vibe. The team shifted uneasily at his words, many eyes lingering on the twisting map. They lingered around the plaque longer than Alex liked. “We split up,” he added. “That way, we cover more ground. And we could finish faster.” “Absolutely not,” Allie shot back. “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Peter nodded quickly. “She’s right. This is a dungeon maze. Splitting up means losing communication, getting isolated, and then picked off one by one.” “Divide and conquer,” Eric agreed. “For the dungeon, not for us.” Alex frowned. They weren’t actually wrong. Still, seven objectives spread across such a large mess was a lot. The map wasn’t portable either, the plaque was fused to the table, immovable. If they wanted to plan routes, this was the only place they’d see the whole picture. He set his jaw and started memorizing the layout. Line by line, curve by curve, committing each twist to memory. Obby spoke in the back of his mind. “ Left fork, right turn, loop east. Mark the second gem by the arch of hedges. All good.” Alex traced another path with his eyes, but his focus broke when the courtyard suddenly… groaned. A deep, heavy creak reverberated through the air, like the wood of an old seaship strained past its limit. The squad froze at the sound. A shape slid into view from one of the hedge arches, its body gliding low across the stone path. It was a fucking snake. But