Chapter 344: Puzzle Treasure

Naturally, Storyteller wouldn’t refuse a side quest.

“Of course. What do you need my help with?”

Storyteller replied quickly.

After hearing this, the Sea Star Merchant quickly reeled in his fishing rod, then pulled a slip of paper from his clothes and handed it to Storyteller.

[You have obtained: Puzzle Paper]

[Puzzle Paper]

[Content: Beneath the sky’s shadow, the opposite of Madness, where the weeper’s gaze falls, the one in the red scarf is watching too, it is best to wait for nightfall.]

[Explanation: A slip of paper with a puzzle written on it. Perhaps you can find something good by following the clues.]

The Sea Star Merchant said, “If you can find the item I need, I might be able to sell you a few things.”

‘Oh…’

‘So it’s a treasure hunt!’

Storyteller immediately understood the Type of quest. He hadn’t expected this major update to include hidden treasure hunts. ‘How interesting.’

[Quest Accepted: Puzzle Treasure 1]

[Quest Objective: Find the item required by the Sea Star Merchant and give it to him to unlock the Sea Star Merchant’s exchange shop.]

[Time Limit: Three days.]

“Alright, I’ll find it.”

Storyteller put the Puzzle Paper away.

The Sea Star Merchant nodded. “I will be waiting here for a while. I hope you can find what I need before then.”

“Don’t worry.”

Storyteller was full of confidence. He might not be the best at combat, but when it came to puzzles… well, there was a reason so many people watched his videos, right?

And so, the moment he saw the paper, Storyteller had already locked onto two clues.

The upper level of Candle Island, Seaside Town…

“…Traveler, you should spend more time exploring the sea. There are many treasures Concealed within it.”

The Sea Star Merchant added, seeming to intentionally leak some information to Storyteller.

Storyteller fell into thought upon hearing this.

‘It seems there are quite a few of these puzzle treasure quests, huh? Or maybe… there’s more than one Sea Star Merchant?’

After a moment of contemplation, Storyteller suddenly noticed something else.

The Sea Star Merchant before him seemed…

‘He seems a bit like the Sea Star Race the exploration team mentioned?’

‘Hsss…’

At this thought, a faint suspicion formed in Storyteller’s mind, and he decided to ask directly.

“Uh, excuse me, are you a member of the Sea Star Race?”

Storyteller watched the other’s expression and movements as he spoke.

But the Sea Star Merchant didn’t seem surprised by the question at all. Instead, he replied calmly, as if he had rehearsed this very line many times.

“…If you find the item I need, I can answer some of your questions.”

Storyteller shrugged. It looked like he’d have to complete the puzzle treasure quest before he could get any information about the Sea Star Merchant.

Just then, Li Miao and Niuniu, who had gotten his message, hurried over.

They glanced at the Sea Star Merchant but were dragged away by Storyteller before they could say a word.

As Storyteller led them toward the lower level of Candle Island, he told them what had just happened and showed them the Puzzle Paper.

“Whoa,” Niuniu said, looking at Storyteller in surprise. “So Spirit Candle really did add hidden content in this update. Nice one, Storyteller.”

Storyteller gave a self-satisfied smile.

“What the heck is this?” Li Miao scratched his head, his face scrunching up. “I hate solving puzzles. They’re so annoying.”

“Right, a Low IQ Knight is definitely only fit for playing Tetris.”

Shore’s ship hadn’t even docked yet, but his trash talk had already arrived.

“Tsk, I wonder who it was that got stuck in the police station for a week in RE2 and came crying to me for help.”

Li Miao shot him a disdainful look.

“Shit,” Shore said, getting flustered. “Who cried? Stop spouting bullshit!”

“Oh? So you admit you asked for help?” Li Miao chuckled slyly.

The others were already used to their banter. After all, whether in the group chat or the party channel, the two of them were responsible for half of the “99+” message notifications.

“Let’s search the lower level of Candle Island. Speak up if you see anything out of the ordinary.”

Storyteller quickly assigned the task, and the group began their search on the lower level of Candle Island.

It took them quite a while.

However, Storyteller was experienced. He soon spotted a rather dark area on the coast.

The shadow cast by Candle Island was also heaviest here, making the difference noticeable even in the dim environment.

The group quickly went to the sea’s surface, dove right in to investigate, and before long, they found a clue: a rusty, arrow-shaped anchor.

Although it wasn’t a pickupable item, it clearly pointed in a specific direction.

Afterward, relying on his vast experience, Storyteller found the remaining two clues.

One was at the entrance to the Seaside Town dungeon, where a new, strangely twisted stone had appeared, also clearly pointing the way.

Then there was the weeper’s gaze, which came from a broken statue Faraway had discovered on a small, isolated island. It was looking toward a certain direction near Candle Island.

In fact, using these three clues, Storyteller had already pinpointed the exact location and found the treasure.

Because all three clues were directional, they weren’t particularly hard to decipher—he probably didn’t even need to find all of them.

“Found the shipwreck! There’s a chest on it!”

Shore was ecstatic, his frustration from failing at Serving Fire largely washed away.

“Hey, these bugs glow,” Li Miao said, curiously scooping up some of the tiny creatures from the water where the treasure was located.

“No wonder it mentioned nighttime…” Without a doubt, this was another clue from the puzzle.