Chapter 358: King Meets King?
Translator: Pluto Editor: Vermillion
"As one would expect, there are many capable people in the Twelve Worlds." Lin Sanjiu couldn't hold back from making that remark to Mrs. Manas. She watched as the walls at the back of the 4D Fantasy Experience attraction slid open noisily. After she had completed Haunted House Dare on the Swan Route, she had already changed route three consecutive times based on the path that Aker had planned for her. She had completed the Merry-go-round, Pirate Ship and this 4D Fantasy Experience. Just as Aker had predicted, she spent slightly more than one day to complete all three stations.
The three attractions were not exceptionally easy but Lin Sanjiu managed to complete them quickly because of Aker. This was precisely the reason why Lin Sanjiu was impressed by Aker's meticulousness.
Apart from the members of Progressor Alliance, Puppeteer, and Santa Claus, there were other individuals with no affiliations that came to this pocket dimension to train themselves after somehow getting information about the place. For example, Hei Zeji found the pocket dimension by accident and just decided to stay. In the beginning, Aker had already informed the other Progressor Alliance members to try their best to exchange information with these random stragglers. Additionally, there were quite a number of members in the amusement park. With that, Aker managed to gather information from all over the amusement park.
With such a rich source of information, it was much easier for Aker to arrange and plan things compared to Lin Sanjiu. After Aker inquired about Lin Sanjiu's previous experience with the other attractions, he chose three attractions that were similar to the stations that Lin Sanjiu had completed. Since the attractions were on the routes which had more stations, their difficulty level was naturally lower.
Even though Lin Sanjiu did not specifically question Aker about his arrangements, it was obvious that he had spent significant efforts to understand Lin Sanjiu. The attractions that he had chosen for her worked well with her natural advantages. With all these ideal conditions in place, it was no surprise that Lin Sanjiu managed to complete all the stations in such a short time.
"We did game the system a bit," Aker reminded Lin Sanjiu with a serious tone. "It is impossible to reach the final pitstop by strategizing in this manner all the way. At most, I have helped you reduce some unnecessary distance so that you can chase up with Puppeteer as soon as possible. After all, none of us have been to the final pitstop. Once you get out of 4D Fantasy Experience, I have no idea how you should proceed either."
"But, reaching here is already good enough." Lin Sanjiu sighed as she walked out of the 4D Fantasy Experience attraction. The moment she stepped out of the attraction, a small shadow appeared in the horizon. It moved extremely quickly. With the sound of fluttering wings, it grew larger as it approached her. Finally, a paper crane settled on Lin Sanjiu's outstretched arm.
After the crane had "verified" Lin Sanjiu's identity, it started playing the recording of Aker's voice.
"When you walk out of 4D Fantasy Experience, you should have received this message." When Lin Sanjiu was in the process of completing a station, the paper cranes could not enter the arenas. As a result, the two of them only communicated between stations. "Puppeteer is still in the same location. He is still on Pumpkin Route… He has not exited the second-to-last station. That attraction should be quite difficult. After you rush to that location, you should be able to ambush him."
"Okay," Lin Sanjiu replied curtly before releasing the paper crane. Lin Sanjiu did not start moving even after the white paper crane disappeared from the blue sky. Lin Sanjiu crooked her head. She thought about the situation for some time and took out a paper crane from her card deck. Lin Sanjiu had gotten quite a few of these convenient paper cranes thanks to Santa Claus, who wanted to report her location when she was still "bait".
"Hey… where are you now?" After Lin Sanjiu said that, she wasn't quite sure if she should send the paper crane out. In the end, Lin Sanjiu released the paper crane with some hesitance. At first, she was worried that he intended recipient might not receive her message if he was still completing a station. Fortunately, she saw the same paper crane, flying through the blue skies and bright sun, back to her after a short while.
From the background noise, Hei Zeji seemed to be eating something.
"I am on Velvet Cake Route. It should the fourth station on this route." After Hei Zeji's reply, Lin Sanjiu was certain that she heard the sound of a metal fork hitting something. "What's up?"
After some consideration, Lin Sanjiu recorded another message with the paper crane. When she saw the crane disappear the second time, she let out a long sigh. This time, she couldn't help being envious of the large amount of information that Aker had. If she had the information to design her own route, it would be so much easier. However, obviously, she couldn't ask Aker for information this time.
Ultimately, Lin Sanjiu did not really understand Aker so she needed a backup plan. The paper crane did not come back with Hei Zeji's reply even after Lin Sanjiu waited for a long time. Perhaps, she had taken too much time and Hei Zeji had already entered a new attraction. Or, perhaps, Hei Zeji was acting up again. "If he thinks that a reply is unnecessary, there was no way anyone could get him to speak."
Lin Sanjiu knew that she couldn't continue waiting. After she steadied her breathing, she continued on the route before her. According to Aker's plan, Puppeteer would be in the next station.
The decorative style of Pumpkin Route was different from the previous routes. It had a Halloween theme. Fake cobwebs and fake skulls were hung everywhere. Instead of the normal street lamps, the route was lit by carved pumpkin lanterns with all sort of faces, hanging from lampposts. Screaming animatronics leaped out at every corner. If it wasn't as bright as it was then, Lin Sanjiu would have destroyed every single one of them.
After Lin Sanjiu did some preparations, she mumbled to Mrs. Manas a little worriedly, "I wonder if I can even delay him with your plan."
Calling it plan might be an overstatement. It was just something Lin Sanjiu had thought up on the spot. In any case, she had her plan and her escape route, the only thing missing was Puppeteer. Lin Sanjiu walked further until she spotted an arena at the end of the road. Her heart raced. Compared to the other attractions, the arena of this attraction was miserably small. If it weren't for the "Cartoon World Experience" signboard, Lin Sanjiu would have mistaken it for a washroom. There were two entrances, one on the left and the other on the right. It looked like a public washroom with the male and female toilets. There was a short corridor between the entrances. A person, who seemed like the ticket seller, sat crossed legged in the corridor. Just like the other ticket sellers, he had the same listless and disinterested face.
"Is Puppeteer really in this small building?"
Lin Sanjiu slowed down as she approached the entrance of "Cartoon World Experience". This felt somewhat unreal to her. She looked around feeling very uncertain. Yet, this arena seemed just like any other attraction. Apparently, it wouldn't appear any different with Puppeteer in the attraction.
"Do you want to buy a ticket to enter?" The man who was sitting in the corridor looked up. Lin Sanjiu saw an angular face beneath the red hat of his. "It is 5 stamina points."
Even though Lin Sanjiu had agreed to delay Puppeteer, she wasn't willing to try any station with Puppeteer's difficulty level.
"No, I won't be getting a ticket now," she shook her hand. After she had completed her mission, she could always trace her path backward and take another route. "Excuse me, is there someone in the attraction now?"
"Yes," the male ticket seller immediately replied. "Our attraction is very popular, especially with parents and little children. Everyone likes to explore Cartoon World."
This wasn't the first time Lin Sanjiu had heard such blatant false advertising. Starry Carnival Amusement Park had the tendency to portray itself like a normal amusement park. Lin Sanjiu studied the male ticket seller for a while. She was unsure if he would hide the truth from her like that female ticket seller at Haunted House Dare.
"Is there any rule in your amusement park that forbids you from providing information about other players in the game?"
"Well, no." He shook his head.
Lin Sanjiu was relieved and finally showed a smile, "Could you tell me who are the current players in the attraction now?"
The male ticket seller stared at her for a brief moment as if that was the first time he had been asked that question. Lin Sanjiu quickly added, "If I enter the attraction too rashly, I won't survive if the difficulty is too high."
The ticket seller in the red hat finally replied. "A girl entered this afternoon. She is the only player recently. The person who went in before her was a male player. He had been in the attraction for five days. He isn't out yet. I guess he is too engrossed."
"Female? Five days ago?"
This did not match the information that Aker had given her. Puppeteer probably haven't even reached this station five days ago.
"What sort of girl?" Lin Sanjiu asked curiously after she suddenly remembered Puppeteer's secret.
After all, when she used [That spring, when the cherry blossoms fell, your sweet laughter melted my world], it hinted that Puppeteer was only half male… This was also the reason why Puppeteer wanted to find and kill her.
"You know it isn't polite for me to stare at a young girl," the ticket seller replied matter-of-factly. "But she isn't pretty. Her eye bags were huge. Her face was extremely long. I have no idea how powerful she is, though."
" That description doesn't match Puppeteer." Lin Sanjiu had a sudden suspicion. "Is that girl a puppet?"
That wasn't right.
Puppets like Muntjac Bai could have maintained some level of consciousness. However, once they were controlled by Puppeteer, they are no longer independent living beings. Furthermore, they were part of Puppeteer's ability. It was just like Lin Sanjiu's [Planar World] and Mrs. Manas, who existed in her mind. Despite how sentient they were, the amusement park did not recognize them as individual players. When these beings walk on the streets in the amusement park, they do not get a player number. Even if they enter an attraction, they will only be treated as their owner's vassal.
If that was true, there was only one explanation left. Lin Sanjiu became nervous. Without saying another word to the ticket seller, she turned and ran in the opposite direction. Even though she couldn't make full sense of the situation, she knew that Aker had lied!
Lin Sanjiu did not know why Aker had tricked her to go to Pumpkin Route. She couldn't understand why he would even waste the effort to trick someone like her. If Puppeteer wasn't here, Lin Sanjiu really didn't know what to expect next. She knew that she must run back to the previous station and request a route change!
However, after running a few steps, LIn Sanjiu suddenly stopped running. Just like the other routes, there were a variety of shops on Pumpkin Route. She scanned the shops quickly and rushed into a barbeque shop randomly. To hide her view from passersby, she closed the glass door behind her with a back kick.
"State your price," Lin Sanjiu slammed her hand on a table with a plate of meat once she rushed into the shop. The store owner popped up from behind the cashier counter, shocked. "I need to know the location of a player!"
The store owner was a small, petite woman with an attractive appearance and spoke unhurriedly. The woman frowned and observed Lin Sanjiu. After some time, she slowly wiped her hands and walked out from the cashier counter. "You have asked my colleague about another player some time back."
"Yes," Lin Sanjiu replied. She didn't expect that she would have to deal with a slowcoach. Curbing her impatience, Lin Sanjiu urged quickly, "Do you know the location of the players in the amusement parK? What is your price?"
"You're lucky. I do know that information," the female store owner replied as she sat down on a chair stylishly. "I can't take your stamina points for no reason. Look at that plate of meat. It's delicious. Why don't you sit down and cook some meat… We can talk later."
From the looks of it, the staff in the amusement park prioritized "running their businesses". Even though Lin Sanjiu knew she did not have much time now, she couldn't do anything to these beings in the pocket dimension. She held back her anger and barbequed a plate of pork neck fillets, which cost 15 stamina points, in a haphazard manner. After that, she asked the store owner again. "Is it alright now? I want to know the location of someone called Aker. Where is he now?"
"That player is one Grizzly's Route now. He is at the fifth station," the female store owner finally replied after she saw the cooked meat.
Lin Sanjiu was stunned. When she communicated with Aker previously, he mentioned that he would be on Grizzly Route. Due to his plan, it would be easier for him to gather members from Progressor Alliance that way. In other words, according to his current location, he was following his plan.
If Aker was following his plans properly...
Lin Sanjiu shuddered. She was a little afraid of the second thought which surfaced in her mind.
"About that… I want to know the location of another person," she couldn't help whispering, "Do you know a player named Puppeteer? Where is he now?"
The female store owner, who looked beautiful despite her age, tilted her head and looked behind Lin Sanjiu.
Lin Sanjiu felt her heart sank.
"Look behind you, he is right outside the door," the female owner said with her red luscious lips.