A cold breeze blew by, and gray fog blanketed the ground. Tall Stone walls laid out before them endlessly into the distance. Zero looked down upon the intricate Maze on top of the cliff. The Maze was long and far as the eye could see; even he wondered how they would make their way in without getting lost.
"How are you going to do this?" Agnis asked. She walked up next to him and placed her hands on her hips.
"I don't know," Kiyro replied. He wasn't sure how they would even find the boss in the intricate Maze before them. He wondered how long it would take to look through for the correct route.
"Is the maze moving?" Agnis squinted and scanned the large Maze that seemed to cover the horizon. "I think it is. Look. It's changing."
"You've got to be kidding me," Zeraph spoke. He was not pleased with the outcome they were getting themselves into. "No one told us the maze changes. This is going to take a while."
"Hopefully not." Zero replied. Already this was becoming a difficult problem in itself. They would be stuck in the Maze for eternity if he did not find a solution.
"Do you have a plan?"
"No. Not yet. Bob. Do you know the way through the Maze?"
Bob came forward, rubbing his hands in worry. "No. I only know that the maze changes daily, and a new route is opened. I only heard about the Maze of Geruem and never entered it before."
"This isn't good." Zeraph folded his arms in discontent. "We can't just walk in there without knowing what's happening inside."
"I know, but what choice do we have?" Zero was not thrilled about the answer to the outcome either. He hoped the Maze would be easy in and out, but nothing was easy. "On the bright side, the highest chance that we gotta get through the maze is Bob directing it himself."
"You're kidding, right?" Everyone was shocked to hear what Kiyro had said. To put blind faith into an NPC was unheard of.
"No. Think about it. Who has the highest luck? It's none of us."
"Zero got the point," Jack was leaning on his battle hammer. He warmed up to Zero's idea. "The game does have a set rule, especially when luck is needed at this moment. Passing through the Maze without getting lost is a bit difficult. We don't have a single map or hints telling us how to make it through. Think about it; Leprechauns have it hands down on being the luckiest magical creature in the game. So far that we know of."
"You got the point, but this is ridiculous. Going in without a plan."
"This is the plan," Kiyro answered. The possibility of putting his trust in an NPC with the highest luck was not a gamble. So far, he had seen Bob in action. Bob had shown them the shortest way to defeat evil Magician Mano; their village gave him a four-leaf clover with a high luck status; still, Bob had not died or got hurt. One could consider it a miracle that Bob was still alive. It wouldn't make sense that such magical creatures didn't have an unusually high level of luck with them; in reality, Leprechauns are considered one of the luckiest creatures.
"Actually, I might have one." Zero raised his hands to catch their attention. "The Maze in the Minotaur reminds me of the Greek mythology of Theseus. Isn't the game of Growth made with many mythological creatures from different cultures?"
"Wait, it wasn't just the Norse Mythology that the game was heavily focused on?" Jack asked.
"No." Agnis replied, "He's right. The monsters, creatures, and gods are not just one group. Right now, the predominant gods are from Norse Mythology. Think of the Fire Continent, a melting pot of different religions squished into one territory. After the Second Stage went into effect, I had heard and seen new gods and disciples appearing around the edge of the Electric Continent. If we think on that line, it will make sense where this Minotaur in a maze came from."
"You remember the golden ball of yarn that the princess Ariadne gave Theseus to help him get out of the maze."
"Yea, but this is a maze that changes every day. How would a ball of yarn help us out in this situation?"
Zero went ahead first without answering. Then, walking down the pathway that leads straight to the Maze's entrance, Zero walked up towards one of the stone walls. He stopped while his friends surrounded him, wondering what he would do. Searching through his bag, Zero pulled out the Golden Chalk the elder Leprechaun gave him. Carefully, Zero drew a ball of yarn threaded into a large needle the size of his forearm.
Even though his drawing was not considered complex, he could draw what he needed. In a shimmer of light, the ball of yarn threaded into the large needle slowly changed into a three-dimensional object and fell to the ground.
"A ball of yarn and a needle?" Agnis asked, confused, what Zero would do. "How is this going to help us?"
Zero did not reply and picked up the magical yarn and needle.
Golden Yarn threaded
Created from Golden chalk. The golden yarn is endowed with endless yarn until it is cut by the drawer. One end of the yarn is already threaded into the needle. An indestructible yarn. It can only be used once. Once cut, the yarn will disappear. Only the drawer may handle the golden needle.
The Golden chalk (rare)
Magical chalk can bring to life a drawing on the ground giving it magical properties. Its powers are unknown. How it was made is a mystery in itself. The magical chalk can only be used three times before it breaks. Use it wisely, for there is no other chance to bring it back to life.
Used: 1/3
"Bob came here." Zero motioned Bob in front of him. He was amazed at the status of the ball of yarn and needle. He quickly got to work with his plan. He picked up the golden needle off the ground and stabbed it into the ground. Bob came forward wondering what Zero wanted.
"Yes?"
"Hold your hands up for a second." Zero searched for the other end of the yarn and pulled it out.
"Like this?" Bob raised his arms. Zero bent over and tied the end of the yarn around Bob.
"I see!" Agnis chuckled. "You're going to use Bob as a lifeline."
"Exactly."
"Then what about the needle you just stuck into the ground?" Alan walked over towards the golden needle that was embedded into the ground. He reached over and tugged hard on the golden needle. "What?" Grunting, he tried to pull out the needle from the ground. "How? It's completely stuck."
"Really?" Jack went over to Alan. "Move aside. You should let a dwarf handle something like this. Even though we are small, we are known for our bountiful strength." Jack rubbed his hands with a thudding of his hammer falling onto the ground. He grabbed the end of the needle. Then, with a heavy breath, he pulled hard with all his strength." Why I never-" Each word was heavy with strain. Zero could see nerves bulging out of Jack's neck.
"Give it up. At least for now, no one can pull the needle out. Isn't that good enough?" Zero asked. He couldn't help but grin. He felt more confident than before with his plan in motion.
"Okay." Jack huffed and puffed from trying to pull out the needle, "It's all good. We can move on. This might actually work."
"We're counting on you, Bob," Zero patted Bob on the back. This was a slim chance, but having a lucky creature like Bob could help them get through the Maze with less chance of getting harmed. "We need to keep Bob safe. Without him, we might be stranded inside the Maze without finding a way towards our goal."
"I guess it's worth a try. Logic in-game seems to be thrown out the window anyways," Zeraph shrugged.
"Lead the way. We trust your judgment."
"Yes!" Bob said with enthusiasm. His eyes sparkled with deep appreciation towards Zero.
Intimacy with Bob has increased by 100.
Bob entered first with bold steps; Zero followed closely behind him, watching for potential dangers. Zeraph and Agnis were on Bob's right side, while Alan and Jack were on Bob's left. They carefully walked, watching out for potential harm.
A loud rumbling sound could be heard as they noticed the entrance being closed. The golden string that was laid out changed direction leading to a different exit.
"Are we locked in?" asked Alan. He squirmed uncomfortably at the thought of being locked in the large Maze.
"No, the walls just shifted directions." Zero replied. He walked towards the wall and placed his hands, wondering if it was an illusion or reality. "Our only option now is to move forward."
"Then what about our exit?" Alan asked. "All I see is the golden thread going in the opposite-" He became quiet and understood where the golden thread was leading.
"He's our lifeline. The golden thread will not be destroyed, so don't worry." Kiyro grinned. He patted Alan's shoulder, reassuring him everything was going to be okay.
"You heard him. Let's go." Zeraph said with a loud voice to snap the people's attention. Bob was already walking ahead of them.
Zero gave the stone wall one last look and turned around towards Bob. Even though he knew the gold yarn had shifted direction towards a different approach, he still felt like the exit was right in front of him. He walked behind Bob as they twisted and constantly turned for hours. Everything looked the same; nothing changed as they went deeper. Time passed as they continued on their journey.
"This is going to drive me crazy just looking at the wall," Jack grumbled.
"At least we haven't had a dead end yet," Agnis replied. She, too, was getting impatient walking through the endless Maze. "What else could be living here to be so boring? I thought there would be some kind of monster hunting we could be doing in here, so we don't get bored out of our mind."