Newbie's Quest: Awaiting Challenge
Chapter 33: Occasionally Changing Tactics

"30 minutes!"

Ethan Walker made this bold claim, and instantly, both forums and live streams erupted in astonishment. "How is half an hour even possible?"

"Didn't Ethan compress an A-level run to 13 minutes last time?"

"But that was an A-level! Once there's an S, no matter the level, the difficulty multiplies exponentially!"

These were undeniably true statements. Currently, the highest level in the White Tower instances is SSS. The disparity in difficulty between various SSS levels is substantial. Some are SSS because that's the maximum level achievable. Players have suggested the introduction of higher difficulties, but the decision doesn't lie with the general council. The difficulty of instances is determined randomly, making any human intervention meaningless.

An instance with an S typically takes about 23 hours on average. Larger maps require more time, while smaller ones less. However, completing any within half an hour is an extreme feat.

Not just in the comments and forums, other guilds watching the stream were also taken aback. In the Eternal Dynasty Guild, Natalie Clark had just finished a training session. She casually sipped water and watched the live stream, legs propped up on the table. At Ethan's "30 minutes" declaration, she spat out her water in disbelief.

A teammate threw a sofa cushion at her, muttering complaints. Natalie swiped the cushion away and quickly checked the chat section.

"Damn, I thought I heard wrong. Is Ethan really planning to clear an S-instance in half an hour?"

"Who? Half an hour? Which lunatic escaped from the asylum, spouting such nonsense?"

"Natalie, maybe lay off the sci-fi movies a bit. Your imagination is way beyond the grasp of mere mortals." Natalie wanted to discuss this with her teammates, but instead, she ended up being the butt of their jokes. "Get lost, all of you. Why is sharing thoughts with you so darn hard?"

Seeing her annoyance, one teammate approached, grinning mischievously.

"Who is it? A newbie aiming to clear an S-instance in half an hour? Some overambitious rookie?" Natalie dragged the virtual screen in front of them.

"See for yourself who the 'newbie' is."

"Holy cow," the teammate gasped, recognizing the handsome face on the screen, "Isn't that Ethan Walker?"

Ethan was already famous across various guilds, especially among competitive teams. These promising newcomers were their potential rivals, impossible to ignore.

"What's he up to? Snatching the marked instance from Emerald Tempest Guild? And he's aiming for a thirty-minute clear?" The teammate was astounded. "This is like slapping Emerald Tempest Guild right in the face!"

Indeed, the members of Emerald Tempest Guild were visibly pale, especially the one who had just mentioned "three hours," now too embarrassed to lift their head.

Isabella Martínez forced herself to maintain a composed expression, calmly watching the live stream while trying to console the embarrassed teammate.

"Don't worry, he might just be bluffing."

Ethan Walker never bluffs.

What he says, he does. To prove his point, he stepped onto the table and took down the clock on the wall.

"Set it to 12 o'clock. By 12:30, I'll have cleared it."

After setting the time, he hung the clock back in its place.

The second hand began to tick. Ethan didn't rush to start but instead gave a brief explanation.

"This is an S-level instance. If you follow the standard procedure of solving puzzles and slaying monsters, it's impossible to complete it in half an hour." The live stream's chat erupted in a flurry of confusion and skepticism.

"???"

"What's he even talking about?"

"Is this a joke?"

"Patience, guys. Ethan mentioned 'standard procedure'."

"Exactly, let's just wait for Ethan's show."

"I hope he doesn't screw up, challenging someone else's marked instance and boasting."

"One must remain humble; otherwise, a fall from grace can be quite painful."

The chat was buzzing with Ethan's supporters and critics clashing. Unaffected, Ethan continued addressing the camera, oblivious to the online storm.

"Since the standard approach is futile, we must resort to unconventional methods."

At Ethan's feet, two shadowy vortexes emerged, morphing slowly into distinct shapes. One formed into a petite girl, and the other into a bizarre, flower-like creature partially encircling Ethan. "It's Ethan's subordinates!"

"Red? And what's that snotty flower thing?"

"Ethan's new pet, Little Flower."

"Wasn't her original name Jane...?"

Little Red, reticent by nature, clung to Ethan, eager to hold his hand. Jane, however, was more verbose.

"Ethan! Ethan!"

"Long time no see, Ethan!"

"Are we going out to play?"

Jane's voice was an indistinct blend of male and female tones, more akin to a talking beast, faceless and indescribable in form.

Ethan urged her to quiet down, as he had important instructions to give.

"See those two entrances?" Ethan pointed left and right, "Red, take the left; Little Flower, the right. Ignore any obstacles; deal with anything in your way."

Little Red, tapping her tiny shoes, and Jane, dripping 'saliva', were eager to dash off. Ethan grabbed each by the hand.

"Hold on, let me go first."

He had simulated this instance before and knew every detail. The chat was right; this was a three-person instance. It required at least three players to start from the left, center, and right paths.

The specialty of this 'Alice' instance was heavy on puzzles and escape. After entering through the three doors, players would replace themselves in looping corridors with several locked doors.

Only by solving the puzzles within the paintings, opening the corner password boxes, and replaceing the correct keys to open doors of corresponding colors could they achieve final clearance. If a wrong password was entered, it would activate a boss in the corridor, a creature known as "Painted Corpse".

This monster would chase and bite players, and being caught meant an unpleasant end.

All three entrances needed players to enter. Otherwise, after fifteen minutes, the Painted Corpses from the unentered corridors would swarm into the one with players. Fifteen minutes was the timeframe Ethan had calculated during his simulation. Controlling this time was crucial.

Ethan retrieved a black whistle from his cloud space, a purchase he made before setting off. It was nothing special but notably loud.

He instructed Red and Little Flower to wait at their respective entrances and only enter when they heard the whistle.

After ensuring this, Ethan alone entered the middle door, swiftly enveloped by darkness. The corridor's wall lights lit up one by one.

Ethan's pace was unhurried, despite the chat urging him to speed up. He finally reached the first password box.

"From the entrance to here, we've passed four paintings, corresponding to a four-digit password." Ethan fiddled with the box, showing no intention of solving its puzzle.

"Is there a password on the paintings?"

"Oh no, I didn't pay attention."

"Why isn't Ethan solving the puzzle? This is frustrating."

"Is it the colors of the paintings or some special patterns?"

"With heavy puzzle-solving involved, clearing it in half an hour seems impossible."

"Like I was saying," Ethan continued, "this instance requires some unconventional approaches."

He placed the box back, opened his right hand, and a rubber hammer appeared.

"Sometimes, we need to change our thinking. We don't always have to solve puzzles to get the keys." Bang-

He struck the box forcefully with the hammer!