Chương 91: When It Rains Legendaries

Meno's brain came back wrong. Everything around him moved too slowly. Morlando's mouth opened and shaped words, but the sound stretched into useless noise. Grandpa's fingers moved across a virtual keyboard, each press taking so long that Meno had time to notice the tiny tremble in the old man's wrist before the next motion began. The lab dulled by degrees. His senses lowered like someone had dragged a slider down. The lights stopped stabbing his eyes. Sound returned to speech.

His limbs still felt too light, too ready, but the room no longer crawled one frame at a time. It felt awful, like he had dropped to negative ninety-nine percent Action Speed.

"What did you just say? Everything was glacial for a bit there," Meno said, blinking hard.

"Yes. That is expected," Teacher said, nodding like that was normal.

"It wasn't a tutorial," Morlando said, his expression still fixed on him.

"Oh." Meno rubbed water from his face.

"Who controls the enemies in the simulation? Seemed a bit dumb." Teacher looked at him like he had called her baby ugly.

"Each target is piloted by a different instance of the same AI," Grandpa said, still tapping virtual controls.

"Okay." Meno sat up further in the capsule.

"Can I get out of here now? Also, I think you owe me a million credits. That was definitely a successful simulation." Morlando looked at Grandpa, then at the playback screens, then back at Meno.

"Yes. Don't worry about that."

"I am worrying about it."

"But I still want you to run the same thing for six hours simulation time," Morlando said, lifting one finger.

"That is only an hour outside."

"How long was I in the first time?" Meno asked, freezing halfway through pulling a cable from his suit.

"About thirty minutes real time. Three hours inside," Morlando said.

"We let you experiment before triggering the attack." Meno gave the Soma-XUltra a fresh suspicious scan. A three-hour sim had felt like a training session, but his body came out acting like his brain had been placed into a faster frame rate and then thrown into mud. Six more hours sounded profitable and stupid. Those were becoming the dominant themes of his life.

"Do you pay me a million each time I win?"

"Don't be ridiculous," Morlando said, offended on behalf of money itself.

"You get paid for each new scenario you solve and then provide sufficient data for." Meno let that sit between them.

"Previously, you said I get paid for success. Now the terms seem to have changed again." Morlando's annoyance flickered across his face. He had clearly not expected Meno to clear Alpha-1 on the first try before they squeezed enough data out of it. But he was not an amateur. He understood threats had limits. Push too hard, and even a broke streamer might choose to set the whole thing on fire.

"Fine," Morlando said.

"On top of the one million, you get one hundred thousand per hour you spend inside from now on. One point six total for today. Full amount wired as sponsorship and speaking fee from a third party." Meno lowered himself back into the capsule.

"Okay. Put me back in. Let's see what else this thing can do." The next six hours inside taught him that it could do a lot. The more he ignored the annoying AI, the better he got. The enemy craft felt limited, like half-finished raid bosses with several scripts and no improvisation between them. One liked missile pressure. One preferred altitude advantage. One tried to hold tail position and retreat whenever spacing looked bad.

None of them understood Meno's favorite part of combat: making the correct answer look wrong until the last second. He started hunting their assumptions. His favorite trick was taking the craft into the high envelope and running flat out at Mach 9, not in a turn so much as a vast burning arc across the top of the world. Three enemy craft would follow, their AIs trying to solve him like a missile problem. Then he would cut thrust. His fighter jet, drone, or whatever they wanted to call it did not stop.

Nothing stopped at that speed. It simply stopped matching the prediction. Heat dropped. Acceleration vanished. Its path sagged into a long ballistic curve while the enemy AI adjusted, doubted itself, and overcorrected. It felt like stepping in and out of a monster's aggro radius. Their missiles were worse. From behind, capped at Mach 6, they had no prayer of catching him unless he gave them the angle, so he never did.

He let them burn fuel chasing the ghost of where he had been while he fell through a path they had already decided was impossible. The enemy AI guessed wrong, sending all three craft toward the place he should have been if he had kept burning. He had not. They reached the empty intercept point at hypersonic speed, overshot it, and spread apart trying to recover. That was the moment he wanted. He kicked the engine back to full burn and let the drone's nose drift across their escape path. Not much.

At Mach 9, not much was all the sky allowed. The targeting frame flashed green. For three seconds, all three were inside the weapon cone. Three seconds was enough. Meno finished the six-hour session without losing a single battle, but when the capsule opened again, the brain-speed issue bit harder. The lab crawled. Morlando's movement smeared. Teacher's hand rose toward his mask in a slow, slow arc, giving Meno enough time to think of four rude comments before her fingers reached the latch.

Then the world caught up badly. Sound snapped closer. Light sharpened. His stomach rolled, and he grabbed the edge of the capsule as the gray liquid drained around his knees. The time-compression lag was not a side effect. It was a cost. At ten minutes outside for one hour inside, it had to be. Meno had no idea what the gray stuff actually did, but if this was the premium hundred-million-credit experience, his X7 at home suddenly seemed like a wooden cart with a blanket over it.

Morlando stood before several screens, replaying fight clips like a fan going through highlights. The giddy sounds he made did not match a trillionaire CEO. They matched a tech freak watching his favorite impossible bug become data. Meno climbed out, and his body felt strange. Too light. Too responsive. Each step landed with more control than before, like the capsule had tuned something inside him and forgotten to put it back.

His arms moved when he wanted them to, without the tiny delay he usually ignored because he had never known it was there.

"Is this a residual buff, or will it persist?" Meno asked.

"You should feel normal in an hour. Take these," Teacher said, handing him two white pills on a tray and a glass of muddy light-teal liquid. Meno looked down.

"What is this?"

"Brain and nerve supplements. They help calm your body so your brain does not cook itself. The liquid is for dehydration."

"Love the phrasing." He took both pills immediately and drank the liquid. It tasted like every cough medicine had been poured into a cocktail nobody asked for. Meno forced it down, accepting the stomach debuff for survival, then changed out of the cable suit and back into his clothes. Strangely, he was not sweaty. After all that mental strain, he had expected to be drenched.

"What's the gray stuff in the capsule?"

"Cooling and heat transfer," Grandpa said, looking up from a screen.

"Without it, the capsule would fry you." Meno let that sentence join the growing pile of things he wished nobody had explained.

"Good to know." Morlando finally stopped watching replays and turned toward him.

"This is great," he said.

"Way above expectation. We will move the lab to Vernova. If you come here too much, people will notice." He started walking, and Meno followed, giving Grandpa and Teacher a small wave. They were already back inside the data.

"Get sponsorships for your stream as soon as possible," Morlando said, moving fast down the tiled corridor.

"It will make your recent windfall less suspicious. Going from being broke to above one point six million will trigger a few flags, but your recent success should make it acceptable."

"Great," Meno said.

"I thought you were going to tell me I can't spend it."

"Do whatever you want. But if you get arrested for something stupid and I have to get you out, I will deduct it from your paycheck. My lawyers are very expensive."

"Yes," Meno said.

"Everything always seems very expensive." They entered the elevator. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The ride was silent for two floors or maybe forty, because Skyline buildings made vertical travel feel like a loading screen for people with money. The doors opened at the top, where the VTOL waited. Before Meno could leave, Morlando stopped him.

"Meno." He turned.

"What we do here is important," Morlando said.

"But Solar and Veyrath remain my top priority. Do not destroy either."

"I never try to destroy anything. Things just fall apart around me on their own." Morlando did not look reassured.

"We will be in touch for the next appointment in Vernova." Meno stepped into the VTOL and left him behind. The journey home was uneventful, which almost made it feel fake. Jet. VTOL. Lab. Classified simulation. Blackmail. One point six million credits somewhere in transit under a fake sponsorship wrapper. Then back to the same city, same apartment, same life that had suddenly developed secret rooms under the floor. When Meno got home, it had been around seven hours since he killed Vervenzal.

His capsule lockout still had not finished, and his stream was still restreaming Oxy. She was in Templefall Hollow, farming XP while chat alternated between watching her and demanding Meno's return. She looked tired but functional, as if Oxy had been built to operate on noise and stubbornness. He wondered if the world state had progressed yet. Maybe Veyrath was waiting for him to log back in before triggering the global mess.

Maybe the Vervenzal clear had already cracked open whatever lay past the main continent, and he had missed it because he had been forced into drone soup. His life was getting truly surreal. Maybe he should have declined the meeting, like Brad would have advised. Then again, people like Morlando Felt tended to get what they wanted, and saying no might only have delayed the pressure.

The money was huge, but Meno kept thinking about speed instead, about Mach 9 and the silent curve of a craft falling away from prediction. Everything around him still felt slightly slow. Not by much. Enough to notice. His body remained too responsive, like the world had reduced input lag by a few percent and refused to explain why. Meno decided to sleep it off. Once he logged in, he would be online for a long time. The real world had eaten seven hours, but to him the day felt closer to fifteen.

His brain needed to stop being a fighter jet before he tried reading loot. When he woke, it was dark outside. He checked his phone. Tuesday. Barely. Almost midnight. Oxy was still streaming.

"Machine," Meno muttered. He texted her that he was back, then stopped the restream. The X7 capsule waited in the apartment. Yesterday, it had felt like luxury. Now it looked like an old relic. The Soma-XUltra had ruined him in one session, which was insulting because he could not simply go buy a hundred-million-credit machine. The first thing he would buy was a gift for his mother. The second would be the most expensive capsule he could afford.

A flat was probably the responsible choice, which made the capsule feel more important. Meno climbed into the X7. The login felt loose compared to the XUltra, softer and delayed, but Veyrath still arrived around him like home. He appeared inside the raid. The Lost Temple lay cracked and silent. Kaerthalan slept nearby, huge and ash-dark, curled with the lazy arrogance of a dragon that had already collected apple tribute. Legendary loot beams still rose from the ground. Meno exhaled.

"Thank you, weekly raid reset design." Dungeon instances would have vanished on wipe or reset. The raid preserved the clear. For once, a system decision had not reached into his pocket and stolen his joy. Notifications stacked along the side of his vision. A million of them. HE'S BACK WHERE WERE YOU JET ARC? LOOT NOW RANK ONE DID YOU ESCAPE? Meno raised both hands.

"It was fine, guys. Really. Nothing special." liar nothing special?? blink twice paid actor"I was told I am getting nerfed at sixty, so that's that. No bans." rip NERFED knew it Swing Master dead rank one patch"Loot first," Meno said.

"Notification wall after. Opening those might trigger world progression." That helped a little. The ground near Vervenzal held three legendary beams. Vervenzal supposedly had a chance at Mythic crafting materials too, but apparently Meno had not been that lucky. Still, three drops meant the reward had stayed raid-scaled instead of being punished for his solo clear, and the first boss should have three more. He just hoped the items were things he could use. Otherwise guild drama would arrive wearing a smile.

His Rare III Leviathan Fang Dagger had broken and been destroyed during the fight, so there had better be compensation. Meno checked viewership. Viewers: 523, 884 If he waited, viewership would rise, but he wanted loot more, so Meno picked up the first orange beam. [Legendary III | Vervenzal's Pursuit] Type: Leather Helmet Durability: Indestructible Defense: Medium Leather Bonus: +2% action speed. Hunt Beyond Reach: Every 10 seconds, your next melee attack is transformed into a medium-range projectile.

Condemned Distance: If the projectile hits, the target is immobilized for 1 second and you immediately charge to them. Godless Momentum: After charging this way, your attacks strike twice until Hunt Beyond Reach is ready again. Exile's Verdict: You deal 100% increased damage against targets outside your melee range. Meno screamed.

"YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!" Chat exploded with him. BROKEN WHAT IS THAT FINAL BOSS ITEM STRIKE TWICE?? BAN HIM LEATHER GOD PLEASE BAN The item was insane. Not a little overtuned. Not just good. It looked like the final boss had read Meno's class and decided to apologize. Projectile charge every ten seconds. Immobilize. Attacks struck twice after the charge. For Swing Master, strike twice meant double stacks, and Exile's Verdict meant Hundredfold Cleave from outside melee range could get a full damage boost on top.

Meno held the helmet like it might vanish if he blinked.

"This is the best item I have ever seen." Viewers: 732, 009 People were finding out he was back and looting, and the number climbed in chunks.

"I wonder if strike twice works for Hundredfold too," Meno said.

"And if it stacks with the distance damage buff. If I bounce away after the charge and cleave out of melee range, that is disgusting." disgusting test now equip helmet reveal build ruined Meno equipped it, replacing his Uncommon III Charmleather Helmet. A notification appeared immediately. [World First Achievement Acquired] First Player to Equip Legendary III Gear [Reward Unlocked] Legendary III Design Credit Meno ignored it, because at this point design credit had become a running joke.

The helmet had no flat damage reduction like many normal items, but the effect was so absurd it barely counted as a downside. Chat spammed for helmet view. Meno opened settings, navigated dangerously near Immersion Mode, and toggled helmet display on. Since he could not see himself, he opened his own stream in an overlay and switched the view to third person. Streams allowed flexible perspective control, and most people watched third person by default.

It was strange seeing himself standing in the broken raid with a dragon sleeping nearby and orange beams around his boots. The helmet looked cool: a white leather hood and a sleek golden breathing-mask faceguard with the polished hardness of bone, covering everything below his eyes. Meno liked it enough to immediately hide it, because visible helmets were still a no-go for streaming. Viewers: 1, 203, 552 He picked up the second item.

[Legendary III | Vervenzal's Last Prayer] Type: Amulet Stillborn Miracle: If you remain stationary for 5 seconds, enter Last Prayer. Moving immediately ends Last Prayer. Exiled Benediction: While in Last Prayer, your spells deal 100% increased damage. Unfallen Voice: While in Last Prayer, your spell range is increased by 50%. Heaven Denied: While in Last Prayer, you cannot be interrupted. Meno read it twice.

"Turret godmode amulet for casters." BROKEN OP caster bis Ruinelle item Arayu item SELL IT?

"That range buff is nasty," Meno said.

"Classes with long-range spells can probably cheese mechanics with it. No interrupt might make it viable for PvP, but status effects can still bypass that." Casters in chat started begging so hard the messages fused into one desperate wall. Meno equipped it as a joke because he did not have an amulet anyway, and used items could still be traded or sold. Chat became enraged instantly. NO WHY MAGE ITEM THEFT unequip criminal"Calm down. It's only for style." The amulet did look nice.

A white chain with a golden eyeball hanging from it. Useless for him, but stylish enough to wear until greed developed a better plan.

"Okay," Meno said.

"Last item. Better be good." trash please unfair caster staff give guild Meno picked up the last Vervenzal beam. [Legendary III | Vervenzal's Verdict] Type: One-Handed Sword Durability: Indestructible Opening Decree: Attacks with this weapon deal 300% increased damage to enemies above 80% health. First Exposure: Attacks with this weapon ignore 100% of Defense against enemies above 80% health. Final Decree: Attacks with this weapon deal 300% increased damage to enemies below 20% health.

Mercy Severed: Attacks with this weapon pierce shields against enemies below 20% health.

"LET'S GOOOO!" Chat broke. NO WAY INDSTRUCTIBLE BURST SWORD THAT EXECUTE DMG SHIELD PIERCE PBG BUFFED HOW"Obviously using this even though it is not a dagger," Meno said.

"That is definitely over one hundred percent overall damage if you do the math, which I am not doing right now." He grinned despite himself.

"Crazy burst with defense penetration to start the fight, then shield pierce to finish. I am really glad Panic Pump has pierce immunity, because this sword would hard counter it." He equipped it in the main-hand slot where his broken dagger had been. The sword looked sick. Ivory blade. Broken-halo guard. Narrow golden edge with a faint glow. It had normal one-handed sword length, not as long as his old Rune Spire, but it looked like it had been made to execute.

DPS LOSS dagger better stacks CALL CHADCULATOR math axe slot?

"There is no way any reasonable dagger is better than this," Meno said.

"It has Legendary III base damage and these crazy mods." He looked at the blade again.

"The question is whether it belongs in my Chain Madness slot. Even though it is not two-handed, Chain Madness should still boost it to ten attacks per second. Rarity difference might make base damage equal to the axe or better." Meno shook his head.

"Testing later. I am not calculating this now." He now had four legendary pieces equipped. One was totally useless, but still. The character sheet was beginning to look great. Kaerthalan remained sound asleep. Meno left the boss room and checked the path. The trash packs had vanished with Vervenzal's defeat, leaving the rings quiet except for cracked marble and golden tiles, so he navigated back toward the first boss area where the Chain of the First Dream had shattered.

Three more loot beams waited there, excessive in exactly the way loot should be. Viewers: 2, 102, 448 Meno picked up the first one. [Legendary I | Ring of the First Dream] Type: Ring Waking Ward: Healing targets above 50% health grants them a shield equal to 50% of the healing done for 5 seconds. Dreamlink: Healing targets below 50% health also heals the lowest-health friendly target within medium range for 50% of the healing done.

"Only Legendary I for the first boss," Meno said.

"Two fewer mods." He rotated the ring.

"Healer item. Meh. Shield above fifty, extra person healed below fifty. Probably very strong. Honestly, no clue." Healers in chat took offense. Meno equipped it into his final empty ring slot. It was ivory with golden streaks through the center. STOP EQUIPPING HEALER THEFT STYLE GOD Morfoos item Orlaqt crying"Calm down. As I said, style. Not actually useful." Meno picked up the next item. [Legendary I | Dreamchain Aegis] Type: Shield Durability: Maximum+++ Defense: High Shield Penalty: -10% Action Speed.

Dreambound Advance: Blocking a ranged attack grants 50% increased movement speed and 25% melee damage reduction for 3 seconds. Chainbound Reprisal: Blocking a melee attack grants 50% increased damage and 25% ranged damage reduction for 3 seconds. Chat immediately chose a recipient. BrineSaint shield Oxy shield tank item Almos? call BrineSaint"Okay, that ten percent action speed penalty is revolting." Meno turned the shield in his hands.

"That is both attack and movement speed penalty. Yes, the effect is good and somewhat counters it, but I would rather dodge. If you stack this with full plate, that is thirty-five percent less action speed. You are a walking training dummy." He considered Oxy. She used a shield, so giving it to her might be a good gift. It might also look desperate, and Meno had no idea how those rules worked. Last time he trusted instinct it was fatal. He would ask Lysa. Probably. Maybe. Meno put the shield away.

"Okay. Final item. Let's see." [Legendary I | Dreamchain Greaves] Type: Plate Boots Durability: Maximum+++ Defense: High Plate Penalty: -5% Action Speed. Dreamforged Footing: While standing still, all equipped items count as having at least High+ Defense. Dreamchain Stride: You cannot be slowed below 80% of your base Movement Speed. lucky wear it plate bait slow immune toes?

"Nice," Meno said.

"It boosts even cloth pieces to High+ Defense, but only while standing still, which I am not a big fan of." He tapped the item window.

"Stopping just to take a hit is toxic. Also does not work airborne and lacks the usual flat damage reduction mod. But the slow floor is really good by itself." He studied the defense line.

"Since it is legendary, even if it says High like my Rare III chest, the actual defense value should be much higher. It is vague. The AI should really make this stuff more obvious, but higher rarity better is usually true." ACTION SPEED BAIT minus five don't you need speed"Yes, if I did not have the Prismflow Ring for plus five percent action speed, this would be bad," Meno said.

"But if I equip it instead of the Uncommon III leather boots, I am only at negative one percent action speed overall. Not ideal. Probably worth it." He equipped the boots, and golden chains curled around his bare feet. His toes remained visible, which did not exactly scream protection, but it looked cool. With six legendary items equipped, two of them useless, Meno was starting to look less like a player and more like a raid boss.

TOESTYLE bigfoot build free toes raid boss feet clip clip clip"Okay, calm down," Meno said.

"That's it for items." He turned back toward the broken final ring.

"Let's go back to Kaerthalan and see these notifications."