But you are thinking one-sided (your own side - not the coin side).
Merge mining spreads the hashing around, alleviating the probability of a 51% attack. It also gets more people aware and involved.
If you don't mind trading in weak coins, there's plenty to choose from. If you want to deal with a coin that has a better established base of people vested (it's a word and I used it right) in continued success, this one is for you.
The price is partly due to FUD, partly due to shortsighted people, and partly due to unforeseen issues that delayed the launch and affected the early ability to transfer coins among exchanges.
Find me another new coin that has the backing of good dedicated developers, backed by a company that promised resources if needed (and proved it), and has such a strong interest among many of us (not you) this long after launch. I've seen several other new coins die on the day they were born, in just the past week or so. And several coins killed by the greed of their own scamming creators.
Maybe you aren't yet qualified to do any thinking. But don't stop trying - you'll get there.
I think merge mining was a big mistake..look at the diff and the price now...