After Penny’s advice, Charlie finally had a clear direction.
He was going to earn money and renovate his house.
Everything else could wait.
For the next few days, he followed the same routine like clockwork: wake up, watch TV, water the crops, go fishing, rummage through trash cans, then go home and sleep.
He also changed fishing spots, moving from the beach to the mountain lake.
For one thing, it was closer.
For another, the fish there sold for more, like Largemouth Bass.
Once his Fishing level reached Level 5, fish sold for 25% more.
A single Gold Largemouth Bass could be worth a few hundred gold.
Whenever he ran into villagers, he sometimes gave them gifts to raise their hearts.
Pam liked Parsnips, Harvey liked coffee, and so on.
Charlie wrote those down, and the days passed one after another.
The 8th, the 9th, the 10th…
By the 11th, he had finally saved the 10,000g needed for the renovation.
He even had enough left over for a Coop.
After watching TV, Charlie patted Lili, put on his shoes, and walked out the door.
When he reached the entrance, Demetrius was standing there waiting for him.
“Hey, Charlie.
I’ve got some good news.”
“A few days ago, I made a breakthrough in my research on the local environment.”
“You know that cave a little way west of the farm?”
Charlie nodded as he listened.
“Yeah.
I only saw it a few days ago after cutting down the trees over there.”
Since Charlie knew the place, Demetrius seemed relieved.
“Right, that one.
I’ve figured out a way to make it useful.
Useful for both of us, actually.”
“How exactly?” Charlie asked.
Demetrius explained.
“I want to use that cave to attract some local creatures so I can observe them in a more controlled environment.”
“That’s what I get out of it.
As for you, anything they leave behind in the cave will be yours.”
“What do you think?”
That sounded fine to Charlie.
Mainly, he had no idea what to do with the cave anyway.
“What kind of things would they leave?” he asked.
“I can set it up to attract either fruit bats or mushrooms.
They’ll leave fruit or mushrooms for you.
Which would you prefer?”
Charlie rested his chin in his hand and thought about it.
“Fruit,” he answered.
Fruit could be used as gifts.
More importantly, some of the Community Center bundles seemed to need it too.
So far, he had only completed the Spring Foraging Bundle with those four items.
Demetrius was clearly pleased.
“Then it’s settled.
I’ll go set it up now.
It won’t take long!”
“Thank you for giving me this opportunity.”
“Uh, no problem,” Charlie said, waving after him.
After that, he decided not to worry about Demetrius for now.
He went to the vegetable patch and watered everything, then patted the Scarecrow beside it.
“I used a lot of materials to make you, so keep an eye on my crops,” he said, giving the Scarecrow’s shoulder a pat.
Then he walked over to the Chest beside the cabin and took out the wood he needed.
At the same time, he noticed someone had sent him a letter.
[Lost Item Notice:
I lost my favorite Axe.
If anyone finds it, please return it right away.
I’ll be in a real bind without it, and I’ll give a 250g reward to whoever brings it back.
-Robin]
Charlie was left speechless after reading it.
When your luck was bad, even the universe found petty ways to mess with you.
“If Robin doesn’t have her Axe, can she still renovate my house?”
With that concern in mind, Charlie headed to Robin’s place.
At nine o’clock, he pushed open the door.
Robin was at the front desk.
“Hi, Robin,” Charlie greeted her.
“Hi there, farmer boy.
Morning.”
“What can I help you with?”
He placed a stack of money on the counter.
“Ten thousand gold, and…”
Then he took the 450 pieces of Wood out of his backpack.
“House renovation!” Charlie said happily.
This was the result of four days of hard work.
Seeing everything he had brought, Robin nodded.
“Okay.
I’ll start tomorrow.
It should take about three days to finish.”
“Okay!” Charlie nodded.
Then he took the chance to ask about the lost Axe.
“Um… Robin, didn’t you lose your Axe?”
“Will that affect the renovation?”
Robin shook her head.
“I don’t only have one Axe.
That one is just important to me.
It won’t affect your progress.”
“If you help me find it, I’d really appreciate it.”
That put Charlie at ease.
“Don’t worry.
Leave it to me!”
…
After stepping outside, he felt lighter all over.
He had been grinding so hard these past few days that even his bones felt sore.
Then he opened the quest interface.
“Chopping wood south of Marnie’s Ranch?”
“Is that the place where I went fishing with Abigail last time?”
Today, he wanted to work on the Explore The Mine quest.
His goal was to reach Floor 5 and gather Copper Ore to make a Furnace.
He wanted to upgrade his Pickaxe and Axe.
But Clint said he needed Copper Bars, and Copper Bars required Copper Ore.
That meant he had no choice but to go into The Mines.
Charlie went home first and put the things he didn’t need into the Chest by the door.
Then he rested for half an hour to get himself ready.
Once he felt prepared, he made his way to the mine entrance.
“Three, two, one, go!”
He reached the ladder.
“11:30 a.m.
Good.”
This time, he needed to keep a close eye on the clock.
The memory of passing out in The Mines last time was still fresh.
Then he took the Iridium Band out of his backpack.
He hadn’t worn the ring last time.
“I heard you can light up an area.
Let’s see what you can do,” he said, looking at the ring.
Then he put it on and went down into The Mines.
He arrived on Floor 1.
With the glow from the Iridium Band, he could see almost everything around him.
It was the same as last time.
No monsters, no ore, basically just stone.
After half an hour, he found the ladder to the next floor beneath the stones.
Then he checked the time.
“12:20.”
“Still early.
I can make it.”
He climbed down.
He reached Floor 2.
As soon as he arrived, he saw a crate.
“A wooden crate?”
“That wasn’t here last time.”
Charlie smashed it with one swing of his Pickaxe.
A carrot fell out.
[Cave Carrot: A starchy snack found in caves.
It helps miners work longer.]
“A Cave Carrot?
Nice.
I’ll take it.”
He put it into his backpack and kept exploring.
After only a few steps, he spotted Copper Ore.
It looked different from ordinary Stone, with obvious streaks of copper running through it.
At the same time, he saw a couple of old friends.
Two Slimes.
“Two of them?”
“Perfect for warming up!”
Charlie immediately summoned his sword.
He took an attacking stance, pushed off from where he stood, and charged straight in.