Amy was greatly shocked.
This kid’s way of raising favorability was even stranger than Andrew’s… Should she take advantage of the moment and say a few more things?
Clara blinked her pretty blue eyes at Amy, a trace of shock in her gaze.
Amy calmly met her eyes.
The two stared at each other.
In the end, Clara was the first to lose. She puffed up her cheeks and muttered, “Just now I couldn’t think of a reason to stop you from talking to Gabriel, I didn’t mean to insult you… I’m not that kind of person!” With that, she fled back into the kitchen like the wind.
The perfume Clara wore was a fashionable scent. Even after she left, the fragrance lingered.
The sweet floral aroma hung at the tip of Amy’s nose. Holding her fork, Amy thought that Clara might not be a bad child, just a little immature in her thinking.
But none of that mattered much to her. Amy didn’t dwell on it. What was urgent now was the plate of salmon pasta in front of her. She had been looking forward to it ever since Clara served it, her mouth watering for ages.
If Clara hadn’t suddenly appeared to say all those strange things, this pasta would already be in her stomach, not still on the table.
She twirled the fork through a few strands of long noodles, winding them into a tempting little coil, and brought it to her lips.
First came the rich, delicate cream sauce, then the chewy pasta coated in cream, and finally the thick slices of salmon.
The fresh salmon had absorbed the richness of the cream while cooking. Every slice bathed in silky sauce, its flesh tender and springy, while the herbs and lemon juice scattered through it brought a refreshing touch, balancing out the heaviness of the cream.
Ah, delicious.
Amy devoured the whole plate like a storm.
【You have unlocked Recipe: “Cream Salmon Pasta”】
Having eaten a slice of cream fruit cake not long ago, then finishing this generous portion of salmon pasta, Amy’s hunger was fully satisfied. She felt completely content.
The only downside came when she paid the bill: 238 gold for one plate of pasta.
A salmon she caught herself wouldn’t even sell for that much—though, admittedly, she hadn’t managed to catch one yet.
Expensive or not, Gabriel’s cooking was delicious. Amy generously forgave him.
Perhaps because she had already broken the seal on spending money, on her way back Amy was suddenly struck by a strong urge to shop. She didn’t intend to spend much, just went modestly to the general store and spent 30 gold on three potatoes.
Much better.
Back at the farm, she put the potatoes along with lettuce and eggs in the kitchen, then took a nap. After waking up, she went to the seaside to fish again.
She needed to earn back the 300 gold she had spent.
Although she still didn’t dare to spend recklessly, ever since she owned a fishing rod, Amy’s mindset had improved. Because she knew—even if her pockets were completely empty, she could go to the seaside, catch a few fish, and she wouldn’t starve.
An hour later, just as Amy was about to reel in her fourth fish, the game system issued a notification.
【Your “Fishing” skill level has increased!】
【You have obtained the recipe for “Advanced Bait.”】
【You have learned how to make “Advanced Bait”!】
Amy closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, she was no longer the same Amy—she was Amy who knew how to make advanced bait.
Advanced bait, as the name suggested, was bait superior to ordinary ones. It had a chance of attracting rarer, higher-quality fish.
The raw material required was shrimp bait, more expensive than the earthworms she was currently using. Since the shallow waters only had common fish, using shrimp there would be overkill.
Perhaps when she one day took a boat out to the deep waters, then buying shrimp to make advanced bait would be worthwhile.
For now, she would continue honestly fishing with earthworms in the shallows.
As she planned out her future fishing strategy, she threaded bait onto her hook and cast the line.
Perhaps because her fishing had leveled up to 2, she immediately felt the difference: the fish she caught were bigger, of better quality, and the process itself was a little easier.
If level 2 was already like this, what would max level be like?
Just imagining it made Amy excited.
Two hours later, she carried a full fishing box to Nancy.
“You caught all these?” Nancy bent down to look inside, nodding with praise. “Not bad, much better than before—look at this cod, such beautiful color.”
Amy didn’t mention that her fishing skill had leveled up, only said, “I guess I was lucky today.”
Nancy nodded. “If you ever get tired of sea fish, you can try fishing for freshwater fish. There’s a big lake in the forest.”
“The western forest where Ryan and Eric’s cabin is?”
“That’s right. Just a bit deeper in.”
Amy gave a small “ah.”
She had chopped trees in the western forest so many times, yet hadn’t known there was a lake there. A pleasant surprise. Looked like she had something new to do in the coming days.
“I understand. Thank you for telling me, Nancy.”
The two chatted more about fishing. In the end, the fish that had been praised by this master-level fisherwoman sold for over 600 gold.
With that money and what she already had, Amy now possessed the grand sum of 1,000 gold.
1,000 gold!
Amy decided to use it to upgrade her farming tools.
Money had to be spent where it counted. Since she didn’t need to chop trees right now, the axe wasn’t a priority. The hoe and sickle were only for planting and harvesting, so not urgent either. That left the watering can.
Her current watering can was heavy and held little water, forcing her to drink maple syrup every few patches just to restore energy. Extremely inconvenient—an upgrade was urgently needed.
After weighing the pros and cons, Amy took the 1,000 gold and her watering can to the carpenter’s workshop.
Amusingly, every time she went there, she felt like opening a blind box—never knowing whether Ryan or Eric would open the door.
This time it was Eric. Ryan wasn’t home.
“Good afternoon, beautiful Miss Amy!” Eric greeted. “Don’t say anything yet—let me guess your purpose today. You’ve come to get a new watering can, haven’t you?”
Amy played along. “Exactly. I want a new watering can. Mr. Eric, you’re truly insightful.”
Eric’s hearty laughter rang through the forest.
“I love dealing with people like you, Miss Amy, who can joke around. Unlike Ryan—if he were here, he’d insist, ‘Obviously you only guessed because you saw the watering can in her hand!’” He laughed again.
Amy laughed too. “Ryan is an honest child.”
“Yes, that’s why I chose him as my apprentice back then… Anyway, Miss Amy, what kind of watering can do you want?”
“What kinds are there?”
“Based on material and price, there are four types: copper, silver, gold, and mythril. Axes, hoes, and sickles follow the same pattern,” Eric explained.
As soon as she heard “four types,” Amy understood—each skill upgrade unlocked one level, meaning she would only get to use mythril tools when her farming skill was maxed out.
This time, she didn’t even bother to test whether she could skip straight to mythril. Asking would be pointless—Eric would reject her coldly, like a proper NPC.
She said, “I’d like a copper watering can.”
“Alright, no problem!” Eric pulled a crumpled notebook from his pocket and wrote while speaking. “Spring, day 7, Miss Amy, copper watering can… Done. Miss Amy, I guarantee you’ll find a brand-new copper watering can in your mailbox tomorrow.”
Amy hadn’t even said “That fast?” when Eric enthusiastically continued, “…All for just 1,000 gold!”
Amy opened her mouth but no words came out.
…Huh?
She had brought 1,000 gold only just in case. In her mind, a copper watering can should cost between 600 and 800 gold. She never expected it would take the full 1,000.
Her entire fortune would vanish here!
She asked, voice trembling, “May I ask… how much are the silver, gold, and mythril tools?”
“Copper, 1,000 gold. Silver, 2,000 gold. Gold, 5,000 gold. Mythril, 10,000 gold.”
After a long pause, Amy managed only one word: “…Wow.”
Upgrading a watering can completely would cost 18,000 gold. And she had four farming tools in total.
Watering can, axe, hoe, sickle… all together… Amy calculated silently… 72,000 gold…
The money didn’t even feel like money anymore—just a string of numbers.
Amy was dazed. How many fish would she have to catch to make that much?
Seeing her hesitation, Eric explained, “You see, Miss Amy, you don’t need to gather metals yourself, nor forge them into tools. We handle everything for you. So this price really isn’t unreasonable…”
Of course Amy understood that. She was just troubled about not having enough money.
“I know, Mr. Eric, I didn’t mean anything else—my watering can is in your and Ryan’s hands.”
Eric relaxed, grinning widely. “Rest assured, Miss Amy, Ryan and I are professionals.”
Amy decided to change the subject to distract herself from the fact that she had just spent 1,000 gold, and that she would need another 71,000 in the future.
“I heard from Nancy that there’s a lake near the forest. Where is it?”
Eric pointed the way. “Yes, there’s a large lake. Just keep going west from here. Ryan and I sometimes go there to chop wood.”
A new place—besides new fish, there might be new resources to gather.
Since it was still early, Amy planned to explore it later.
“And… Miss Amy, there’s something I must remind you.” Eric suddenly lowered his voice, leaning in mysteriously. “I don’t know why you’re going to the forest lake, but while that place is safe, there is one thing you must remember… Never enter the deepest part of the forest.”