The sun rose from the sea horizon, and Rogel woke up to the sound of a cat meowing.
Last night, he had returned to the cabin.
Lina had already left, still hesitating about the sea voyage.
Meanwhile, Old Nelson had risen early as usual, though this time, instead of vanishing as he often did, he sat quietly by Holly's grave.
Rogel did not disturb him.
Today, he did not plan to go out fishing.
The earnings from fishing were too low, so he decided to use the Harmony Cave Key to explore the cave.
Yesterday, he had made full preparations for this.
He even spent a fortune on buying a flintlock gun.
"I wonder if this key has a return function."
Rogel muttered to himself.
To be safe, he sailed the small boat to the island before taking out the key.
[Do you want to use the key to teleport to Harmony Cave?]
After making his choice, the space around the game character began to distort, followed by a blackout on the screen.
When the light reappeared, he was already in front of that familiar stone door.
Speaking of which, Rogel felt a bit emotional.
He and Old Nelson had traveled quite a ways before, thinking this was the end, only to find out it was just the beginning.
Then, Rogel checked the key again and found it indeed had the function to return to the previous location.
He was relieved, meaning he could explore Harmony Cave anytime, anywhere.
"Let's begin."
In anticipation, Rogel took out the Pearl Lamp given by Old Nelson and used the key to open the stone door.
Rumbling...
The heavy stone door slowly opened, producing a dull roar, with moss and soil falling from the cracks.
[The door buried in the unknown has opened, and the seal has loosened.]
[You have received an unknown gaze.]
At this moment, such a prompt suddenly appeared in the game, making Rogel feel a shiver run down his spine.
"That's not a good sign!"
As he spoke, Rogel hesitated not at all, stepping through the stone door by the light of the Pearl Lamp.
The interior wall of the stone door had no special changes, still uneven as if just an ordinary cave.
Rogel proceeded along this passage.
However, this time, he discovered some objects resembling biological remains along the way, which crumbled with a touch, showing no pattern.
Shortly after, the game emitted a sharp cry, somewhat like that of a rat.
But it wasn't; they were bats startled by Rogel.
They didn't attack Rogel, just flew around in a panic.
[Cave Bat]
[Type: Creature]
[Quality: Ordinary]
[Level: 1]
[Tier: None]
[Explanation: Bats living in caves, with extremely poor eyesight, feeding on insects.]
Confirming these bats posed no threat, Rogel ignored them and continued forward.
Rogel walked carefully, wary of potential monsters or traps.
His caution proved useful.
"Squeak!"
Three huge rats suddenly appeared, launching a surprise attack on Rogel without hesitation.
[Cave Carnivorous Rat]
[Type: Creature]
[Quality: Ordinary]
[Level: 3]
[Tier: None]
[Explanation: A type of rat often found in large tombs, fond of eating carrion and, of course, wouldn't turn down fresh flesh.]
Thanks to his vigilance, Rogel wasn't harmed, but the three rats still didn't relent, rushing back to attack him again.
Rogel didn't switch to True Perspective immediately but deliberately used the game perspective for the battle.
Soon, the game character on the screen, with lightning-fast reflexes, slaughtered them with the Horror Demon Sharp Claw he wore.
Upon dealing with the last rat, Rogel thought for a moment, subdued it, and then turned it into a clone.
[You have killed a Cave Carnivorous Rat, gaining combat experience.]
[You have killed a Cave Carnivorous Rat, gaining combat experience.]
The prompts exploded twice, but Rogel didn't see any message about a character level-up.
"Two rats seem to give less than one demon..."
Rogel grumbled, starting to pick up the spoils of war.
But he soon discovered to his surprise.
The rats not only gave little experience, but the loot was also just junk.
But really junk.
[You found Rat Tail ×1.]
[You found Rat Meat ×1.]
The rat tail could be used as some materials, but the rat meat was directly deemed as "not recommended for consumption" by the system.
Just considered grinding some small monsters.
Rogel shook his head, carrying a Cave Carnivorous Rat clone as he continued forward.
Soon, the environment before Rogel finally had a special change.
At a fork in the road, an artificial building appeared.
A large pillar ran through the cave from top to bottom, dividing the passage into two directions.
Moreover, in front of the large pillar, there was a bonfire burning fiercely.
But Rogel's attention was focused entirely on one spot.
That was beneath the bonfire.
Below the bonfire, there was a dust-laden wooden box.
Treasure Chest!
Though it was a wooden Treasure Chest, it couldn't dampen Rogel's enthusiasm for it.
However, Rogel still maintained some rationality.
The game Mysterious Sea sometimes defies logic, so it's better to be cautious.
Who knows, there might be a monster hiding nearby.
But even knowing that, Rogel wasn't planning to bypass this chest, even if it was just wooden.
The allure of Treasure Chests to players speaks volumes.
So even if there was a catch, Rogel wouldn't take a detour.
In the eyes of players, there's no chest that can't be opened!
Thinking of this, Rogel controlled the Cave Rat clone to cautiously approach the wooden Treasure Chest.
Reaching the chest, the Cave Rat looked around, ensuring there was no danger.
Only then did Rogel confidently move to the chest, reaching out to open it.
And then just in the next second…
"Woof!"
The chest before Rogel suddenly revealed a huge, sharp-toothed mouth, biting down mercilessly on Rogel's hands.
What the heck!
Rogel was so startled that his phone shook.
In that instant, the chest had already bit down on the game's character's hands.
[Life Value -45]
The game character let out a miserable cry.
Rogel, coming back to his senses, quickly controlled the game character to fog out, escaping the chest's monstrous maw.
With a plop, the chest fell to the ground, barking continuously at Rogel, looking extremely fierce.
[Box Dog·Wood]
[Type: Extraordinary Creatures]
[Quality: Elite]
[Level: 1]
[Tier: Extraordinary]
[Explanation: Brave adventurer, make sure not to be defeated by a Treasure Chest!]
This chest was a monster!
Rogel's lips twitched as familiar memories of similar encounters in previous games flooded his mind.
Suddenly, a surge of anger flared up within him, and he controlled the game character to deliver a hard kick.
Accursed dog thief!
Bang!
The Box Dog, hit by Rogel's kick and crashing against the wall, fell to the ground, whimpering, before stretching out two short legs and darting away down the left passage.
"Oh no, don't run!"
Completely caught off-guard by this development, Rogel was shocked, and quickly gave chase.