Just as Faye Yardley was struggling to pull in the treasure chest, a sudden storm hit, the rain instantly coming down in sheets.
It gave her no time to react.
Already soaked to the bone, there was no way Faye Yardley was going to give up the treasure chest she had on the line. Even though her vision was a blur, her grip on the fishing rod never wavered.
Getting pelted by the torrential rain was miserable, but how could she let go of a chest that was practically in her hands?
Faye Yardley truly put every ounce of her strength into pulling the fishing rod. Finally, with a THUD, a chest slammed onto the raft, and Faye herself staggered back a couple of steps before collapsing to the floor.
The rain was so heavy she couldn't see half a meter in front of her. All that filled her vision was a curtain of rain, and then more rain.
She stored the fishing rod and treasure chest in her backpack.
Faye Yardley figured, 'Since I'm already as wet as I can possibly get, I might as well take this opportunity to have a bath.'
Returning to the Wooden House stark naked, Faye Yardley finally felt like she was coming back to life. It felt like the downpour had washed her clothes clean, to say nothing of herself.
She hung her dripping clothes on the foot of her wooden bed. It couldn't be helped; the house was completely empty, and there was nowhere else to put them.
'As for being naked? Hah. This is my own little world. Who's going to know if I don't say anything?'
Shaking out her wet, long hair, Faye Yardley remembered she had cloth in her backpack. She immediately took out a piece of cloth and wrapped it around her body.
"Alright, it's my happy unboxing hour! Let's see what a super lucky person like me can get."
Taking the chest from her backpack, Faye Yardley took a deep breath and chanted, "Spirits of heaven, spirits of earth, work your magic on all things! Open!"
[Obtained: torch Blueprint ×1, Mineral Water ×3, Instant Noodles ×2, wood ×10]
"Yay! A great start to the unboxing! Let's keep this streak going."
[wood ×20, iron block ×8, Crystal ×1, copper blocks ×2]
[Thermal Underwear Set ×1, Bandage ×1, Mineral Water ×2, 5-jin Bag of Rice ×1]
[Awning ×1, wood ×35, stones ×5]
[Fireplace Blueprint ×1, Sprite ×2, Dumplings ×8, wood ×12, Hemostatic Pill ×2]
[Cotton ×20, Cotton Coat ×1, Men's Sneakers ×1, Sleep-Well Pillow ×1]
[Simple Sofa Blueprint ×1, 2-Meter-Long Greatsword ×1, stones ×10]
[wood ×34, Hemostatic Grass ×6, Basic Body Refining Pill ×1, Mineral Water ×2]
[Women's Sportswear Set ×1, Scissors ×1, Large Iron Pot ×1, Raincoat ×1]
[Small Group Chat Coupon ×1, Bandage ×3, Dungeon 1 Fragment ×2, Steamed Buns ×3]
"Hahaha... I knew it! A ten-pull always yields something good! Just as I thought, today is a good day, and my wishes are all coming true..."
Dismantling all ten Wooden Treasure Chests yielded another 30 wood.
Only the Iron Treasure Box remained. Faye Yardley rubbed her hands together, blew a lucky breath on them, and opened it.
[Blood Replenishing Potion Formula ×1, Hair Growth Tonic ×1, Dagger ×1, wood ×50, one Backpack Expansion × 10 Diagrams]
"Oh my god, oh my god, I'm totally going to strike it rich! Who could possibly be more amazing than me?!"
The pile of things in front of her nearly filled the entire cabin.
She put on the thermal underwear and the sportswear, instantly feeling toasty and warm, maybe even a little hot.
It was just a shame that the sneakers were for men.
'So annoying. I don't actually mind wearing men's styles, as long as the size is right.'
But the system was a total ass. When Faye Yardley picked them up and tried to slip them on, the system prompted, [These are men's sneakers. Please maintain your decorum.]
'Maintain my decorum?!'
Faye was so angry she had to laugh. 'A survival game is actually policing what people wear?!'
So, she casually packaged the sneakers into a Red Envelope and sent them to Zachary Pierce. There was a Dungeon tonight; she'd just consider it an early investment. Mostly, she just wanted them out of her sight.
Zachary Pierce, who was stubbornly fishing for treasure chests in the rain with a giant crab shell over his head, was startled by the Red Envelope notification. He paused, then asked matter-of-factly, "What are you short on this time?"
"I don't need anything. It's a gift for you, Mr. Pierce."
Zachary Pierce could hear the sheer frustration in her voice. He decided he'd open it after the chest-fishing time was over and he was back on his raft. He'd see what it was and give her something suitable in return. He wasn't the type to take things for free, especially not from the sister of a comrade-in-arms.
Faye Yardley turned her attention to the awning in her backpack. 'It must be pretty big,' she thought, 'or it would have just appeared inside the house.'
She could pick a spot and install the awning right now, which would let her keep fishing for chests. It wasn't even four o'clock yet, so she had at least two more hours of fishing time. 'Imagine how many treasure chests that is!'
"System, pull up the raft's layout panel. I want to see where to place the awning."
A 3D model of the entire raft quickly appeared before Faye Yardley. The awning was 2.5 meters wide and, surprisingly, 4 meters long—the same as her house. The choice was obvious. She would install it on the side with the 2-meter-wide walkway between the Wooden House and the edge of the raft. Even though it would hang over the raft by half a meter, that would offer even better protection from the rain.
Once it was installed, Faye Yardley quickly threw on her raincoat and headed out. She could organize the things in her house after the fishing time was over; there was still plenty of time.
She stepped out the door, made a quick right, and ducked under the awning. Instantly, she felt a sense of salvation.
Taking the wooden box she used for miscellaneous storage out of her inventory to use as a stool, Faye Yardley began to fish at a leisurely pace, now in the mood to check the regional channel.
The public chat was even more bustling than before. Besides those shouting to trade materials, tons of people were complaining about being soaked to the bone by the downpour. They said the raindrops actually hurt when they hit, making it difficult to keep fishing for treasure chests. Even more people were complaining about not getting anything good from their chests, while another group was begging for shelter blueprints of any kind, desperate to get out of the rain.
Happiness really is a matter of comparison. Faye just lurked on the channel, giggling foolishly to herself.
She chose to selectively ignore the fact that she had just been totally triggered over a pair of sneakers.
With no bites on her line, Faye Yardley focused her attention on the public chat screen in front of her.
Among the sea of messages, she spotted a familiar name.
[Leo Sloan: Does anyone have a Bandage or a Hemostatic Pill? I can trade a brand-new Iron Treasure Box for it.]
[Hailey Miles: Mr. Sloan, are you injured again? Unfortunately, I didn't get any Bandages today.]
'Wait, does this Leo Sloan have some kind of cursed Constitution? He was injured and bleeding on the first day, and it's happening again on the second?'
Her hands moved faster than her brain as she immediately sent Leo Sloan a friend request. 'I'm definitely not just after his Iron Treasure Box,' she told herself. 'I just don't want to give Hailey Miles another chance to play the hero!'
"I have Bandages. [Bandage.jpg]"
'The rest should be self-explanatory, right?'
Suddenly, she felt a tug on the fishing rod in her hand.