After breakfast, Faye Yardley felt full of energy and didn't even find it cold when she went outside.
She lowered a small wooden boat into the water from the side of her raft.
'It really is a small wooden boat. It could seat three people at most; any more and there'd probably be no room to sit, only stand.'
But since the rafts hadn't been merged and each one only held a single person, the small boat was more than enough to go farther out and fish for treasure chests.
Upgrading to a Level Five Raft required 2,000 wood. Even with her Double Good Luck Talent, she was still quite a ways off.
However, her Talent had helped her wood count break the 600 mark yesterday, so if she worked hard today, she might just have a chance.
'Plus, Zachary Pierce still hasn't paid the wood for the small boat blueprint. Who knows, maybe I'll be able to upgrade the raft tonight! If so, will I be the first person to get a Level Five Raft?'
"Hehe..."
Filled with these pleasant thoughts, Faye Yardley hopped into the small boat and started to row.
She spun in place for a while before figuring out how to row forward correctly.
If the water weren't so cold, she would have even planned to learn how to swim. After all, Sea Monsters wouldn't normally appear during the novice protection period, so it was still safe.
After the protection period ended, learning to swim would be a lot more difficult.
'But,' Faye Yardley thought, 'it's not like I absolutely have to get into the icy water.'
After rowing for half an hour, Faye Yardley stopped and began fishing for treasure chests.
"System, open the regional channel."
[Dear player, you have currently left your raft and cannot use the regional channel function.]
Faye Yardley was speechless.
'The past couple of days, I'd occasionally glance at the public chat to pass the time while fishing for chests. But now it doesn't work just because I've left the raft?'
"System, open the group chat."
Bonnie Callahan: Oh my gosh, why did the temperature drop so much today? It can't be more than ten degrees out here, right? And are the treasure chests spawning later and later? It's been over half an hour and I haven't seen a single one.
Wade Warren: The system says the outdoor temperature is 11°C right now. The sun is out today, so I imagine the temperature will rise in a bit. If you don't have long sleeves and pants, you can go out fishing a little later. Don't catch a cold; that'll only make things worse. No need to rush for treasure chests. They'll show up eventually.
Leo Sloan: Do some stretching and warm-up exercises inside, and you won't feel so cold. It was actually colder in the middle of the night. This temperature isn't even that low now.
Bonnie Callahan: Thanks, you two. If you fish up anything you don't need today, you can trade it with me.
Faye Yardley just watched them chat, lurking silently without participating.
She felt a tug on her fishing rod. 'A bite already?' she thought, and began to reel in the line.
Before long, a familiar Wooden Treasure Chest came into view. She pulled it to the side of the boat and stored it directly in her backpack.
But this was just the beginning. After that, Faye Yardley didn't have much time to pay attention to the group chat.
She fell into a rhythm of casting her line and reeling it in.
'Perhaps this is the simple joy of an avid angler.'
The sun grew more intense. Faye Yardley's haul was already sizable, and her arms were starting to ache, so she decided it was best to head back to the raft.
She had felt cold when she opened the door this morning, but now the heat from the sun was becoming unbearable.
On the way back to the raft, she even spotted a Wooden Treasure Chest floating by and naturally scooped it up.
But in the short time it took, the sky above her head darkened in a flash.
'Whoa, dark clouds are rolling in! And they have a reddish glow. Good thing I packed a poncho in my backpack.'
She instantly reeled in her fishing rod and quickly threw on her poncho.
Faye Yardley, who had been rowing slowly with aching arms just moments before, was now paddling for dear life, wishing she could turn into an automatic rowing machine.
A fierce wind kicked up out of nowhere!
Luckily, Faye Yardley was truly blessed with good fortune, her Luck Value off the charts; the fierce wind pushed her directly toward her raft.
It was even faster than her own paddling.
Of course, she didn't stop paddling, as she still needed to steer the small boat.
Just as the gale was about to slam the small boat into the raft, the sky opened up and it began to pour.
A loud drumming sound filled her ears. Although Faye Yardley was wearing a poncho, she hadn't expected hail! The chunks of ice pelted her, and it hurt.
With a loud THUMP, the small boat collided with the raft.
Faye Yardley struggled to her feet in the small boat and grabbed onto the wooden fence.
The fierce wind nearly blew her off her feet.
Fortunately, the side she had crashed into was the one with the awning.
She tumbled over the side and onto the raft, finally out of the direct path of the hail.
After a moment's thought, she turned and leaned over the wooden fence to store the small boat in her backpack. Her hair had long since been whipped into a wild mess by the wind, obscuring her vision.
She plopped down on the raft's deck and scrambled toward the wall of the Wooden House. Overhead, the hail rattled violently against the awning.
After catching her breath against the wall, Faye Yardley simply scooted along the wall of the Wooden House toward the corner.
The wind howled for a while before letting up slightly. Faye Yardley seized the moment, stood up, and dashed around the corner into the hail. She grabbed the doorknob, but just as she was about to open the door, an even more violent gust of wind struck.
If she hadn't been gripping the doorknob tightly, Faye Yardley would have been blown away.
She clung to the doorknob, pressed against the door, getting pelted by a hailstone every now and then. Faye Yardley held on like this for nearly five minutes until the wind died down a little. She quickly opened the door, stumbled inside, and let out a huge sigh of relief.
"That was awful. Boohoo... That was just awful."
After taking off the poncho and wiping the rain from her face, Faye Yardley went to the bathroom to rinse off first.
She came out feeling clean and refreshed, but her body was covered in new bruises, and even her face hadn't been spared.
Unfortunately, she didn't have any liniment or pain-relieving spray, so she'd just have to tough it out.
She checked the time. It wasn't even 12:00 PM.
Faye Yardley lay down on the sofa. The Snake Meat from breakfast had been so rich in energy that she wasn't hungry yet. She took out a cup of original-flavor milk tea and took a long sip before opening the public channel.
[Help! Help! How long is this hailstorm going to last? My wooden pavilion is drafty as hell, and I'm hiding under a lounge chair but still can't dodge the hail getting in!]
[My tent is holding up pretty well. I bought a Fire Pit, so the raging wind and hail outside are none of my concern.]
[A Fire Pit? Damn, no wonder I couldn't get one. They're all getting instantly snatched up by people like you who stay in and don't even go out to fish for chests.]
[Seriously, is a Fire Pit what we need right now? I'd say healing ointment is more important.]
[What the fuck are you all babbling about? I've only got a turtle shell over my head! If it weren't for the two-meter corner fences on my raft, I wouldn't just be taking a beating from the hail, I'd be swept away by this freakish wind!]
[Damn, it's already noon on the fourth day. Don't tell me you're so pathetic you can't even scrape together enough wood for a tent?!]
[The hail is getting bigger! Everyone, I've listed a spare Basic Wooden House Blueprint on the trading market. If you want to live, don't miss out!]