Chapter 11 – Collecting Seashells

Columbus discovering the New World—that was exactly what Amy looked like right now.

Without looking back, she dashed straight toward the beach, almost tripping over Nancy’s two roosters along the way.

The roosters craned their necks and crowed in dissatisfaction, as if condemning her for speeding.

“Sorry,” Amy apologized, though not very sincerely. “If you were me, you’d understand my feelings right now.”

No one could understand how desperately she wanted to earn that 200 gold.

To prevent sand from getting into her shoes, Amy took them off and stepped barefoot onto the beach.

The cool seawater quickly washed over the tops of her feet.

The water was refreshingly chilly, the air damp with mist, and beneath her feet was soft fine sand… It should have been the perfect scene for a vacation, but Amy didn’t have time to enjoy it. She crouched down and began picking up shells and conchs nonstop.

Making money was the priority.

Her game panel kept flashing prompts:

【You have unlocked collection entry “Blue Fan Scallop”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Brown Fan Scallop”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Clam”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Purple Sea Fan”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Quartz”】

…

Before long, Amy had gathered a pile of colorful shells. She hadn’t expected such a harvest, so she had brought no equipment; she could only use the hem of her skirt to hold her loot.

She must look ridiculous now—hair and sleeves wet, sand clinging to her everywhere, using her skirt as a basket for seashells like some strange girl.

Would the goodwill she’d painstakingly built up start to drop? Amy worried a little.

Fortunately, Nancy came to her rescue.

Seeing Amy in such a state, Nancy ignored it entirely, not mocking her at all. Instead, she tossed a few more little items into Amy’s makeshift skirt-basket.

Amy saw more prompts flash across her panel:

【You have unlocked collection entry “Cap Snail”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Gypsum Seashell”】
【You have unlocked collection entry “Nautilus”】

Nancy said, “The shells you picked are too common. They won’t sell for much. The few I gave you are the ones Simon likes. They’re not worth that much either, but at least better than what you had.”

Hearing this, Amy thought: Nancy must be an angel sent by God to save her.

“Thank you for telling me this, Nancy,” Amy said gratefully. “If it weren’t so inconvenient right now, I’d really want to give you a hug.”

“No thanks. Don’t. I don’t want you to wet my clothes,” Nancy said coldly, crossing her arms.

Amy cooperatively feigned a heartbroken protest: “You’re so cold.”

—but no one knew better than her that Nancy was never truly cold.

After Nancy left, time flew by. Unknowingly, Amy had spent nearly two hours gathering shells by the sea, her skirt so full it was about to overflow.

With this many shells, earning 200 gold would be no problem.

Amy brimmed with confidence.

Before leaving, Nancy asked if she wanted a basket for her shells, but Amy politely refused. She had already troubled Nancy enough today and didn’t want to impose more.

To repay Nancy’s generous help, Amy bought a pack of cauliflower seeds.

Cauliflower seeds were expensive; a small pack cost 80 gold—more than the lettuce and tomato seeds she’d bought before combined. Yet she bought them willingly, showing how grateful she was.

At checkout, Nancy couldn’t help but ask, “Are you sure you want to buy this?”

Just earlier she had been working so hard picking shells to make a living, and now she was buying expensive seeds in her shop. What a strange girl.

The strange girl, oblivious, nodded firmly. “Yes, I feel like eating this.”

“…” Nancy sighed helplessly, took the seeds from behind the counter, and handed them over. “Go eat then, greedy girl.”

Before leaving the seaside hut, Amy glanced again at the fiberglass fishing rod displayed on the counter, silently vowing: Little fishing rod, I’ll bring you home soon.

With a fishing rod, her money-making path could truly begin.

On the way back to the farm, Amy indeed drew many looks. Fortunately, they were all friendly.

Linda, returning from walking her dog, saw Amy soaked through and hurried over. “Child, are you alright? How did you end up like this? What happened?”

Amy smiled. “I’m fine, Mrs. Linda. I just went to the beach to pick some shells. Don’t worry.”

After the sun and sea, her smile shone brighter than ever.

The dazzling smile reassured Linda. “So you were picking shells… no wonder you’re all wet. Speaking of the northern beach, I used to love taking Morgan there, but now I’m too old. The sea breeze makes my legs ache terribly.”

Amy’s eyes filled with sympathy.

Linda sighed, glancing at the little Pomeranian at her side. “It’s not me I pity—it’s Morgan. She’s still young, hasn’t seen much of the sea, and now she’ll never get the chance.”

Sensing her master’s sadness, Morgan whimpered softly and rubbed her head against Linda’s trouser leg.

Amy suddenly had an idea. “Mrs. Linda, maybe… I can take Morgan to see the sea?”

Linda’s eyes lit up. “Really, Amy?”

“Of course. It’s not hard at all.” How hard could it be to take a little dog to the beach?

“Then… thank you so much, Amy,” Linda said gratefully. “I know you’re very busy with your new farm—there must be a lot waiting for you. Tell you what, come find me whenever you have time. That way it’s convenient for both of us.”

Amy readily agreed. “Alright, Mrs. Linda, it’s a deal.”

Then she bent down and petted Morgan’s fluffy little head. “You’ll be going to the beach with me from now on, little one.”

Morgan: “Woof woof!”

“She’s a girl, right?”

Linda’s expression softened with affection. “Yes, Morgan’s a little girl. Out of the five puppies her mother had, she was the only female. I picked her right away.”

“A girl…” Amy lowered her head, picked a pale lavender shell from her pile, and handed it to Linda. “This is a gift for Morgan. I hope she likes it.”

“Oh, she’ll love it!” Linda held the shell and waved it over Morgan’s head. “Morgan, do you like Amy’s gift?”

Seeing the shell, Morgan perked up on her front paws, but her legs were too short. After struggling in vain, Linda laughed and placed the shell gently on her head.

Amy couldn’t help but laugh at the scene.

Then her game panel popped up a prompt:
【“Morgan”’s favorability toward you has increased】

…

What?

Dogs had favorability ratings too?

—Well, that actually made perfect sense.

Morgan had given her a very generous amount—starting with three red hearts unlocked. Morgan now topped Amy’s favorability list, followed by Mayor Leslie with two hearts, then most townspeople with just one heart.

Full favorability was eight hearts. Amy still had a long way to go before maxing out everyone’s favorability.

But she would keep working hard.

After chatting with Linda a bit more, Linda urged her to hurry home and change clothes so she wouldn’t catch a cold. Only then did the two women and one dog reluctantly part ways.

But this time, on her way home, Amy encountered glances not of kindness but tinged with malice.

They were from the women she had seen earlier in the grocery store line—the ones discussing foie gras roast chicken and apples soaked in honey wine. Their names were Grace, Susan, and Eva.

From a distance, when they spotted Amy, the three women covered their mouths and snickered.

“Look at her—she must’ve just come from picking those worthless shells. How shameful. I wouldn’t want them even if they were free. I hate admitting we live on the same street.”

“Eva, what are you worried about? Your farm looks much prettier than hers,” Grace said.

Eva flipped her hair disdainfully. “Of course. That broken-down farm of hers—ugh, don’t even mention it.”

Susan gave them a cool glance. “You’re wasting time even talking about a penniless girl from who-knows-where. Our time is far too valuable.”

Too far away, Amy couldn’t hear what they said. But from their mocking looks, she guessed it wasn’t anything nice.

So what?

They were just NPCs whose favorability couldn’t even be unlocked. She wasn’t going to waste anger on them. She had more important things to do.

Amy lifted her chin and walked away without looking back.

What she didn’t know was that after she left, a black sedan stopped where she had just passed.

Inside, Gabriel slowly rolled down the window.

“Hi, Gabriel, good day!” Eva immediately dropped her meanness and plastered on a smile. “Where have you been?”

“Bought some steak,” Gabriel replied politely.

Grace jumped in, “Speaking of steak… last time I had some in the city, it was overcooked and tough. Absolutely awful, nothing like yours, Gabriel. When will you cook for us again?”

“The Seagull Restaurant is always open to you,” Gabriel said flatly.

Before they could reply, he added, “But hopefully when you’re more polite.”

With that, he pressed the accelerator and sped away.

Leaving the three women staring at each other in shock.

“What did he mean by that?!”