Chapter 2: Coriander Garden Farm

Mayor?

Amy thought for a moment. Of course, a town couldn’t exist without a mayor. She did remember seeing this NPC in the promotional trailer.

She didn’t mind meeting her. In fact, she even felt a vague excitement—NPCs turned into real people were far more interesting than seeing her coworkers or boss at the office.

She quickly tidied the room, putting the axe and hoe back into the box so the place wouldn’t look so messy, then went over and opened the door.

A woman’s smiling face appeared before her, bright and radiant.

“Hello, you must be the new neighbor? You’re even prettier than I imagined.”

Mayor Leslie was a middle-aged woman whose warm smile was laced with fine lines at the corners of her eyes, only adding to her mature charm.

She had long, curly orange-red hair which, perhaps because of the backlight, looked even more dazzling than the sunshine spilling over Amy’s farm.

“Hello, Leslie. It’s very nice to meet you.” Amy smiled and introduced herself. “My name is Amy.”

“Amy—what a lovely name! I think my whole day will be brighter because of it.” Leslie laughed heartily.

Leslie’s enthusiasm was contagious, and Amy couldn’t help smiling. “Thank you, Leslie. I’m glad to hear that. So—what brings you here today?”

“Nothing to worry about, it’s not anything serious.” Leslie took a pen and paper out of her pocket as she spoke. “Everyone in Hot Spring Town is happy to welcome a new neighbor. As the mayor, I need to personally greet you, and at the same time make a simple registration. You know, it’s necessary. Hot Spring Town is fairly prosperous. If people with ill intentions slipped in, it could be dangerous for the residents. But don’t misunderstand me, Amy—I don’t mean to say you’re one of them.”

Amy nodded. “I understand.”

Of course she wasn’t a villain with ill intentions—she was just a gamer who was both unlucky and lucky at the same time.

“Thank you for understanding! Since you have no objections, let’s get started.” Leslie’s pen moved swiftly across the page as she read aloud. “Name: Amy. Gender: female. Age…?”

“Twenty-two,” Amy supplied.

“Ah, the age of a blooming flower! That’s twenty years younger than me. When I was your age, I hadn’t even become mayor yet.” Leslie wrote it down and then asked, “Do you live alone?”

“Yes.”

“Living alone is very free, but with a farm as large as yours, it’ll be hard to manage.” Leslie said, “There’s a carpenter in town, Eric. Besides crafting, he also offers farm clearing services. If it gets overwhelming, you can always ask him for help.”

Amy replied politely, “I’ll think about it,” though she had no real intention of hiring help.

Farming was only satisfying if she did it herself.

More importantly, there was no such thing as a free lunch. That carpenter Eric surely wasn’t doing charity. Hiring him would definitely cost a lot, and someone with only 500 gold to her name couldn’t afford it.

Still, Leslie had provided important information: to the west of town lived a carpenter named Eric.

That was probably the first role of any NPC—providing players with information to help them understand the game better.

Amy thought she might as well ask more.

“Leslie, I just chopped down two redwoods and split them into logs. Can I sell those to Eric?”

“Of course! He loves collecting wood—look at those logs, they’re perfect! I’m sure Eric will give you a price you’ll be satisfied with.” Leslie grinned playfully. “So that’s why your cheeks are so red—you were chopping trees.”

Amy gave an embarrassed smile.

Once the conversation started, questions came easily. After a few minutes, Amy had learned the following from Leslie:

In the bustling central district of Hot Spring Town, there was a large general store with a wide range of goods, run by a 45-year-old man named Charlie. A little further down was a restaurant: in the mornings they sold bread and sandwiches, and in the afternoons and evenings proper meals. Its owner, Gabriel, was a young man who had moved from the big city to Hot Spring Town to pursue his dream. At the far northern edge of town stretched a vast sea, with a seaside shop selling all kinds of farming, ranching, and fishing supplies. Aside from livestock and crop seeds, the shopkeeper Nancy sold a premium carbon-fiber fishing rod that was a favorite among anglers…

These were details not mentioned in the trailers.

Leslie also introduced some townsfolk by name (Amy didn’t remember all of them), as well as facilities like a hospital, cinema, library, and central park.

Overall, Hot Spring Town was a very livable little town, with simple people and complete facilities. Amy felt life here would be wonderful.

Though her farm was still a total mess, she was filled with hope for the future.

“Alright, now for the last question—Amy, give your farm a name!”

A farm name?

Just like the game.

Amy had already decided. In every farming game she’d ever played, she had always given her farm the same name. Without hesitation, she said, “Coriander Garden.”

“Alright, Coriander Garden Farm…” Leslie wrote it down and looked up with a smile. “Then the future of Coriander Garden Farm is in your hands, Amy. Please make it flourish!”

Amy held back a laugh. “I will, Leslie.”

Before Leslie left, Amy couldn’t help saying what she had thought the moment she first saw her: “Leslie, your hair is beautiful—prettier than the most stunning orange sea I’ve ever seen.”

“Oh!” Leslie was clearly startled by the sudden compliment.

Touching her hair, she turned back with a smile. “Amy, I think my hair will be very happy to hear that.”

Amy chuckled, about to say more—when she suddenly noticed something above Leslie’s head. Not words, but eight connected black hearts.

She saw the first one gradually fill a quarter of the way with bright red.

This was… affection level?

It was the first time Amy had seen affection visualized, and she found it fascinating.

Interesting. What would happen if her affection with Leslie maxed out?

Or… she had a bolder idea: what if she maxed out affection with everyone in town?

That would be so much fun.

And so, “achieving full affection with every villager” became one of Amy’s future goals.

She checked her stamina: 48/100. After such a long conversation with Leslie, it had only gone down by a point.

She guessed stamina consumption depended on who she was talking to. Since her conversation with Leslie had been light and pleasant, the decrease had been slow.

If it had been her real-life boss, her stamina probably would’ve dropped into the negatives.

Luckily, she would never have to see that unpleasant face again.

After Leslie left, Amy didn’t waste time. She tilled a small square patch of land near the well, watered it with a full watering can, and used up 18 stamina points.

Just like the axe, the beginner’s hoe and watering can were clumsy and inconvenient. The watering can especially was heavy, with a very limited capacity.

Amy desperately wanted to max these tools right away—but that was impossible. For now, she just had to grit her teeth and keep using them.

The land was tilled, the soil watered. All that was left was planting seeds.

Amy grabbed her purse of starter gold and left the farm, heading north to the beach.

Hot Spring Town was far more idyllic than the world she had come from.

The roads were almost empty of cars. People strolled lazily on bicycles. The shrubs along the roadside grew wild and free, bursting with vitality. Golden daffodils swayed in the breeze, attracting a bright blue butterfly to rest upon their petals.

Amy had never seen such a laid-back, natural little town.

On the way, she passed the restaurant Leslie had mentioned.

Since it was the only one in town, it didn’t even need a name to be well-known. It bore only a dark red sign with a seagull perched on it, so people called it the “Seagull Restaurant.”

The glass doors were closed, but from the open windows drifted the aroma of bread and cake, even richer than the butter croissants she had praised earlier. So much for “the most delicious croissant of her life”—clearly, one should never speak too soon.

Breathing in the sweet fragrance, Amy suddenly widened her eyes.

That was the smell of egg tarts!

Her very first visit to this restaurant and already she had found something she liked. Though it wasn’t her favorite raspberry egg tart, Amy felt it was fate.

She was already fond of this restaurant.

Just then, a tall, slender man walked out of the kitchen. His back to Amy, he held a piping bag, squeezing cream onto a cake.

That must be Gabriel, the young chef.

Leslie had said he had come from the city to Hot Spring Town to pursue his dream of cooking.

Amy wondered if a string of eight hearts would appear over his head too.

At that moment, Gabriel seemed to sense her gaze. He turned.

And just before his eyes could meet hers, Amy bolted.

If she’d had more gold in her purse, she would’ve gone in and bought egg tarts already, instead of sneaking around outside like a thief and nearly getting caught.

Awkward. Very awkward.

Better focus on the real task.

When she reached the seashore, a strange scent greeted her.

Not sweet like bread or tarts, but a blend of salty sea breeze, fresh-cut grass, and the distinct smell of livestock.

It was like a signal, reminding her she had left the cozy bakery behind and stepped into the vast world of nature.

The sea was deep blue, gulls circled overhead, the waves crashed against the rocks, spraying white foam.

It was the perfect place to clear her mind. Amy felt she could sit here all day just staring at the ocean.

Her peaceful thoughts were interrupted by the crowing of roosters. She turned to see several proud, glossy cockerels strutting past.

They were smarter than she expected, not running near the sea but pecking up crabs and worms close by.

There were other animals too. Nearby stood several clean, well-kept pens housing dairy cows, oxen, goats, and pigs.

Circling around, she found a medium-sized freshwater pond with a dozen green-feathered ducks and large white geese floating on it.

Beside them stood a quiet stone house.

…Even if it was just a game, seeing chickens, ducks, geese, goats, and pigs by the seaside was still a novelty.

Amy grew more curious about the shopkeeper Nancy, who lived here.

She stepped up to the stone house and knocked on the door.

“Hello, I’m Amy, the new farmer in town. I’d like to buy some seeds. Is anyone home?”