Detrius took several deep breaths before finally suppressing the resentnt swelling in his chest and the almost-blurted, not-so-polite greetings that would have needed censoring. He slowly said,
“Six mushroom grow beds can be harvested once every three days. When picking, you just need to cut off the parts that poke above the soil—leave the roots in the ground. You won’t need to water or fertilize them. I’ve installed humidifiers in the cave, and the fruit bats’ droppings make the best fertilizer.”
“As for the fruit bats, it might take a few days before they’re attracted by the bioelectric currents here. When you co to harvest the mushrooms, take a little stroll around the cave—you’ll probably find fruit they’ve brought back. Since fruit rots quickly, I recomnd checking the cave twice a day, morning and evening.”
When he finished, Detrius looked at Leon expressionlessly, as if waiting for him to ask more questions.
He was also fully prepared to seize the opportunity to lecture Leon on cave modification and show off the technical brilliance behind it. After all, he had spent an entire day, plus a wealth of professional knowledge and equipnt, to make this modified cave. He was eager to explain every ingenious feature and clever design.
But Leon only gave a slight nod, then warmly began to say his farewells.
“I see. Got it! Thank you, Mr. Detrius, for your work on renovating the Red Star Farm cave. I’ll keep a close eye on the mushrooms and fruit bats to make sure your effort isn’t wasted. It’s getting late, so I won’t take up any more of your ti. Goodbye!”
Before Detrius could react, Leon quickly ushered him out of the cabin, helped him onto the pickup truck, and sent him off from Red Star Farm without a clue of what had just happened.
When Detrius finally ca to his senses, he stared wide-eyed at the farm’s entrance. Leon was nowhere in sight. His heart was a jumble of emotions—part relief, part regret, part anger, part helplessness.
Relieved that he could finally go ho and rest. Regretting that he hadn’t clearly conveyed just how impressive the cave modifications were, or how high the technical level. Angry at Leon’s perfunctory attitude. And helpless because he had no effective way to counter such perfunctoriness.
In the end, these emotions dissipated with a long sigh, carried away by the roar of the pickup’s engine.
After sending Detrius off, Leon went straight to check out the cave.
It was already dark outside, but there was a faint glow inside. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Detrius had hung so low-wattage electric lamps on the cave walls. Leon had no idea where the electricity ca from.
Aside from the lights, the walls were also fitted with three pieces of tech equipnt Leon had never seen before, but they gave off an impressive, high-tech vibe.
He didn’t really care what they were, as long as they worked. When they broke, he’d just get Detrius to fix them.
Leon wasn’t worried that Detrius might intentionally sabotage them to cause trouble. That would only give Leon the perfect excuse to mock the scientist’s research skills and lack of rigor—and then bring in his special weapon, Maru, to pressure him. After a one-two combo like that, Leon figured Detrius would obediently fix the machines for free.
So, really, Detrius should be the one praying the machines didn’t break.
As for the mushroom grow beds, Leon recognized them. Though their style was different from both the handmade and electric versions he knew, all that mattered was that they could grow mushrooms.
After all, as a great man once said: It doesn’t matter if the cat is black or white—so long as it catches mice, it’s a good cat.
After inspecting the newly renovated cave, Leon returned to his cabin, hooked up the hose for a quick shower, changed clothes, and turned on the TV. Once his hair had air-dried, he slipped into bed.
The next morning, Leon got up briskly, washed up, had breakfast, and then watered the crops.
Once that routine was done, he went back inside and tuned in to Welwick’s daily fortune reading. Today’s forecast: steady luck—his fate was in his own hands. Satisfied, he turned off the TV.
Checking the mailbox, he found it empty. For a mont, Leon stood there feeling lost. All the farm work was done, and he had no idea what to do next.
After a mont’s thought, he decided to visit the cave. Detrius had said it might take a few days for the fruit bats to settle in, but Leon still wanted to check.
As expected, there were no fruit bats yet—but the soil in the mushroom beds already showed so small mushroom caps peeking through.
The growth rate was so fast that Leon couldn’t tell whether it was thanks to Stardew Valley’s ideal conditions or because Detrius had used so powerful fertilizer.
Leaving the cave, Leon didn’t head back to laze around. Instead, he gave himself a pep talk. Red Star Farm was still in its early stages, and his priority should be accumulating capital.
The farm work might be done, but there were plenty of other opportunities out there—fishing, foraging, chopping wood.
If nothing else, he could always go dumpster diving. Last ti he found an iron ingot;maybe this ti he’d find a diamond!
Fueled by that thought, Leon hopped on his bike and headed for Pelican Town. The town was the hub of Stardew Valley, with roads leading to the northern mountains and the southern beach pier. In a way, it was like the Ro of another world.
But this ti, Leon had a specific goal: to find Lewis and demand to know if the old man had been skimming his earnings. It had been days since he shipped goods through the shipping box, yet he hadn’t seen a single paynt.
Arriving in Pelican Town, Leon circled the plaza but didn’t spot Lewis. So he rode straight to Lewis’s mansion and rang the doorbell.
If Lewis wasn’t ho, Leon planned to head straight to Marnie’s Ranch to track down the shaless old man.
Fortunately, Lewis didn’t give him the chance. After only a few rings, the door opened to reveal Lewis in his usual overalls and felt hat.
“Hi, Leon. I was just about to co find you.”
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