Leon smiled without offering much explanation.
After accepting the sunflower, he bid farewell to the Traveling rchant. Before leaving, the rchant handed Leon the sa price list parchnt from before.
“I pass through Stardew Valley twice a month. I hope to keep doing business with you, so I’ll give you this directory as a gift. You can keep it in your ho. When I return, it will notify you in advance and show the goods I’m bringing.”
“I will.” Leon took the parchnt and tucked it into his backpack. With a wave goodbye from the rchant, he mounted his bicycle and pedaled back to the farm.
After parking the bike and returning to the cabin, Leon slid the rchant’s directory under his bedsheet, leaving one corner sticking out. Then he quickly tidied up, leaving only his tools, the sunflower he’d just bought, and the Prismatic Shard gifted by little Krobus yesterday in his backpack, before setting off toward Pelican Town.
A leisurely ride took no more than ten minutes. Guided by the mory of Lewis’s previous tour of Pelican Town’s main shops, Leon pedaled straight toward Clint the blacksmith’s forge.
In the ga, everyone knew you took shards to the blacksmith. Leon had thought about breaking tradition yesterday, trying to open the Prismatic Shard himself.
Unfortunately, after trying to smash it with rocks, strike it with a pickaxe, and even bash it with wood, all he got was sweat for his trouble. None of his thods made even the slightest crack in the shard.
Forget breaking it—he couldn’t even scratch it.
Leon admitted defeat. So things were best left to professionals.
To make the process less awkward, he’d already hung the Prismatic Shard on his bike’s handlebars, avoiding the need to pull it out of thin air and risk startling Clint.
“Hi, Leon. Good morning.”
Just as Leon crossed the stone bridge spanning the river, he spotted Penny walking. She noticed him first and waved enthusiastically.
“Morning, Penny. Heading to the library?” Leon asked.
“Mm. I’m giving the children a lesson today,” she replied, then her gaze fell on the bike—and the shard hanging from the handlebars.
“You’re going to Clint to open it?”
“Yeah.”
Leon wasn’t surprised she recognized the Prismatic Shard. After all, Pelican Town had been founded by the Fanjier Republic for its rich mineral resources. It was only in more recent tis—after accidents in the old mines and other factors—that it beca a tourist town. Mining never truly disappeared from Pelican Town.
“Then I wish you good luck,” Penny said. After a small pause, she added, “By the way, your new bike looks really cool.”
Leon smiled. He could tell Penny seed a little nervous—wanting to talk but unsure what to say.
Since he had ti, he wasn’t about to waste a perfect chance to tease her. “The library’s still a bit of a walk. Want
to give you a ride?”
“No, it’s fine. I don’t want to trouble you.” Her eyes lit up at the offer, but she still declined shyly.
“It’s no trouble. I’m not in a hurry.” Leon stopped the bike in front of her.
“Co on, hop on. There’s no seat, but you can sit on the fra’s top bar.”
This ti, Penny didn’t refuse. Blushing, she glanced at Leon, then at the bar. She seed unsure what to do.
Seeing her expression, Leon knew she was shy. Releasing his left hand from the handlebars, he offered it to her with a grin. “Need a hand?”
“I can do it myself,” she murmured. Step by step, she moved closer, then tiptoed and perched sideways on the bar.
The mont she sat down, a subtle scent from Leon reached her—not sweat, but sothing hard to describe, a scent that made her heartbeat quicken.
If she asked, Leon would have told her it was the scent of a racing heart. But Penny kept her head down like a timid quail, trying to shrink herself to avoid too much contact.
The bike wasn’t that big. With both of them being adults, once Leon put his left hand back on the handlebars, Penny was completely enclosed between his arms—pressed close.
“Hold on tight. For your safety, you’d better wrap your arms around my waist.”
Seeing her flushed cheeks, Leon’s lips curled into a mischievous smile. After reminding her, he stepped hard on the pedals, the bike surging forward.
The sudden montum made Penny fall against him. Instinct took over—her hands gripped the only thing to hold onto: Leon himself. Feeling the warmth and firmness of his back muscles, she beca a little dizzy.
She wasn’t sure how long they rode before Leon put his feet down and stopped. Penny was still in a daze.
“We’re here. How long were you planning on holding ?”
Leon flicked her forehead lightly.
“Ah!” She snapped out of it, quickly letting go and hopping off. Taking two steps back, she stamred, “Th-thank you. I… I have to go.”
She turned to flee into the library, but Leon’s voice stopped her.
“Penny, wait. Could you do
a favor?”
“Go ahead,” she said softly, still avoiding his gaze.
“Could you touch my Prismatic Shard? I think you might be my lucky goddess. I need your blessing.”
“L-lucky goddess? You’re exaggerating, Leon. I… I’m just an ordinary country girl.” She was flustered, unsure what to do.
Still, under his expectant gaze, Penny reached out and touched the shard hanging on the handlebars. Without another word, she hurried into the library.
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