Chapter 62
Well, to be honest, things like this were pretty common in MMORPGs.
Each gem usually boosted different stats—that sort of thing.
In some games, weapons had sockets where you could insert crafted gems, and depending on how high the gem’s grade was, the amount of attack power it added varied drastically.
Naturally, if you wanted good gems, you ended up spending real money.
It was one of those systems tangled up in all kinds of “grown-up” reasons.
Getting a good weapon was hard enough—but then you had to enhance it, and also find high-quality gems to slot into it…
And that wasn’t the end of it, either. There were always more systems—“Awakenings,” “Divine Beasts,” and whatnot—each one trying to squeeze more money out of players in the name of power.
The classic “P2W” (Pay to Win).
If you want to win, spend more money. That was the rule.
In that sense, I guess Edaphosia, the game world I’d ended up inside, had some conscience—since at least you could play it without spending real money.
Of course, the downside was that reaching the ending required an endless grind of gathering and crafting.
Not that any of that mattered to me now that I was literally stuck inside this world.
“What is this, a time bomb or something? Why’s there even a time limit?!”
In this situation where I didn’t even know when the next area would open, I had to hurry through all my gathering and crafting.
And it wasn’t just any resource I needed—it was gemstones.
Gems!
Unlike iron ore or brass ore, they didn’t spawn in fixed locations; they were rare resources that only appeared randomly while mining.
When your mining skill was low, the chance of finding one was practically zero—you could dig up mountains of brass ore and still not get a single gem.
The lumberjack’s axe I’d just obtained had a great magical effect that increased the chance of collecting rare resources—but that only applied to logging.
And it’s not like I could just pray for an item like [Retired Miner’s Pickaxe] to drop out of nowhere.
“…Guess I’ll have to live in the mine for a while.”
Even if I was planning to leave soon, I at least needed to replace my current pickaxe.
Ferdia’s comment—“A junk dealer wouldn’t even buy this thing”—applied not only to my axe but to the pickaxe as well.
Even I could tell my old pickaxe was falling apart: the blade edges were chipped everywhere, and the handle looked ready to snap with one light tap.
Repairing it would be pointless—it’d be better to just buy or craft a new one.
“Of course, you could always commission a custom-made one from our magic workshop. It’d be much faster than making it yourself, but, um… it’s quite expensive.”
Faber quickly scribbled out an estimate with his quill and handed it to me.
“H-how many zeroes is that?”
I counted each zero one by one, then shook my head.
I’d saved up a decent amount of money from quests and dungeon rewards, but not enough to impulsively splurge on a high-end tool like this.
“Even if I scraped together every last coin, I still couldn’t afford it. Guess I’ll have to make it myself.”
“…Right. Hang in there.”
Faber gave me a sympathetic little smile and clenched his fist in a weak show of encouragement.
Bolstered by that halfhearted cheer, I left the workshop and headed to the blacksmith’s.
Whether I crafted one or bought one—I needed a pickaxe.
Fortunately, the blacksmith already had a sturdy, well-made one in stock, so I went ahead and bought it on the spot.
“Still, it was a fair price and looked solid enough.”
Time was short—there was no way I could waste hours crafting a pickaxe from scratch.
All things considered, I’d call that a smart purchase.
Leaving the forge, I stopped by the dorm cafeteria to pack a lunch (of course, one that gave a gathering buff effect), changed into a durable work outfit suited for gatherers, and headed for the mines.
I’d heard that blue topaz could sometimes be found in the Silvergrove Forest mines, but trekking all the way there for such a slim chance felt too risky.
Sapphire, lapis lazuli, aquamarine—anything blue, please!
And so, I started swinging my pickaxe like a man possessed, striking every mining point that yielded iron ore.
Thanks to my gear’s “increased gathering speed” bonus, I was mining fast—and my skill level was shooting up quickly too.
That didn’t mean gems were appearing easily, though.
Other than taking quick breaks for food and breathing, I’d been swinging my pickaxe nonstop. My already toned arms and shoulders were so defined now I could literally see the muscles tearing apart in real time.
They called this kind of thing “functional muscle,” right?
“Haah… why can’t I get a single gem?!”
I slumped to the ground.
I’d dug so many tunnels along the iron vein that just getting back to the entrance would take ages.
“…I remember laughing at people in Minecraft for thinking one person could carve out tunnels with a single pickaxe. Guess it’s possible after all.”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
At this rate, I’d have to wrap up soon if I wanted to reach the woodworking shop by sunset.
All I had to show for it was a mountain of iron ore. I felt so frustrated I could cry.
But I couldn’t just give up here.
I stood back up and started swinging my pickaxe again.
Just a little more, then I’d head back.
And then—
[Rare Resource Discovered!]
You can now mine Chrysocolla Ore.
A popup flashed before my eyes.
For a moment, I just stared, trying to figure out what the heck was going on with this game.
Chrysocolla? What even is that?
Memories of my early confusion—when I hadn’t even known brass ore was used to make copper ingots—flashed back, irritating me all over again.
“Chrysocolla… sounds familiar somehow…”
I dug through my memory, trying to recall—and then it hit me: Chrysocolla was another name for Turquoise.
I only remembered because turquoise happened to be my birthstone.
Come to think of it, the name “turquoise” came from “Turkish,” since the gem was brought to Europe through the Ottoman Turks.
But in this world, there was no Ottoman Empire, no Europe either.
So, calling it “Chrysocolla” instead of “Turquoise” actually made sense.
“Anyway, if it’s turquoise… that means it’s blue-green!”
Technically, it’s a mix of blue and green—but definitely leaning more toward blue.
Would that count as a “blue gem”?
My heart started pounding with anticipation.
Back in middle school, there had been a brief trend where everyone wore birthstone bracelets.
The turquoise bracelet I’d worn then had been such a vivid blue that I’d insisted, “See? It totally counts as a blue gem!”
Feeling that same excitement, I carefully swung my pickaxe toward the spot the popup indicated.
I made sure not to hit too hard—if I shattered the precious stone, I’d never forgive myself.
Sweat began dripping down my forehead from how focused I was.
This felt harder than swinging the pickaxe all day.
It wasn’t mining anymore—it was practically an excavation.
After some delicate work, I finally pried the gem loose. It was bigger and heavier than I’d expected—about the size of my head.
“Whoa! A gem! It’s a gem!!”
Was this how old-timey gem hunters felt when they shouted, “I struck gold!”?
Overwhelmed, I lifted the head-sized stone over my head in triumph.
With something this large, I could make quite a few accessories from it.
Satisfied, I tucked the gem safely into my inventory, picked up the scattered iron ore around me, and headed out of the mine.
I’d been worried I’d spend the whole day with nothing to show for it, but now I had at least something—a blueish gem, at that—so my steps felt much lighter.
When I reached town, I didn’t go straight to the woodworking shop—I stopped by the dorm first.
No matter how I looked at it, wandering around town covered in dirt from the mines was just too embarrassing.
I washed up, changed into clean clothes, and finally made my way to the workshop.
The pleasant scent of wood filled the air—the smell of the wooden doll I’d been crafting.
And when I saw the finished piece, my reaction was—
“Wow… I actually made this?”
I forgot Carpenter was standing right next to me and blurted it out loud—a self-congratulatory outburst.
The wood’s varnished surface gleamed beautifully, polished to a perfect shine.
It almost felt wrong that I’d have to sacrifice this masterpiece to Darron’s axe.
I was lost in admiration until Carpenter’s soft laugh brought me back to reality.
“Ah—sorry. That must’ve sounded arrogant, especially in front of my woodworking teacher…”
Embarrassment flooded me.
I’d really overstepped my place there—showing off in front of the master!
But instead of scolding me, she just laughed heartily and gave my back a few firm pats.
“No, no—it’s fine! Honestly, I was shocked too. When I opened the shop this morning and saw this already finished, I couldn’t believe it! You work so fast.”
Unlike the softer woods I’d used before, Merbau was a tough material.
She hadn’t expected me to adjust so quickly—or to complete such a detailed wooden doll so soon.
She kept showering me with praise, which only made my face redder.
“Ugh, I can compliment myself all I want, but I’ll never get used to other people doing it.”
Fanning my flushed cheeks with my palm, I packed up the doll’s finished parts and headed out of the workshop.
Of course, I didn’t forget to thank Carpenter for letting me use her space and tools.
Now, all that was left was to assemble the parts at the training ground—and then today’s tasks would finally be done.
