Rudis broke the suffocating silence and asked Noah. He continued glaring coldly at Iska as he replied.

“The tower has collapsed. Where would I go? I’ll be staying here indefinitely.”

This glare feels like it could bore holes through him… Just then, Iska, with his heightened senses, skillfully pretended not to notice and clung to Rudis.

“What about Xenon…?”

“Yeah. I’m fine staying too.”

When her attempt to reduce the number of people failed, Rudis awkwardly tried to change the subject.

“What about the Harvest Festival?!”

Her sudden outburst drew everyone’s attention. While she succeeded in changing the atmosphere, Rudis bit her lip as anxiety rapidly washed over her.

“Sigh… what am I going to do?”

Rudis rushed out to the farm to assess the situation. Predictably, a desolate landscape greeted her. Looking at the empty fields, Rudis covered her mouth with both hands. Tears began welling in her eyes.

“I’m completely ruined…”

The fall harvest was a total loss. While missing one season of farming might not normally be catastrophic, for Rudis it was more devastating than anything else.

The Autumn Harvest Festival wasn’t just a simple celebration. It was a stage where her pride and honor as a farmer were at stake.

While Rudis stood there, stunned and whimpering, Iska cautiously approached and spoke.

“Should we select some crops from the storage?”

Rudis shook her head and answered firmly.

“Old crops won’t work.”

Of course, the storage was full of premium crops, but the festival’s judging criteria were strict. Only fresh and rare crops harvested recently could receive high scores. Therefore, she couldn’t win with old harvests from storage.

“There are some fruits growing on the trees, aren’t there?”

At Iska’s suggestion, Rudis again shook her head.

“Those won’t work either.”

There were fruit trees that produced autumn harvests, but they were common varieties. Moreover, crops previously entered in the festival couldn’t win again, no matter how rare they were.

Rudis couldn’t help but sigh.

Though she seemed to be the only person farming in this village, somehow during the Harvest Festival, everyone brought impressive entries from somewhere.

For the first five years, Rudis always came in second place. Under the lord’s ruthless policy of rewarding only first place, she never received any compensation.

Eventually, after meticulously analyzing the judging criteria, Rudis discovered how to win. She had to generously fertilize never-before-seen rare crops to premium quality and harvest them fresh the day before the festival.

That way, she had barely managed to win for three years, but this year she had accomplished nothing.

“Perhaps we should skip this year…”

Hearing Xenon’s voice suggesting they wait until next year, Rudis struggled to hold back tears as she nodded.

In truth, the Harvest Festival’s importance extended beyond just this.

[Quest Name: 𒀀𒁶𒂊𒆠𒁹

Quest Description: 𒀹𒁺𒅗𒂔𒂟𒂷𒃼𒄀𒃒𒉌𒋧𒅠𒉿𒂄𒋝𒃼𒊕

𒀀𒀡𒁺𒁹𒀸 0/1, 𒀇𒂄𒅖𒁔𒀟 1/1, 𒀐𒂕𒃻𒂄𒂔 1/1, 𒀙𒀴𒁹𒆪𒁹 1/1

Reward: 𒀀𒁍𒂵 Po̸̸̽̉wer̵̉̏ 𒀻]

An ancient quest with unreadable text. It had probably been there since the first spring. Though the text was broken and illegible, the conditions involved collecting four items. 

Gradually, the requirements had been fulfilled one by one after receiving awards from the Harvest Festival. She could infer that the festival’s annually changing rewards were the quest completion conditions.

She had thought that by winning this year, regardless of what the reward might be, she could finally clear this long-incomplete quest, but now…

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to plant…”

Iska carefully approached the dejected Rudis and bowed his head. Rudis waved her hands, trying to calm Iska who looked ready to cry at any moment.

“It’s not your fault. This is my responsibility.”

Iska was merely a helper with farm work. All responsibility lay with Rudis.

“Thank you all for your concern.”

Rudis forced a smile and addressed everyone.

“Is there nothing in the greenhouse?”

Just then, Noah, who had been observing everything, asked. Rudis’s eyes suddenly lit up.

“The greenhouse!”

Rudis darted out like an arrow toward the greenhouse. When she flung open the greenhouse door, the sight that greeted her was breathtaking.

Golden sunlight gently descended through the glass ceiling into a space filled with clear air. The greenhouse was simultaneously serene yet vibrant with life.

At its center stood a tree grown from the suspicious seed she had planted long ago. Its majestic appearance made it hard to believe it had grown from such a tiny seed.

The dark blue trunk extended in elegant curves, seemingly connecting earth and sky. Light-infused leaves on each branch produced clear sounds when they swayed.

A gentle melody filled the greenhouse, awakening distant forgotten sensations that seemed to draw listeners somewhere far away.

“Wow…”

Rudis stared at the tree, mesmerized. The others who had followed appeared equally speechless for a while.

“There’s fruit too!”

Rudis exclaimed excitedly upon discovering fruit with a subtle glow. The fruit was slightly visible between the leaves at the lower part of the tree, like hidden treasure.

Yet it was close enough for anyone to reach out and touch. As Rudis approached, the fruit responded by absorbing multicolored light.

Rudis, seemingly entranced, reached out and grasped the fruit. 

The moment its smooth surface touched her fingertips, the fruit reflected the gentle light within the greenhouse, dispersing transparent radiance.

“It’s beautiful.”

Iska, who had quietly approached from behind, didn’t miss his opportunity.

“I gave it fertilizer and growth accelerator every day, just like you said.”

At Iska’s words, Rudis turned her head. Looking at Iska with deep appreciation, she said:

“You did well. Really well. Nobody but you could have done this!”

At Rudis’s praise, Iska blushed and fluttered his ears.

“Have you ever seen a tree like this before?”

Rudis asked Xenon and Noah, unable to contain her excitement. Xenon stared blankly at the tree before slowly shaking his head.

“Well… I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it…”

Xenon’s voice was genuinely filled with wonder. Noah, on the other hand, answered briefly and decisively.

“I’ve never seen it.”

Noah was looking at the tree with slightly furrowed eyes. His green gaze held both caution and interest simultaneously.

Iska examined between the leaves and said quietly:

“Not many fruits have grown.”

Despite the brilliant leaves hanging from every branch, there was only one fruit.

But Rudis’s face showed no disappointment. Rather, her eyes sparkled with expectation and confidence.

“It’s okay. One is enough.”

Rudis’s voice was resolute. The Harvest Festival was originally a place to showcase the best crops. The quantity didn’t matter. 

If even Xenon and Noah, who had lived for a long time, had never seen such a tree, its rarity alone gave her a good chance of winning.

“This is enough!”

Rudis carefully caressed the fruit. At that moment, its surface, resembling both glass and metal, vibrated subtly, almost like it was breathing.

* * *

“Isn’t that Rudis?”

“Yeah. What’s she doing here?”

“Who’s that person with her?”

“What? Another outsider?”

Time had passed, and the Harvest Festival day arrived. The villagers who saw Rudis after a long absence were busy whispering with puzzlement and suspicion rather than welcoming her.

This was because her affinity with the villagers had hit rock bottom after failing to complete their quests throughout summer and fall.

“They’re pointing fingers at us. Should I go teach them a lesson?”

Iska whispered softly beside her, glaring. Rudis shook her head.

“No, Iska. It’s fine.”

Though Iska might not know, such reactions weren’t unfamiliar to Rudis. During her first few years after entering this game world, some people had openly called her an outsider.

If they were merely whispering behind her back, her affinity probably hadn’t dropped as much as she feared.

Still, after all that effort…

Nevertheless, it was somewhat upsetting to revert to those early days just because she couldn’t complete quests for two seasons.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have come along.”

Iska looked around, his shoulders drooping.

“It’s not because of you. Don’t worry about it.”

Rudis gently patted Iska, comforting him. In fact, bringing Iska to the Harvest Festival had been Rudis’s idea. She knew people wouldn’t view the unfamiliar Iska favorably.

However, since they would be living together for life, she couldn’t keep him confined to the farm.

Rudis believed Iska needed opportunities to gradually and naturally mingle with the villagers.

So she had prepared thoroughly. His tail was hidden inside his clothes, and a wide-brimmed hat concealed his pointed ears.

Even the somewhat suspicious-looking choker was naturally covered by high-necked clothing.

“People are looking at me scarily.”

Despite these precautions, Iska whispered softly and clung to Rudis, apparently frightened by people’s stares.

“Are you afraid?”

“Yes. Please hold my hand.”

Or perhaps he was pretending to be scared. Though she recognized his cunning ploy, strangely she didn’t mind. He just looked cute.

Rudis firmly grasped the hand Iska extended. Immediately, the whispering grew louder.