Chương 85: CHAPTER 82 — Farm Troubles

It was just another morning at the cave. The group that called themselves the Rough Riders was prepping to go into the cave. They were going to try the level 12 instance for the first time. They failed the level 10 instance the first couple of times they did it, but the last time they succeeded, and it was time to step up the challenge. The counter the last time they checked had about 30 minutes left before the instance would open.

As they were watching the cave, it seemed to pulse, and then a new system message appeared. [Cave System Expansion Detected] Regional Development Threshold Reached. Civilian Profession Instance Paths Unlocked. New Group Requirements Available. Sam, the group leader screamed.

"What the crap? It's our turn; every time this thing pulls crap like this, there is a few-hour delay. This is going to mess up the whole schedule." Then the system message continued.

New Instance Categories: • Agricultural Support • Resource Extraction • Infrastructure Development • Animal Husbandry • Supply and Logistics • Preservation and Production Instance Requirements: • 5 Participants Required • Minimum 3 Non-Combat Specialized Classes • Challenge Structure Adaptive to Group Composition New Rewards Possible: • Profession Experience • Specialized Tools • Trade Resources • Livestock • Seeds • Patterns • Manuals • Infrastructure Materials The area around them exploded into chatter.

Many of the fighters were disappointed. They were hoping the new upgrade would add level 14. The builders working on the Forgeworks were excited; they knew specialized tools were one of the areas holding them back. Mara was sitting next to her garden tending the plants when the message came through. Her son and husband came in from the field to talk about what happened. Elias said.

"Mara, did you get that message? That stupid cave is going to give out livestock and seeds?" Finn interrupted.

"See dad I told you the cave was cool." Mara replied.

"We could really use livestock and seeds, Elias; maybe we need to look into what this new change is about." Finn just sat there with a smug look on his face like he had personally won the argument. A group of three sat at Wayrest talking when the message appeared. Greta, a Herb Gatherer, Talia, a Frontier Apothecary, and Bren, a Survival Cook, all stopped mid-conversation. Greta said.

"Wow, did you guys get that? The cave might be useful after all." Tailia said.

"I have done a few runs, and there are some great items to use for my class, but this change is just way cool. Can you picture the cool manuals I could get or seeds for rare items we could grow?" Bren said.

"Forget the items; profession experience—that's where it's at. I am struggling to level up my class." Mark and Dale were reviewing the structures and tools needed to improve the camp's preservation systems. The crowd around them all stopped talking. Then there was a pause, and then the noise erupted. Everyone knew there was an expected upgrade soon, but this was just amazing. Dale said.

"Well, Mark, you thought things were finally starting to calm down and hit a steady rhythm that is about to end." Mark replied.

"You know, Dale, change is good. But out of all the things on that list, I think I look forward to livestock the most. When we surveyed the south, it was in serious need of some livestock. Think about it, Dale. I really want a hamburger. Maybe someone can find some cows or tomatoes or both." Dale said.

"You know, before the list gets all crazy, I am going to run right up there and sign up." The steering committee for the cave gathered for a hasty meeting. They wanted to discuss what the region needed most from the cave. The higher-level groups had been monopolizing the cave, and with this new change, they wanted to get some new rules going. This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

They previously had 4 instances that could be run once every 10 hours after the last instance was finished. The level 12 instances were taking about 8 hours to complete, causing the lockouts to get farther apart. They had a serious need to get newer people that had no levels and skills into the lower-level instances. They decided they would create a new rule. Two instances would be reserved for those under level 8 with no classes. And the other two could be run by groups over that level range.

But only 1 instance would be allowed at max level at a time. They then talked about this new 5th instance and what they needed as a community. Rather than first-come, first-served signups like they had been doing previously, they wanted to cater these to groups that would best fit the growth they needed. The group gathered around the cave was a mix of all fighters, tradesmen, farmers, hunters, and even one fisherman. They all wanted to go on the first run.

The steering committee went through the list of all that wanted to go and picked the first five. It was a group with a Farmer, Herbalist, Hauler, Scout, and Fighter. When the countdown finally ended and the new instance was available, they entered with the Scout and Fighter in the lead. When they stepped into the cave, what they found was not expected. They were outside on what looked to be a small farm. The sun was out and they could hear some livestock making noise in a barn that was not too far away.

The sight was not that impressive; it looked run down. Fences in disrepair, the crops seemed to be dying, the irrigation ditches were broken, and they would no longer hold water. They went into the farmhouse, and the cupboards were almost bare. There were five bunks and almost nothing else in the place. They all received a system message; it was simple. Stabilize the farm before time expires. The Fighter looked out of place. No threats, well, not the kind he was used to.

Dying plants were not something he knew how to handle. The group headed over to the barn to see what was going on there. They found two sick dairy cows and a calf that looked only a few hours old and had not yet been fed. The Farmer picked up the calf, and they all went back to the farmhouse. They found a well there, and the Farmer got water out of it in a bucket and found some rags in the farmhouse and cleaned up the calf the best he could. Then dried it off.

He then started giving directions to the others as they all looked lost. The Herbalist and Hauler went to the fields and started to look into the issue with the plants. And the Farmer directed the other two to the barn, where they attempted to figure out what was wrong with the cows. They managed to milk one enough to get some milk out to feed the calf. The farmer found a bottle in the barn, filled it with the milk, and handed it to the Fighter to feed.

They sent the Scout out to figure out what else was around the farm. She came back about 2 hours later and let them know that she started running away from the farm heading east and then ended up back at the farm. She then tried going north, and the same thing happened; it was like they were in a bubble that included only the farm. The first day passed far faster than expected. It was night before they realized it. They were making slow progress; one of the cows started to look better, the other not so much.

The second day things went downhill; one of the cows died, and half the crops had also died. They were also running into a personal problem; they were almost out of food. They started rationing the little bit of food they had, but on the fourth day, the second cow died, and the crops were not far behind. In the end, on the morning of the fifth day, with only the baby calf still alive, they gave up and exited the instance.

[Agricultural Stabilization Scenario Failed] Primary Objective: Stabilize the farm before collapse.

Final Evaluation: • Livestock Preservation: Partial Success • Crop Recovery: Failed • Water Management: Incomplete • Resource Sustainability: Failed • Group Coordination: Developing Achievements Recognized: • Newborn Calf Survived • One Livestock Illness Properly Identified • Emergency Irrigation Repairs Attempted • Farm Boundary Conditions Investigated Rewards Granted: • Minor Profession Experience Awarded • Small Farming Experience Awarded • Small Animal Care Experience Awarded • Simple Livestock Feed Recipe • Hardy Grain Seed Bundle x1 Bonus Reward: • Healthy Farm Calf Scenario Insight: Combat strength alone is insufficient for settlement survival.

Sustainable food, water, livestock care, and labor coordination are essential components of civilization development. Time Elapsed Inside Instance: 5 Days, 3 Hours External Time Passed: 2 Hours, 11 Minutes When the group emerged outside, standing with a baby calf next to them, the crowd started shouting out questions. What types of things did they fight, how hard were the fights? What did the cave look like, and how many tunnels? Did they find ore, how much salt, and the list went on.

When the group finally realized that if they were all talking at once, the group could not answer. The Farmer took the lead and, in detail, explained what they did and why they failed. After another 100 questions they finally let them go. The crowd seemed most excited that it had not been a cave at all, but an open farm. They loved time dilation also. They had been gone only a couple of hours but spent 5 days inside.

With 10 hours on the clock, the steering committee gathered with the group that went in and got more details about how/why they were not able to keep the cows alive and how the crops failed. The failure to realize they needed to fix things like the fence and the irrigation that would have netted them more rewards. And the committee started to gather names and classes for the next group.