Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

Soon, steam rose from the hat, and the moisture that had seeped into the hat was continuously heated by the mushroom.

"The Great Sun Mushroom?" Alice was now fully seated. Something new and intriguing had suddenly appeared when she was bored, enough to pique her interest.

"But this name doesn't sound very good. I think the light it emits is very similar to the light emitted by the sun, so how about we call it the Sunshine Mushroom?"

Alice didn't develop her chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) talent and wasn't fond of the name Marisa chose.

"Haha, let's see who catches this mushroom first!"

During this time, the small boat had already reached the designated location with the current.

Marisa, sticking to her own opinion, grabbed a fishing rod and put it into the water.

Alice was not to be outdone.

Splash, splash, splash—several water droplets flew up in succession.

The two entered into a tense and exciting mushroom fishing adventure.

The dolls fluttering around Alice were also fishing with fishing rods in their hands, and even the wet Penglai was no exception, except that a piece of mushroom remains was placed on its chest to heat it up.

Although Alice felt a bit tricked seeing how many fishing rods Marisa had prepared, she figured it was fine since she was bored anyway...

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Leaving aside the two guys on the lake who thought they could catch mushrooms by fishing.

Another spot on the shore of Lake Mist was bustling with noise, completely out of place with the tranquility of the lakeside.

This is the site of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, which was destroyed by the Iceberg Incident in the fall, and is now the reconstruction site of the Scarlet Devil Mansion.

From afar, a group of kappa carrying schoolbags and wearing lotus-shaped hats surrounded Patchouli, who was dressed in pink, in the very center...

Chapter Four: Magic Must Also Be Unified

The wind was strong by the lake, but Patchouli was only exposed to the wind on her upper body; her lower body was barely exposed.

This wasn't because she was standing next to the half-hidden ruins of the Scarlet Devil Mansion, but because a large group of 1.2-meter-tall kappa lolis had completely surrounded her.

"As you can see, our engineering power supply is insufficient due to the annual maintenance of the Old Hell nuclear power plant," said Kawashiro Nitori, standing in front of a large group of lolis, pointing to the tower crane that had stopped operating beside him.

Kawashiro Nitori is in charge of the Scarlet Devil Mansion reconstruction project.

Given the choice between setting up a stall at the Kappa Market and becoming the project manager, Kawashiro Nitori unhesitatingly chose the latter.

Although this is not the first time the Scarlet Devil Mansion has been rebuilt, Remilia's personal savings show no signs of running out.

I feel like I could make a fortune, hehe~

This was Kawashiro Nitori's first thought after winning the contracting job competition against a large group of money-loving kappa.

Now that they've won, the only thing they need to worry about is the occasional nagging from Sakuya Izayoi, the Scarlet Devil Mansion maid who is in charge of the client.

For example, whether there is any cutting corners or using inferior materials, which are things that the client usually checks.

But as a visionary and "conscientious" project manager, Kawashiro Nitori said she would never do such a thing.

After all, with such a generous budget, there's simply no need to do something like this.

Of course, Kawashiro Nitori wasn't completely indifferent to profit; she was always keen on making money and extremely frugal.

The cucumbers I just got were sent out again; it's driving me crazy!

Therefore, each of the kappa at the construction site should have had 3 cucumbers in their lunch every day.

Kawashiro only took one of them as her small warehouse profit.

This was enough to make her roll around in bed late at night, not because she was afraid, but because she felt she hadn't taken enough.

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that the Scarlet Devil Mansion reconstruction project can be completed on time.

If it's not completed on time, not only will we not get the cucumbers, but we'll also have to pay a loss.

However, the Scarlet Devil Mansion reconstruction project is now facing a major crisis.

In his eagerness to enjoy the melons, Kawashiro Nitori forgot that the old hell nuclear power plant undergoes maintenance at this time of year.

She had not made any contingency plans for this.

So it's obvious that a crisis has occurred.

Construction machinery at the site is now shut down due to power outage.

However, Kawashiro Nitori, as the person in charge, was thinking about his own small warehouse.

The first one came up with the idea and completed the preliminary preparations.

Her idea was to create a human battery.

"I've already said it, this is impossible. Magic isn't for this kind of thing." Among the group of kappa, Patchouli, dressed in pink, remained calm and composed, rejecting Kawashiro Nitori's unreasonable request.

Anyone would react this way if suddenly surrounded by a large group of people asking them to be a human battery, and Patchouli was no exception.

Moreover, Patchouli, as a witch, hadn't exercised in a long time, and her physical weakness was the norm, not to mention that she also suffered from asthma and anemia.

If you made her stand still all day to provide a stable power source for the kappa's mechanical tools, it wouldn't just be a matter of life and death, it would be certain death.

"This is it, the cucumbers that are already in my pocket are going to be taken away... Waaaaah..." With his hopes dashed, Kawashiro Nitori crouched down, covering his head in fear.

The thought of not being able to finish the project on time and having hundreds or thousands of cucumbers taken away made Kawashiro Naritoshi's heart tremble, and tears welled up in his eyes.

The kappa watching were not yet aware of what had happened and stood there dumbfounded.

Suddenly, a kappa in the crowd whispered, "Does this mean we don't have the two cucumbers we had for lunch?"

Silence, utter silence.

Then came a thunderous roar.

"What?! It's gone?!"

"Cucumber! My cucumber!"

The group of kappa suddenly exploded, scattering red and yellow ones all over the ground.

Even more extreme, some climbed from the pod of the stopped tower crane to the very top, picked up their hats, and gestured downwards.

Nobody cared about her, nobody paid any attention to her.

Everyone has their own things to do.

Chaos has broken out; everything is out of control.

Patchouli frowned as she watched everything unfold before her.

From Kawashiro Nitori suddenly crouching down in defense, to the kappa exploding into a state of mental illness.

Everything happened too fast. Even though she was a witch, she didn't have the magic to achieve this effect.

Or rather, even if she did, she hasn't used it yet.

What kind of nonsense is this?

Patchouli had a slight doubt that she was actually still half asleep.

[Crack! 】

The pocket watch suddenly chimed.

The sky changed from bright to dark and then from dark to bright.

The kappa, which had been running around everywhere, now stood neatly in an orderly line in the open space.

Even Kawashiro Nitori had her hands forcibly removed from her head and placed on either side of her skirt, close to the center line, to blend into the kappa group.

"What happened here? I remember everything was normal half an hour ago." The dashing head maid and project client, Sakuya Izayoi, stood on the platform facing the group of kappa, while Patchouli stood to the side.

Um... why am I standing here? Patchouli was a little tired; she just wanted to go back to the comfort of the basement.

"Here's the thing..."

The group of kappa looked at each other in confusion, but finally a little girl kappa bravely stepped forward to answer the client's questions.

"Hmm, I see." Sakuya Izayoi nodded and listened attentively to the kappa's report. "So, there's not enough electricity, the machines have stopped, and you're worried that the project will be delayed, so you want Patchouli to provide magic to generate electricity?"

Patchouli, who was standing nearby, frowned upon hearing this and said, "Sakuya, let me make this clear: I am a witch, not a battery."

"It's a witch, not a battery!" one of the kappa in the group, who was confused, chimed in, but was immediately silenced by another kappa standing nearby.

"Patchouli, don't be so decisive," Izayoi Sakuya said slowly as she walked to Patchouli's side without a smile, whispering in her ear, "You should know that Lady Remilia is the head of the Scarlet Devil Mansion."

Sakuya Izayoi read out the three words "Scarlet Devil Mansion" one by one, but her face was expressionless, and her voice was as emotionless as ever.

But Patchouli still felt a great chill. She remembered that the Scarlet Devil Mansion was completely destroyed because of her magic.

"Well, I am, after all, a member of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. It is only right that I do my part in its reconstruction." With this thought in mind, Patchouli took out a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped her forehead, which was devoid of sweat. She felt that her asthma was about to flare up.

I vaguely remember the last time Izayoi Sakuya exuded this kind of aura was a long time ago, probably when she kicked open the Scarlet Devil Mansion door?

Too much time had passed, and the memories were sealed deep within her brain, so Patchouli couldn't recall them for the time being.

"Alright, bring up your so-called magic-to-electricity conversion equipment."

If she couldn't remember, she stopped thinking about it. Patchouli waved her hand, signaling the kappa below to bring the things up.

Then, two or three kappa appeared out of nowhere, carrying out a machine that was large enough to accommodate an adult.

The machine was dark, with three long metal antennas on top.

"Just sit down," Kawashiro Nitori said, flipping open the instruction manual in his hand.

This magic conversion device is one of the machine products that Kappa Heavy Industries developed over a long period of time and was deemed waste.

As for why it was considered useless? It's clearly so useful.

Kawashiro Naritoshi tapped her head in distress; she seemed unable to recall it.

Although she had agreed to provide electricity for the kappa, Patchouli still felt dizzy when she actually saw the machine.

Oh no, these are symptoms of anemia.

Patchouli looked at Izayoi Sakuya for help, but the person who had just been beside her had vanished without a trace.

Well, there's no other way but to bite the bullet and go for it.

Patchouli closed the book in her hand, looked at the dark machine in front of her, and walked in step by step with difficulty...

Soon, a dazzling arc of electricity streaked across the sky.

A rumbling sound immediately came from the construction site, and all the stopped machines started running one by one.

Patchouli's magic seems to be powerful enough, and her control is incredibly precise, allowing her to consistently provide the magic output the machine desires.

"Hmm, I get it. This is forward, so this is backward?" The second young lady of the Scarlet Devil Mansion was sitting in the tower crane cabin at some point, operating the joystick in front of her.

Her delicate, fair feet dangled freely in mid-air, barely touching the ground, much like something suspended by the boom of a tower crane swinging wildly through the air...

"Oh right, I remember now, it's because the person charging the magic output needs to have extremely high precision that they are considered useless!" Kawashiro Nitori said, closing the instruction manual in his hand.

In fact, the instruction manual she had was just something she grabbed randomly; the real one had been lost.

The pitch-black magic conversion machine stood there silently.

Between the three antennas at the top, a deep blue arc of electricity flickered...

Chapter Five: Physical Strength

Generating an idea is a mental difficulty, while implementing an idea is a practical difficulty.

The greenhouse floor, walls, and ceiling were covered with a layer of carbon black that would form after firewood had burned.

"Is there any other way...?"

Akina Sawa also scooped up the icy well water and splashed it on his face, hoping that the chill could bring a spark of inspiration to his brain, which was stuck in the mud.

Unfortunately, the icy water didn't bring Akina Sawa any good ideas; it only revealed the fleshy back of his face, which had been blackened by the smoke, and caused him to shiver in vain.

After wiping the water droplets from his face, Akina Sawa turned around and sat on the rocking chair under the eaves, staring blankly at the distant village.

From a distance, houses built of stone, wood, and brick form every street in the village.

Slowly curling wisps of blue smoke lingered in the air above the people.

That wisp of smoke must be coming from the chimney, right?