Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

Akina Ze also lifted his heavy thighs and stepped forward, one step, two steps.

As he moved faster and faster, Akina Ze had squeezed out the last bit of energy from his body.

They ran wildly towards Xianglintang.

"Snapped!"

Akina Sawa also suddenly pushed open the simple little door of Kourindo.

He stumbled and sat down on a chair in front of the hall where guests could rest.

"hu~hu~"

Then, heavy breathing came from Akina Zeya.

Right now, all he felt was a burning pain in his lungs. He was already dehydrated, and the sprint he had just been running made him feel like he couldn't breathe.

"Drink it quickly!"

Just then, a glass filled with water appeared in front of Akina Zeya.

"Guru Guru~"

Without the slightest hesitation, Akina Sawa took the cup with the fastest speed he had ever used, tilted his head back, and swallowed it in large gulps.

The icy water poured down my parched, burning throat.

A feeling of refreshing coolness and exhilaration welled up within me.

"Ah~ I'm alive~"

The pleasurable sensation made Akina Ze groan involuntarily.

The drowsy brain cleared up under the cool stimulation, and I could even taste the salty flavor on my tongue.

There must have been salt added to this water.

By the way, I'm here to find a machine that can make cold water!

As his brain gradually came back to work, Akina Ze also recalled the purpose of his visit.

"Shopkeeper, do you have any cooling machines here? I really can't stand this heat!"

Akina Sawa asked Morichi Rinnosuke, who had handed over the cup and then sat back down.

"Uh..."

Upon hearing Akina Zeya's words, Morichika Rinnosuke hesitated for a few moments before slowly saying, "I don't have such a thing here."

"Oh...no way, even you don't have any here, shopkeeper..."

Akina Sawa immediately despaired. If even Kourindo didn't exist, then there was no point in even thinking about the Human Village. Was he really going to spend the entire hot summer like this?

Just as Akina Ze was feeling disheartened and about to leave, a chilly wind swirled and blew against his back. His skin, which had been scorched by the blazing sun, was extremely sensitive to this refreshing chill.

Ok?

This feeling?

There's no mistake! That icy feeling!

"Shopkeeper, why am I feeling a strange sensation?"

Akina Ze turned 180 degrees and returned to the counter where Mori Chika Rinnosuke was, a meaningful smile on his face.

"You're probably just delirious from the sun; it's just your imagination."

Morichika Rinnosuke adjusted his glasses, the light reflecting off the lenses completely obscuring his eyes, and replied expressionlessly.

"So I was delirious from the fever."

As he spoke, Akina Sawa reached out his hand in the direction the wind was blowing, which was exactly the direction from which Morichika Rinnosuke was behind the counter.

"Snapped!"

Something unexpected happened: Morichika Rinnosuke slapped Akina Sawaya's hand away from the counter, and Akina Sawaya, whose hand was knocked away, smiled.

"Alright, alright, I give up. I do have a refrigeration machine here."

Then, Morichika Rinnosuke squatted down, took out a square machine emitting cold air from under the cabinet, and placed it on the cabinet.

Isn't this just an air conditioner? The kind without a fan.

Feeling the cold air blowing out of the square machine, Akina Ze couldn't help but think.

No wonder the shop owner didn't sweat at all despite the sweltering heat; the temperature inside the shop was much lower than outside.

"Shopkeeper, how much is this?"

Now that he had brought out what he wanted, Akina Sawa decided to get straight to the point.

This item is not for sale.

"I said, shaking my finger."

"Huh? No way!"

Just when I thought I had reached a dead end, a new path opened up before me, only to find that the village was already abandoned.

Akina Ze couldn't withstand the blow either, staggered back a few steps and plopped down in a chair.

"but"

But unexpectedly, after saying the previous sentence, Morichika Rinnosuke touched his reflective eyes and said the following sentence.

"Someone in Gensokyo can manufacture this."

"who is it!?"

Akina Sawa also stood up from his chair with a renewed sense of alertness, looking directly at Morichika Rinnosuke.

"But she told me not to tell anyone, saying it would cause a lot of trouble."

Despite being stared at by Akina Sawa, Morichika Rinnosuke remained calm and composed.

"Okay, I understand," Akina Ze silently reached into his pocket...

I don't know whether to say it went smoothly or not.

Akina Sawa also successfully obtained information about the refrigeration machine from the owner of Kourindo.

The refrigeration machine was something that Morichika Rinnosuke found in the Muenzuka.

Although he was a half-human, half-demon being, he was also troubled by the fact that this summer was hotter than in previous years, or rather, every year was hotter than the last.

So, Morichika Rinnosuke was naturally very happy to have obtained this machine.

However, a problem arose: although he knew what the machine was for, he had no idea how to use it.

So, having no other choice, Morichika Rinnosuke decided to go to Tengu Mountain to seek help from the kappa.

Thanks to the improvements made by the kappa, the machine can now generate cold air without the need for additional equipment.

The kappa gained knowledge, and Morichika Rinnosuke obtained a refrigeration machine.

However, the kappa said they hoped he wouldn't tell anyone else. If people knew they had a machine that could cool people down, humans or monsters suffering from the high temperatures would definitely come to them to make such a machine, which would be a lot of trouble!

Even a kappa would only want to soak in the pond in this kind of weather and be a "salted fish" obediently.

"I'm sorry, he gave me way too much."

Inside the Kourindo Hall, Morichika Rinnosuke tossed the bag in his hand, and as the bag moved up and down, a clattering sound of metal coming from inside the bag.

And Akina Sawa was walking under the sun again.

This time, however, he learned his lesson and bought a large water bottle from Xianglintang, filled it with water, and put it in his backpack.

Now we don't have to worry about water shortages on the roads.

As the saying goes, "Looking at a mountain makes a horse run itself to death," and gazing at the distant Monster Mountain, Akina Sawa felt his legs go weak...

Chapter 3 Assimilation of ⑨

"Is that all?"

On the muddy road, which was mostly covered by wildly growing weeds, Akina Sawa was turning his water bottle upside down, trying to extract the last bit of value from it.

After Akina Sawa licked away the last drop of water that never fell from the spout of the kettle with his tongue.

The water brought from Xianglintang has been completely drunk.

To be honest, Akina Sawa underestimated the power of the blazing sun, coupled with his own limitations.

Once you have water on you, you'll inevitably feel thirsty and want to drink some.

In addition, Akina Sawa also thought that there was definitely enough water in the large water bottle, so he had no intention of holding back and immediately took out the water bottle and took a big gulp when he was thirsty.

That was indeed powerful, but it also consumed water quickly, so the water in the kettle was quickly used up.

Fortunately, judging from the distance between our current location and Monster Mountain, we have actually arrived in the outer area.

It is said that the kappa lives at the bottom of the monster mountain, so Akina Sawa does not need to climb the mountain, but only needs to walk a few more steps.

Akina Sawa thought so too, and there was something very conspicuous on the Monster Mountain that he could see from a great distance.

That's the waterfall of Monster Mountain. This waterfall reflects the sunlight and flows down from the top of the mountain through a series of pools.

He could also vaguely hear the sound of rushing water around him.

This should be a branch of the waterfall, and there might even be a large pool nearby.

Kappa are water spirits, a fact that Akina Sawaya learned from books.

Although the kappa in Gensokyo all look like cute little girls and aren't bald, they should still be staying by the pond, right?

Wait, what? Baldness?

Akina Sawa also seemed to have noticed something.

Moreover, Akina Sawa has always seen kappa with a hat on their head; he has never seen a kappa without a hat.

Shouldn't it?

No! I must be overthinking this!

The more Akina Zeya thought about it, the paler his face became.

The thought that these adorable little kappa girls all have such big, shiny heads is quite surprising.

This made him feel uncomfortable.

Let's look on the bright side; maybe it's just because kappa likes to wear hats!

Akina Ze also tried to comfort himself.

Sometimes, not knowing the truth is a kind of happiness...

After quickly composing himself, Akina Sawa headed towards the sound of running water.

The road was full of weeds and bushes, so Akina Sawa had to take out a sickle from his backpack.

Thanks to the sharpness of the sickle and Akina Zeya's current physique.

Although there were many weeds and shrubs, and they were the kind of plants that would become very tough after absorbing enough water, they were still cleaved open by the sickle, which was empowered by strength, as if it were cutting melons and vegetables.

Beside the dirt road, a newly formed path stretches out into the dense grass, extending into the even more lush distance.

The sound of flowing water grew louder and louder, and Akina Sawa put in even more effort, wielding a sickle with dazzling skill, flashing cold light as a path rapidly formed.

"Crack!"

With a swift scythe, a branch blocking its path was mercilessly severed.

Akina Zeya's vision suddenly cleared up.

Before us was an open space with a small pool in it. A stream of water emerged from a crevice in the rocks and plunged into the pool after a drop of several meters.

The sound that Akina Sawa heard came from here.

The pool wasn't large, but the water was very clear and cold, and you could see the bottom.

Akina Sawa also went over, placed the kettle inside, and waited for the water to flow in automatically and fill it up.

"No kappa would stay in such a small pond."

Akina Ze also watched the water in the pool flow quickly into the spout of the kettle and muttered to himself.