Shuye nodded and gave me an indecipherable look. “Yes, it does. The clan is handling it, of course, so there’s no need to be alarmed, but I was wondering if you knew about it. And if you have any tips on how to handle the spider.”
The event in Adventure Incarnate featured various food stalls and a home decoration shop, but, seeing as Shuye hadn’t mentioned anything about it, I inferred that no ghostly establishments were selling Halloween merchandise at the maze.
As for the maze itself, players simply navigated to the end to get a decorative [Jack-o'-lantern]. The structure, hung with fairy lights and decked with pumpkins, skulls, coffins, etc., was more of a scenic location than an actual challenge. The spider in the center was supposed to be a statue, but Shuye would hardly be worried about a stone spider, so I deduced that it was real.
Still, the people of this world were used to killing demons; therefore, this shouldn’t be a problem for them.
“The information about the maze in my bloodline inheritance says it should disappear in three days.”
“Hmm.” Prince Baiyu was reading the reports that the royal guards had handed to him when we entered the house. “They say the spider hasn’t moved at all.”
“Spiders weave webs to trap their prey, don’t they? I don’t think they go running around to hunt for food,” I said. “My tip to handle the spider is to leave it alone.”
Shuye shook his head. “It’s no threat now, but we need to at least observe it and, if needed, create a shield formation around it.”
“You aren’t going to hurt it, are you?” That was not in the game.
“No, we’re only keeping it under surveillance,” said Shuye.
He and Prince Baiyu discussed the details of the investigation and the warrior squad that the White Tiger clan was sending. Since this area was under Shuye’s zidan, he had to be there when they did their work.
Prince Baiyu turned to me, “My dear, I should be there, too.”
My husband was Shuye’s direct superior in matters regarding the White Tiger clan. His father would normally be the one to handle it, but Lord Yulin was taking care of a newborn.
“I understand. When are you going?”
“Now.”
He stood up, and Shuye and I followed suit, but I held up a hand to stop them from leaving.
“Wait, can I go with you? I want to see the maze.”
Shuye and Prince Baiyu exchanged a look of wordless communication before Prince Baiyu nodded.
“Can I ask the kids if they want to come along?” I asked.
They said it was fine, so I sent the maids with messages to my three apprentices. They turned up with Scholar Wu, and we all set off in my [Traditional Chinese Ship] to the meeting spot.
Apparently, they had all heard about it before I did.
“Is it true that it’s a skeletal spider?” Kharli was the first to bombard Shuye with questions. “How big is it? Does it eat people?”
“Does it really shoot golden spider silk?” asked Lari.”Can you sell the spider silk or make gold cloth out of it?”
“Is it edible?” asked Mo.
We all turned to look at her.
“I heard the kitchen staff talking about it,” she said.
“I don’t want to eat spider meat,” said Lari. “I don’t care if it’s rare and exotic. Unless…”
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Kharli grinned. She knew where this was going. “Unless what?”
“Unless it tastes as good as Four Joy Meatballs!”
We all laughed, even Mo.
The flight to the meeting area, a few miles away from the maze, only took a few minutes. The clan members flew down to meet with the warriors while my apprentices and I stayed on deck, using binoculars to check out the hedge maze.
The hedges themselves were the same as the ones in the game, but…
I put my binoculars down and cleared my throat. “I think we should sit this one out.”
Lari, Kharli, and Mo put their binoculars down, too, and we instinctively walked backwards into the open door of the ship’s salon. I carefully shut the door, and we all heaved sighs of relief.
“That’s one terrifying spider!” said Lari, his eyes wide with excitement.
Mo’s shudder was more eloquent than words.
“We shall stay here, safe, and far, far away from the giant black spider of doom!” I flopped down on a couch like a marionette with its strings cut. “Let’s not talk about it. Tell me what you guys have been doing this autumn.”
They’d sent letters, but I was eager to talk about what they had been up to while I was away on my honeymoon.
“I’ve been doing a lot of sewing, and Madam Fengying said I’m almost as good as a real seamstress,” said Mo.
“Look, I caught a legendary [Carp]!” Lari proudly showed off his catch.
“I stumbled across a special hidden area of the forest that’s full of [Wild Plums].” Kharli showed me a jar of fruit jelly. “It’s sour but good!”
And so we chatted for a bit until one of the royal guards returned with a message that we could return to the farm if we wanted. Shuye and Prince Baiyu would be staying here for a few days. I thanked the guard and sent him off with a short note to my husband to let him know that we were leaving.
“I think it’s best to leave the maze to the professionals,” I said to the others. “We should stick to Farming.”
They all nodded.
***
The next day, the kids and I woke up at the crack of dawn to start the harvest. The staff did their usual ritual around the farm while we waited at the biggest rice paddy. My apprentices had caught all the fish and drained the paddy. Everything was ready.
Cutie was bouncing around the rice plants, exclaiming “chu!” now and then whenever she saw a worm or a butterfly.
“Looks like a good rice harvest this season,” I said as I surveyed the field full of thousands of plants in neat rows, the stalks heavy and drooping with golden grains. I reached down and touched the kernels of rice. They were rough and papery, with a rich amber color that almost seemed to glow in the morning light. Each grain was perfectly shaped. “This will certainly be high-grade.”
I straightened. In the distance, I could see the ritual procession approaching, incense billowing around the person holding the censer. They circled the rice field, and Fengying nodded to me, the signal that we could start.
“Okay, you guys first!” I stepped back and let my apprentices work.
We often harvested the vegetables first, but all the plants matured or ripened at different times depending on the planting day, soil conditions, sun exposure, and so forth. Today, this [Rice] field was the ready one.
Lari, Kharli, and Mo, dressed in simple cotton trousers and robes like me, took out their [Sickles] from their System toolbelt and swung them at the [Rice] plants, which magically disappeared into their inventories.
Not more than five minutes later, fireworks exploded around Mo when she reached 36 Farming, and we congratulated her. They continued to work until they ran out of energy, but they managed to finish the entire field.
“Well done!” I said.
We hugged it out before walking over to the next field, which was also full of [Rice] plants. Cutie was delighted because it was right next to one of the [Fragrant Flower Sanctuaries] we had planted. At this time of the year, close to winter time, there were fewer flowers, but the [Fairy Windflowers], [Fairy Pansies], [Fairy Cyclamens], and [Fairy Camellias] were still in bloom.
“I wonder if the [Insectary Garden] is better than the [Fragrant Flower Sanctuary],” said Lari.
“They both have pretty flowers,” said Mo.
“The garden for the fairies should be better. Think of it this way: one garden is for insects, the other garden is for fairies. Fairies are better than insects, so the fairy garden is better than the insect garden,” said Kharli.
Mo clapped her on the back. “That’s smart! This is why you’re our leader.”
We walked through the [Rice] field one last time, checking for any big rocks or other anomalies that my [Combine] might find hard to navigate, but there were none.
“Okay, watch me, I should level up!” I said to the others.
I climbed up the vehicle and drove it all over the field, harvesting all of the [Rice] in less than an hour.
[Congratulations, you just advanced a Farming level!]
[Your Farming level is now 53.]
They all congratulated me when I stepped down from the harvester and banished it to my inventory.
“Teacher, I can’t wait until you reach level 60!” said Mo.
“Then we will have a baby dragon,” said Kharli.
“Good fortune for all,” said Lari. “Dragons are water-aspected, which should be great for the farm. And us.”
“Soon, very soon, we shall have a new member of our household,” I said. “Let’s wash up, then you guys can help me decorate the nursery.”
***
The next day, Prince Baiyu, Shuye, and Scholar Wu returned and reported that the maze had disappeared, just as I expected.
What I hadn’t expected was that it would leave something behind, which Shuye gingerly handed over to me. “What does your bloodline inheritance say about this, princess?”
“Gimme a sec.”
I mentally clicked on the item, which triggered a System pop-up.
[Hatch Mysterious Egg?]
[Yes] [No]
*****
Author's Note:
- [Rice] is nice, but [Mysterious Eggs] are mysterious!
- Advanced chapters on my Patreon!
- Thank you very much for reading.
- Please let me know if there are any errors.