NOVEL FROG Chapter 28: If You Want to Get Rich, Swing Your Axes!
After the speech concluded, the players were given a comprehensive tour of the academy grounds to help them acclimate to their new surroundings. Shortly after, they were divided into two distinct task groups: the agricultural group and the lumberjack group. The agricultural group, comprised of five new players and two veterans from the first batch, were sent to continue plowing the fields. Meanwhile, the lumberjack group, consisting of four newcomers and three experienced players, was assigned the task of felling trees in the northern forest.
Victor carefully monitored the proceedings, ensuring a smooth execution of the division. Prior to the speech, he had met with the first batch of players to emphasize their role in guiding the newcomers. As an added incentive, they would be rewarded for successfully assisting their fellow acolytes in the form of none other than merit points. Five points of them. How generous he was!
Based on their competence, he appointed Zero and Storm as leaders of the two groups. Zero was in charge of overseeing the agricultural activities, while Storm assumed leadership of the lumberjack group. The two players grinned so widely that they almost split their heads in half upon being appointed leaders amidst the envious gazes of the others. Victor couldn’t help but wonder why these empty positions were so valuable in their eyes.
There was just one problem: Due to an insufficient number of tools, the agricultural group had to substitute shovels for the missing hoes. As for the lumberjack group, they had enough manpower to manage moving the cut logs, so there was no problem there. Given the limited number of tools available in the storage — five hoes, five axes, five pickaxes, and five shovels — Victor decided to make addressing this issue a priority to keep players optimally engaged.
Hmm, maybe today, once the players have adjusted to their roles, I should take a short venture to the village to procure more tools.
Now, there was one player who didn’t join any of the two groups, which was of course the caterer that Victor would personally hire as a temporary butcher. Although it might sound strange for an NPC to know about someone’s occupation in real life, he was the headmaster. What was so strange about knowing personal information about his acolytes? Players would probably just assume his AI was privy to their registration forms.
The player in question possessed an average teenage height, average build, and distinctive pink hair. Though considered pretty by Earth’s standards, Magi had ways to enhance their appearances through potions and supernatural means, making her rather ordinary to his eyes.
Under the username “Princess_Tomato,” she had initially been excited about the headmaster’s personal assignment for her. However, her enthusiasm quickly turned into sheer bewilderment as she found herself led into an empty room with nothing but a massive boar-like magical beast’s corpse, a set of kitchen knives, and Victor explaining what she was to do.
“Respected Headmaster, you want me to do what?!” The shock on Princess_Tomato’s face was undeniable as she struggled to process what Victor was asking of her.
It was evident from her reaction and expression that her culinary experience had been confined to smaller tasks, and she had never dealt with anything as massive as the creature before her.
Victor calmly reiterated his instructions, “Your task is simple: cut this boar into manageable pieces and tan its skin if possible. If you are unsure you can do it well, just focus on separating the meat. Don’t worry, more acolytes with the necessary skills will join us tomorrow to assist you.”
Other than the meat itself, the bones, skin, tendons, and other parts of the magical beast were valuable as well. Wasting them just to get the meat would be an insult to Mother Nature… and a heartache for Victor who was a hoarder and knew better than anyone else here their true value once processed.
Hearing that she wouldn’t be solely responsible for this task moving forward, her complexion regained some confidence. Nodding resolutely, she replied, “Th-Then, I’ll try my best…!”
The room they stood in was an auxiliary chamber on the academy’s first floor, with ample ventilation and a marble floor, making it suitable for a makeshift kitchen. Unfortunately, it lacked a central hearth — a vital feature for cooking — and other than one iron pan and a set of kitchen knives, there were no other cooking utensils. It was becoming more and more of an inevitability that another trip to the village would be required.
Right, that’s another agenda added… I should also have some players set up a fireplace here. Victor took a mental note to inform Lizbeth to take care of this matter. Furthermore, the remaining preserved food would only be enough for one more meal before it truly ran out, which meant an addition to his tab list.
However, the responsibility of preparing food for the academy and its inhabitants couldn’t lie solely with the headmaster. Even without Victor's direct involvement, the academy needed to operate as a self-sufficient entity. Thus, it fell upon Princess_Tomato and other players that would join tomorrow to fulfill the role of cook. As for the remuneration for this job, it was set at ten merit points per hour.
***
Jacky had selected the lumberjack group because thanks to his real-world profession as a furniture dealer he was already familiar with various types of wood and their uses. Since childhood, he had learned what it was like to be a carpenter and even learned the knack of masonry, granting him a versatile skill set for various construction projects. To a degree, he was a jack of all trades when it came to building.
As he walked alongside his group toward their designated location, he took a moment to access his Shadowlink Mark. His intention was to review the potential rewards associated with the missions ahead, comparing the options available to him.
[Cultivate the land and make an agricultural area two hundred meters east of the Headmaster’s Building.]
[Reward: 1 merit point per 10 m2]
[Attached Image: Visual layout of the agricultural area]
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[Chop the trees in the forest north of the academy to procure wood. The wood must be able to be used as building materials.]
[Reward: 1 merit point per meter (more if the thickness is greater)]
[Attached Image: Visual layout of the forest]
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[Gather clay in the eastern stream and bring it toward a designated location on the academy grounds.]
[Reward: 1 merit point per 5 kilograms]
[Attached Image: Visual layouts of the eastern stream and the designated academy grounds]
…
Other than gathering materials, some missions involved building walls and constructing various structures. Jacky had learned from the official website and forum that the game aimed for a high level of realism, closely mirroring the principles of the real world. He contrasted this with a simpler crafting system he had encountered in a different sandbox game, where intricate steps were often bypassed. He suspected that this game would not have such convenient features and would demand greater effort from its players, though he couldn’t be sure until he tried it himself.
Jacky saw an opportunity — if he could leverage his skills effectively, he might earn recognition from the headmaster NPC and carve a path toward becoming a top player in this game! This would work well to help him accomplish his goal, and possibly even…
As these thoughts swirled in his mind, he whispered to himself, “That’s it. I should talk to the headmaster once the chance arises. For now, getting used to the game and accumulating merit points should be the top priority.”
Finally, the lumberjack group, under the guidance of the hologram fairy, arrived at the northern edge of the clearing. An untouched temperate forest sprawled with eerie dense foliage abounding. Mysterious sounds echoed from the depths of the woods from time to time, giving them goosebumps and hinting at what monsters might be lurking there.
“Listen up!” the fairy announced. “I will be giving you a piece of advice. If you’re not exactly dying to become the main course on a magical beast’s dinner menu, then steer clear from venturing too deep into the forest. You see, the academy’s magic barriers only extend so far, like a few hundred meters in. Remember this well, alright? Farewell for now, then!” With a mischievous wink, the hologram fairy vanished into thin air, leaving behind an air of playful mystery.
Becoming a magical beast’s dinner menu?
They had just joined the game, and having to endure a twenty-four-hour cooldown penalty from dying wasn’t something they had in mind.
However, despite the unsettling atmosphere and the fairy’s ominous advice, the three experienced players remained unperturbed, seeming accustomed to this environment. The time difference between the two batches of players was relatively short — only two days — but the immersion must have already taken hold of them.
As a matter of fact, the group’s leader, a player named Storm, hoisted his axe and declared, “Y’all heard what Miss Lizbeth said! Now, if you want to get rich, swing your axes!”
An excited awe rippled through the newcomers as they hefted their axes, eager to join the effort. The once eerie forest was now looking far more conquerable.
Jacky himself was handed an axe, and as he swung it towards the nearest tree, he marveled at the realism of the impact and the flying sawdust. The sunlight filtering through the leaves above added to the immersive experience.
“Damn, this is so realistic!” one of the players exclaimed from the side.
“Hah,” another player chimed in, “like we didn’t know that already.”
The three seasoned players chuckled at the light-hearted banter among the new arrivals, but it didn’t stop them from continuing their tree-chopping endeavors.
After half an hour of steady chopping, Jacky felled a tree the width of a human thigh, sending it to the ground with a dull thud. The forest around him echoed with the rhythmic sounds of axes hitting wood. While it was unknown what kind of trees were deeper inside, most of the trees around here had similar characteristics to pine trees — their needles casting a carpet of shade below. Furthermore, the thickness ranged from the size of an arm to a few times that of a human thigh.
Jacky wiped his brow and glanced at the others. It seemed efficiency wasn’t their strong suit, as some of the tree trunks left behind looked as if they had been gnawed on by dogs rather than systematically chopped down. Sooner or later, some accidents might happen because of this and cause an unwanted injury or death.
Jacky smirked as he hoisted his axe and began work on his next tree. These newbies still have much to learn...