Stardew Valley of Gensokyo

Having made up his mind, Akina Sawa decided to go to the market. The grapes had already been picked, and they would easily spoil if left for too long.

……

It was afternoon, and most people were resting at home, so the streets were quiet. Akina Ze walked for a while but didn't find any handcarts.

They had been walking for a while, and the sun was relentlessly radiating its heat, already showing signs of summer's arrival. Akina Sawa walked along the cobblestone streets of the Human Village under this excessive heat.

"Hey~"

Sweat soaked Akina Zeya's back, and if it weren't for his jacket, you could see his well-defined muscles through his wet white vest.

Where did all the shopping carts go?

On the deserted street, Akina Ze was tired from walking all the way, but even so, he did not find any handcart or other means of transportation.

As they continued walking, Akina Sawa noticed that there were more and more people around. After asking a passerby, he learned that the mansion of the Hieda family, a prominent clan in the village of the living, was just ahead.

Hieda? A familiar name! That's right! Isn't that the surname of the lady who came with Ms. Motoori that day? Could she be from the Hieda Akyuu family? It should be. The Human Village isn't very big, and since her surname is Hieda, she must be from the Hieda family.

Looking at the old-fashioned mansion in front of him, Akina Ze secretly guessed that it was no wonder that her behavior was so elegant and polite, unlike Reimu and Marisa. So she was a young lady!

Now is not the time to think about these things. It's time to go find the handcart. Akina Sawa also plans to leave. Even if he knows that Hieda Akyuu is from this family, he may not be able to help him. Besides, he and Hieda Akyuu are not very familiar with each other. Although they had a pleasant conversation yesterday, Akina Sawa also feels that it is better not to ask for help from someone he has only interacted with once or twice.

Just as he took a step with his left foot, a handcart appeared and stopped directly beside the door of the Hieda residence.

Seeing this, Akina Sawa stopped in his tracks. This was the first and only handcart he had seen after walking for so long. Although he guessed that it must have been stopped in Hieda for a reason, he still wanted to give it a try. How would he know if something would work if he didn't try?

"Excuse me, can I rent this car for a few days?"

Akina Sawa also walked over and asked the tow truck driver who was wiping the sweat off his head with a towel.

"what?"

The tow truck driver paused for a moment before realizing that Akina Ze was also asking him a question.

"The money won't be less."

While the iron was hot, Akina Ze also took out a small bag from his waist, which was full of copper coins, and waved it in front of the tow truck driver.

The crisp sound of copper coins clinking came from the bag, indicating that it was quite heavy.

"this…"

The tow truck driver looked troubled, but judging from his eyes constantly darting around the money bag, he probably really wanted it.

It was clear the tow truck driver was interested, and Akina Ze was also delighted. He shook the bag again, and the crisp sound came out once more.

"Hey~"

But the tow truck driver sighed, lowered his head, and stopped looking at the money bag.

"This trailer belongs to the Hieda family; it cannot be lent out without their permission."

"Is that so?" Akina Ze was still a little disappointed to receive the answer he had already guessed.

Under the continuous sunlight, the cool spring air gradually began to heat up, and Akina Ze looked up at the sun.

"Keep searching, you might find it soon."

Akina Ze encouraged himself and then turned to leave.

"and many more"

"Um!?"

An unexpected voice stopped Akina Sawa from leaving as well.

Akina Sawa also turned around and found that it was Ms. Hieda Akyuu who had appeared.

"Mr. Akina, may I ask what brings you to the Hieda family?"

Beneath the plaque bearing the two large characters "Heida," Hieda Akyuu stood quietly, exuding an air of scholarly refinement.

Perhaps this is what is meant by a well-bred lady, such a thought flashed through Akina Zeya's mind.

"It's like this..." After a moment of hesitation, Akina Ze also spoke.

After some negotiation, Hieda Akyuu learned of Akina Sawa's purpose in coming here as well.

"You can take this car; you don't need to pay the rental fee. Consider it a small token of my gratitude for treating me to grapes."

After understanding the situation, Hieda no Akyuu quickly gave a reply.

"But you still need this car, don't you?"

The tow truck driver standing nearby asked in confusion.

"No need to say more, let's lend this car to Mr. Akina for now."

Hieda Akyuu shook his head.

Seeing that the owners had already said that, the tow truck driver said nothing more.

"Thank you, Ms. Hieda. I'll return the car soon!"

Unexpectedly, things took such a turn for the better, and Akina Ze began to feel glad that he hadn't given up asking.

Hieda Akyuu didn't say anything, but simply nodded with a smile in response.

……

Bang! Crack!

The handcart made a clattering sound as it hit the small stones on the uneven country road.

Akina Sawa was also pushing a bicycle.

"Ms. Hieda is a good person."

Recalling what had just happened, Akina Sawa also came to a conclusion. After all, Hieda Akyuu had no reason to lend him the carriage, and judging from her conversation with the driver, she could guess that she still needed to use it. However, she still lent it to Akina Sawa.

Based on just two meetings, Hieda Akyuu lent him the money. If she wasn't particularly good at judging people, one could only say she was a kind-hearted person who easily trusted others.

……

The setting sun still shone on the horizon, its afterglow covering Akina Zeya's entire body. The sweat on his clothes had dried naturally. His survival story in Gensokyo continued, but for today, it would end here...

Chapter Forty: Back to the Beginning

Today is the day to go to the Scarlet Devil Mansion. Now, bunches of round grapes have been packed into baskets by Akina Ze and placed on the trolley. Luckily, we have a few large baskets at home, which are perfect for storing grapes and prevent them from being crushed.

Actually, Akina Ze also had another idea in mind: to put the cart full of grapes into the backpack provided by the system. This would save a lot of effort. However, as expected, this shortcut did not work. The system said that the cart was too heavy to fit. This made Akina Ze further confirm that asking for help from the system was not an option, and he had to rely on himself.

The Scarlet Devil Mansion is quite far from the Human Village, and there are fairies causing trouble along the way. No one is willing to help Akina Sawa push the cart to the Scarlet Devil Mansion, so he has no choice but to push the cart to the Scarlet Devil Mansion himself.

The road leading to the Scarlet Devil Mansion is the same road that Akina Sawaya first came from. If he had gone in the opposite direction, he would have reached the Scarlet Devil Mansion, which would have been a different story.

Therefore, Akina Sawa also needs to go out through the gate of the Human Village. Last time he came, he was stopped by Fujiwara no Mokou and taken directly to the farm. He didn't see much of the area around this gate.

Now, Akina Sawa is slowly pushing his stroller past here, taking the opportunity to observe the surrounding environment.

A large wooden gate, neither too big nor too small, stood at the end of the road. There were people guarding the gate; they must be members of the Human Village Guard, Akina Sawa guessed.

Unfortunately, Qiu Mingze did not find the white-haired, red-eyed figure among those people, which made him a little disappointed.

Since the grapes were all packed in baskets and covered with something, no one noticed what Akina Ze was pushing. Although some people glanced at it curiously, they were just curious; otherwise, it might have attracted a large crowd, since grapes in February are a strange thing.

And so, Akina Ze pulled the cart all the way to the gate. When he saw someone coming, the gatekeeper also came over.

Are you going out?

"Yes"

"What's in the car?"

"Someone ordered these materials, and I need to deliver them now."

After hearing Akina Sawa's affirmative reply, the gatekeeper thought for a moment and then let them pass.

Gensokyo is very harmonious now. The last time someone was hurt was several years ago, when it happened on a remote farm in the Human Village. But so much time has passed, and it hasn't happened again. Plus, people tend to forget things over time.

So the gatekeeper readily let them through without even checking what was in the car. After all, Gensokyo had been peaceful for too long, and the gatekeeper had long since become complacent. Perhaps he was a diligent and hardworking person when he was young, but now he was just an old gatekeeper.

Watching Akina Zeya push his cart along the uneven road, the gatekeeper suddenly remembered something.

"Oh no! I forgot to tell him that there are demons causing trouble on that road lately, so he should be extra careful."

The gatekeeper wanted to call him back, but he was old and the cart was making a lot of noise. Akina Sawa had already gone far away and couldn't hear him anymore, but he had no way to leave the place to remind him.

Just as he was feeling anxious and helpless, a woman with white hair and red eyes walked over. It was Fujiwara no Mokou.

"Captain Fujiwara!"

"whats the matter?"

"It's like this," the old gatekeeper said, catching his breath. "Just now, a young man pushed a cart out and headed towards the Lake of Mist. But I forgot to warn him that there are fairies causing trouble on that road, and I was afraid he might hurt them."

"Oh?"

Fujiwara no Mokou looked at the old man's pale hair, which was damp with morning dew and extended from the sides of his hat, and recalled some past events.

She remembered that when the old gatekeeper was a young man, he seemed to often go to the Lake of Mist to play with the fairies.

However, I don't know when he stopped going.

When was it? Fujiwara no Mokou couldn't remember, or rather, she didn't want to think about it anymore.

How long has he been gone?

"We've been walking for a while now."

After receiving the reply, Fujiwara no Mokou nodded and headed in the direction that Akina Sawaya had gone.

Beneath a plaque bearing the large characters "Renjian Zhili" (meaning "Village of Humanity"), an elderly gatekeeper stood alone at the entrance, gazing at the back of a beautiful woman with white hair and red eyes, a kind smile characteristic of the elderly appearing on his face.

"Captain Fujiwara hasn't changed at all..."

……

The sun gradually rose, and the morning sunlight shone through the uneven leaves onto Akina Zeya.

Bang! Crack!

An unexpected guest arrived in the quiet woods: a handcart, and Akina Zeya pushing it.

The sound of the wheelbarrow hitting the stones was jarring in the quiet woods, startling birds every now and then.

Akina Sawa has no time to worry about that now; he's focused all his energy on the handcart.

The handcart, laden with grapes, was quite heavy. Its wooden wheels left clear ruts on the soft, loose dirt road.

Although the car was heavy, Akina Ze didn't feel very tired. He didn't know if it was due to the system's influence, but his muscles had become very aesthetically pleasing after daily training, similar to those of a swimmer. Of course, if he could, he would like to have muscles like Kakarot's.

If people who knew him before saw him now, they probably wouldn't recognize him. The Akina Ze they knew was a chubby guy who looked a bit gloomy, but who is this handsome man with assembly-line muscles now?

Of course, Akina Sawa also had to work hard. If he had continued to be lazy and gluttonous, he would still have remained fat even with the help of the system.

"Whoo~"

The journey to the Scarlet Devil Mansion is still long. Akina Ze estimates that he will reach the Misty Lake in a short while. He has heard that the Scarlet Devil Mansion is near the Misty Lake, so he will be able to see it when he arrives at the lake. For now, let's take a break.

Akina Ze sat on the ground, leaning against a handcart, experiencing the unpolluted nature up close, the fragrant scent of the earth constantly surrounding him.

I wonder if Wenwen saw the breakfast I made for her? I wasn't home today...

During this break, Akina Sawa thought of Aya Shameimaru again. Although she always teased him, he actually found her pranks quite amusing. Is this what friends are?

Akina Sawa also took out a bottle of water from his backpack and drank it. The icy water slid down his burning throat, interrupting his thoughts.

Click!

Suddenly, the sound of a branch snapping underfoot echoed through the silent woods, followed by a flock of birds taking flight. Akina Sawa put down his water bottle and looked in the direction from which the sound came.

After a long time, the woods returned to calm.

"It must have been a small animal that stepped on the branch."

Akina Sawa explained to himself, "What animals are there in spring? Could it be rabbits?"

No one answered him, and Akina Sawa just muttered to himself, saying that if someone actually answered him, he would be very surprised.

Having rallied and rested well, Akina Sawa's once quiet forest was once again filled with the annoying sound of the handcart.

This time, Akina Sawa also planned to walk all the way to the shore of Lake Misty to rest, because he could already feel a trace of moisture in the air.

The Lake of Mist is just ahead!