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The Next Day, 6:00 AM. The Back Mountain Mine Entrance.
Marisa had been squatting here for days. She had claimed the dilapidated Adventurer's Guild building and converted it into an Apothecary. The shelves were already displaying various unlicensed, experimental potions produced by her private workshop.
Today, Leo was preparing to enter the Mines.
The Mines were located northeast of the mountain lake. This dungeon was the lifeblood of Stardew Valley. Tool upgrades, sprinklers, kegs, building renovations—everything required ore.
If you wanted to get rich, you had to mine. It was the only way to liberate Leo from manual labor and achieve automation.
But after so many days, why hadn't Leo entered the Mines yet?
Reason 1: He was afraid of the dark. Alone in the silent, suffocating tunnels, he could hear every sound. His own breathing. The drip of water. The scuttling of unseen claws. If a sudden noise occurred, Leo would instantly perform a "Drop Dead on the Spot" maneuver.
Reason 2: Trauma. Years ago, Leo had listened to an audiobook of The Grave Robbers' Chronicles. There was a segment where characters were trapped underground, and dark shadows slowly squeezed out of the rock walls to strangle them. That specific scene had scarred him for life.
Therefore, Leo had sworn he would never enter the Mines alone.
But today was different.
"Thank you for commissioning Kappa Heavy Industries!" Nitori beamed, adjusting the straps of her massive backpack. "I will provide you with the highest quality service!"
For a Kappa who had once dug a hole straight through Gensokyo into Hell, this dungeon felt like home.
Commission: Bodyguard Service Details: Protect me until I reach Floor 20 of the Mines within one day. Reward: 3000 Gold.
This was why Leo dared to enter. He had hired a professional.
"Boss, rest assured. With me here, you can walk sideways down there," Nitori thumped her chest. "No matter what danger arises, I'll handle it. You just sit back, drink tea, and enjoy the scenery."
"If we don't hit Floor 20 by sunset, I will personally pilot a mech and drill a hole straight to the bottom for you."
Nitori Kawashiro, One of the Demon King's Two Guardians, reporting for duty!
Fear? Shadows? Despair? Don't joke with Sister Kappa. If a shadow monster appeared, Nitori would smash it into dust and use the remains to patch a leak in the wall.
The other Guardian was Marisa Kirisame. She wasn't charging money. She was tagging along for free to scavenge for potion ingredients. Marisa's alchemy was... imaginative. Plants, animals, minerals—if it existed, she would try to brew it. If she lived in ancient times, she would have definitely been a snake oil salesman selling immortality elixirs to the Emperor.
"Your mission is to provide light and companionship," Leo instructed Nitori. "Keep talking so I don't feel alone."
He refused her offer to do the mining for him. Nitori hadn't unlocked the invite condition yet, so she couldn't interact with the resource nodes. Plus, Leo needed the Mining XP.
"Companionship service? Understood, Boss! I am a professional!"
The trio entered the Mines.
Leo held a rusty sword and his pickaxe. Nitori deployed a high-powered industrial mining lamp, illuminating the pitch-black tunnel as if it were daylight. She walked point, scouting for traps. Marisa brought up the rear, tasked with "monster cleanup."
"Boss, look! Copper Ore at 2 o'clock!" "Whoa, Boss, your mining posture is so cool! Very form-efficient!" "Boss is so strong! Only took two swings to break that rock! Incredible!"
Every time Leo swung his pickaxe, Nitori showered him with praise. She ensured the atmosphere never dipped into awkward silence.
Leo felt a surge of confidence. With this level of service, is 3000 Gold expensive? Not at all! No wonder Ran said the Kappas spoiled Gensokyo residents rotten.
"Hey little brother," Marisa called out from a corner. "Is that thing over there a local monster? It looks like a blob of jelly without fur. Feels nice and soft."
While Leo was mining under Nitori's cheerleading, Marisa had found a Green Slime.
The slime immediately entered aggro mode. It compressed its body and launched itself at the intruder.
Boing!
Now, we must understand the mechanics: Leo was a "Player Character." He had HP, invincibility frames, and respawn mechanics. Marisa was a "Touhou Character." She had raw stats that defied physics.
Seeing the green slime hurl itself at her chest, Marisa—who regularly dodged bullets moving at light speed—assumed the creature just wanted a hug.
She caught the slime mid-air.
It struggled violently, trying to bite her. Marisa just squeezed it.
"Ooh, texture is good. Like a stress ball. Cold and smooth."
"The monsters here are quite affectionate," Marisa laughed as the slime gnawed futilely on her finger. "Can I keep a few?"
"You..." Leo stared at her. "Forget it. Do what you want. The one without the antenna is female; the one with the antenna is male. There are other colors deeper down. You can raise them if you give them water."
Leo realized then that his bodyguards were superhumans. They weren't afraid of monsters. To them, these were pets.
"Is that so? Interesting. Very valuable for research."
Marisa produced an empty glass bottle from her apron, stuffed the protesting slime inside, corked it, and skipped off to find more test subjects.
Crack.
Leo shattered another rock. A ladder appeared, leading down into the darkness.
"Boss has amazing luck!" Nitori cheered. "I'll go down first to secure the perimeter!"
She didn't use the ladder. She jumped straight into the hole.
Thud.
"All clear, Boss! Safe to descend!" Her voice echoed up.
Leo climbed down.
"Keep it up, Boss! It's only been thirty minutes and we've cleared a floor! We'll definitely hit Floor 20 today! Are you tired? Thirsty? I have freshly brewed cucumber tea right here!"
Leo wiped sweat from his brow, grinning. This was the life.