Penny's Ambition

After breakfast, Li Wei started reinforcing the fence. He had wasted most of his time driving away birds and beasts, and there were only seven days left in the month. He needed to finish this month's Main Quest as soon as possible.

Of course, he had already cut down enough trees. All he needed to do now was take a shovel and dig holes around the outside of the fence, then set the cut logs in them, backfill the holes, and tamp down the soil.

Next, he could strip off the bark and twist it into rope, or cut vines to use instead. Then he'd fasten the original fence to the logs with cross-lashing knots.

Come to think of it, he had learned those knots from Penny. They were incredibly convenient and efficient.

The downside, of course, was that a knife could easily cut through them, and exposure to wind, sun, and rain would quickly weather them until they snapped. They usually had to be replaced every few months.

But that was a problem for later. The fence was being reinforced now to get them through winter and keep large beasts from wandering into their home.

It would also help guard against bandits and robbers, if there really were any.

The day's work was uneventful, while the sound of forging iron rang out in the camp for most of the day. Today, even Phila pitched in. With Mixi and Lyon there too, things were lively, and they were nearly done making enough nails to expand the house.

And next, Penny seemed to be planning something big.

"Could she be planning to make steel?"

Li Wei mused.

When he returned to the camp courtyard, he saw Penny, Mixi, and even Lyon discussing something. Phila was there listening in, too.

Judging by the look of it, they'd already come up with a workable plan.

So she really was going to make steel. Penny's ambitions had always been that big.

But after the four of them discussed it for a long while, nothing came of it.

It wasn't hard to guess why. Primitive Steelmaking wouldn't offer the head of the household much in the way of benefits right now. But if they waited until next month, when Penny was re-elected head of the household, and only then brought out Primitive Steelmaking, it would be far more worthwhile.

Li Wei even realized that Penny, Mixi, and Lyon might form an alliance. If Mixi had a knack for this sort of thing and knew a lot, that would make sense—after all, a seamstress could make armor, too.

He also couldn't help suspecting that Lyon's first profession might be craftsman.

But none of that mattered. Even if Penny figured out Primitive Steelmaking and made a huge contribution, bringing in even greater benefits, Li Wei could still enjoy some of the spillover.

With the family developed to this point, even Penny couldn't be stupid enough to Plot Kill another family member for no reason while she was so far ahead in her own area of expertise.

For one thing, wouldn't they need workers for logging and making charcoal, farming and hunting, mining and hauling ore?

And if the family grew wealthy and attracted the attention of bandits and robbers, wouldn't they need to prepare in advance? Wouldn't everyone have to work together to defend against them?

In short, he wouldn't stir things up. He'd protect what he had and just watch them show off.

Just as Li Wei had expected, Primitive Steelmaking went nowhere. Penny didn't even plan to make a saw anymore, since a saw made from wrought iron was worse than an axe.

Penny, Mixi, and Lyon seemed to have formed a fighting squad. They began expanding the house in earnest, with Mixi and Lyon essentially helping Penny complete the Main Quest.

Even Phila wore a smile all day, making sure they were well fed and well looked after.

The house expansion made rapid progress over the next several days. By the time Li Wei had nearly finished reinforcing the fence, the expansion was almost complete as well.

With three days left in the month, the whole family finished their monthly Main Quest ahead of schedule. Though they still had to wait three days to choose next month's head of the household, this meant anyone could initiate a Plot Kill during those three days.

Overall, everyone had made a killing this month except Lyon, who had taken a heavy loss.

Li Wei quietly looked over what he'd gained.

First, he'd earned 15 points from the monthly Main Quest. The fields had yielded six units of One-star Dish-quality seeds, earning him 6 points. He'd also donated the pheasants and rabbits he hunted this month to the family, earning another 5 points. With the 52 points left over from last month, his total Family Contribution Points for this month had reached 78.

That was a reassuringly high number. He hadn't caught up with Penny, but he should be close to catching up with Phila. She hadn't made any One-star Dishes this month, and that wasn't easy to do. She also hadn't donated any personal property.

Second, his Farming Experience had successfully passed 300 points. That was a huge reward from harvesting the wheat, and it was a great result.

His Hunting Experience had also reached 200 points. Shooting a pheasant only earned him 5 experience points, but every little bit added up.

Finally, his Logging Experience had also passed 300 points, because he'd cut down more trees than anyone else this month. His axe alone had worn down so much that he'd gone to Penny to have it Quenched and sharpened more than ten times.

But he hadn't received a one-star Logging Card. It seemed the requirements for activating a third bound profession were pretty strict.

Or could he only have two professions at most in his current state?

Just as he was wondering about that, a Plot Kill notification suddenly flashed before Li Wei's eyes.

[Professional Chef*** has initiated a Plot Kill, hoping that the youngest son, Lyon, will be stung to death by wasps within twenty-four hours. Do you agree?]

Well, Phila was teaching Lyon a lesson. Maybe she wasn't trying to eliminate him, but she definitely wanted him to understand what this game was really about: don't assume you can trust anyone. One moment, everything could be fine between you; the next, you could be trying to kill each other.

As a side note, this also drove a wedge into the Penny group that was about to form.

After all, Lyon hadn't faced a Plot Kill since he arrived. He needed to learn to be a little wary of Penny.

Well, that was how Li Wei saw it, anyway.

He casually chose to abstain, neither opposing nor supporting it. Whatever happened, happened.

As expected, Mixi immediately agreed. She didn't mind killing off a competitor; it wouldn't hurt her, after all.

But Penny immediately opposed it.

With Lyon opposing it as well, the vote ended in a tie: one abstention, two votes in favor, and two against.

The Plot Kill failed.

That had been a close one.

But it was clear to see that Lyon had gone pale, cold sweat pouring down his face. The Plot Kill had given him a little shock.

The very next second, Penny casually initiated a new Plot Kill, hoping Mixi would eat something bad and die of dehydration from diarrhea within twenty-four hours.

Li Wei decisively agreed, and Lyon agreed too, his expression fierce.

Then Phila agreed. Only Mixi herself opposed it.

The Plot Kill passed, but Mixi didn't care at all. She spent 3 Family Contribution Points to waive it.

Lyon, who had assumed that the wicked woman Mixi was sure to be eliminated, received another little shock.

He hadn't learned about Family Contribution Points either.

That was right. For the first twenty days of this month, Phila had taken him fishing. Since it had been Phila's quest period, he had gained Fishing Experience but wasn't allowed to make donations. Later, he'd thrown himself into helping Penny complete the Main Quest, and again he could only gain experience. How was he supposed to get Family Contribution Points?

This month had been a time when Lyon was used for free.