Investment Received

10:30 a.m.

After eating and drinking his fill, Ser Jon firmly refused the presumptuous idea of sleeping in a bed. He spread the thick mat in the cottage, covered himself with his dried white robe, and slept before the fireplace.

"I have someone I can use now."

Daeron felt strangely conflicted, unable to put his feelings into words.

When he saw the nobles currying favor around his father Aerys, he found their faces ugly. When he saw Rhaegar surrounded by admirers, he found him lofty and unreachable.

For the first time in his life, someone was following him. It was truly a novel experience.

That was the taste of power, and it was wonderful.

"Time can't be wasted. Rainy days are lucky days for old farmers."

With a faint smile on his lips, Daeron put on his raincoat and headed out once more.

The chicks would mature tomorrow and begin laying eggs.

That meant he could leave briefly and return to King's Landing to make further plans.

Since he still had time today, he would try fishing in the Blackwater Rush.

12:00 noon.

Sure enough, Daeron's luck was quite good despite heading out into the rain.

On the road from Dragon Tongue Farm to the Blackwater Rush, he found three wildflowers and four wild plants: spring-exclusive Yellow Daffodils, along with one leek, two Wild Wasabi, and one Dandelion.

Yellow Daffodil: "A traditional spring flower, suitable for giving as a gift."

Leek: "A delicious relative of the onion."

Wild Wasabi: "A root spice that grows in spring."

Dandelion: "Though not particularly pretty, its leaves are suitable for salads."

The Yellow Daffodil looked pure and beautiful, releasing a delicate fragrance. Holding it against his chest gave him the warmth of spring. A gentle sniff calmed his mind and made him involuntarily recall beautiful memories.

Pop!

Daeron plucked the third Yellow Daffodil, and the familiar faint warmth surged through his abdomen. He hurriedly closed his eyes and carefully sensed it.

A line of small text appeared on the System Panel:

[There are some things you want to consider at the end of today.]

When Daeron opened his eyes, the proficiency System Panel had changed.

[Farmer: Daeron Targaryen]

Farming: Level 1

Mining: Level 0

Foraging: Level 1

Fishing: Level 0

Combat: Level 0

Days of chopping trees and gathering wild plants had raised his Foraging level by one.

"Perfect. From now on, I'll have a chance of getting seeds when I chop down trees."

Daeron smiled.

Trees in Stardew Valley were important resources, especially oak trees.

Every old farmer who enjoyed brewing knew to save oak seeds in advance, preparing for the oak resin needed to make kegs in the future.

After gathering nearly everything he could find, Daeron reached the Blackwater Rush. Standing atop a stone arch bridge that had stood for a hundred years, he cast out his Fishing Rod.

"River fish, watch me conquer you!"

What a stirring declaration.

6:40 p.m.

Ser Jon, who had woken from his sleep, was warming himself by the fire when he saw Prince Daeren return expressionlessly, carrying a pitifully small river perch in his hand.

A fish... soup for dinner.

Nothing happened that night.

The fourth day of spring, Thursday. Clear skies, 6:00 a.m.

"Hey! Ha!"

Daeron opened his eyes on time and heard sword-practice shouts coming from outside the cottage.

After tidying himself up, he pushed open the door in high spirits.

A new day had begun, and Ser Jon seemed to have been reborn as well. He had put on his Silver Armor and White Robe again, swinging his longsword in the open space before the cottage with tremendous force.

"A diligent knight."

Daeron praised him before starting on the farmwork.

At a glance, he saw that all eleven plots of Farmland had been watered. Even the three horses had been untied and were wildly chewing through the pasture grass as though they had never eaten before.

Daeron understood and headed toward the Chicken Coop beside the waterfall.

"Cluck, cluck, cluck!"

"Cluck..."

The moment he pushed open the fence gate, two plump little hens, one brown and one white, strutted out with proud, swaggering steps. Seeing Daeron, they let out boastful clucks.

Inside the Chicken Coop, two eggs lay across the worn floorboards.

One was brown, and the other was... white.

"Well done, you two."

Daeron happily picked up the eggs, then rubbed Coconut and Grape in his arms, nearly wanting to kiss them both.

"Cluck!"

White Grape held her head high, looking immensely proud.

When he stepped out of the Chicken Coop, Ser Jon had already finished practicing. He was about to oil and maintain the longsword that had been drenched in rain yesterday.

"Look, two eggs."

Daeron strode over and raised them for him to see.

"Eggs?"

Ser Jon looked closely and said, "They contain abundant Life Force."

Daeron was about to praise his sharp eyes when he suddenly sensed the change in the man's aura. He gave a surprised sound. "You've mastered Life Force?"

The presence emitted by someone who had mastered Life Force was completely different from that of an ordinary person.

That confidence radiated from within, as though it embodied the free will born of faith in one's martial skill. Merely facing such a person could crush an ordinary man.

Ser Jon nodded solemnly. "Yes, Prince. It was thanks to those Special Crops you gave me that I was fortunate enough to succeed."

"That's a good thing!"

Daeron was in an even better mood.

The other Kingsguard had each mastered Life Force one after another. Ser Jon's foundation was solid; all he had lacked was an opportunity.

It seemed he no longer needed to worry about his safety when returning to King's Landing.

"Prince, when are we going to King's Landing?"

Ser Jon had begun to grow impatient.

There was already a gap between a regular knight and a first-rate knight, but the gap between a first-rate knight who had mastered Life Force and a regular knight was far greater.

Having served as a retainer from the age of eight and begun wielding and practicing with a sword at ten, nearly twenty years of martial refinement had formed considerable immediate combat strength the instant he mastered Life Force.

He was confident that he could defeat ten of his former selves.

Such good news had to be celebrated. Daeron spread out the two eggs. "Since things have come to this, let's eat first."

There was a small iron pot in the tent he had prepared for Ser Jon. With water in it and hung over the fireplace, they could boil the eggs.

The last Silver Star Potato was also sacrificed, placed beneath the pot to roast over the fire.

Ser Jon did not remain idle either. He went to the foot of the mountain and retrieved the hidden fruit basket, taking out two Silver Star red and Green Apples along with corn.

It was an exceptionally lavish meal. Outside, it would have cost no less than four hundred Gold Dragons.

"A delicacy beyond compare."

Ser Jon carefully tasted the peeled boiled egg, secretly marveling that the prince even kept two hens capable of laying special eggs.

It was no wonder he was surprised.

Special Crops on the continent could not be cultivated deliberately. One could only accumulate enough Farmland to yield one or two by chance.

Hens capable of laying eggs containing Life Force were simply priceless treasures.

After all, a stable source of protein was far more important than fruit or grain.

Daeron said nothing while eating.

On the System Panel, unseen by Ser Jon, he casually claimed the novice quest reward for completing [Harvest an Egg Laid by a Chicken].

With a pleasant clattering sound, 100 Gold arrived.

At noon, the two men and three horses entered the Red Keep's gate.

Without reporting his arrival, Daeron went straight to find his old father, Aerys.

Aerys, who was in his bedchamber, was delighted. He lavished praise on his second son, surprisingly employing an advanced form of encouraging education.

After nagging on and on for a long while, he finally said, "Go find Owen Marryweather. I promised to build you a proper castle, and he'll allocate the funds for you."