Livelihood Dungeon! (English Version)

After lunch, Peter started a new task. He began tilling an untouched area inside the Livelihood Dungeon.

He asked Peach about something that had been bothering him, and her answer as the dungeon guide confirmed that his suspicions had been correct.

In less than two weeks, planting summer-season crops would become useless. Corn happened to be one of those summer crops.

Peter had noticed that something about the weather had recently changed. Every now and then, instead of feeling humid, the air would turn cool and refreshing—which was unusual for the peak of summer.

Water was not a problem for him because of the Magical Fountain of Life inside the Livelihood Dungeon. He had an infinite water supply. But that was not the case for others, especially the wildlife.

And what happened next could only be described as a blessing in disguise.

It also began raining frequently, and Peter considered them fortunate for staying atop the extremely tall banana tree. If they had still been below, he could not guarantee what kind of dangers they would have faced.

Who knew? It might even revitalize some dangerous creatures even further.

He also noticed that more birds and other flying creatures were migrating every single day.

He also observed the gradual change in color among the leaves of distant trees. Honestly, he thought it was a beautiful phenomenon. From their natural green color, they were slowly turning crimson.

"What's happening, Peach?" Peter had asked his dungeon guide earlier.

"The season of autumn is about to arrive," Peach answered her master with a smile.

"Will that affect my crops?" Peter asked worriedly.

"Yes and no," Peach replied in an unexpectedly confusing manner.

"What do you mean?" Peter asked.

"The changing of the seasons will affect your crops depending on which season is suitable for planting them," Peach answered.

"Let's say your crop is seasonal. Hmm... let's use your favorite crop to plant as an example—corn. If you remember, the information provided by your Livelihood Dungeon's feature stated that summer is the proper season for corn.

"If you plant it during spring, or if the season has already transitioned into autumn or fall and you still forcefully plant it, that's when the effects come into play: there's a possibility that it won't bloom properly. But don't worry, Master—the chance of that happening is low.

"But here's the more important part: even if the crop grows despite being planted in the wrong season, its yield will still be lower compared to crops planted during the proper season," Peach explained calmly.

"I understand now. Thank you very much, Peach," Peter said.

"Wait! One more thing," Peter stopped her just as Peach was about to leave. "Does that mean if a crop's feature says it can grow all year round, there won't be any penalty?"

"That's correct, Master!" the dungeon guide confirmed with a smile.

"Thank you, Peach," Peter said sincerely.

"You're very welcome!" Peach replied cheerfully.

...

Dig, dig, dig, dig, dig, dig—and endless digging.

Even when night arrived, the master of the Livelihood Dungeon was still busy tilling the land.

The next morning, he simply continued the monotonous task that carried enormous benefits.

Before the day ended, however, all his hard work finally paid off. Peter looked at the vast stretch of land he had tilled with passionate eyes. Afterward, he dusted himself off once the task was finished.

He lay down on the soft soil. While catching his breath, the dungeon master spread his arms and stared up at the vast sky above him.

He closed his heavy eyelids. Before long, exhaustion pulled him into a deep sleep. He deserved that rest. He had pushed the limits of his improved body to the extreme just to finish tilling the land.

Eventually, Peter decided to cultivate only a smaller section of land instead to maximize the planting of one hundred thousand corn seeds. Based on his estimate, that area was already sufficient for such an amount.

Smiling, Peach and his spirit beast companions surrounded Peter.

The closed Livelihood Dungeon was completely safe from any danger, yet because of their alertness, it was as though they were protecting his life from every possible threat.

...

The next day, Peter stood up feeling completely refreshed from the patch of land he had worked so hard to till.

Meanwhile, all of his companion pets and Peach gathered around him to cheer him on as he began planting.

Peter scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly at their somewhat embarrassing behavior. Even so, he did not stop them because it secretly warmed his heart.

Filled with warmth, Peter began burying the corn seeds one by one. After planting each seed, he quickly covered it back up with soil.

Bury, cover, bury, cover, bury, cover, bury, cover—it repeated endlessly for another two days.

On the third day, he finally finished the massive task of planting one hundred thousand seeds.

Of course, he also made sure to apply fertilizer and water them properly.

From time to time, he even celebrated together with his pets.

"This is heaven," Peter said, referring to his current lifestyle compared to the world he used to live in.

...

"Could you get me one of those giant saba bananas, Moriko?" Peter politely asked his Man-Ki companion.

"Hah! Is that all?! I thought you were going to ask for some incredibly difficult favor because of how serious you've been acting, Master," Moriko said with a laugh.

"That's easy!" she replied before expertly climbing the thick yet steep branches of the giant saba banana tree.

"Be careful!" Peter called out from below, sounding slightly nervous.

Moriko only responded with laughter. What she did next further proved that she truly belonged to a monkey-like race—she mischievously spun herself around, making Peter even more anxious.

"So, how many do you need, Master Peter?" Moriko asked after landing properly on top of a branch. She clearly seemed bored of teasing her master already.

"Just one!" Peter shouted back loudly.

"Okay!" Moriko replied energetically in English. She had recently picked up the word and its meaning from Peter.

"Hm." Peter responded in impressed surprise toward his Man-Ki companion.

"Just wait there, Master," Moriko said while continuing to use words she had learned from her foreign master, further proving that the Man-Ki were an intelligent race.

"Thank you, and be careful!" Peter reminded her again.

"Worrywart!" Moriko teased back.

"Can't help it," Peter replied with his own banter.

"Thank you too," Moriko answered with a smile, seemingly beginning to imitate her master's choice of words and polite mannerisms as well.

Moriko leapt powerfully before delivering a fierce kick to the trunk of the giant saba banana tree. The entire tree shook violently.

She landed on a branch, then jumped again and kicked the trunk once more.

After repeatedly unleashing powerful kicks, her relentless attacks finally paid off. At last, the banana's connection to the tree snapped apart.

The giant saba banana rapidly fell from the air. Moriko quickly kicked it once more toward the flat top of the tree.

It landed safely in front of Peter just as his other two spirit beasts finished wiping out the kobolds.

Moriko skillfully returned to where they were.

When Peter saw how capable she was at what she did, the anxiety he had been feeling completely disappeared and was replaced by confidence in his companion's abilities.

"Good work," Peter praised as he patted Moriko's rock-like shoulder.

She merely nodded quietly in response.

Peter returned his full attention to the giant banana.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Dungeon open," he uttered, activating the keyword for his portal.

"Ichiro, Moriko, Iyashi!" Peter called out to his companions. The three approached without hesitation. To them, their master's orders always came first.

After spending so much time together, their loyalty toward Peter had reached an extreme level.

Their master treated them incredibly well.

They had freedom there.

Freedom to move, choose, and express their own opinions.

And above all, Peter provided everything they needed.

Most importantly, he respected them as well.

What was even more surprising was why they still dared to disrespect him after all the kindness he showed them.

Peter was being loved.

All of his companions returned his genuine kindness with loyalty and affection.

"You stay at the back, Iyashi. I'll take the very front," Peter instructed the slime companion currently in Moon Bear form.

"Growl!" the Moon Bear responded.

"Grā?!" reacted Ichiro.

"Ooh! Aah!" Moriko chimed in.

"Sorry, Moriko, Ichiro. I haven't forgotten about you two," Peter said while adjusting his grip on the front end of the giant banana.

"You stay in the middle, Ichiro," he added. "Closer to the front. Your role is to balance the weight in the center."

"Moriko, you'll also stay in the middle, closer to Iyashi. Same role as Ichiro," he instructed.

That became their formation, arranged according to each member's specialty stats.

Peter and Iyashi, in Moon Bear form, possessed the highest strength, so they supported the heavier ends of the banana.

Even so, despite their Rank C strength, the giant saba banana was still too heavy for only the two of them.

That was why the Terrestrial Wolf and Moriko, whose strength stats were lower, were positioned in the middle as support and stabilizers in case something went wrong.

Slowly, they walked while carrying the unbelievably heavy giant saba banana toward the opened portal of the Livelihood Dungeon.

One by one, they vanished as they stepped through the portal.

...

"You three stay there," Peter instructed his spirit beasts the moment they set the giant saba banana down.

"Where are you going, Master?" Ichiro asked, seemingly worried about something.

"Huh?" Peter responded in surprise.

"No, you're misunderstanding. This thing is just too big. I still need to climb the banana to peel it," he clarified after realizing the misunderstanding.

"I'll handle it, Master," Moriko suddenly volunteered.

"Are you sure?" Peter still asked.

"Of course. I've been doing this my whole life," Moriko answered confidently.

"Fair point," Peter replied.

Swiftly and effortlessly, Moriko climbed the enormous saba banana without damaging the fruit.

Once there, she headed toward the stem and quickly snapped it apart to separate it from the tree. One by one, she expertly peeled the giant banana while carefully avoiding damage to the lower portion so it wouldn't get dirty from the soil or dust inside the Livelihood Dungeon.

Peter clapped three times to get Moriko's attention. He smiled at her and praised her work.

"Well done, Moriko," Peter said.

"Could you try finding the seed inside that banana?" he asked politely.

"No problem. That's an incredibly easy task, Master," Moriko answered confidently.

Peter pressed a hand against his forehead.

What he witnessed next was completely unexpected.

Moriko used brute force on the giant fruit.

Chunks of banana continuously burst away with every punch she threw. Peter could only laugh at what he was seeing.

Once again, he was reminded that despite being his companion, Moriko was still a wild spirit beast at heart.

"Master! I found one!" Moriko enthusiastically announced as she returned to Peter.

"Where should I put this?" she innocently asked while carrying a banana seed larger than her own body.

Peter's eyes widened as he absentmindedly pointed toward a spot some distance away from their farmland.

Moriko gently tossed the giant seed in that direction.

"Move! Run!" Peter suddenly shouted at his two other companions below after instantly realizing what was about to happen.

The three hurriedly ran away from the seed's landing point.

The moment it hit the ground, a powerful shockwave erupted and sent Peter, Ichiro, and Iyashi flying forward.

"Sorry, Master, Ichiro, Iyashi!" Moriko said sheepishly after realizing the magnitude of her mistake.

"MORI—" Peter was about to yell at her, but his voice abruptly stopped after something suddenly distracted him.

A notification.

...

A variant type of seed (Plantain) has been detected.

Do you want to create a new copy of a normal type of seed (Plantain) for 100,000 LP?

Yes 👈 or No?

...

Peter burst into laughter at what he saw. He hadn't known that the Livelihood Dungeon possessed such a feature or that it was this thorough. He was genuinely amazed.

Although he wanted to create a separate copy of the normal-sized banana seed (plantain), he was still severely lacking in LP funds for now. Because of that, he decided not to touch the available choices and chose to postpone the matter instead.

...

Peter immediately went to the Livelihood Shop. He searched through it more thoroughly and eventually found what he was looking for in the seed category.

...

Crops

Trees 👈

...

Trees

Name | Price | Season/s

Apple | 820 LP | Fall

Banana | 1000 LP | Summer

Grape | 900 LP | Fall

Orange | 820 LP | Summer

Mango | 1430 LP | Fall

Peach | 1120 LP | Summer

Plantain (Giant) | 11000 LP | Summer

...

He found it at the very end of the list of trees he could purchase.

Just as he had suspected, the giant saba banana tree had indeed appeared as a new planting option.

...