The portal shimmered faintly in the distance, a swirling pool of prismatic mist that pulsed like a heartbeat. It stretched open slowly, folding light and air into impossible shapes. Mist poured out from the breach, cold and clinging to the ground, seeping into every crack like a curious, unseen hand. The air grew still, like the world itself was holding its breath.
Arlen crouched behind a mossy boulder, his knuckles white as he gripped his hoe. His eyes locked on the rift. He could feel the hairs on his arms rise. The world was quiet, but not peaceful—charged. As if something ancient and watching had turned its eyes on his little slice of farmland.
He didn't move. Just watched.
Gourd peeked out beside him, armed with nothing more than a wooden ladle. The thing wobbled slightly in his grip.
"I don't think that'll help much," Arlen whispered, barely turning his head.
Gourd shrugged. "It's all I had on me. It's this or a slightly overripe tomato."
Blorp had thankfully been locked in the tool shed after attempting to eat the new bell system. Twice.
The portal gave another low buzz, a sound like a cello string being drawn across a frozen lake.
[Dimensional Rift Stable. 1 Entity Emerging. Low Threat Confirmed. Scanning...]
[Species: Spindlefox - Dimensional Beast, Category: Tameable. Traits: Stealthy, Crafty, Uses Illusions.]
Arlen narrowed his eyes. A fox wasn't bad. He had imagined worse. Much worse. Fire-breathing geckos, maybe. Or sentient moss. Still, that didn't mean he let his guard down.
The first paw appeared. Delicate. Silver fur shimmered and rippled like water, flickering between visibility and near-invisibility. Then came a long tail, then sleek limbs, and finally a sharp, foxlike face with eyes that glowed a faint blue.
The Spindlefox stepped out of the rift. Mist curled around its legs like obedient pets. It scanned the clearing, locked eyes with Arlen—and sat.
Then, in the most absurd and almost polite gesture Arlen had ever witnessed, the fox dropped a tiny leather bag on the ground and gently nudged it forward.
"What… the hell?" Arlen muttered under his breath.
[Spindlefox Offering Detected. Analyzing Contents...]
[Contents: Dimensional Seeds x3, Cracked Time Pearl x1, Note (Unreadable Script)]
The fox didn't move. It waited.
Arlen slowly rose from cover, keeping his movements deliberate. No sudden shifts. No reaching for weapons.
"I… accept the offering?"
The Spindlefox blinked once, stood, and without a sound, turned and leapt back through the rift. Its body disappeared into the folds of light like a sigh. The portal blinked—and sealed shut behind it.
Gourd scratched his head. "Did we just get paid by a magical fox?"
Arlen picked up the tiny bag and weighed it in his hand. "Apparently."
They walked back toward the central farm. The forest around them rustled with lazy wind, and somewhere off in the distance, a Dimensional Pine shivered. Arlen's mind raced with possibilities. Seeds. Time Pearl. Notes in languages he couldn't read yet. Every new gift felt like a puzzle—and every answer hinted at a bigger game.
Back at the homestead, Arlen spread the contents of the pouch across the worktable. Each seed shimmered like it contained a universe. Jagged edges, glowing cores, one even pulsed faintly like a heartbeat.
[Unknown Seed: Will adapt when planted. Mutates based on soil type. High instability.]
Arlen stared.
"This is dangerous," he whispered, but his lips were already curling into a grin.
Dangerous meant powerful.
Later that night, under a sky that now featured a glowing dimensional moon—because apparently the world just made up new celestial bodies when bored—Arlen worked in his new alchemical shed. It still smelled vaguely of overcooked mint and something floral that shouldn't be floral.
He opened the Botanical Fusion menu, fingers hovering over the options.
Two empty slots blinked patiently.
He hesitated.
One wrong move, and it wouldn't be a funny mishap. It could unravel crops. Or worse—trigger a reaction that invited something else through a rift.
But Arlen didn't believe in playing safe anymore.
He selected the Echo Fern.
Then, one of the new unstable seeds.
[Fusion in Progress. Warning: Mutagenic Traits Detected. Potential Outcome: Unstable. Cancel?]
"Nope."
The light pulsed in his hand. Brighter. Then again. It grew warm—then hot.
And then it vanished.
In his palm rested a seed unlike anything he'd ever seen.
[Hybrid Created: Echo Crystal Vine]
[Effect: Grows fast. Repeats ambient sounds. Crystals can record up to 30 minutes of memory. Emits light. Requires special soil.]
He stared.
This wasn't just a new crop. This was technology. Information. Security. Maybe even communication.
Arlen planted it near his main house, in soil specially treated with Dreamroot mulch and time-enhanced compost.
The seed responded immediately. It glowed faintly and emitted a soft humming noise—as if acknowledging him.
"Grow well," Arlen whispered.
It pulsed.
"..."
An hour later, he sat by the pond. Water lapped at the edges, catching reflections of strange stars. His feet dangled lazily, half-submerged. A soft breeze drifted past. Crickets chirped—or something very close to crickets.
The fireflies blinked above the water like distant floating lanterns.
His hoe rested nearby. Gourd was passed out in a hammock slung between two Appleberry trees, snoring.
Arlen stared up at the stars.
He thought of his family. Their sneers. Their mocking laughter. The way they called him 'dirt-brained' and 'scrap boy' when he talked about soil layers and irrigation.
He clenched his fist.
Now look at him.
They tossed him away like a weed—and he took root.
He was building a world. Slowly. Thoughtfully. Brick by brick. Seed by seed.
[System Notice: Rank Progress 12% to SSS]
[Next Tier Goal: Dimensional Recognition. Achieve Influence Across 2+ Interdimensional Zones.]
He didn't need their approval anymore.
One day, when his name echoed across realms, they'd hear it.
And maybe then, they'd realize they threw away the only genius their bloodline ever produced.
Arlen smiled.
He leaned back, arms behind his head, and let the stars wash over him.
Tomorrow? Tomorrow he'd build more.
Tomorrow he'd plant danger and harvest miracles.