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Chapter 13 - 13. Working Non-stop

He resumed mining, but with renewed focus. Each swing was deliberate, each support beam placed with care. He used his enhanced resource detection to map out the best path forward, avoiding unstable rock formations and directing the tunnel toward the richest ore veins.

[Silver Ore obtained! Quantity: 3]

[Experience Gained: 90 points]

[Iron Ore obtained! Quantity: 12]

[Experience Gained: 150 points]

...

...

The afternoon stretched into evening. Finn barely noticed the passage of time, lost in the rhythm of mining. He heard Aria return at some point, her footsteps on the floor above punctuated by Guardian's heavier mechanical tread.

She called down to check on him, and he shouted back that he was fine, too focused to stop for more than a moment. By the time he finally emerged from the tunnel, covered in rock dust and grinning like a madman, he had made significant progress.

[Quest Progress: Depths Delver]

[Objective 1: Mine 50 meters of tunnel (Current: 44/50)]

[Objective 2: Extract 500 units of ores (Current: 356/500)]

[Objective 3: Structural integrity (Current: 100%)]

Aria took one look at him and started laughing. "You look like you got into a fight with a dust storm and lost. How deep did you go?"

"Fourteen more meters," Finn replied, brushing futilely at his clothes. "And I am close to unlocking a new skill. Something called Excavation that will let me mine way faster."

"Of course you are," Aria said, still grinning. "You cannot just do things normally, can you? Always have to push for the next achievement."

"Says the woman who forged fifteen swords today while also negotiating with three different merchants," Finn countered.

"Fair point." Aria gestured upstairs. "Come on, I made dinner. Real food, not dried meat. You can tell me about this new skill while we eat."

They sat at a table Finn had crafted from scrap wood, eating a surprisingly good stew Aria had prepared using ingredients from the market. Guardian stood watch near the door, his glowing eyes scanning the street outside through a gap in the shutters.

"So this Excavation skill," Aria said between bites. "It would let you create tunnels faster?"

"Much faster. According to Pebble, a single strike could carve out meters of rock once I master it. It would completely change how I approach mining." Finn gestured excitedly with his spoon.

"I could expand the Crimson Depths, create new access tunnels, maybe even build underground chambers for storage or living space."

"That sounds incredibly useful, but also potentially dangerous. If you are not careful, you could cause cave-ins or accidentally break through into existing caves full of monsters." Aria looked thoughtful.

"You would need to be strategic about where and how you use it."

"That is why the quest requires proper technique first. The system wants to make sure I know what I am doing before giving me that much power." Finn set down his spoon. "I should be able to finish the requirements tomorrow."

"Just six more meters of tunnel and about a hundred and fifty more ore units."

"Then you will have three days before we head back to the Crimson Depths," Aria calculated. "Enough time to test the new skill here in a controlled environment before using it in the deep caves."

They continued eating and planning, discussing potential applications for the Excavation skill and how it might affect their operation. Finn found himself genuinely enjoying the conversation, the easy back-and-forth with someone who understood his goals and shared his enthusiasm for crafting and progression.

Later that night, as Finn lay on the simple bed they had set up in an upstairs room, he thought about how much had changed in just a few weeks.

He had gone from completely isolated in his cave to having a partner, a second base of operations, and connections to an entire town. The progression was not just in his level and skills but in his life itself.

The system notification still glowed faintly in the corner of his vision.

[Quest Progress: Depths Delver]

Tomorrow he would complete it. Tomorrow he would unlock Excavation. And then the real work could begin.

Finn closed his eyes and dreamed of tunnels stretching endlessly into the earth, of chambers filled with glittering ores, of a mining empire that would span beneath mountains and towns alike. For the first time since his reincarnation, he felt like he was not just playing a better game. He was building something real.

...

...

The morning sun had barely risen when Finn returned to the basement tunnel, determined to finish the Depths Delver quest. His muscles protested slightly from the previous day's work, but the anticipation of unlocking the Excavation skill pushed him forward. Six more meters and about a hundred and fifty ore units stood between him and a game-changing ability.

He swung his pickaxe with methodical precision, each strike calculated to maximize progress while maintaining the structural integrity the quest demanded. The enhanced resource detection skill painted glowing markers across his vision, showing him exactly where to strike for optimal ore extraction.

[Iron Ore obtained! Quantity: 9]

[Copper Ore obtained! Quantity: 6]

[Experience Gained: 140 points]

The notifications came regularly as Finn worked deeper into the tunnel. He paused occasionally to install support beams, checking each one carefully before continuing. The system's structural integrity tracker remained at one hundred percent, a testament to his growing understanding of proper mining techniques.

Above ground, Aria was arranging their newly crafted merchandise in the workshop's display area when she heard a knock at the door. Guardian's eyes flared briefly, scanning the visitor through some kind of magical detection, before returning to their normal glow.

Whoever was outside had passed whatever threat assessment the golem performed. Aria wiped her hands on a cloth and walked to the door, pulling it open to reveal a woman in polished steel armor that gleamed in the morning sunlight.

The visitor was tall, with long blue hair tied back in a practical braid and sharp gray eyes that seemed to take in everything at once. A sword hung at her hip, the kind of well-maintained weapon that spoke of regular use rather than mere decoration.

"Aria...!"

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