Nineteen thousand and nineteen.

Having finished one dessert, the little pig was clearly not satisfied.

With its eyes still swirling in a hunger-induced daze, it continued to demand from Liyue, "Dessert... more dessert...!"

Liyue did not hold back, handing a second portion of [Egg Drop Honey Coconut Milk Paste] to the piglet.

Then came the third.

And the fourth.

The little pig’s eyes regained their clarity, yet it did not stop eating.

Liyue heard a system notification:
(Charlotte Linlin’s favorability toward you +10. Current favorability: 10.)

The fifth portion.
(Charlotte Linlin’s favorability toward you +10. Current favorability: 20.)
...
(Charlotte Linlin’s favorability toward you +10. Current favorability: 60. You and Charlotte Linlin have become ‘friends.’ You can now view Linlin’s attribute information!)

By the time ten portions were consumed, only one remained. Liyue hesitated, wondering if she should keep the last one for herself. After all, the piglet’s favorability had already reached 60, and if she ate it, she could also test the effects of [Sweet Dream].

...But then again, one dessert increased favorability by 10 points, and it was repeatable. If not for the limited quantity, Liyue suspected she could have boosted Linlin’s favorability to 100 in one go.

It must be said that the little pig was truly worthy of being a pig. Liyue never expected the third little animal she encountered to be so easy to win over; who knew that simply feeding it would raise favorability?

The little pig had now fully sobered up, sticking out its tongue with stars in its eyes. "So guud!"

Looking thoroughly satisfied, to the point where it could barely articulate its words, it stammered, "So guud! Dessert, so guud!"

Before it could even finish, as if recalling the flavor from moments ago, the piglet’s drool began to spill.

It looked at Liyue with such anticipation. Although Liyue couldn't determine the age of the little animal, she felt it was no different from a human child.

Even though she was a little reluctant, Liyue had always been incredibly indulgent toward cute animals.

She decisively handed over the last dessert. "You have it!"

(Charlotte Linlin’s favorability toward you +10. Current favorability: 70.)

The little pig immediately broke into a blissful smile, took the dessert, and began to eat with immense satisfaction.

The actual eating process took less than a minute. Much like Zhu Bajie devouring the ginseng fruit, Linlin did not seem to be the type to chew slowly.

Only after finishing did it think to ask, "What is the name of this dessert?"

"Egg Drop Honey Coconut Milk Paste," Liyue replied.

"Oh—"

It then moved on to less important information: "What is your name?"

"My name is Liyue," she answered.

"Liyue!" The piglet repeated with a smile, praising her with genuine sincerity, "The dessert you made is delicious!"

Liyue wanted to hear more of the piglet’s flattery, but heavy, approaching footsteps interrupted their conversation.

Whatever massive beast was approaching, its footsteps caused a booming "thud, thud" sound in the game, followed by a loud, strange cry:

"Coo—roar!"

What an odd sound.

Liyue thought, feeling no sense of urgency.

"Hm?"

The piglet, however, seemed to have detected the enemy’s arrival even before Liyue. It immediately stopped talking and turned to look deep into the forest.

The expression of the little pig in the avatar frame had changed completely from a moment ago.

As the simple, honest smile faded away, Liyue caught a glimpse of a cold, fierce edge on the piglet’s face.

A pig... shouldn't be a carnivore, right?

That was the only thought Liyue had time to process.

She watched as Linlin drew the long sword hanging at its waist, preparing for the beast that was drawing ever closer.

Finally, the beast charged out of the forest and stood before them.

Liyue stared in disbelief.

A dinosaur...??

Liyue was stunned.

Wait, what kind of island is this? What kind of world-building is this? Can dinosaurs actually exist in this game??

The dinosaur had a sharp, bird-like beak, yet its maw was filled with jagged teeth. Its appearance resembled an Oviraptor, but its furious demeanor suggested it was the mother of that egg.

When it saw the broken eggshells on the ground, it was filled with both grief and rage, hopping up and down while flapping its short wings, screaming at Liyue with tears in its eyes.

"?" Linlin seemed extremely annoyed. "What is it going crazy about?"

"I don't know," Liyue answered honestly. "Maybe it's because I stole its dinner."

After all, it was an Oviraptor, and she was an egg-thief—colleagues rarely get along... wait, that’s not right.

Since this island was hers, wasn't everything on it her property? How could one call it "stealing"?

As the rightful island owner, she was merely taking back what belonged to her!

System Dialog Box:
(The mother of the Oviraptor egg is attacking you!)

"You overconfident walking chicken!"

Before Liyue could even react to the warning, the piglet had already raised its sword and slashed at the Oviraptor. Linlin’s ferocity was fully unleashed at that moment: "How dare you strike at her in front of me? Go to hell!"

Oviraptor HP: 3500 → 14

Liyue watched as the red-named dinosaur’s health bar plummeted, reduced to a sliver of health in a single strike.

[Gained 699 spectator EXP! Your combat level has increased.]
[The Forest Lord - Oviraptor has lost its will to fight and intends to flee!]
[Combat round ended. Congratulations on defeating the Forest Lord!]

Liyue: ???

...Before she could even process it, the piglet had raised its sword again, seemingly intent on pursuing the victory to finish it off.

But this time, Liyue saw a notification:
[Will you use "Conqueror's Haki" to subdue the Forest Lord and tame it?]

"Wait, hold your blade!"

Liyue reacted quickly this time. Linlin looked at her, confused. Liyue explained rapidly:

"It can lay eggs! If you kill it, there will be no more eggs, and we won't be able to make desserts!"

Linlin was startled, immediately sheathing its sword and patting its chest in relief. "That won't do! I'd be devastated if I couldn't eat such delicious desserts anymore!"

Liyue felt a bit more at ease and asked the piglet, "Can you use Conqueror's Haki?"

"Of course I can. Why?"

Liyue pointed at the Oviraptor, which was gingerly taking steps to escape.

"Can you use it on that? I want to keep it in captivity and see if it can produce eggs."

"Mamamama~ Of course!"

Linlin laughed, though its smile carried a hint of ferocity.

[Charlotte Linlin used Conqueror's Haki!]

[The Forest Lord has fallen into a stunned state. Stun duration: 2 hours and 36 minutes. Please build a fence within the time limit to keep the Forest Lord in captivity!]

...So that was it.

Only after reading the system message did Liyue understand the process of keeping animals: first, stun the creature with "Conqueror's Haki" so it loses the ability to escape, then capture it inside a fence.

But because Liyue hadn't prepared any enclosures for animals, she had to build one urgently?

Liyue glanced at the Oviraptor—which was as tall as herself, the piglet, and the giant egg she had just cooked—and pondered for a second how such a creature could lay an egg of equal size.

...Could this be a modeling error in the game? The proportions in this game feel all wrong.

But the confusion lasted only a second, and Liyue’s attention returned to building the fence.

Linlin was already looking forward to it. "If I keep it, will I be able to eat more of those desserts?"

"Of course!" Liyue promised without hesitation.

After all, as a player, once she made it once and recorded it in the collection, she could reproduce the dish infinitely without needing any special skills.

"If there's a steady way to get eggs, we should be able to make even more types of desserts," Liyue thought aloud.

"Really? I'm so excited!"

(Charlotte Linlin’s favorability toward you +3. Current favorability: 73.)

The little pig’s eyes shone with light again.

"What other ingredients do you need for desserts? I can get them for you! Let me have that [Egg Drop Honey Coconut Milk Paste] again!"

...Why does it feel like whenever dessert is involved, this little pig is not only easy to win over but also incredibly easy to trick?

Thus, Liyue said without hesitation, "I need to build a fence to keep this dinosaur in captivity."

"Is that so?" The piglet tilted its head. "What should I do?"

"...Could you help me chop some trees first?"

They said Kaido could knock down a tree with one punch, and Newgate could clear a forest with one blow. Liyue had seen that Linlin’s basic attack damage exceeded a thousand, so chopping a tree should be a breeze, right?

Upon hearing Liyue's request, the piglet headed into the forest, full of energy. A second later, Liyue heard the booming sound of trees falling.

Liyue recalled her own glorious record of taking 35 punches (and 2 minutes) to fell a single tree.

...Why is every little animal stronger than her??

But after a moment of depression, Liyue let it go. There is a specialty in every field; Liyue understood it perfectly:

If the player could do everything, why would they need to recruit islanders?

The game must have been designed so that the little animals are stronger than humans!

It must be to encourage players to recruit more animals and increase the labor force on the island, which is why the protagonist was set to be so weak!

Just like now, Liyue had already met her perfect labor force... no, her perfect islander.

Linlin chopped trees with ease, and with its help, building the fence was quick and efficient.

Within the time limit, a perfect fence was completed, and the system confirmed the success:

[Completed [Wooden Fence] (1/1), Forest Lord is now in captivity.]
[Island infrastructure increased, island rating +1. The island has become more powerful!]

Liyue looked at Linlin with gratitude and emotion.

Linlin revealed a pure smile and held out a trotter to Liyue. "Where is my dessert?"

"Just a moment, I'm planning to try a new recipe."

"There are new flavors of dessert?"

The piglet’s face lit up. "Make it quickly, I can't wait!"