Athena in Tower Defense Game! [LitRPG]

【 Congratulations on obtaining a mysterious gem! 】
Mysterious Gem
Category: Gem
Description: An enigmatic gem of sufficient mystery.

Even though Athena had mentally prepared herself, the moment she laid eyes on the mysterious gem, she almost lost her composure.

Rather than a gem, it looked more like a plain stone. Holding it in her hand, it felt exactly like a stone, with the color and texture of ordinary rock.

Was it necessary to cut it open to reveal its whatever it is inside?

The system hadn't provided any details about its use or quality; it was simply named "Mysterious Gem," and its description repeated that it was a mysterious gem. It was as if the name and description were mocking each other.

If Athena had any doubts before, they were completely gone now. The silver wraps had only three left.

At that moment, Grey returned from washing dishes. Though she didn't understand what had happened, she could sense that Athena's mood had noticeably darkened.

In stark contrast to the trio of small creatures nearby, who were in a state of constant agitation, with Witty occasionally joining in the shrill cries directed at Paopao, the atmosphere in the room was chaotic.

Grey tiptoed into the room, deliberately slowing her breathing, hoping to quickly put things away and slip out unnoticed.

Yet, as a goblin, even with her utmost efforts to be unobtrusive, it was hard not to attract attention.

Athena glanced over and saw Grey sneaking toward the dish rack. Though she was simply putting things away, Grey's furtive demeanor made it look like she was trying to steal something.

Athena stood up and walked decisively towards her.

Though she knew Grey would likely agree to her request, she still needed to be courteous as she was asking for a favor.

Grey watched as Athena approached with a determined stride, her expression resolute, and couldn't help but gulp.

She instinctively wanted to back away but fought against her urge.

“Grey, may I pull three strands of your hair?” Athena asked with the utmost seriousness and sincerity.

“Y-yes…” Grey responded, her face twisting into a painful expression. With her severe hair loss, even pulling three strands was a challenge.

But in the spirit of precision, she selected the longest three strands and handed them to Athena.

Athena sincerely said, “Thank you.”

Grey was indeed very accommodating and easy to deal with.

With Grey's hair in hand, Athena quickly opened her system panel, while Grey, seeing that Athena was no longer focusing on her, swiftly made her escape.

【 Trade Request from Big Bear! 】

Big Bear was running non-stop, not daring to slow down, in the training ground designed by the goblins for her.

Wooden stakes were planted all around, and her task was to accurately jump from one stake to another as quickly as possible while dodging the wooden blocks thrown by Grandpa Goblin.

She couldn’t afford even a moment's rest because Granpa Goblin also moved rapidly below, knocking over a wooden stake with every pass.

Big Bear had no choice but to make swift decisions and leap to the next stake without hesitation.

Although Athena had set special concern for her, she received this information even without opening her system panel.

She was thrilled because, whenever something urgent came up, she could use it as an excuse to escape the grueling training.

“Granpa Goblin! Boss Athena, it’s about the goblin hair!” Her tone was unmistakably excited, as if she could almost rest.

In past scenarios, Granpa Goblin would have already agreed to her request. Unfortunately, this time Granpa Goblin was unusually strict.

“Alright, read it out loud! And don’t stop running!”

Big Bear could hardly believe her ears, but Granpa Goblin's actions confirmed she hadn’t misheard. Facing the collapsing stakes behind her, she had no choice but to read while running.

“I can give you three strands of goblin hair, with the same trade price as last time—one silver coin.”

Last time, Athena had proposed this trade, and Big Bear had agreed without objection. It had allowed her to reach the goblin city, indirectly serving as a favor.

She had no intention of taking advantage of the situation.

“Agree to her request,” Granpa Goblin said, nodding while continuing with her tasks.

Though Big Bear was initially delighted, she now just wanted to finish quickly. Balancing two tasks was proving too difficult.

She swiftly transferred the silver coin to Athena, and the three strands of goblin hair were successfully added to her inventory.

Athena had to commend her efficiency.

There was still a lot of time left, but she had pressing matters to attend to, specifically the materials she had recently collected.

If all went well, these materials would be enough to craft three or four fireballs, assuming everything proceeded smoothly.

The ingredients for the potion were challenging to find, and given her lack of experience, producing even one potion would be a significant achievement.

In her workspace, cluttered with various bottles, jars, and intricate instruments, Athena sorted through the collected materials. Among them were some clumps of mud and, curiously, a small pot on the floor.

The pot was for brewing potions.

After working diligently for some time, Athena nearly lost track of time if not for the system notification.

【 Darkness is encroaching upon the world: 10, 9, 8… 0 】

The final item Athena picked up was not a potion ingredient but a flower wrapped in beast skin—Purple Dream Bud.

After multiple tramplings by the Snowstorm Beast and the ravages of a snow storm, it had become somewhat wilted but had been cared for by Athena for a long time.

With the arrival of the Plant Spirits, it was unfortunate that the spirit ignored the Purple Dream Bud as if it didn’t exist.

Now, having finally recovered to its original bloom, it was cruelly trimmed by Athena. She had only cut one flower, leaving the others intact.

She also left a root in hopes that it might regrow, though that was uncertain.

After crushing the Purple Dream Bud and filtering it into juice, Athena worked with gloves to avoid direct contact.

The purple juice, shimmering like purple quicksand, was poured into a small spray bottle she had purchased.

She had yet to test whether the juice from the Purple Dream Bud possessed dream-inducing properties like the flower itself, or if its effects were enhanced or diminished.

Tomorrow, if time allowed, she might test it on a weaker monster to find out.