The Sun set, Zuri is asleep and Alex just woke up earlier than usual. The doors to the library are closed and everyone is safe, it's time to start.
Alex takes some time to memorise the layout of the village and make some plans and some hiding spots in case things get out of hand. Nothing unusual happens, Alex fights the bogged, now not as desperately as last time. She had gotten some milk from the cows earlier and it's all fine.
Morning comes up. Alex hits the bell outside the library to wake up the villagers and reassures everyone that they are safe. She walks up to Zuri.
Al: Good morning!
Z: Oh, hey! Good morning.
Al: Do you know where I can get some food or clean myself before going to bed?
Z: Oh, come with me. I'll let you stay at my house for now, since I'm not sleeping there.
Al: Oh, okay, that's nice.
Zuri showed Alex around his house, explaining some quirks and telling her where to get certain supplies.
Al: Alright, got it.
Z: Make yourself comfortable. You deserve all the comfort you can get, after all.
Al: Nice, thank you so much! How is that plan of yours going, by the way?
Z: Oh, yeah, I'll put it to practice today with help from a couple of villagers. You think you can stay here for one more night? We will have to spend some extra time collecting a couple of materials.
Al: Of course! I'll just need one thing though.
Z: Alright, go for it. We'll see what we can do.
Al: Can I get a shield?
Z: Yeah, I'll talk to the blacksmith. Anyways, I got to go now.
Al: Okay, bye!
Zuri goes to talk with all of the workers he could get. The plan is about to come into reality.
Z: Alright, guys. We're going to put an end to this whole thing today! I'm gonna need three teams. Team A is going to build a huge room out of wood. No doors, no lights, just a big box. Team B will go down into the mines, we need half a stack of iron ingots to finish one of the parts of the plan. Team C is coming with me, we will make lanterns and spread them around the village. We will also need to light up an area of 50 blocks in each direction around the village.
Zuri's plan is simple: Monsters like to come out of the ground in dark areas, so the solution is to make a dark place for the bogged to go and light up a huge area around the village so more monsters don't come out.
The day went by, each team working on their part. Team A finished the big box by sunset, while team C finished spreading the lanterns around. Team B comes up to the surface with enough iron to finish the project and a bit more. Team C's work is done for the day, they just have to finish putting up the lanterns the next day.
Everyone went back to the library, washed themselves and went to bed. Alex gets up and starts doing her part. She grabs the shield left at the door and goes to work. She has never used a shield during a battle and wants to test out some new strategies.
Thanks to the lanterns that Zuri and the villagers put up around the village, not a lot of monsters appear. Alex has to leave the village for a bit in order to find more monsters so she won't get bored.
The next day, Zuri gets the iron that the villagers had mined and makes more lanterns. The job gets done just after lunchtime
Al: Wow, this is insane.
Z: I know, right? I was planning on doing this later, but, y'know, we had kind of an emergency.
Al: I still don't trust this system entirely. Is it really this simple?
Z: Yeah. I mean, it could be more complex. There are better ways to do this with more advanced techniques, but this is the best we can do with the resources at our disposal. Even though it's double the work than lighting up torches, we only need to check on the lanterns once per week.
Al: Nice, makes sense… So… You guys don't even need me here anymore?
Z: Not for fighting monsters, no. But you can stay here, the villagers really liked you!
Al: Oh, no, I need to go. I have a duty. I would love to stay, but I can't.
Z: Really? Alright, when are you leaving? We need a proper goodbye.
Al: Oh, I was about to leave, like, now.
Z: Ok, come with me, you can't go without a ceremony.
Al: A ceremony?
Zuri takes Alex to the villagers and explains that she is about to leave. The villagers stop on their tracks and they each go in a different direction.
Some villagers come back with banners, some with food, some with pieces of leather armour, ores, flowers, tools.
Alex was overwhelmed, and after five long minutes, she managed to organise her prizes in her bag and on herself. Zuri had to give her a backpack for her to carry everything she got.
Al: That seems to be everything, thanks!
Z: You're good to go! Thank you so much for the help and good luck on your journey!
Al: Thanks, man, this whole thing was a very nice experience. I'll be on my way now.
Z: Goodbye, feel free to come back if you need anything whenever you need!
Al: Bye!
Alex Leaves, all the villagers and Zuri are devastated to see her go, but grateful for her work and hopeful for the future.
Oh, yeah, and Zuri now has to make a new pair of glasses.
