Gameplay-wise, it shouldn't be such a slog this early on. Shuttling between two locations, depending on RNG (I presume) to find quest items, having only one turn a day, doesn't add up to an exciting time. Early game is when you hook the player and get them invested in the process, and this feels more like a barrier than an incentive.
Just for comparison,
Desert Stalker may not be the same kind of game, but the setting has similar vibes, and it sells the exciting part first before making you do the grunt work.
Hope that's constructive, good luck with the game.