Rino felt that he did the daily quest in record time. After creating all ten bricks using earth and water magic, Rino left them to dry for a few hours under the sun as he tried to take a nap. Then, he turned them over to dry the other side using shadow tendrils, only to discover that liches cannot sleep.
He was simply physically incapable of that.
The Gods above rejoiced at finding something they knew Rino would work for. As strange as it sounded, Ark had a feeling the troublesome lich might do his daily quests properly if they gave him a reward that allowed him to sleep peacefully without interruptions for a fixed number of hours if he completed his quest.
In his little mud hut, Rino shuddered. He suddenly felt uneasy, as if someone was plotting behind his back. Yet, the lich dismissed it. Textile Crafting Skills! The things he could do with it were limitless! It was even better than receiving pants from the Gods. If they gave him clothing article by article, Rino might have been completely at their mercy. Thankfully, the Gods weren't very smart, not that he was going to let them know.
Up above, Stephanie bristled. What did the lich mean by not so smart? Have they fallen into his trap after all?!
"Whose bright idea was it to give him skills as a reward instead of items? Now, he's just going to skive on us!"
Ace looked away, and Phil felt wronged. Ark quickly intervened. His hot-headed sister was sometimes too unreasonable and quick to blame others.
"Steph, it's not their fault. If rewards do not work, we can always do it the other way around. Aren't you good at designing punishments?"
At that, the Goddess of life cycle paused. Her eyes lit up, and a very demonic grin etched itself on her face. That's right!
"You reminded me!" she gave Ark a hug. "I will design the random divine punishment system for the daily quest system now. Only use it when he starts failing to complete the daily quests. I will make sure to get back at him for everything bad he said about us earlier!"
The petty Goddess left them alone to design her punishment system. Ace excused himself after seeing that the prayers were starting to pile up again. Only Phil and Ark were left by the reflecting pool.
"Should I redesign this area so that he has to split off in two directions during the side quest for different materials?" Phil asked.
Ark thought about it. He might as well do that. Rino shouldn't prioritise a side quest more than a main daily quest. It should be better to give the tutorial to him in parts to hook him for a little longer.
"You do that. I will design the side quest system," Ark told Phil, who agreed and left to redesign the landscape.
Ark watched over Rino while plotting the multi-part side quest that can only be unlocked upon each successful completion of the daily quest. If Rino thought he could outsmart the Gods more than once, he was sorely mistaken.
As the Gods busied away, Rino tossed and turned. The sun made him feel uncomfortable, so he dug up some earth and hollowed some space in the ground to rest in. His cape was dirtied once again, but more importantly, he couldn't sleep. What was this nonsense?!
To complete the quest, Rino had to wait for the bricks to dry under the sun. They were a mixture of soil, sand, dried grass and small stones that were put into a mould he fashioned from earth magic. The Gods wanted him to make ten bricks for the daily quest, but there were no mentions about how they should be done. Technically, he should be done with the making process. These bricks would take days to dry completely before they can be fired, according to the tutorial. It wasn't his fault the quest was impossible to finish within a day. He did whatever he could.
As Ark designed his side quest, he realised that Rino was right. The quest would take longer than a day to complete. Seeing that the side quest he was designing would span over several days while the bricks dried, the project managing God decided to give Rino a chance.
While the mud bricks dried, Rino heard a new notification. The Gods must be really free to continuously update the system. It was already the third time that day, and it was only beginning to become evening. What did they want?
===
Side Quest #1
Objective: Locate all textile material-gathering spots.
Tutorial here.
Reward: Basic Fabric Crafting Recipe.
===
Rino stared at the new window for a long time. Didn't the Gods say that he would only be rewarded with the skill upon completing that daily quest? Side quests were only unlocked upon the daily quest's completion.
Checking the daily quest, Rino realised that it was still marked as incomplete. He couldn't unlock the Textile Crafting Skill yet, but they were offering him recipes already. What was the catch?
Although he was suspicious, Rino didn't let that stop him from preparing to leave. He should seize the chance when he has it—anything to make his life easier. There wasn't much to take with him except for the cape so that he didn't get burned by the sun. Rino took one last look at the mud bricks and nodded. It didn't look like it was going to rain, but he should probably still elevate them and build a shelter just in case. The worst that could happen now was his wasted day of waiting for them to dry. Rino wanted the Textile Crafting Skill fast. No delay was acceptable. He wanted to make something to cover his bare pelvic. Even skeletons should be given modesty.
Ark watched Rino prepare to leave and checked on Phil's progress anxiously.
"Is it ready?"
The God in charge of landscaping nodded. "As you requested. Do you think he will be happy to know that it's a four-part side quest with many errand-running? You just want him to be familiar with the area by doing this quest, right?"
Ark nodded. Regardless, there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. As lazy as Rino was, there were ways to make a lazy mule work. All the farmer had to do was find the right method of motivating the stubborn mule. If the carrot didn't work, the stick would do the trick.
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