Chapter 148: Not as Planned (1/2)

Ace couldn't believe it. Didn't he say that the main quest should be timeless? Why did the new finalised draft reverse what he had in mind? If Stephanie was an annoying bitch, Ark had to be a crafty fox. Phil was a good old neutral golem, but Ace felt utterly betrayed by the time the presentation was over.

Grabbing Ark by the arm and leaving the office once the meeting was over, Ace glared at his team leader.

”This wasn't what we agreed on!”

Ark was calm. He expected as much. However, as the leader of this team, he had to weigh the pros and cons. Ace might be a very capable god, but he was too involved with this mortal. Favouritism was acceptable but rigging the trials was not acceptable. As the team leader, Ark needed to ensure fairness as much as possible and reduce the risks of system abuse. Rino was too smart for them to allow him such leeway.

”Trust me, this is fair as well. By stalling his side quest progress and offering more main quests in small steps, Rino can still do what he has to without much pressure. The side quest does not have a time limit originally. There is less risk putting this as a side quest than the main quest that he could manipulate and drag on infinitely. We want to keep it professional for as long as possible.”

In addition, the gods had more time to plan and prepare for the harvester raids. Monitoring Rino wasn't their only duty, and Ark could see the eyebags beneath Ace's eyes.

”Take this time to clear your work. Rino is in good hands. Phil took the agriculture stage to the next level while Rino works on his improved ecology system within his new town. I just saw how he talked with the gnomes about using waste crops to feed the boars and using their dung as fertiliser. They're slightly sceptical, but he managed to convince them that if pee could be used to treat leather, dung can be useful too.”

Ace felt a hand on his shoulder as Ark thanked him for thinking of Rino's interest all the time. Then, the god left, and Ace stared at the reflecting pond. Rino seemed busy foraging in the fields and even plucking petals off a flower to help him decide if it was worth visiting the Woods of No Return.

As much as the god of prayers hated to admit it, Ark was right. It was more logical to put a timeless quest as a side quest instead of the main quest. He should remain objective and not assume that Rino would not take the chance to abuse the system just because he liked Noir. It was not what he planned, but it was acceptable. He let his emotions get the better of himself, and the belated embarrassment heated the god's cheeks. How could he forget that if Rino failed to improve the small world's conditions, their godhood would be forfeit? There were no such things as kindred souls or friends. Walking the path of an immortal was a lonely one. He'd forgotten it when he experienced the unadulterated warmth and affection as a cat. He should stop looking for Rino for a while to get everything under control. It wasn't as if Rino needed him around, right?

The memory of the cloth collar around his incarnate's neck spoke otherwise, but Ace shoved that to the back of his mind. He had work to do.

>>Xxx Destiny Aitsuji xxX<<

Rino checked his quest window again. There was one day till his main quest reset. However, the new side quest was easy to complete, so Rino took a break from designing the barn to finish it. The reward was tempting, after all.

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Side Quest #19

Objective: Craft animal feed

0/10 Rabbit Feed

0/10 Bird Feed

0/10 Boar Feed

Tutorial here.

Reward: Breeding Grass Purchase Option in Offering Reward Shop

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