Chapter 177: Building Zera Mill (1/2)

Time was not on anyone's side. It most certainly despised Rino. When he failed the first timeline to finish constructing his windmill, he used the remaining day-offs he bought previously. It was a safety net that Rino did not expect to be used in such a manner.

He could ask the farmers to increase their production, but Rino didn't want to subject them to overworking as a punishment they certainly did not deserve after that backbreaking highway construction. If anything, they deserved a break. The lich wanted to introduce the hot springs to the trolls and earth gnomes. Yet, it was difficult to let anyone go on a vacation with the deadline up against his neck.

In just four more hours, he was going to experience the punishment clause in all his quests. There wasn't much Rino could do at this point. If he forced his minions to work overtime, he would lose his respect as a leader.

A king who could only rule using fear and oppression wasn't a good ruler.

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Daily Quest #21

Objective: Build a Windmill

Time Limit: 14 Days (late)

Tutorial here.

Reward: Complex Food Recipe

Penalty: Deduct 24 hours of sleep upon failure and [Curse of Overtime] until quest is forcefully completed.

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That deduction of sleep hours was probably the most painful punishment. Rino wasn't as worried about the Curse of Overtime simply because he took precautions. Technically, work would be done only within his marked out territories. Both Town Zera and all of Noir Province had the Eternal Night enchantment.

Despite the beliefs of many in his previous world, Rino was no genius. He was just an ordinary person with magic abilities and a very hungry attitude towards learning. The lich strongly believed that there was a solution to every problem. People simply did not try hard enough to create it. His childhood experiences shaped his paranoid nature. In everything that Rino did, he wanted to cover every base to the best of his abilities with several action plans in case something did not go his way.

Thankfully, this mindset proved extremely compatible with the research career he established. Even after receiving a new body and identity, this trait did not disappear. If anything, a Rino without any title or accreditation was like a wild animal released from his cage.

Everything that he did was for this moment where he awaited the worst to happen. If he was going to be a ruler, Rino did not want to be a short-sighted fool. His plan was laid to rule the world he was forced to build a kingdom for and give the gods a huge surprise.

The progress of the windmill building was very slow because the earth gnomes and pygmy dwarves were still trying to figure out how to fit the grindstone plates. On the bright side, while they did that, the windmill base and underground storage were picking up pace. The trolls worked together with the shadow spectres to place the stone slabs for the base while the speedy killer rabbits transported materials using Rino's dimensional storage accessories.

Two more hours until divine punishment…