"Why is it suddenly speaking in riddles?"
While I could sort of piece together what it meant, it seemed like knowing was just the first part of the puzzle.
Moving on, I tried to will the other icon, and sure enough, new lines of text popped up.
All sorts of quests could be seen, each under a different title.
Daily, Weekly, Monthly.
Each quest was short, but the sheer number of them stood in stark contrast to the main quest I'd seen earlier.
What really stood out was their content. For once, the system was directly telling me what to do.
[Daily: Sleep before 9 p.m.]
[9 hrs 56 mins remaining]
[Weekly: Wake up before 7 a.m. for three days]
[9 hrs 56 mins remaining]
[Monthly: Walk for a total of 100 kilometers.]
[20 days 9 hrs remaining]
"I get the daily one. It ends at midnight, but why is the weekly one the same?"
"Walk? Did my walk with Mel earlier not count?"
"I'd assume it's because the quest wasn't there before."
These quests felt different from the main ones. They were far too mundane, but this system really hated spoilers, never telling me what the rewards were. There were rewards, right?
"Speaking of rewards, Appraisal Eyes?"
I dug deep within myself, trying to unleash this unknown power.
A mysterious feeling welled up around my eyes. It didn't hurt, but it felt as though my vision had become more focused.
"Is that it?" I asked.
I looked around, trying to test this appraisal effect.
But nothing showed up until I caught sight of my reflection in the mirror.
A short label appeared above my head.
[Anthony Ashbelle]
"This is a scam."
I looked around, trying to inspect other items in hopes of getting something more useful.
[Deed of Greenwood Farm]
[Owner: Anthony Ashbelle]
[Grape Wine]
[Mango Wine]
[...]
Apart from the deed, my wine collection was the only thing that seemed to be detectable.
"But really, it just gives me names? No, the deed showed something more, but I can't really see how useful this is."
"Queen of Sauce?"
There was no mistaking it. That yellow hair and velvet robe were unmistakable.
Queen of Sauce was a unique program in the game, often teaching the farmer new cooking recipes on Sundays, with reruns on Wednesdays. In the game, all you had to do was watch for a bit, and you'd magically learn the recipe. But this was real life, much to my disappointment.
With nothing better to do, I watched the show. The episode was about making coleslaw, and even after it finished, I hadn't magically learned anything. Still, I now understood how it was made.
"Is my system bogus or just incomplete?"
I could only hope it was the latter.
Looking at the time, I realized it was around three in the afternoon. With nothing else interesting to do, I found myself drifting off right there on the sofa.
A gentle shaking stirred me awake.
Rubbing my eyes, I thanked Mel before heading to rinse my face.
Staring at the mirror, I willed the system to appear.
"Sure enough, even a nap counts."
The daily quest was complete, and another line had appeared beneath it.
[Reward: 10 SP]
And just like that, the daily quest went blank.
"Is that really it?"
That couldn't possibly be true, I protested. But no matter how long I waited, nothing happened.
Even the 10 SP I'd received was nowhere to be seen. This system was really testing me.
"Forget it." Sighing, I headed to eat.
Dinner was as delicious as ever.
While Mel washed the dishes, I cleaned up the table.
Better to do something than risk getting rejected when I offered to help.
Once she was done, she stared at me for a moment but said nothing before handing me the milk.
She headed upstairs, likely to prepare for her shower.
Later, after she'd finished, I went to take care of my own business.
Afterward, I found her by the table once again, still drying her hair. Its sheer length stretched below her waist.
Once we were done, I spoke.
"Mel, mind waking me up earlier? Six—no, 6:30 should do."
"Understood." She nodded.
The room fell silent.
Seeing that it was already past nine, I retreated to my room early, even though my daily quest was already complete. Mel wasn't the type to retire to bed while I was still awake.
Back in my room, I scrolled through my phone until nearly midnight, when drowsiness finally settled in.
The next day, I awoke with Mel's help once again, though a bit earlier than usual.
'So much for waking earlier'
Rinsing my face, I checked the system. The daily and weekly was reset.
[Daily: Walk 10km total]
[Weekly: Walk 50km total]
"...why are all my quests about walking?"
Is the system insulting me? whatever.
Spring 36. The second Monday of the second month of spring, essentially the midpoint of the season.
Today was the Egg Festival, and our first trip into Pelican Town itself.
With all the morning preparations done, it was already past eight in the morning when we left.
Curious, I checked the mail.
"Wow, they really didn't invite us, huh?" I said, amused.
"Master, should we really go?" Mel voiced her concern.
"It should be fine," I said, dismissing her concerns.
Not that I wasn't worried, but rather, if this was anything like the game, I had to acquire that special something only found at this festival.
I'd already checked. Even if this world scaled the days by three, the Egg Festival was still a one-day event. This was my only shot.
'Besides, where's the fun in being a hermit?'
Anthony muttered, his eyes losing their luster as he stared into the distance.
"Master?" Mel waved her hand in front of him, concerned.
"...It's nothing. Let's go," he replied after a moment.