First mission completed

A few days later, Darius Noctis was busy working on something with a group of blacksmiths. Among them was a burly, somewhat stout man with a rugged appearance. Overall, he somewhat resembled Darius Noctis. If one were to meet them for the first time, they might only be able to distinguish between the two by the blacksmith's round belly.

That blacksmith was the very same man who had dirtied Darius Noctis's vehicle a few days ago. After being threatened by Hao Trinh, he had been so frightened that he skipped eating for an entire day, fearing he would be forced to pay compensation.

"This thing called a spring is truly amazing. It does a fantastic job of absorbing shock! But I have no idea where to find this kind of lubricant. Using chicken or pork fat requires constant reapplication. It's not as good as this clear oil of yours, Brother Noctis."

The blacksmith clapped his hands in admiration as he looked at the newly completed wheel system, then sighed in frustration.

"Oil? There's no oil around here?" Darius Noctis asked, somewhat surprised.

At that moment, he realized that this town seemed to lack petroleum. At night, they used candles for lighting instead of kerosene. Perhaps they simply hadn't discovered an oil deposit yet? If they could find one, that would be great. Even if this country didn't have any, maybe another one did.

Darius Noctis gave the blacksmith half a bottle of oil. Over the past few days, the blacksmith had helped him quite a bit, mainly forging some necessary items for his journey.

First, he made two small houses for Woof and Meow. Initially, after looking up designs online, Darius Noctis planned to build one large and one small—naturally, the larger one for Woof and the smaller one for Meow. However, when it came time to build, he decided to make both houses the same size.

The reason? Too many times when he portioned their food—one large, one small—Woof would always take the smaller portion, while Meow would take the larger one.

Every time Woof finished eating, he would go scavenge outside. If he couldn't find food, he'd come back whining for more. Feeling bad for him, Darius Noctis would give him extra food. But one time, Meow caught him in the act, smacked Woof a few times, and took his portion.

As a result, Meow kept getting fatter, while Woof gradually developed the hardened demeanor of a battle-worn dog, his face covered in scars—mostly on his nose.

In just three or four days, Meow had gone from a sleek cat to something else entirely. It was no longer just a cat—it was a pig, a literal cat-pig. They should've just named it Pig. Passersby even asked if his cat had been cursed with a "pig hex" because it had gotten so fat.

To the people of this world, cats were meant for catching mice and helping farmers. A fat cat was useless at catching mice, so because of Meow, Darius Noctis faced quite a bit of gossip. He had no idea how to help the cat lose weight. If he didn't feed it, it would steal Woof's food. And if Meow wasn't eating, Woof wouldn't dare eat either.

With an internal sigh, he thought—if not for the fact that Meow's chubby appearance was quite adorable, he wouldn't have let it eat so much.

"Meow?"

Meow had no clue what Darius Noctis was thinking. It lay comfortably inside its new house, its belly almost entirely blocking the entrance. Its chin sagged with fat, its stomach was round, its legs were short, and its tail was long. If its tail curled up, people might actually mistake it for a pig.

Darius Noctis connected Woof and Meow's houses, but kept their entrances separate—one on the left, one on the right—to prevent Woof from getting smacked if they accidentally ran into each other.

Next, he built a small pen, about three meters long and two meters wide, for four piglets—two male, two female—along with eight hens and one rooster.

The pig and chicken pen was designed with two levels: pigs on the bottom, chickens on top. The roof was made of solar panels that Darius Noctis had removed from his truck—providing shade from the sun and rain while continuously absorbing solar energy.

As for his vehicle, he placed large planter boxes on the front and sides, growing basic crops like chili peppers, tomatoes, cassava, and even a few watermelon seeds for eating or making juice. He had no idea when they would sprout and bear fruit, but he had stocked up on three or four years' worth of various seeds, filling the truck bed. The top of his vehicle even had a small loft, just big enough for him to lie down and rest.

As Darius Noctis worked noisily on his truck, disturbing Meow's nap, the cat got up and waddled to the middle of the road, curling up there. Since the town was only busy in the morning, with few people passing by at noon, Meow wasn't really in anyone's way.

Just as Darius Noctis was busy preparing his gear, the blacksmith's younger sister elbowed him, prompting him to sheepishly walk over to Darius Noctis, scratching his head and asking:

"Brother Noctis, when are you leaving? Where are you heading next? Can you take me with you?"

Darius Noctis was momentarily stunned, confused as to why this blacksmith suddenly wanted to follow him. Then he answered bluntly, "No. Why would you come with me?"

"Brother Noctis… Is it really impossible? I can work for you for free! I don't even need food! Just let me look at all these things every day, let me follow you. I really want to study them…"

The blacksmith clung to Darius Noctis's leg and burst into tears. His hands, covered in soot, smeared black streaks all over Darius Noctis's pants.

What he was referring to, of course, were the vehicles, machinery, and otherworldly items Darius Noctis had.

"There's no place for you to sleep. I can barely take care of myself, and you already have a job at the smithy. Why would you follow me?" Darius Noctis snapped. He didn't even know if he could survive out there—how could he bring someone else along?

"No! If you don't take me, I'll die! My dream is to become the greatest blacksmith in Lupterna… sob sob… My father said I need to follow you to improve my skills. He kicked me out! Please, take me! I'll do anything!" The blacksmith wailed miserably.

Darius Noctis's eye twitched. He glanced toward the blacksmith's workshop and saw an old man subtly giving a thumbs-up.

Hey, you and your father are putting on an act, aren't you? You're messing with me, aren't you? Damn it.

The blacksmith cried so hard that snot and tears streamed down his face. He even blew his nose—thankfully, onto the ground. Then he reached for a black rag lying on the ground, something that looked suspiciously like his old handkerchief, and wiped his face.

"Meow!!! GRAAAWR!!!"

The "black rag" moved, unsheathing ten razor-sharp claws that slashed across the blacksmith's face, making him scream and clutch his wounds.

"Aaah! That demonic rag is attacking me! Brother Noctis, help me! Get it off me!"

The blacksmith rolled around on the ground, desperately trying to pry the black mass off his face.

The only "black rag" that could meow was, of course, Meow. The cat had grown so fat and dark that it blended in with the blacksmith's actual handkerchief, lying in a heap on the ground. The unfortunate man had mistaken it for a piece of cloth and grabbed it—earning himself a face full of claws.

But this was entirely the blacksmith's fault for being so filthy. That rag was disgustingly dirty, yet he just threw it around carelessly and even had the audacity to wipe his face with it. Darius Noctis was completely speechless. If he had to take this guy along with him, he'd rather die first.

But life had a way of being unpredictable.

"Meow, let him go. We're about to leave." – Darius Noctis lifted Meow off the blacksmith.

Seeing that Darius Noctis was really about to leave, the blacksmith lunged forward and clung tightly to his leg. Due to years of blacksmithing, lifting heavy iron and steel, the man was incredibly strong. That single hug made Darius Noctis's bones creak audibly.

If he hadn't been regularly training his body, his leg might have broken right then and there.

"Brother Noctis, please don't leave me behind! Let me follow you. I'll do anything—even be your servant! As long as I get a chance to improve my blacksmithing skills, I'm willing to do it all!"

"Wouldn't you want a blacksmith traveling with you, Brother Noctis? If your knife breaks, I can fix it. If you don't have one, I can make it. I can even forge weapons to sell and bring you money! Please, just take me with you—I only want to study these fascinating things… Brother Noctis, Brother Noctis, please…!"

The blacksmith howled as if he had lost both his parents. With his bloodied face, he dragged himself pitifully toward Darius Noctis, crying as if his world had collapsed.

Passersby who didn't know what was going on assumed that the poor blacksmith was being bullied by the cruel owner of the noodle shop.

Suddenly, someone tugged at the hem of Darius Noctis's clothes. He looked down and saw a little girl with big, shimmering eyes. Her pleading voice was enough to melt anyone's heart.

"Handsome uncle, please let my big brother serve you, okay? He's really obedient! He may be a little slow-witted, but he's very honest. Our father wants him to become a better man, but in this tiny town, there's no room for growth. Please take him with you…"

"Brother Noctis, my little sister is right! I'll do anything you ask—so long as it's not killing people, setting fires, stealing, robbing, pushing old ladies into the sea, or… um… steaming pork—I'll do anything else!"

"What do you mean, 'not steaming pork'?"

"Please, handsome uncle…"

"Brother Noctis!!!"

"Alright, enough! All of you, shut up. This is annoying as shit." – Darius Noctis was so irritated that he actually cursed out loud.

[Annoying As Shit, good morning. How can I assist you, device owner?]

"I wasn't talking to you!! The sun's already up, what the hell do you mean 'good morning'?"

Darius Noctis yelled into his cracked-screen phone.

"Uncle… waaahhh! Uncle, how could you be so heartless?! You don't have to scold me like that!"

The little girl suddenly burst into tears, tears streaming down her small cheeks.

Between sobs, she choked out, "Yesterday, you said I was cute! But today, you're yelling at me, scolding me, and treating me so harshly. That means you don't think I'm cute anymore… That means you hate me! You lied to me! Hu hu hu…"

The more she cried, the louder she got.

Darius Noctis's face grew darker and darker as a crowd of hundreds gathered around, pointing fingers at him.

"SHUT UP!!!"

Darius Noctis jabbed a finger at the little girl, his voice sharp.

"…Mm."

She instantly shut her mouth, her teary eyes blinking as a few more drops fell.

"Fine. I'll take him with me, alright? But he has to follow my conditions. He must bathe at least once a day, wash his hands before touching the vehicle, and clean himself before meals."

Darius Noctis paused, thinking for a moment, then added:

"He can't snore at night, must wake up earlier than me to prepare goods, go to the market in the afternoon, and wash the dishes at night… And most importantly, throw away that godforsaken rag! Are you seriously so poor that you can't afford a new one? What exactly do you use that rag for—wiping your face, your hands, your feet, or your ass? How the hell did it get that dirty?!"

Darius Noctis rattled off a long list of tasks.

The blacksmith stood there, dumbfounded, trying to absorb every word. But his quick-witted little sister had already pulled out a thin piece of paper and started scribbling notes with a lump of charcoal.

By the time Darius Noctis finished, the entire page was filled. She folded it and stuffed it into her brother's hand, flashing a bright smile.

"Big brother, I wrote it all down. Keep it safe and read it over and over until you remember. Now go take a bath immediately! You stink, no wonder Noctis Uncle dislikes you."

"Uh… yeah… I'll go take a bath! Right away!"

The blacksmith had no words to describe his emotions.

He thought he had no chance, but to his surprise, his little sister had saved him. Without another thought, he ran off cheerfully to bathe. Seeing that the drama was over, the crowd dispersed.

At that moment, the little girl stuck out her tongue playfully and said, "Uncle, take good care of my brother! He's a bit slow, but his blacksmithing skills are top-notch. He won't let you down!"

"You, little one, are the real mastermind here. If this era had film and television, you'd probably be a famous child actress by now." – Darius Noctis sighed. He couldn't shake the feeling that he'd just been tricked.

On the outside, he said that, but inside, he let out a helpless chuckle.

Because at that moment, his cracked-screen phone displayed a notification:

[Quest: Find a Blacksmith Companion.

Quest Status: 1/1 – Completed.

Quest Reward: Calculating…]

[Ding!]

[Quest Reward: Mystery Gift Box.

Since this is the first beginner quest, the device owner will receive a special reward—a Blue-grade Mystery Gift Box.

Please select a type of Mystery Gift Box:]

• [Combat Mystery Box]

• [Household Mystery Box]

• [Survival Mystery Box]

• [Power Mystery Box]

• [Pet Mystery Box]

• [And more…]

There were over a dozen categories. Just looking at them made Darius Noctis dizzy. In the end, he selected the Survival Mystery Box.

[Open Mystery Gift Box now?

Open Now – Open Later]

Darius Noctis pressed Open Now.

[Congratulations! You have received: Military-grade Camping Tent.]

[Military-grade Camping Tent.

Type: Survival

Quality: Blue

Function: Designed for outdoor camping, protects against wild animals, rainproof, mosquito-proof, and insect-proof, ensuring a comfortable sleep.

Special Feature: Can be shrunk to the size of a keychain for easy carrying. Press the button to instantly deploy a fully-equipped tent.]

After receiving the item, Darius Noctis's eye twitched.

What the hell did he need this for? He had a truck! Sleeping in a cozy bed inside the truck was way better than some tent!

Now that he had another mouth to feed—namely, the blacksmith—this so-called reward was clearly meant for him.