[You have 4 days left of your debt to the Salty Swine]

[You are well rested]

The next morning came with shining sun, great promise and a knock at my door. For the first time I could remember, I felt like I was making progress. I stretch in bed for a little while before getting up to answer the door. Betha is there. Avoiding my eyes she sounds uncomfortable.

“Uhm, mister Tee, Yadra wants you to..”

She turns a bright shade of crimson, covering her eyes with one arm.

“Get your green.. butt.. Downstairs before she puts pickle back on the menu.”

I smile.

“Thank you Betha. Go back downstairs and let her know I’ll be right down.”

I chuckle a bit as she leaves. There isn’t really a lot for me to do in my room, so I just hang out for a few minutes. Can’t let Yadra think she’s winning.

The kitchen is the usual subdued chaos of the morning. Flours and eggs everywhere, a large bucket of milk on the counter and Yadra herself going to town on a butterchurn. I sneak past to wash up before I help her out with the prepwork.

[New skill discovered: Cooking.]

Well that’s about time. I really don’t understand how skills work in this game. I mean, it doesn’t really feel like I’m any better at cooking. I’ll have to do some tests later.

“Yadra, where’s the miss?”

She doesn’t look away from her work as she answers.

“I think she’s at the church. Father Houg wanted some food for the poor, and he likes to make her sit through a sermon before he sees her.”

Maybe this is a good time to get some information out of her.

“I was wondering about the larder. How is it always so cold in there?”

She looks at me, missing a beat in her rhythm.

“Why do you ask? I think it’s just a quirk of it’s construction. Something about being halfway underground means it keeps it’s temperature better.”

“I’m just curious. I might be looking to get something similar when I get my own place.”

A snort escapes her face.

“Oh, so you’re going to start a competing inn? The Cabbages Head?”

I smack her gently upside the head as I move past her to get some hot water for cleaning.

“No. I’m going to buy a farm somewhere, growing the things that adventurers need. What’s so weird about that anyway? What do you want to do with your life? What would make Yadra happy?”

[Ability increased: Charisma.]

[Your relationship with Yadra is now Friends.]

She’s stopped churning now, leaning on the paddle. Her voice has a longing quality to it.

“I’d like to sail the oceans one day. Just cast off and follow the stars across the wicked abyss.”

She looks at me with damp eyes.

“I guess a farm somewhere is achievable, if nothing else.”

I hand her a cup of water as I put a hand on her shoulder.

“This is a wide world, with endless wonder. We’ll find a way to set you adrift on the sea. It’ll let the rest of us get some peace at last.”

She swipes after me as I dance away, laughing and cursing.

“Listen, Yadra, I need a favor. I need to be gone most of the day. Is there any way you can help me out?”

She looks at me with an inscrutable expression.

“I can help you. But you’ll owe me a big one. Deal?”

She puts out a hand, and I take it.

“Deal. What do you need?”

She shakes her head.

“Not yet. I’ll tell you later. Finish up here and start the breakfast serving. As soon as you see the miss leaving the hall, get out of here. Try to be back before the sun goes down, okay?”

I nod, and pick up the gigantic cauldron containing the breakfast porridge. Betha comes in, nearly spilling us both on the floor, then holding the doors for me.

I’m starting to recognise some of the regulars now. Most of them are nodding back when I wish them a good morning, and very few are making jokes about my party anymore. Progress.

[Skill increased: Customer Service.]

My attention is drawn by the sound of clattering plates. I look up in time to see the landlady smack Yadra across the face with enough force to throw her back. Afterwards, the landlady leaves the room in a huff, slamming the door behind her. Yadra turns to me holding her chin, giving me the thumbs up as I look on with a terrified expression. Why do I end up causing these people so much pain? Not wanting her sacrifice to be in vain, I leave quickly.

[You are indebted to Yadra the barmaid. You will repay her at a later date in a way she will specify.]

I ask some passers by for directions and find out that the closest farm is the Rognstad one. With the sun slowly rising, I set out to find it.

I’m treated to a fantastic scenery on the walk. Forest and field side by side, a small stream with a bridge across it and some wildlife running around. I finally arrive at the farm. The farmstead consisted of a main building, a small barn and a shed. Smaller than the Candrid farm. I try to call out, but nobody responds, so I check out the house.

The doors are of solid build, with a hanging knocker. I rap it a few times, but nobody arrives to check out the sound. I go inside.

“Hello? Is there anyone home? I’m Tee, I’m here on an errand for the mayor aand there’s nobody here, is there?”

The house was quaint, if a bit small. There are signs of someone being here earlier, but that same someone had left. I guess they get out and work early. I go back outside, having a look in the barn. There’s space for a horse here, and a place for a plough. Neither of them are present, so I have a good idea of where they are. In the corner of the barn I see a heap of sacks. A quick check shows me they’re filled with dried hops. It’s a this point I realise I have no idea what fresh hops means. Smelling it doesn’t give me any clues either. I’m about to go out to try tracking the farmer when I hear a horse neigh. I walk outside just as a scruffy old man comes towards me. He’s completely unperturbed at my presence. I raise a hand in greeting.

“Hi there! I’m..”

“You’re the mayors new gofer, I know. Give me a moment to put old Sally back in her stable, and I’ll find the goods you want.”

There’s a moment of confusion before I hurry along.

“Let me help you sir!”

I run after him to try to assist when a great force slams into me, hurling me along the ground.

[You have lost 65% HP.]

[You are stunned.]

Everything hurts as I slowly sit up. The old man is squatting next to me, just looking.

“You’ll be fine. Get up and come over. You adventuring types have no clue whatsoever about the world, do you.”

I shake my head to clear it up a bit before standing, stumbling a bit in the process.

“What on earth happened? Did I get struck by lightning?”

He laughs at this.

“You really are green! You walked behind old Sally without letting her know you were there. She’s kinder than most horses, but if you startle her, she’ll deck you out.”

I look at the horse with greater respect than before. He moves around her with a hand on her haunches, speaking softly to her, and the horse seems happy. She even eats something from his hands. I really do have a lot to learn. He looks back at me.

“Your stock is over here. These two buckets.”

He points to two buckets of brownish husks. I look at him incredulously.

“Really? This is the hops that the mayor gets? The stuff he uses to make his special beer?”

I grab a handful from one bucket, smelling it. There’s no aroma at all. I decide to make a wild guess.

“This stuff is old. I was told to get the freshest hops I could get.”

The old man smiles, toothier than I’d expected.

“Fair enough. Come along then, this way.”

He leads me outside to the nearby shed and I follow him inside. The dry heat slaps me in the face. I can feel my skin withering just from standing here. Forcing myself to endure, I follow him to the back, where he grabs a couple of buckets.

“Hold these. I’ve got a batch that’s ready over here.”

A quick set of movements later and he’s filled each bucket, increasing the weight to just under the limit of what I can carry. He pushes me out, and it’s all I can do to avoid falling on my face.

“You okay there son? You look a bit flustered.”

I set them down.

“I’m okay, just got to get a better grip on them.”

Looking around, I try to find anything to distract him, to postpone having to lift these things again. Barn, horse, farm, buildings, fields. Fields.

“Say, how do you go about growing hops anyway? I’m considering starting my own farm, and could use some pointers on how to go about it.”

His eyes narrow a bit at that. I hurry to speak before he does.

“I mean, a few valleys over, there’s rumours of decent farmland.”

He chuckles at this.

“I’ll tell you what, if you come with me out to the field and do some decent work, I’ll share some knowledge with you. Hows that sound?”

[You have been offered a quest: Help farmer Rognstad in the field.]

[ - Farmer Rognstad wants to teach you a lesson. Go with him into the fields and do what he tells you.]

[ - Success: Improved relationship with Farmer Rognstad. Knowledge about farming.]

[ - Failure: Slightly improved relationship with Farmer Rognstad.]

[ - Reject: No effect.]

I check to see where the suns at. I have to be back before sundown, the walk took me an hour and a half, give or take, the sun goes down in eight hours. What the hell. I accept the quest.

“Sir, I’d love to help you out.”

He smirks at me.

“Good man. Go grab those tools against the wall there and wait by the trail down there.”

He points towards the fields, and I scurry to do as he says. He joins me after half an hour with a bag in his hand and crumbs on his shirt. I realise that I didn’t bring any food with me. Oh well, I’ll manage until I get back. Oh well, nothing to do for it now. We start off across the fields in the noon day sun.

We walk for an hour before we get to where he feels we need to go. To me, it’s just the middle of a field. With a groan, I dump the tools on the ground, earning me a grumpy look from the farmer.

[Ability increased: Strength.]

He gives me a severe workout for five hours, making me dig trenches, rake the topsoil and gather rocks and various debris from the field. Towards the end, he has me plunging a long stick in the ground repeatedly in a row, as straight as possible. All the while, he’s sitting on his ass, talking. The stories barely make sense at first, and my fingers grow blistered immediately. The plant parts of my biology prevents me from suffering too badly from the roasting sun, but the lack of water gets bad after an hour. I end up with a debuff until he shows me a water hole. After that, I made sure to take regular breaks, and everything got much easier. In the last stretch, his stories even started making sense. The story about the three sisters was about what kinds of crops to plant together. The one about the old man in the wind was about when to harvest the produce.

[Ability increased: Strength x2]

[Ability increased: Endurance x2]

[You have completed the quest Help farmer Rognstad.]

[Your standing with Farmer Rognstad has improved to Doesn’t dislike you.]

[Through persistence you have started to unlocked a new profession: Farmer. To complete the unlock, consult with other farmers and learn from them.]

Ah. That makes sense. I was wondering how the game would make up for the lack of years worth of experience as a farmer. Once I’ve unlocked the profession, I’m sure I’ll get a new skillset, letting me do more complicated things. Lost in my thoughts, I glance up at the sun. It’s starting to fall towards the treeline, and I feel a bit of panic set in.

“Why is the sun going down. I mean, not why but, it should be three hours to sundown, right?”

The farmer looks at me, tutting.

“Hard work makes short time. You need to be somewhere?”

“Yeah, I have to run. I’ll drop the tools back at the farm. Thanks for your help!”

I take off towards the farm.

***

Behind me, the farmer mutters under his breath.

“Just make sure you keep to the road when it gets dark. Ah, you’ll be fine.”