I had a theory.
(What if… by consuming the Powerstone, he's gaining Experience Points? And when his Experience is high enough, he levels up?)
Since Gopuro's status didn't display an EXP bar, I couldn't verify this. But it was the most probable guess. Even if he was gaining EXP, it might not be enough for a level-up yet, so I couldn't see much change in his stats.
(Then, it's easy! I just need to have Gopuro do the quest a few more times!)
I had assumed they would need to sit and recover, perhaps rest for an hour or more to regain their strength.
But in less than ten minutes, they were already up, walking toward the Quest Board again to accept another Wood Gathering Quest.
(Woah! These guys are so hardworking!)
And just like that, they worked and worked, chopping trees like there was no tomorrow!
The sun climbed higher in the sky. Sweat poured down their green skin, while their arms moved in steady, rhythmic motions.
Swing, pull, swing, pull.
The sound of axes biting into wood echoed like a heartbeat.
Eventually, as the last ray of sunlight vanished behind the trees, their work for the day finally ended.
They ended up completing the quest four times each! And as each time took around three hours to complete, they worked for a total of nearly twelve hours, taking only a small break to eat.
I felt a little bad… like I was a villain boss exploiting my own citizens.
After all…
(Am I overworking these guys now?)
Standard labor law in my previous life was an eight-hour workday. If exceeded, the company had to pay overtime.
(But… well… these goblins seem to really enjoy doing the quest…)
(And it's not like I'm forcing them to work or anything!)
Yeah, all I did was post the quest onto the board. It was up to the goblins to accept it or not.
The two goblins even attempted to take the quest for a fifth time, but I quickly took the quest poster down before they could grab it!
(Come on! It's already night! I can't have you two go outside and work in the dark! It's too dangerous!)
Yeah, what if the wolves came back?
(Seriously, have you guys already forgotten what happened yesterday?)
However, as the quest disappeared, the two goblins stood there, frozen, staring at the empty wall. Their expressions turned somewhat disappointed. Their ears drooped slightly. Gopuro's shoulders slumped. Gopuran tilted her head, looking at the blank stone as if willing the paper to reappear.
(Hey hey, don't worry. I will give you the quest again tomorrow! But now, you guys need to rest!)
Deciding that these two deserved some extra reward for their super hard work, I materialized a few thick cuts of steak before them.
The goblins immediately cheered up and accepted the steak! They didn't even forget to bow to me!
(Wahaha! I'm such a good ruler now!)
(Just work hard and be loyal to me, and you two will have unlimited steak for life!)
To my surprise, however, they didn't devour the meat on the spot.
Gopuran muttered something to Gopuro in their rough goblin tongue, then stepped outside to gather twigs and dry grass. She returned and arranged the kindling carefully within a rough circle of stones she had collected from the forest floor.
(Oh? What's this?)
I watched, curious, as she arranged everything carefully.
I realized what she was after.
She wanted to cook the steak!
And that reminded me… Gopuran actually had [Cooking Lv. 1]!
The goblin girl pulled out two pieces of rock from somewhere and started hitting them together. Spark after spark flew into the dry grass. She was trying to make fire!
But after five full minutes of persistent effort, however, no flame appeared. Gopuran frowned, her arms now trembling with fatigue. Each spark flared briefly and died before it could ignite the tinder.
Gopuro stepped in to take over, but even his greater strength yielded the same result. Clearly, raw muscle power alone wasn't enough.
(Oh come on.) I chuckled to myself. (Are you guys silly?)
(Fire?)
(Why make fire when there's already fire in the castle?)
My torches were already burning, providing light for the chamber. The flames danced along the walls, warm and inviting. But for some reason, neither of them utilized it.
(Perhaps… they think they're not allowed to use my fire?)
(If that's the case, then I need to act!)
Just then, I noticed something else. The small firepit had already been registered to the System as [Firepit].
And with that, I could easily light it, just like how I had been controlling all of my torches with my [Lighting Manipulation].
(Haha! Let there be fire!)
I focused my will on the pit.
Fwoom!
The flame roared to life. The dry twigs caught instantly, crackling warmly.
Both goblins jumped back in surprise, eyes wide. Then, slowly, their faces lit up with wonder.
(Yeah, yeah. I'm a generous ruler. Now cook that steak before it gets cold!)