Yuji jolted awake, blinking at the system notification floating in front of his eyes. For a second, he thought he was dreaming. Oh my god, what the hell is this? A whole list of rewards. Real, actual choices. But the joy died fast when he realized he could only pick one. The rest would vanish forever.
"Thank you and screw you, system," Yuji muttered under his breath. I said you shouldn't be broken, but who would've guessed you'd be this broken? Don't tell me you're trolling me. No, you're not just trolling, you actually enjoy seeing me suffer, don't you? Fuck you, system.
The choice was obvious, even though the first two were good but had a time limit, the third one is consumable, and the fourth one is rare, which can be used over and over. Without hesitation, Yuji selected the Pilpil Seed. Not just because it was rare, but because it was grass that could regrow every day. A renewable resource. That's real power.
[You have selected Pilpil Seed. Please confirm: Y/N]
He didn't hesitate. Yes. A second later, another notification popped up.
[Pilpil Seed has been delivered to your inventory.]
Yuji opened his inventory, double-checking. Sure enough, next to the cursed bandage, four black seeds sat waiting. He let out a breath, closed the menu, and finally looked around.
That's when he realized his surroundings were pitch black.
Wait… something's off. Where's Bojo? Yuji stood, looking left and right. No matter where he searched, Bojo was nowhere to be found. Don't tell me he ran off. And that's what had happened, even after looking for some time, he couldn't find him.
We were friends. How could he just leave me like that? Yuji couldn't help but feel a pang of grief. If he'd just waited one more day, maybe things would be different. Now, what would happen to his "make a friend" mission? The thought made him clench his jaw in frustration. He trudged back to the tree grove and took a bite of grass.
With a sigh, Yuji glanced around. The world was nearly dark, but hey, he was a goat now. Night vision came with the package. It wasn't daylight, but it was good enough to get by. Where'd you go, Bojo? Because of you, I missed an amazing chance.
Yuji couldn't help but think about his "Make a Friend" mission. Damn it. So much time wasted. I could've used him in the future. Sigh, let's not waste time on useless stuff. Since he left, I'll just have to find another goat. Not sure if that'll even work, though. The progress is still there. Maybe I won't have to start from scratch. But that's for tomorrow. For now, focus on what's in front of you.
Yuji sat down and started eating, but after a few bites, he stopped. He was already full, there was no way he could force down any more. Only one thing left to do: take out the grass from his belly and chew it again. As he considered this, something clicked in his mind. His daily mission.
Right. I've got another mission to finish, and it's my daily quest. Annoying, but it's got to be done every day. The reward depends on how much I complete.
He opened his mission panel and checked his current progress. Only one option tracked his growth: chewing grass, as for others, they are still zero.
Mission: New Life
Mission Details:
Description: You have been reborn as a goat and found yourself on a farm. Explore and experience the life of the farm.
Duration: 90 days (countdown will start as soon as you close this notification)
Reward: Unknown (rewards are divided into Normal, Epic, and Legendary based on completion percentage: 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100% for an extra legendary reward).
Objective:
Daily Missions (repeatable, tied to Main Quest)
Chew grass: 276/20,000
Head-butt: 0/200
Jump: 0/1,500
Step: 0/50,000
Reward: unknown
He stared at the numbers, feeling a wave of disbelief. After all that walking, his step count was still at zero. Chewing? Only 276! If things keep going like this, there's no way I'll ever finish this.
He slowly stood up and decided to try some exercise. He jumped toward the sky, then checked the panel. Still zero. What's happening? Why isn't it increasing? Yuji stared at the panel for a few more seconds, then jumped again. Nothing. Come on, system. Why aren't you registering my jumps?
Frustrated, he jumped with all his strength, and finally, when he checked the panel, the jump count had gone up by one.
You kidding me, system? You seriously want to give me a hernia? All those thoughts he'd been having were a waste of time. He could've been thinking about something else—anything else. Maybe even about that time with his boss's wife. (Not that he'd ever admit it out loud.)
With a sigh, Yuji jumped again, using every ounce of strength. He kept going, jump after jump, until he collapsed to the ground, panting and strengthless. Oh, goat god, please, if you're up there, don't let anyone find me now. I can't even move, let alone run. If another goat comes, I'm done for.
He looked up at the sky and prayed, hoping the goat god would grant him this one small wish. After a few seconds, Yuji finally regained enough stamina to move. Damn, I should do something else.
Thinking this, Yuji started eating grass again, the only thing that seemed to work without issue. All he had to do was sit and chew. But as he chewed, the number didn't increase at all. Frustrated, Yuji shouted at the system, "You fucking broken system, why isn't this thing going up?"
Maybe because of Yuji's outburst, a notification finally popped up before him.
──────────[System Notice] Chewing grass won't be counted if you're not actually eating.The host's belly is full; no further eating detected. Unless you swallowed, it doesn't count. ──────────
"Fine, I get it. But what about the step counter? I walked more than a kilometre, how come none of it registered?"
──────────[System Notice] For steps to be counted, the host must run with all available strength. Only vigorous movement will be registered as progress. ──────────
"So many restrictions," Yuji muttered. "System, do you even want me to finish these missions? Or are you just angry at me? Why don't you want me to succeed?"