My Evil System

". . . The . . . animals?"

Athena nodded. Her face almost had the words, 'don't make me repeat my words.'

"They came to me and offered me fruits when Ulysses and I went to the forest this early morning."

"I-is that so?" I didn't know whether I should praise her or pretend that I didn't hear anything.

Clearly, it was one of her perks as a high goddess. Anyway, I was benefitting from it, so no qualms from here.

". . ." Wait . . . why am I suddenly thinking like my other self?

<Nice going, Host! You're finally embracing your inner evilness by exploiting your Token's advantages.>

"Is something wrong, my lord?" Athena asked.

"Huh?"

"You've been in a daze."

"Ah . . ." I scratched my nose and sheepishly grinned.

"N-nothing . . . Anyway, I was wondering if it's possible to have an Orchard around here. Thanks to you, having my own fruit trees will come to fruition."

"Good thinking, my lord. Though I hadn't done much that's worthy of your praise," Athena said before she looked over at Daedalus.

Daedalus felt it and stopped working. He explained the problem, "We can have the fruit trees planted in pocket gardens so that it wouldn't be a hindrance to future structures that we might need to construct. We could also have them planted near the gates. They could serve as buffers form noise and strong winds as well as additional defence."

"Great," I exclaimed. Just mark the territory where they can be planted, and I'll have Florin and Turnip get it done."

"Egh . . . more planting?" I heard Florin complain behind me.

I patted her head and smiled. "Just a little more, and we will have all kinds of food on our table."

Florin blinked, and she was stunned at my sudden gesture.

Great!

Because of her cute whining, I was reminded of my little sister, so I casually patted her head without realizing it.

I immediately withdrew my hand, hoping that she wouldn't find it out of character.

Florin recovered and beamed before she giggled. "If my lord wishes for it, then Florin will try her best to put all kinds of food on your table."

". . ." I didn't know how to respond to her enthusiasm, but nevertheless, I nodded my head and awkwardly replied with a, "Great! I'll be counting on you then. Carry on with your work."

After saying that, I went to another area at a hurried pace, and I almost stumbled on my feet. I inspected Ulysses's chemical lab next.

In front of me was a double solid wooden door. I hadn't even opened it, yet the waft of ammonia, herbs, and something I couldn't quite put the finger on hit my nose and assaulted my senses.

I knocked on the door after I recovered.

Hearing no response, I opened the door and let myself in.

Was Ulysses gathering materials in the forest again?

Inside the lab, there were two cauldrons in the fireplace. All kinds of materials hung on the ceiling, and all sorts of liquids and unifiable objects that were sealed in glass jars were on the cabinets. The shelves were full of books, tomes, scrolls, ingredients, and all sorts of tools and flasks.

I wonder where he got the books. Did he bring them with him when he was transported here?

"Ulysses?" I called out, but no one answered. "Ulysses!"

No response.

I looked around the room and saw a large book on the table. It contained information about potions, ingredients, and mixtures.

He must have been working on something. I thought.

"Do you need something?"

I jumped on my toes and hastily turned back at the entrance, only to find Ulysses near the door holding a basket full of plants.

"Ah . . . you scared me." I sighed and calmed my breathing.

"Do you need something?" Ulysses asked again and, without looking at me, he proceeded to his table and inspected the materials he had gathered.

"Uhm . . . I'm just checking in on how those medicines are going."

Ulysses was writing down some notes on his giant book when I spoke, jotting down what he observed from each ingredient.

Could he have written all the books here? I wondered. But that was impossible since I only left for days. He couldn't have written so many.

Ulysses looked over at me with his face hidden by a hood. "Everything is going according as scheduled."

I wonder if I could get to see his face one of these days. But then again . . . there was a part of me that didn't want to know.

Ignorance is bliss, I always say.

"Is there anything else?"

"Oh, sorry! I didn't mean to disturb you." I apologized, and heavy silence descended between us.

Ulysses treated me like I was invisible. He wrote on his notes nonstop, and sometimes, he would draw the ingredient on the paper.

I wasn't stupid, and I could sense that my presence wasn't welcomed, so I didn't prolong my stay.

"Well, then . . . I'll leave you to your work," I said while swinging my arms, not knowing where to put them.

Ulysses didn't seem to hear me, as evidenced by his lack of reply even after I closed the door shut.

I took a deep breath. That place was suffocating, and it wasn't just because of the smell.

That guy was harder to talk to than Athena and Daedalus.

After visiting Ulysses, I went to the ocean to check the breakwater and forage. I might get [Eternal Sand] this time.

Fortunately, this day was nicer for me. In all my four tries, I acquired the sand. However, they weren't plenty enough to plant a single seed in them.

I shifted my attention to the breakwater, but my mind went blank. It was quite big, so I had no idea how to construct it. Suddenly, I was amazed by the machine built to transfer those large boulders onto the waters.

The machine was made of thick wood, connected by bolts, and there was a net made of sturdy ropes that carried the boulders into the waters.

I stood there for quite some time while watching the waves crash against it. It reminded me of a game that one of my co-workers played. It was a farming game — a simulation game of some sort.

"A slice of life . . . ," I muttered.