22. Let's build a monster farm.
22. Let's build a monster farm.
"Ughhh..."
I woke up at dawn because I felt something draped over my body. I got up to check, and it was Ranma's right arm and leg. Why the hell does this guy have such bad sleeping habits? He's the worst roommate ever. I pushed him away gently so he wouldn't wake up and turned on my side. Once again, Ranma's arm and leg were draped over my body.
........
I think it'd be better if I moved spots.
This isn't right. I never imagined Ranma's sleeping habits would be this bad. Didn't this guy sleep with Asagi until yesterday? Did he roll around and hug her while sleeping too? Is that why Asagi's condition got worse?
No, wait. Back then, Ranma was using the bed, and now Asagi is using the bed while Ranma is sleeping here. Then why on earth is Asagi sick? Is there really some kind of virus?
I got up from my spot while pondering that. The hut didn't have any room to spare once Ranma and I lay down, but this bastard Ranma was sleeping diagonally, the jerk. In other words, there was no room for me to lie down properly.
Is he kicking me out of my workplace like this?
I was wide awake anyway, and it looked like the sun was about to rise; looking at the hole we'd left open instead of a window, I could see the night sky turning dusky. It seemed like a good time to get up and do some logging in advance. Should I go check on Asagi's condition too? Hmm... no, that's not right. There were tons of guys in Asagi's world who were after her, so if I just barged in, I might end up getting beaten to death. I should avoid that. I could be branded a potential sex offender, and even in my own mind, I was a potential sex offender when it came to Asagi. Every time I see Asagi, all sorts of imaginations run through my head—when was the last time I jerked off? If I see Asagi right now, things could get really dangerous.
I'll have to jerk off tonight before I go to sleep. That way, I think I'll be able to face Asagi with a clear mind.
For now, I need to finish the Monster Farm properly today. Water! I need a Bucket of water! I'm about to go crazy because I don't have a Bucket of water. I need to create an infinite water source so I can hurry up and build a proper Monster Tower.
When I came outside, the temperature was similar to midday or the middle of the night, even though it was dawn. That was a huge relief. Due to the nature of Minecraft, the temperature doesn't change unless the biome changes. If I knew what kind of biome this was, I might be able to guess the other biomes as a reference, but since I didn't know what kind of biome it was, I couldn't guess a single thing. The Oak Tree was still a Sapling. It didn't seem to have grown because there was no sunlight. I opened my Inventory to check the durability of my Wooden Axe; it had almost none left. This can't be used. Since it's made of wood, I can use it as fuel once I build a Furnace if I collect them. I put the Wooden Axe with the dwindling durability into the wooden chest, and headed to the Crafting Table with Planks and Sticks. I intended to make quite a few while I was at it. The only melee weapon I have to make with the materials I currently have is a Wooden Sword. The Wooden Sword that Asagi used. Since it's made of wood, it's obvious that its durability will wear out incredibly fast, so since I'll have plenty of Planks anyway, I thought if I made about 4 more, I could use them for a long time.
Once the Monster Farm is completely finished, I have to keep hunting until I get 7 Iron Ingots. I wish I could collect them quickly. Knowing the drop rate of Iron Ingots just made my motivation drop.
I also made 2 Wooden Axes and held one. I took out an apple and ate it beforehand. The satiety level wasn't visible, which was actually better. If there had been a satiety system, the amount of apples I had might not have even been enough for me to eat alone. Right now, I just counted it as a meal if I felt full, and since I've never lived a life where I exercised, I felt full even after eating just one apple. That's a very fortunate thing.
After eating the apple like that, while waiting for the sun to rise properly, I moved to a different spot to build the Monster Farm using the remaining materials. Ranma still hadn't woken up. Ah... I really don't want to do this. I want to build it quickly and get some proper rest, and since I want to leave this place as soon as possible, if there's a situation where I have to build, I wanted to finish the construction as much as possible. I know that if I put off what I have to do, I'll just keep not wanting to do it.
Just then, the door of the hut where Asagi was staying opened, and Asagi came out. Asagi looked startled the moment she saw me.
That really hurts like hell.
"Asagi-ssi? Are you up?"
I hid my disappointed feelings inside and greeted Asagi with a smiling face. Asagi avoided my eyes and nodded.
"Yeah. Sorry for showing you such a pathetic sight yesterday. I'm fine today."
"...Really?"
You don't look very "fine" to me! Asagi's face was flushed. I wanted to tell her to rest a little more since it didn't seem like her fever had gone down properly, but I kept my mouth shut because I felt like I was being unnecessarily pushy. If I told her to rest for no reason and heard something like "I don't want to hear that from a weakling," I was confident I would genuinely end up hating Asagi.
"Well... I'm glad you're feeling a bit better. Ah. I need to use the bed today too, would that be okay? It's been 3 days since I last lay in a bed, so if I don't lie down today, a Phantom will appear."
"W-what!?"
At my words, Asagi was startled and her complexion turned pale. I was hurt again by Asagi's reaction. Does she hate me lying down too? It's almost confirmed to be Asagi's bed now, and I didn't really have any complaints about Asagi using the bed and the guys sleeping in the Pang-da-jak. Still, I had to lie down because of the Phantom, but she even hates that, so I wondered what kind of situation this was.
I barely suppressed the urge to cry out of sorrow, and shrugged my shoulders at Asagi, pretending it was nothing.
"Because it's dangerous if a Phantom appears. Unlike Ranma or Asagi-ssi, I'm just a normal person."
"S-should you lie down now?"
Asagi asked, carefully watching my eyes at my words. I thought about it. There was no particular need to lie down right now. It didn't matter much if I lay down before tonight, that is, right before going to sleep. Phantoms only appear at night, after all.
I shook my head at Asagi's question.
"No. You just have to go in and come out before sleeping later. It doesn't mean much."
"I-is that so?"
Asagi nodded hurriedly. The feeling of her sighing was something I couldn't hate more. Am I dirty!? I can't even smell myself!
"Hey. Asagi-ssi."
"Hmm? Why is it?"
"Do I still smell?"
"Hie... heuu..."
At my question, Asagi's face suddenly turned bright red, and I saw her cover her mouth and nose with one hand. I was hurt again. Does my body smell that bad? I'm not fat. Even if I don't have a muscular body, I have a decent body without any flab!
"I c-can endure it."
"Oh... yup."
I couldn't find anything more to say, so I left Asagi and moved to work. Asagi was awake, but there wasn't much for her to help with. That's because the Monster Farm hadn't been built yet. Ranma still hadn't woken up. Since there were a few Oak Trees that had grown in the meantime, I thought it would be better to chop those first, so I picked up the Wooden Axe and walked toward the mature Oak Trees. Asagi, who was watching me from behind, asked.
"Don't you need any help?"
"Not yet? You'll have plenty to do later."
That's because Asagi has to go into the Monster Farm with me. From then on, Asagi will have to kill monsters until she misses her rest time.
"Hmm... right now?"
"There's nothing right now. Your body doesn't seem fully recovered yet, so you can rest in the hut."
"No. It's not. I think it'd be better to get some sunlight. It's... windy here, too."
"That's true, isn't it?"
Even though the height above this Sky Block is so high that I don't even know how many meters it is, there's only a gentle breeze blowing. It was perfect weather for people to live in. It was definitely weather that would be good for health just by being outside, so it wasn't that I didn't understand Asagi's words.
"Then rest here. I think I'll be done with most of it within today."
"I'll do that. Good luck."
"Hmm... yeah."
Asagi nodded and replied. Then she really went to one corner, sat down with a thud, and started basking in the sunlight. It looks like she's doing photosynthesis. I chuckled and swung the Wooden Axe at the base of the grown Oak Trees, while sneaking glances to admire Asagi's sitting posture.
Because of that graceful body, I can't bring myself to dislike Asagi even if she avoids me.
That wicked body! I can lie in the bed Asagi was using today, so I wish night would come quickly.
Before Ranma woke up, I succeeded in logging all the Oak Trees that had finished growing. I replanted the Oak Saplings that had entered my Inventory onto the clean Dirt Blocks, and it seemed better to head to the Crafting Table to make the materials to build the Monster Farm and move quickly.
"Asagi-ssi?"
"Hmm?"
Asagi, who was sitting on the floor resting, looked at me as I approached after making all the materials. Asagi's combat suit appearance is really pretty, but it's so hard to be careful not to stare at the protrusions sticking out at the tips of her chest. If I look at that, the seal on my junior is broken. I shouldn't look at that, but it pulls my gaze with tremendous suction power as if it were a black hole.
I shouldn't look at that! I'll turn to stone! My junior will turn to stone!
That's Medusa! It's Medusa! The Medusa that turns the viewer's junior into stone!
I thought that to myself, and stared intently only at Asagi's eyes. If I didn't put strength into my eyes, I felt like I would sneak a glance below Asagi's shoulders.
"Why are you doing that?"
As I stared at Asagi with my eyes wide open, Asagi asked with a burdened expression. I still didn't relax my eyes. It was better to put strength into my eyes than to put strength into my junior.
I said quickly.
"I'm going to be building the Monster Farm, so when Ranma wakes up, tell him to chop some Oak Trees with this."
"Can't I do it?"
"Your body condition isn't normal yet. Rest today. Ranma is sturdy, so he won't get tired just from doing a little logging."
I quickly delivered only what I had to say, and headed straight to the side where I was building the Monster Farm with the materials. That was a close call. My junior had turned into stone a little bit. About 30%?