CH851

When he’d felt four hours pass he opened his eyes, happy enough with the break he’d gotten. In the years he’d been on that world he’d grown used to functioning on less and less sleep, his high stamina making it easier too but while he’d been expecting to prepare some more food while the others rested for a little longer he found a pair of eyes already on him, Thera watching him from his side.

“Ha, this is a surprise. Not often you’re up earlier than me.”

“I might’ve taken a small nap while you were playing around on the first floor,” She admitted. “I’m pretty rested. And you? Doing okay?”

“I’m thriving, you don’t have to worry about me. This is enough to make me wish I could challenge this tower a second time just to try out some of the different floors or doorways too. It would be cool to get a chance to take on everything the crafting gods cooked up.”

“Ha, I think this has to be the most positive I’ve ever seen you be about a trial,” She teased. “All of the practice doing them’s finally softened you on the experience?”

“Hey now, I love a good challenge when it’s not trying to kill me. If it weren’t for the fact that I really need the rewards for this, taking this one on would just be a game for me. Even getting the chance to repeat it once or twice would have been fun, I’d have loved to see how fast I could clear a floor now that I know what I’m doing. I’m willing to bet every one of them so far is finishable in twenty minutes or less so long as I go even harder with my magic right from the beginning and cut some corners on the meals. I did the best I could for those ones but there’s no way I couldn’t have made some options that would have been quicker, especially combined with the starvation strat.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me, you’re still crazy for making us do that when you don’t even know if that affected anything.”

“But I also didn’t know if it wouldn’t affect anything, I’d say it was worth the chance if it helps make sure you all get your levels and blessings.”

“I think you were just being a worrywart. I’ve gotten to enjoy some of the best food in the world growing up thanks to my mom’s position and you’re still leagues better right now. You can never leave me because I wouldn’t be able to go back to eating like that.”

“We can work on improving your cooking too, you know?”

“Mmh, let’s keep that as a maybe for if the world doesn’t end.”

“Ha, sounds good but speaking of, I only got up to make sure everyone has a meal before we do the next one. You down to give me a hand?”

“Immediately weaseling in some cooking lessons after I tried putting it off? Very sneaky.”

“And yet, we all gotta eat. Come on, it will be fun.”

Getting up, he offered his hand before pulling what he needed from his rings, the two of them whispering and working together while the others still slept.

Fourth floor fourth floor, what do you have in store?

Once everyone was rested and fed, all there was left to do was go on, the door to the next challenge right in front of him and with a single look back to the others he pushed it open, his heart pounding in excitement when he stepped through.

Not another continuation of the last two floors yet similar to both of them, he once more found himself in an endless void, with only a pile of tools and materials taking up space within, another pedestal sitting in front of it all.

So another construction floor then? He thought to himself as he walked over. Three floors that deal with that theme seems like a lot but considering how much it’s expecting us to make from scratch and how different building things for a kitchen is from building things for a dining room it’s been an interesting way of applying different crafting skills and techniques in every single challenge.

Even if similar, there’d been plenty of variety to be found in the other two and his excitement only rose when he read the new instructions, getting one he felt more at home with than any other.

“Create your ideal workshop. Time limit of three hours. Interesting.”

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