Chapter 56: The Goddess of Measurement
[Unfortunately, there isn’t any description of the consequences, Host,] Pinky explained. [But don’t worry too much! Pinky is sure it’ll be fine!]
[Besides, you only need to keep blood away from the wooden planks, and everything will be fine!]
It was hard for Maeve to believe that everything would be fine when she had no idea what she would be dealing with. However, when she searched for other wooden plank products, the prices were even higher.
The safer the wood was, the more expensive it became. Maeve even found a type of wooden plank that came with absolutely no side effects, but each plank cost two thousand coins.
That was way too expensive!
If she bought it, she would probably only be able to afford a single plank!
[You have to understand, Host.] Pinky floated around her head. [Illegal products are difficult to get, so people aren’t going to sell them cheaply.]
Maeve let out a long, tired sigh. Even after escaping her old world, capitalism had somehow managed to follow her here and no matter where she went, it always found a way to punch her in the face.
"Alright. Alright. Let me think about this for five minutes." She lowered her head and rested her chin on her hand.
For the next few minutes, she imagined every horrible thing that could happen if she bought the suspicious wood.
Maybe it would become cursed, maybe monsters would come out of it, or maybe the entire farm would explode.
Okay, maybe not that last one. But when she compared the risks to the benefits, the benefits still won.
After all, how was she supposed to build a farm without a fence?
[Why don’t you ask Axan to create a shield around the farm too, Host?] Pinky suggested.
Maeve gasped and clapped her hands once. "That’s such a great ide—no, wait." The excitement immediately disappeared from her face. "The barrier around the settlement is already very weak, so Axan has to regularly use his Aether Energy to strengthen it."
"If I ask him to create a shield around the farm too, he might suffer some negative effects," Maeve said. "And the barrier around the settlement might become even weaker."
She clicked her tongue before lightly smacking her cheeks. "Well, I guess I don’t have a choice!" Maeve pointed dramatically at the screen. "I’ll buy the suspicious wooden planks!"
[Ding! Ding!]
[Purchased Premium Wooden Plank Bundle (500 pieces): 2,500 Coins]
[Size of each wooden plank: 3m × 0.30m × 0.03m]
[Remaining Coins: 50]
Maeve hissed softly when she saw her remaining balance. She had never expected the coins she had worked so hard to earn to disappear so quickly.
[Don’t worry, Host! The moment you trigger a new quest, you’ll definitely earn more coins!]
Right.
Maeve was sure her quests would gradually become more difficult if she wanted to earn more coins. Well, she could worry about that later when the time came.
A short while later, Maeve finally left the hut and walked toward Cerus, who had ended up standing beneath a tree near the hut.
A cool breeze brushed against her face. The fresh air helped calm her down after the emotional damage caused by her rapidly shrinking coin balance.
"Cerus," she called softly. "The Sky Mother has blessed me with free wooden planks."
Cerus’s mouth fell open. His eyes widened so much that he looked frozen in place.
"What?" he repeated. "The Sky Mother gave you wooden planks? We don’t even have to make a sacrifice or anything?"
Maeve smiled and shook her head. "No, we don’t need to make any sacrifices. But the Sky Mother specifically told me not to waste these wooden planks, and we must not let them come into contact with blood."
Cerus frowned. "Why?"
Maeve shrugged. "I don’t understand either. But since the Sky Mother gave me a warning, it’s probably better if we follow it, right?"
Cerus immediately nodded like an obedient child. "True. True. We should follow the Sky Mother’s advice. But Wife, where’s the wood?"
Maeve waved her hand. "Oh, don’t worry about that. It’ll appear on its own tomorrow morning."
And she was right because just after sunrise the next day, she took all five hundred wooden planks out of Pinky’s inventory.
The people of Azuryn immediately gathered around Maeve’s hut and couldn’t stop praising her. "Our Goddess is truly the greatest Goddess I’ve ever known!"
"This is the first time we’ve received a Goddess’s blessing without making any sacrifices!"
The villagers carefully examined the wooden planks and soon noticed something unusual.
"All of these are exactly the same size."
The crowd immediately fell silent. They looked closer and noticed that every plank had the same length, the same width, and the same thickness.
"Whoever cut these must be a genius!"
The villagers couldn’t hide their admiration. After all, they had never seen building materials this precise before.
This world didn’t have rulers, measuring tapes, or proper measuring tools. Most people simply estimated sizes with their eyes. As a result, wooden planks often ended up slightly different from one another, even Maeve’s hut had planks that were too large or too small.
"I can teach you how to make something this... perfect," Maeve suddenly said.
She stood in front of her hut with Cerus beside her. Yes, Cerus had insisted on staying with her throughout the night to make sure she was safe. That was why he had ended up sleeping in her hut and watching over her while she slept.
It was a little strange. But at the same time, Maeve couldn’t remember the last time she had felt so safe while sleeping.
"Goddess, you can make things this perfect too?!" someone asked excitedly.
It was Kona, one of the settlement’s carpenters and the person who had built Maeve’s hut as well.
"I... don’t think I can cut wood that large with my strength," Maeve admitted with a laugh. "But I can teach you how to do it."
She smiled confidently. "We just need a measuring tool."
The crowd exchanged confused looks. "A measuring tool?"
Maeve nodded confidently. "Yes! And I’m going to make one for all of you."
[Side Mission has been triggered!]
[Side Mission: The Birth of Measurement]
[Description: Introduce a basic measurement system to the Azuryn Settlement and successfully create the world’s first standardized measuring tool.]
[Conditions:]
- Create at least one measuring tool.
- Teach at least three craftsmen how to use it.
- Successfully produce five wooden planks with identical measurements.
[Reward:
- 2,000 Coins
- Basic Carpentry Knowledge Book
- Title: The One Who Measured the World.]
Maeve froze for a moment. Just a few seconds ago, she had only said that on a whim. She simply wanted to help the villagers improve their woodworking skills.
But now that it had suddenly turned into an official mission, she felt a strange pressure settle on her shoulders.
After all, there was a reason people said that once a hobby became a job, it stopped being relaxing.
Maeve let out a silent groan. Still, she couldn’t complain too much. If she managed to complete this mission, the settlement would benefit from it. Better tools meant better buildings, better craftsmanship, and a better quality of life for everyone.
When she thought about it that way, the effort seemed worth it.
"Oh, Goddess, you’re too kind!" Kona exclaimed, his eyes shining with excitement.
The praise made Maeve feel a little embarrassed. She wasn’t used to people looking at her as if she could solve every problem in the world.
With an awkward smile, she rubbed the back of her neck. "How about this?" she suggested. "Once I’ve finished making the tool, gather the other carpenters and bring them to me as well. I’ll teach all of you how to use it."
The moment she finished speaking, the excitement among the craftsmen grew even stronger.
To them, the Goddess wasn’t just giving them a tool, but she was sharing knowledge and in a world where knowledge was often passed down slowly over generations, that gift was more valuable than they could put into words.
But before she could make the measuring tool, she had to assign the fence-building job to Elder Vax first.
After all, a punishment delayed was hardly a punishment at all. "Where is Elder Vax right now?" Maeve asked.
The excitement among the craftsmen immediately died down. Several people exchanged glances. "Probably at the healer’s hut," someone answered.
Maeve nodded. "Alright, I need to talk to him right now."
After saying that, she started walking in that direction. Cerus immediately fell into step beside her. "Are we going to see Elder Vax?"
"Yes." She nodded.
"Are you changing your mind and deciding to stone him after all?"
Maeve nearly stumbled. "No!"
"Just making sure," Cerus added.
Maeve gave him a look, and based on his expression, she couldn’t tell whether Cerus was joking or not.
But she didn’t think too much about it and decided to change the subject. "Why hasn’t Ikarus come back yet?" she asked. "Are the Clouds really that difficult to catch?"
