HideLand

🟠 Chapter 17 :

Temporary housing turned out to be a stack of wooden rooms, each barely holding a bunk bed that creaked with every breath.

I was exhausted beyond words. I didn't even bother taking off my shoes… I simply surrendered to gravity and collapsed onto the bed.

Ren, on the other hand, sat cross-legged beside his bed in a meditative pose. Was he doing yoga? …Eh, who cares.

I closed my eyes and let myself drift into the world of dreams…

I found myself inside a massive palace—white marble floors, and candles shimmering like tiny stars.

I was seated on a throne… feeling like a king.

Servants, staff, and an entourage bowed before me with respect.

A fat man with a curled mustache stepped forward and said,

"Lord Takeru, you've crafted 1,000 exquisite pieces of furniture with your Factory skill. The people adore you."

I smiled proudly and turned to the side…

There she was an elegant woman with silky hair like a cloud. Was that… my wife?

She smiled warmly and said,

"My dear Takeru, what will you craft for me tonight?"

I thought for a moment, then replied,

"I shall make you a talking mirror and a chair that massages your feet whenever you're angry."

She giggled sweetly, and then...

Suddenly, the palace turned into… a giant toilet.

Not just a toilet it was some kind of hybrid between a toilet and an air conditioner…

There was a vent buzzing above the seat, and instead of flushing water, it sprayed the same porridge we used to eat in prison.

The toilet screamed in a nightmarish voice

"Takeruuu... you forgot to clean meeeee… againnnnnn!"

"No, please! That chapter of my life is over!"

I tried to run, but the floor was slippery… and the toilet-AC hybrid started chasing me on plastic wheels.

I woke up screaming,

"Not again!"

I hit my head on the wooden ceiling above me, and then heard a sleepy voice from the bottom bunk:

"Dude… let me sleep. We've got work tomorrow… to slack off in."

I sighed and pulled the blanket over me.

Even after getting out of prison… these nightmares still haunt me.

The second day at the workshop was nothing like the first. Actually it was worse. Why? Because the workers had gotten even lazier.

Ren had become the star of the workshop.

Almost every worker praised him:

"Ren, can you carry this board?"

"Ren, come help us here for a sec."

"Ren, could you hold the ceiling in place? Just ten minutes. Simple job."

At first, it seemed like respect… but two hours in, it became a massive freeloading fest.

Ren was running around, helping here, lifting there, rushing over there… and me? I was just watching.

Then people started asking him for things that had nothing to do with construction.

"Ren, can you find my helmet? I think the profit took it."

"Ren, open this bottle for me. My hands are wet."

"Ren, fix my sandal… the strap came loose."

Someone even asked,

"Ren, do you think I look sad today?"

Ren looked fine on the outside… but I could tell he was beginning to lose it inside.

As for me? Once again, no one remembered I existed.

But in the evening, I felt this burning need to do something… something to prove I wasn't just "Ren's silent sidekick."

A simple idea sparked in my mind.

What if… I used my skill for the first time?

I looked around the workshop until I found a thin piece of iron tossed near the wall. Probably part of a broken beam.

I held it in my hand, closed my eyes… and focused.

[Iron ore detected. Would you like to activate the skill "Factory"?]

"Yes. I want to craft a sword."

[Current points: 7. Sword requires: 25. Closest option: Crude Knife.]

"What? No, wait! I want the sword!"

[Don't yell at the system. Crude Knife created.]

In an instant, something appeared in my hand…

Something closer to a butter knife than a weapon.

A short blade, slightly bent, and a handle that looked like it came from a toy set.

I turned my head… and saw three workers staring at me. One of them chuckled:

"Is that… is that a dagger? You cooking for us?"

"No bro, that's only good for slicing tomatoes!"

Then… came the final blow. Ren standing just a few steps away burst into laughter unlike anything I'd heard from him before:

"Ahh, Takeru-dono… sorry… but… hahahaha! I couldn't help it!"

I wanted to disappear. To stick my head in a hole like an ostrich at least until this humiliation passed.

I tried to salvage what little pride I had left.

"I was testing the system… just a basic test."

[Test result: Failure. Full embarrassment. Would you like to try again later?]

"You're getting too chatty, you stupid system."

[Just trying to entertain you. You're boring.]

"Shut up!"